Positive Psychology in Travel: Can you Unlock the Balance?

We could all use a little positivity these days. Fortunately, travel and positivity go hand in hand with perfect fusion. Let’s explore travel and positivity, including how to recognize and create more positivity on your next vacation using Positive Psychology in travel.

However, contrary to popular opinion, Positive Psychology does not promote the notion of “be happy all the time”. There’s no mantra that indicates we should think only positive thoughts at all times. In fact, that would not be a realistic or healthy expectation to think in exclusively positive ways at all times.

In his world-famous book The Power of Positive Thinking, author Norman Vincent Peale introduced some novel thoughts about positivity.

Psychologist Dr. Martin Seligman is considered the founder of Positive Psychology and author of the seminal book Authentic Happiness. He describes three core domains of positive psychology. These three central issues are positive emotions, positive individual traits, and positive institutions.

Importantly, tenets of positive psychology do not include exclusion of any emotionally challenging thoughts or feelings. It’s not about pretending to be happy no matter what you’re going through. Rather, positive psychology is a study of the factors involved in emotional positivity and positive people, organizations, and situations. Interestingly, it has a lot to say about being happy, but a lot to say about lack of happiness as well!

How do these ideas connect to positive psychology in travel? If you ask people their first impressions when it comes to travel, most will answer in one of two ways. They will either start listing the positive joys of travel like relaxation, or they will bring to mind the genuine stressors of travel like financial cost or challenging itineraries.

So, which is it? Is travel a peaceful joy or a cumbersome challenge? The answer is: Both! We don’t have to think of this in an “either/or” manner. There are wonderfully powerful benefits of travel and also very real stressors.

Bad Things Will Happen in Travel

Bad things can happen on your vacation. Didn’t expect to read that in a “Positive Psychology in travel” article, did you?

Importantly, from a positive psychology standpoint, you don’t need to try to “block out” any stressful or challenging experiences. In fact, you can genuinely experience self-growth from persevering and problem-solving. It’s not about forgetting hard moments like missed flights, cultural snafus, or unexpected costs. These kinds of situations are going to happen.

Still, I’d encourage you to roll with the hard times and embrace a perspective of positivity. For the missed flight, it’s okay to be bummed, but remind yourself of new opportunities before you. Keep in mind that you still have a day in front of you, and can look for things to appreciate in the moment regardless of the missed flight.

It can also help you find healthy appreciation for the vast majority of times that you DO make a flight/train or event on time. Stay in the moment, develop your problem-solving skills, and acknowledge the difficulty without sacrificing the opportunities for positivity before you. You never know which of those challenges will lead to serendipitous results or wonderful stories to tell.

Good Things Will Happen in Travel

Good things will happen on your vacation. Ah, now that sounds more like what you were expecting to read, right?

If you’re going on vacation, we typically expect good things to happen. You probably wouldn’t go on a leisure travel if you weren’t expecting some degree of enjoyment. In part, this is why even the planning of travel can be good for your mental health.

So, go ahead and expect that at least some good things will happen. Look forward to that. Embrace that. Celebrate that! When they occur, try your best to recognize it in the moment and be grateful.

Find the Balance

Even more important than whether “good” or “bad” things happen during your travels is how you perceive the situations. Do you dwell on the challenges and downplay the positive? Or conversely, do you pretend nothing is wrong and avoid negative thoughts at all costs?

The challenge for most of us is this: Can you acknowledge the challenges but focus on noticing the positives of your travels? In other words, can you find the balance in your thoughts?

When you travel, you can promote and develop a natural sense of mindfulness (see this previous post on the psychological benefits of traveling). This helps with finding that balance, as a present-centered (“here and now”) perspective goes a long way in centering our thoughts.

Tips to Travel with More Positive Psychology in Travel

So, how can you travel with more positivity? Believe it or not, this process starts before your vacation begins. It’s a conscious choice, made ahead of time, to choose to seek a mental balance on your trip. That way, when you encounter inevitable challenges, it will help remind you of perspectives that will help reduce frustrations.

Travel with “positive” people. Often, their positivity rubs off on those around them including you! The reason for this is that your brain gets automatic perspective by hearing their positive viewpoints and comments. This essentially forces your mind to consider alternative perspective that might challenge your overly negative thoughts.

Challenge your negative thoughts by comparing the “evidence for” the thought versus the “evidence that doesn’t support the thought”. For example, there may be times you find yourself thinking “this was a terrible day of vacation”. Acknowledge the evidence that supports that thought, but make a dedicated effort to seek evidence against the thought.

You may have had some very real challenges that day, but other parts of the day went smoothly or you may have persevered adequately despite the challenges. Again, the goal is not to pretend that nothing negative happens, but to seek a more balanced and fair perspective. When you can unlock these more balanced thoughts, you will likely feel more positive!

For more, sign up for the free Psychology of Travel Newsletter. Comment below with other travel positivity tips for your fellow travelers!

Happy Travels,

Dr. L
Founder, PsychologyofTravel.com

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