The biggest catalyst for change

How to make massive life shifts, new rules for airlines, and the products I'm reviewing

Author

Kelsey Reaves
May 10, 2023

Lately, I’ve been thinking about how quickly things can change. 8 months ago I moved back home to my parent’s house at age 30 after going through a breakup.

While living with my Mom and Dad for several months before I took off traveling, we joked that I looked like Toula from My Big Fat Greek Wedding:

I remember that time being really difficult for me. There were lots of unknowns and I felt like I had taken a massive step back.

But it was also an extremely transformative time.

Instead of indulging in my sorrow (although there was some of that), I took it as an invitation to grow. I started working with a mentor who focused on somatic movement, I gave up drinking for good since I no longer saw the benefit, and I took steps to feel really good in my body by eating intuitively and practicing yin yoga.

And now my life looks completely different.

Since making those changes, I found my person in South Africa and get to grow in an incredibly healthy relationship. And I now split my time between Cape Town and the States, doing what I’m most passionate about — exploring new destinations and reviewing travel products.

I realized that all of this happened because of one thing: I decided to switch up the physical space I was in.

Moving away from San Diego gave me the time and space to heal. Solo-traveling to the other side of the world allowed me to build up my confidence and put my needs and desires first.

Sometimes to experience a radical change in your life, all you need to do is to switch up the space you’re in. And that’s why I’ve always loved travel.

Travel is an incredible catalyst for change.

But the best part about all of this is that even if you’re not in a place to move to a new city or travel to a new country, the smallest change of space can lead to massive shifts.

Maybe it’s taking a new route on your morning walk. Or maybe it’s switching up your workout class to see some new faces.

What’s the smallest switch you can make today that will invite change?

Hey, this is Kelsey, founder of SiteSee. I’ll send an email like this every Friday where I’ll share my musings from my travels, the latest research undertaken by our travel writers, as well as recommendations for travel products, interesting podcasts, good reads, and more.

Some exciting news in the transportation space (if that’s a thing): The Biden administration is planning to propose new rules that would require cash compensation for flyers when airlines are responsible for a cancellation or lengthy delay.

Air travel complaints have skyrocketed in recent years, and they’re well justified. According to the DOT, nearly 80% of cancellations during the first half of 2022 were attributed to airline mismanagement, including issues such as crew shortages, aircraft maintenance, and late-arriving planes.

Our writers will stay on top of this as we learn more, but I thought this would be the perfect time to share my all-time favorite flight hack.

Get yourself an Apple AirTag to put in your checked luggage to track it.

It’s one more line of defense you can add to your travel toolbelt in case your luggage gets lost. I had to learn this the hard way after losing my luggage for 2.5 weeks in Europe. Some airlines don’t have great systems to track luggage, and if you’re able to access the real-time location of your bag, you can save yourself from a massive headache.

Lastly, I’m heading out to the mid-west for my cousin’s wedding and I’ve got the starting line-up for product reviews. I’ll be testing out Carl Friedrik’s Carry-on Pro, as well as clothing and travel accessories like this Boxy Pocket Tee from Unbound Merino and a self-cleaning water bottle from WAATR.

We also have 5 articles hot off the press:

Thanks so much for reading, and if you found something useful or interesting in this email, mind forwarding this newsletter to a friend (or having them subscribe here)?

Otherwise, thanks again and feel free to reply here. I open and respond to everything.

xo,

Kelsey