I travel. A lot. Last year I took over 30 flights, visiting 20+ cities and 3 different countries. That doesn’t include road trips.

Growing up in a small town, I knew there was more out there. Each year we took small family trips to places like Hershey Park, the Jersey Shore, and the Adirondacks. They weren’t fancy trips but the goal was to explore places we had never been.

I was hooked.

I’m not going to get into the merits of travel or the benefits it has on individuals and the world as a whole - there are plenty of blogs out there for that. For me however, travel has always been something I’ve loved doing and in turn, something I’ve made a priority in my life.

Not everyone sees it that way. People see my travels and tell me how lucky I am. Yes, I am certainly lucky. I never go a single day without realizing how fortunate I am to live the life I have. But simply travelling doesn’t make me lucky.

Yesterday at work, I was talking about how I am looking forward to spending my summer doing some travelling. The response I received – that must be nice.

You know what? It is nice!

I have chosen to create a life for myself that lets me travel. I have chosen to create a life for myself where I am responsible for me. I have also chosen to surround myself with people who can do the same. It sure is nice.

Now, to be fair, that person wasn’t trying to be a jerk. They have a family and just taking off to Australia for two weeks isn’t feasible. That however is the life they chose.

My response?

“What does she having going on that night? She doesn’t have kids or a husband she has to get home to.”

I’ve had this topic on my mind for a while but when it was brought up at work the other day, it became front and center. See, the challenge of not having kids at home means you don’t have to get home. Or at least that’s the way it looks to others.

No one is relying on me to cook them dinner or teach them how to read. No one is relying on me to pick the kids up from daycare or give them a bath. No, I don’t technically have to get home for anything. Except for me.  

I enjoy my time in the evenings. I strategically plan my weeks to be able to go for a run, cook dinner, or perhaps meet a friend. Sometimes I want to get home simply because I need alone time to decompress and not think about work.

When you don’t have kids, it’s easy to fall into that trap. It’s easy to just keep working and do all the “extra” things because no, you don’t have to get home.

The problem is, it makes it really easy for work to become your life. It becomes really easy to stay a little longer, go to the event another team member can’t attend, or go home and keep working. Trust me, I’ve been there.

Last year at this time, I found myself working until 11pm every night. I worked on the weekends, took on side work, and essentially made myself miserable. It took months of introspection and finally an extended vacation to realize that just because I could work, didn’t mean I had to. My out of office time needs to be a priority.

When the comment was made around my co-worker not having kids, I made sure to bring up the point that just because a person doesn’t have kids or a partner at home, doesn’t make their time any less important.