Most people think feeling lost in life is a bad thing.
Like it means you’re behind.
Like something is wrong.
Like you should hurry up and “figure it out.”
But what if feeling lost is actually the sign that you’re alive?
When I was a teenager traveling full-time with my family, we didn’t try to avoid the unknown — we tried to create it on purpose. We believed that getting lost wasn’t dangerous. It was where the magic lived.
And looking back now, I realize something most people never get taught:
Comfort and financial security can quietly kill the spark that makes life feel meaningful.
Why the Unknown Feels Scary (But Is Actually Where Life Begins)
Our lives today are built to eliminate uncertainty.
We schedule everything.
We research everything.
We plan everything.
And it makes sense — our primal brain associates the unknown with danger. Somewhere deep inside us lives this belief that:
Unknown = unsafe
But after years of intentionally stepping into uncertainty, I’ve learned something completely opposite:
The unknown doesn’t equal danger. It equals living.
Most people don’t feel stuck because something is wrong with their life.
They feel stuck because their life has become too predictable.
No curiosity.
No risk.
No room to explore.
Just routines, responsibilities, and repetition.
Getting Lost on Purpose (Our Family’s Secret to Feeling Alive)
My mom and I used to have a phrase during what we call our “golden era” of travel:
Predictable unpredictability.
Which basically meant… getting lost on purpose.
We would turn our 30-foot RV down random dirt roads with no idea where they led. We’d hop on planes with only a general plan. We’d say yes to spontaneous adventures just to see what would happen.
Sometimes it worked out beautifully.
Sometimes it turned into total chaos.
But every single time, it made us feel alive.
There was something magical about not knowing what was coming next. That mix of excitement, fear, curiosity, and courage.
It felt like breathing fresh air after being stuck in a small room for too long.
When the Unknown Turns Into a Mess (And Why It’s Still Worth It)
One time in Keystone, Colorado, we chased a rumor about free camping down a dirt road.
Mile after mile passed.
No pullouts.
Nowhere to turn around.
Eventually, my mom had to back our RV in reverse for minutes on a narrow mountain road — then somehow pull off a full 30-point turn on a tiny patch of dirt.
Was it stressful?
Absolutely.
Was it dangerous like our brains imagined?
Not really.
And in the end, it became one of those stories we still laugh about.
That’s when I realized something important:
Our minds almost always make the unknown scarier than it actually is.
The Best Adventures Came From Not Knowing
Some of our most unforgettable experiences happened because we didn’t over-plan.
Like the time in Norway when we couldn’t research hikes (everything was in Norwegian), so we just trusted a local’s recommendation.
We ended up on one of the most beautiful hikes of our lives — standing on a summit overlooking fjords in total awe.
Or the spontaneous mountain biking trip in Jackson Hole that accidentally put my mom and me on a double black diamond trail way beyond our skill level.
We were scared.
We walked half of it.
I fell more than once.
But by the end, sitting together with our family sharing the story, it became one of my favorite memories.
The discomfort built confidence.
The fear turned into pride.
The unknown became growth.
When We Chose Safety — And Lost Our Spark
In 2020, everything changed.
Fear crept in.
Security started driving decisions.
We shifted toward home bases and routine.
What was supposed to feel safe actually felt suffocating.
For the first time in my life, there was nowhere for my adventurous nature to go.
And I realized something most people never question:
We chase comfort and financial security thinking they’ll make us feel safe — but often they just drain us.
I even took a bartending job purely for “security,” even though it exhausted me and pulled me away from what I actually wanted to build.
It didn’t create peace.
It created burnout.
Fear had won that round.
The Real Problem With Playing It Safe
Security feels rational.
Routine feels responsible.
Comfort feels like the “adult” thing to do.
But what’s the cost?
Where have you traded exploration for predictability?
Spontaneity for schedules?
Aliveness for safety?
Most of us don’t realize we’re outsourcing our sense of security to money, routines, homes, or plans — instead of building it inside ourselves.
And slowly, life starts to feel smaller.
You Don’t Have to Buy an RV to Feel Alive Again
Here’s the good news:
You don’t need to quit your job.
You don’t need to travel the world.
You don’t need to do something extreme.
Turning down a “dirt road” can be simple.
It might look like:
• Starting the creative project you’ve been scared to try
• Taking the trip you keep putting off
• Changing a routine that feels draining
• Saying yes to something unfamiliar
• Exploring a new way of thinking
Adventure isn’t just physical.
It’s choosing growth over fear.
The Question That Changes Everything
Where in your life are comfort and financial security driving your decisions instead of sitting in the passenger seat?
Where are you playing it safe even though deep down you feel stuck?
And what would it look like to intentionally step into the unknown — just a little — this week?
Because being lost isn’t the problem.
Staying stuck in the known out of fear is.
The unknown isn’t death.
It’s what makes life worth living.
So turn down the dirt road.
Go get lost.
And watch your spark come back to life.
Click here to continue my Raised on the Road series.
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