(To keep getting 8 Good Things, please add explorer@sojourn-intl.com to your email contacts.)

I am genuinely touched by the number of people who have sent emails about last year’s weekly 8 Good Things. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Because of you, I am happy to continue sending this newsletter as my gift, though it will be twice a month instead of weekly. I look forward to sharing a bit of inspiration with you again in 2018.

Also, if you have links, stories, or videos that you would like to suggest sharing, please send to Maria at explorers@sojourn-intl.com

Make sure to scroll all the way down to see my upcoming expeditions and programs

1) 10 hot travel destinations you should visit in 2018. Believe it or not, Arizona is number ten on the list. Evidently, Beyonce and Jay-Z like to hang at the Sanctuary in Scottsdale. Me too, I have the bathrobe to prove it! Celebrated one of my birthday’s there. Someone very thoughtful at the hotel covered my bed in rose petals, so dreamy.

2) Six big travel questions for 2018. Concerned or bummed by over-tourism (seems to be the buzz word now), try going on your adventures during the off-season. More and more travel companies and providers are looking to market this option. Benefits: better prices and fewer people.

3) Your guide to commercial space travel in 2018. It seems this could be a banner year for the business of space travel. Elon Musk and SpaceX, Boeing, Google Lunar X Prize, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, to name a few, are all in action on this one. I soooo want to figure out a way to get my Greek-American booty into space, THAT is at the top of my travel hit list.

4) How to Choose Goals That Make You Come Alive. It is more than merely choosing something you want to achieve. And it is more than just having willpower. You also need to cultivate what research claims are the five different elements of well-being: positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment; these are what you experience along the way.

5) 6 Tricks that Will Make This Year’s Resolutions Different From All the Rest. My personal favorite tip: “Believe in Your Dreams.”

6) Here is an app that will help keep your resolutions: HabitBull. I am currently using to track three things every day: no texting and driving, drinking at least 1.5 liters of water, and writing. The app is based on Jerry Seinfeld, who is known for the running calendar that he kept, and maybe even still does, that shows the many consecutive days he practiced his stand-up material. He made big red Xs on a wall calendar that he could see every day and hated the thought of breaking the chain, so he kept practicing. Look where it got him.

7) What to watch for in TV’s endless stream of options. The article says that 2017 was the year of the cord-cutter. Where has everybody been!? I have not owned a TV since the end of 2011, have not missed it once. Everything can be found online, and I am okay to watch something on my iPhone or laptop. It makes it easier to watch shows when and where I want. This year should prove to be a defining one for internet TV.

8) Top 5 Trends For Marketers And Entrepreneurs in 2018. Number one and a goodie to lead the charge: “We are in an experience economy. Antiquated rules of engagement no longer apply.” Well, thank God! As a creature who embraces change, disruption is good!

“New Year’s Day. A fresh start.
A new chapter in life waiting to be written.
New questions to be asked, embraced, and loved.
Answers to be discovered and then lived in this year of delight
and discovery. Today carve out a quiet interlude for yourself in which
to dream, pen in hand. Only dreams give birth to change.
~ Sarah Ban Breathnach, NY Times Bestselling Author

Sojourn Expeditions

Photographic Safari and Mindfulness Workshops
Kenya, March 3rd – 8th, 2018
Botswana, March 21st – March 28th, 2018

Breakfast with hippos floating around in the background, simply idyllic, and there is so much more to experience. This is a FANTASTIC adventure! I recently took a guest to Kenya, and it was indeed a transformative experience. If Africa is on your hit travel list, I urge to go and go full out. Great Plains Conservation’s Wild Studio was started by award-winning National Geographic filmmakers Beverly and Dereck Joubert. Whether you are a pro or an amateur, you will have the extraordinary experience of photographing lions, leopards, elephants, and buffalo. Best part is that there will always be a veteran wildlife photographer there to give you tips on getting great shots. Leave with an amazing portfolio of your wildlife adventure. Africa has long been my favorite place in the world, and I love sharing it with others. Please join the Wild Studio Team and me on a uniquely curated safari that will tap into your true inner-photographer.

Greek Islands, May 25th – June 2nd, 2018 | Memorial Day Weekend
If you romanticize sailing and hiking the islands in the Aegean, then come along with me. Explore, meditate, do restorative yoga, energizing breathwork, eat great food, dance. Find your inner Zorba. Opa!

Sojourn Programs

Happiness: The Art of Life Balance (Beta)
I am committed to helping those who sit in the overwhelm, continually feeling out of time, and always stressed. As a longtime TV producer, I have been there many times over and have spent the last eleven years studying what to do about it. My promise is to get you out of the crazy and into the happy. To do that, I have put together a program that can fit into anyone’s schedule and can be joined anytime. For a complimentary consultation, please contact me.

Personalized Teaching
Offering sessions in Mind-Body Centering (includes Restorative Yoga), Mindfulness Meditation, Primordial Sound Meditation, and Prayer of the Heart Meditation. Available in-person or on Skype.

Happy Weekend! Love,
Maria and Team Sojourn
Learn More About Us | +800-869-0538

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