Five ways travelling is good for your brain, and five ways to get the same benefits at home
One of the reasons I love travelling is that it nudges my brain out of its well-worn grooves. When I land somewhere new - a different language, different rhythms, even the way people queue - my attention sharpens. I stop operating on autopilot and start actually noticing again.
What’s great is that you don’t need a long-haul flight to access that shift. You can recreate many of the same effects in the middle of your ordinary week.
Here are five ways travel helps your brain, and how to bring those benefits home.
1. Travel interrupts your habits
So much of daily life runs on automatic. Travel forces a reset: new streets, new routines, new supermarkets (love them), new decisions.
At home: Change one small element of your day. Work from a different café, take a different walking route, or switch the order of your morning. Small changes are enough to wake up your attention.
2. Travel heightens your awareness
When you’re away, you naturally tune in more closely - new sounds, new food, new surroundings. It pulls you into the present.
At home: Try a quick “pause and notice” practice before a meeting or call. Look up, breathe, and deliberately notice three things around you. It’s a simple way to get out of your head and come back to the present moment.
3. Travel expands your cognitive maps
Navigating unfamiliar systems - transport, signs, social cues - gives your brain new material to work with. It strengthens flexibility and adaptability, which show up everywhere in leadership and life.
At home: Do something you’re not already good at. Try a new class, pick up a different book, or attempt a recipe you’ve never made. I recently did an introduction to acting class that was SO scary and rewarding! Letting yourself be a beginner is surprisingly energising.
4. Travel normalises uncertainty
Travel hands you dozens and dozens of small unknowns each day. Eventually you realise you can handle not knowing exactly what you’re doing.
At home: Choose small, low-risk stretches. Delegate something you usually keep close, ask for feedback early, or let someone else run the agenda. It’s an approachable way to build tolerance for the “not quite sure yet” moments.
5. Travel increases your social curiosity
Most of us become more open and observant when we’re away. We smile more, ask more questions, and pay closer attention to people. I’m definitely more sociable when I’m travelling.
At home: Try adopting a “traveller’s mindset” at work. Ask one more curious question. Learn something about a colleague you don’t normally talk to. Notice the dynamics you usually breeze past.
You don’t need to be in another hemisphere to experience (all) the benefits of travel. You just need to interrupt the familiar often enough that your brain remembers there are other ways to move through the world.
If you try any of these, let me know how they land - I’m always curious what people notice first.
Until next week,
Madeleine
PS I’ll be travelling in Q1 next year and kicking off new engagements with clients from April 2026. You can lock in your spot now!
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