You’re too comfortable. This is the only stage in life where you will be able to be outwardly selfish. This is when you test your will, figure out what you like, what you don’t, and where your soul ignites. A part of discovering your soul requires you to make yourself uncomfortable and open up growth and realizations. Moving to a new city/ place could allow you to do this in the most vulnerable way.

Moving kinda sucks, there is no way around the feeling of anxiety, and skepticism that comes with trusting your journey and a new place in the world. As romantic as it may seem to escape and discover who you are in a new place, starting over can be extremely intimidating and more difficult than you think. At the age of 22, I have experienced multiple places, spaces, and move in situations. I have lived alone, with roommates, and with family… Each move came with its own doubts and moments of “What the f*** have I done?” but eventually it becomes normal. Whether you move for college, university, work, or pure pleasure, it’ll never be easy.

Now I have never made a BIG move, one that requires a plane ride or a new province/state. Last year I attempted to reroute my life to Toronto in hopes of modelling full time - The universe and the pandemic had other plans ha! However, in the moment, I had never been to Toronto in my entire life and now I was moving there??? I attempted to pack whatever amount of my life that could fit on the plane and set off. I felt a great sense of growth during my time in Toronto. I then came home due to the rising number of cases and lack of work. FAST FORWARD to now. A year later, I am moving back to Toronto, for real this time. I have signed to a new agency and signed off on a new place. I sit here looking at my half-packed luggage with a sense of discomfort and excitement. I know that I am destined for extraordinary things that won’t occur if I stay in one place. I love my city but I refuse to be stagnant. I know it may feel like you’re running from life, and something good sometimes but as a self-proclaimed hotfoot, I promise you that this is the way to discover what you want out of life. Moving is a life-changing decision, one that is liberating and inspiring. You open yourself up to a new world, population, and experiences. I have heard multiple scenarios in which people have moved, landed jobs they never thought they would get or even meet the love of their life. Why block yourself? Open yourself up to this world. And if you are able to travel, to move, acknowledge your privilege, and please don’t take it for granted.

MAJOR REASONS TO MOVE - IN YOUR 20’S

If 2020/21 threw your life in a circle and made you think differently - out of choice or necessity - trust me, you are not alone. I myself, thought about moving, staying, and upending my life almost every day for a year. Many people moved to less population-dense cities or even moved for new work. Cost of living is a major factor that hinders one’s ability to move. You think of the new costs, settling in, and initial fees. However, what you don’t see is how your 20’s are a time where you can actually afford to live a bit risky. Being in my early 20’s, I wish to know more about moving and the process behind it. I can only do so by actually following through with it.

Whether you are considering moving for school, work, family, inspiration, love, or just away. Here are some reasons I think you should just do it. Be wanderlust with me.

1. With A New Place, Comes A New You

Living in one city, only knowing one thing, hinders you and prevents you from fully spreading your wings and testing your will. You are stuck in the same routine, seeing the same people, and trying little to nothing new. Sticking to your “home sweet home” in your 20’s is preventing you from becoming the butterfly you truly are. So why not discover yourself?

2. Who do you want to become?

The reason I moving from Vancouver to Toronto is that I want to gain a more diverse network, one that shares similar interests to me and pushes me towards my goal of becoming an influential model. Now I love Vancouver, but modelling is essentially non-existent here. Toronto is a much more populated city with similar values of a cultural mosaic. This feels like a comfortable move that will also force me to adjust to not having my core friend group around me. I find home in people, so not being surrounded by my girls, family, and loved ones will be hard but I believe I will truly discover a sense of self and who I am professionally and outside of these relationships as well as in new ones.

COVID-19 changed a lot for me. I moved back home and made myself extremely comfortable in my environment and routine. I worked from home and did not gain a lot of traction in my modelling career due to restrictions… I began to feel stagnant in my environment and knew it was important that I get out of this plateau. With every new city comes a new opportunity and growing up won’t happen by itself so ask yourself - “Who do I want to become?”. I am not running from myself, rather running towards myself and making realizations. I am now planning how I will do things differently in every city that I relocate to.

3. You'll Open Yourself Up To Different Perspectives

As a sociology major, I do believe that we are a product of our environment and social circles. When you live in one place your entire life, you're used to one cultural experience.

Even when I just visited new york for a few weeks in hopes of moving, I was introduced to so many different people and perspectives from throughout the world. I never would have had the opportunity to interact with them if I stayed in Canada.

Venturing out and meeting new people is truly rewarding. You'll begin to realize the world is such a unique place, with so much to offer.

When you live in a new city, you will likely exhaust the number of restaurants and bars to try in a matter of a year. but trust me, it will start to feel stale, and you will start to return to your joints. It’s human nature. Then what do you do? Now, when the weekend comes along, I am not saying bar openings are everything but social events are important in your 20’s - more interested in events. I need something that will ignite and stimulate my emotions.

If you crave adventure, judge a city by how dynamic it is instead. What does its event calendar look like? What about the arts and culture scene? What do people do here?

If you are a person of routine, then see how accessible the things you enjoy are. Do you like to have coffee tea at a neighborhood cafe at 9 AM every day? Do you like to lie in a park on the weekends and read a book? What does that look like in practice? The grass is always greener on the other side, avoid the temptations and root yourself somewhere new.

4. Finding your people

Now I have my people here in Vancouver, BC. but one thing I have learned is that my people are not going anywhere. Actually, coincidently so, my people do plan on following me and visiting. I have had most of my best friends book week-month-long trips to purely visit me in my new city. However, not everyone is as blessed as me.

There’s the famous quote you’ve likely heard by motivational speaker, Jim Rohn: “you are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.’’

Research shows that environmental influences extend beyond just 5 people. Author of In Friend of Friend and professor David Burkus highlights the impact that weaker connections can have on us. “If your friend of a friend of a friend is happy with their life, then you have a 6 percent greater likelihood of being happy yourself.”

That’s a statistical way of saying your community matters. So is the atmosphere one that picks you up or brings you down? Does it leave you inspired, or unmotivated? Looking beyond your feelings, are there people with similar interests as you?

Surprisingly, I’ve found that it’s easier to integrate into a niche community, such as creatives, models, and so on, the smaller that community is. I am excited to see who I will interact with in Toronto.

5. Treating time as your most valuable currency

There’s no undo button for time. While access to healthcare may vary, the inevitability and unpredictability of death is shared. I don’t say that to scare you, but rather to say, a simple fact of life,

Time is a tricky thing. I always gravitate towards feeling pressured by time. When will I achieve my goals? Will I get there? Do I have enough time? My biggest lesson has been that time is less of a pressured concept and more of a thing to take advantage of and share gratitude for. I have learned that your 20’s are the epicenter of time. It moves fast and slow here. You will look back at all the things you did in such little time and how fast it flew by at the same time.

Move to the city that is built for efficiency. I want to be able;e to get from one corner of the city to the other in less than half an hour by car, train, or bus. By living In Toronto, I hope to gain a new hour in my day. The question is, will I spend it in a way that matters? I feel like this could also be a nice little segway into New Yorck City and the rest of the world.

6. The ease of escape

The ability to clear your head is crucial to handling the ups and downs of city life. 

Beyond nature, what does it look like to escape the boundaries of the city? The number of direct flights and the time it takes to get to the airport are important considerations if you don’t have a private jet and like to explore. In New York, you likely need to leave 3 hours before a flight. In LA, likely 2 hours…

To be fair, it matters where you live in the city.

Moving to a new city is a major commitment. It’s not just about getting into new habits but also building a new community. There’s no wrong reason for taking the leap of faith onto new, undiscovered land, but there’s also a lot to think about beyond the cost of living.

“We only have one life to live, unless Elon Musk figures that out too, so get out there and explore. And if you’re stuck in a place that you don’t love right now, know that it’s just temporary and start planning for how you are going to get to the place that speaks to your hedonistic or enlightened soul. Either way, I’m not judging.”

When you live in one place your whole life, you naturally associate comfort and happiness with that place. You begin to think maybe you'll never be happy living anywhere else.

But, that's just fear talking. You can make anywhere feel like home; it's all what you make of it.

Now let’s get uncomfortable.
WANDERLUST