Why Confronting Fears While Traveling Makes You a Better Person

I was about 1,000 feet above the jungle when I started to panic.

Questions started racing through my head: why did I think this was safe? How does the pilot even steer this thing? Are there many hot air balloon accidents in Laos?

A few slow, deep breaths and taking a minute to enjoy the horizon, rather than looking straight down, and my panic subsided into a healthy kind of nervousness.

The past few days in Vang Vieng, Laos, I had been zip-lining, kayaking, and completed a hike that is best described as a scramble up a sheer cliff rather than a walk through the jungle. 

But this hot air balloon ride takes the cake. This was the scariest thing I had ever done.

And I am so glad I did it.

Why Facing Your Fears Is Important

Everyone has fears. I don’t care who you are. And every fear leads to a smaller, more limited life unless you take that fear head-on.

Every person has a critical…