Lately, it’s been hard for us to watch and read the news because a lot of people are suffering badly due to the inflation and crises happening in the world right now. Not only is it making us sad to see people not being able to pay their bills, but we’re almost embarrassed that we’re not really affected by the economical crises.
We've been through crises before
When that is said, we have to add, that as a homeowners for more than 20 years we’ve been through other crises (like the one in 2008). Maybe that’s why we feel luckier than ever because we live in an RV.
We’ve learned to live with less a long time ago, so we don’t have to rethink our lives to save money. We already know that our two solar panels on the roof provide us with all the electricity that we can use and due to lack of space we don’t have to cut down on luxuries. We already did that four years ago.
We’re lucky enough to be able to buy cheap fruit and vegetables straight from the farmer or at markets. If we feel that diesel is too expensive, we simply drive shorter distances and find somewhere beautiful to stay, that meets our financial capacity.
But we still feel guilty about saying this out loud, while other people are suffering.
Have you thought about giving up your home?
The other day we saw a video from a fellow traveler, where she begged people not to contact her privately for advice on how to live in a tent. Today she lives in an RV like we do, but earlier she lived almost two years in a big tent in the woods and now people are asking her for survival advice.
It broke our hearts to see how sad it made her. When she decided to live in a tent it wasn’t because she had to, but because she wanted to. But these days people are looking at living in tents and RVs because they can’t pay their electric bill. How crazy is that?
Maybe you’ve thought about it too? If so, don’t see it as giving up on your life. See it as a new beginning instead.
Crises call for change
We think we’ll see quite a lot of people moving into RVs and vans in the next year or so, for sad reasons. But honestly, we also think we’ll see people who’ll keep on living that way even after the crises is over. Because they’ve found out that it’s a great way of living. Not only because of the freedom to go wherever they want, but also the freedom of not being so vulnerable when a thing like a major economical crises brings the world to its knees.
You might think that living in an RV or a van isn’t possible for “normal” people, but there are lots of people living a normal life while having an untraditional home. During the research for our Masterclass, we found out, that it’s not uncommon for employees to park their homes at the parking lot of their workplace and drive to a lake or a forest when the workday is over.
We’ve also seen how social and caring trailer park communities can be really giving to a lot of people. In those communities, people also get up and go to work in the morning. So for some moving into a home on wheels might be done out of necessity, but continue out of love for the lifestyle.
Can we look at the situation with positivity?
Maybe the crises will even force someone to live out a lifelong dream because they have to. Setting all the thoughts and fears they used to have aside because basic survival is more important. And poof all of a sudden they find themselves living out their dream. Sometimes we need that kind of kick in the butt, don’t we?
When we designed “The new rich” for our collection of travel-mugs earlier this year, it was because freedom is a wealth not many people think about.
But now there’s another dimension to it too: Living in an RV can significantly lower your expenses on heat and electricity and these days the ability to be warm and cozy without worrying about money, seems to be a luxury too. Who would have thought that? It shouldn’t have to be that way, but as long as it is, why not get the best out of the situation?
See what you gain instead of what you loose
- The power to overcome the constant pain in your stomach due to a crisis you didn’t create yourself.
- Economical freedom in a world that (right now) dictates that you have to worry about bills.
- Freedom to drive wherever you want and get the feeling of vacation, without actually being on one (and spending extra money on vacation).
- Downsizing your life and getting rid of all the unnecessary things that don’t really make you happy anyway (even though you might think they do). Let go of clutter.
- More time with your spouse and/or family (or yourself) because you don’t have to spend time cleaning, gardening, and repairing stuff in your home all the time.
- The ability to drive over to your friends or family and stay for a day or two in your own home in the driveway or at a parking lot. Spending quality time together.
- In the long run get to see a lot of new places and countries, because you have the freedom to do that in an RV. Either on the weekends or for longer periods.
- The list goes on. Living in an RV gives you more freedom than you might think.
There are hundreds of questions popping up, once you decide to start a new life. We know that! That’s exactly why we’ve created From Dreamer to Doer (in both English and Danish). Because we’ve already found all the answers to things like:
How about practical things like phones, banks and insurance? How to tell your family? How to earn money? How to rethink your job situation if needed? How to protect yourself? And much much more.
Even if you choose not to check out our Masterclass, don’t be embarrassed or feel scared! Considering solving your own economical problems by moving into an RV doesn’t make you a loser. Crises call for change. We chose it back in 2018 and even though we left a lot behind, we gained so much more than we’d ever imagined we would.
