THE WANDERLUSTERS MIND PODCAST

Abby Lewtas 7/4/20 Abby Lewtas 7/4/20

Acceptance, developing confidence and skiing the world with Michael Whipps.

Michael Whipps describes himself as a 16 year old trapped in a 42 year old body. Michael is a multi-passionate individual who set out to see the world as a naive teenager. By following his passion for skiing and snowboarding he opened his mind to discover so many different places around the world. He fostered relationships and broadened his mindset to approach life from a unique perspective.

Michael Whipps left Australia as a naive teenager and travelled the world skiing and learning to accept how life is. By looking at life a little differently he has gone on to create a unique business in designing and sculpting firepits.

About Michael

Michael first travelled overseas in 1998 when he was 20. He went to Japan for a snow season back when there were very few Aussies there. At this time Michael couldn't speak Japanese and was thrown in the deep end. That started a ten year run of international snow seasons in Japan, Canada, France and America.

Michael has now created a unique metal sculpting business in Mount Beauty, Australia. Together with his wife, he crafts custom hand-cut firepits, furniture and art from concrete, steel and timber He hosts two podcasts. The Metal Sculpture Show and the Classic Pickup Podcast.

“Everyone has their own little story and it’s great to share them.”

— Michael Whipps

In the episode...

How Michael discovered he wanted to travel.
The story about his first trip to Japan (via Ayers Rock/Uluru) of all places.
The moment he realised how important it was to be open to other cultures and start learning their language.
How he found a job in a place where he didn’t speak the local language and knew no one.
Experiencing Niseko in the early days when there were only around 11 other foreigners at the resort.
Being in Whistler during the millennium 1999-2000.
How being naive then lead Michael to France.
Learning about acceptance through his travels.
Michaels 180 mindset shift when he returned to Ayers Rock.
Michaels biggest tip for travellers going to a place with a foreign language.
How Michael believes you build confidence.
The unique metal sculpting business Michael and his wife Rachel set up.

Why Michael continues to seek out travels and adventures…exploring his own backyard and the beautiful places in Australia.

“You have got to accept people for who they are and what they are. If someone has a disability you don’t look at them like they have a disability it’s just that they have got to do things a bit different.”

— Michael Whipps

Links

Website - www.whippsdesigns.com.au

Instagram - @whippsdesigns

Facebook - Whipps Designs

The Classic Pickup Podcast - www.classicpickuppodcast.com

The Metal Sculpture Show - www.metalscuptureshow.com

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Abby Lewtas 6/11/18 Abby Lewtas 6/11/18

Falling in love with a new way of life with Lisbet Mellgren.

Lisbet is half Swedish and half Canadian and grew up in Sweden. She has always had an itch to travel, see the world and learn about new places. In 2008 Lisbet spent a lot of time travelling before moving to Canada where she ended up staying for four years. In 2012 it was time for her to leave and return to Sweden.

Lisbet quit her day job in Sweden and had a plan to go be a ski bum in Whistler. But one month before leaving she got a job offer to be the area manager for a Swedish ski company based in Fernie, British Columbia. She took the job and planned to go for a season. Little did she know that she would fall in love with a town the lifestyle and stay for four years.

Lisbet left Sweden bound for a one year job in Canada. Four years later she returned home to start her own project management company.

About Lisbet

“How can I make something good out of this instead.”

— Lisbet Mellgren

When coming home...

Emotions and differences Lisbet faced - Felt lots of love from family and friends but part of her was telling her to leave and go somewhere new.
What had changed for Lisbet - Friends had started families and were at new stages of life. She felt most of the changes were in herself. Living in Canada took her to a new level of herself.
How Lisbet supported herself - Talk to other people, made new friends, enjoy her time where she was.
How her mindset had changed - Became more open and willing to do things. She felt more Canadian. She worried less and would try new opportunities and be more eager to take risks.
3 Lessons learned from travel and reverse culture shock

Not sweat the small things - have a mentality that things will work out and stay calm.
How to connect and learn from people that you normally wouldn’t not befriend.
Let go of the sense that having an ‘itch’ to change and move is not a negative thing but rather a positive t

Advise to herself for returning home - Stay calm and give yourself time to adjust and settle and ease back into life and work towards finding a new plan.

“You always hit things not at all what you expect (when travelling)”

— Lisbet Mellgren

Mike Campbell - Corporate marketer to living immediately.

Mike Campbell is a speaker, podcast host and writer behind liveimmediately.com. He encourages parents and organisations to live more with less, and to spend as much time as possible doing things they enjoy with people they love.

During 2016 Mike, his wife and then 4 year old daughter went on a family adventure where they attempted to house and pet sit their way through North America.

They spent winter in the north woods of Wisconsin, in a log cabin in the middle of a national forest, in a town called Clam Lake that has a population of 37 people. When they arrived there daughter was the youngest person in the town and Mike was the second youngest.

They then had spring in the Colorado Rocky Mountains of Breckenridge, summer in Rhode Island, and Autumn in Upstate New York.

Slow travelling through North America and spending quality time with his wife and daughter.

About Mike

During 2016 Mike, his wife and then 4 year old daughter went on a family adventure where they attempted to house and pet sit their way through North America.

They then had spring in the Colorado Rocky Mountains of Breckenridge, summer in Rhode Island, and Autumn in Upstate New York.

“Everything works out in the end, if its not worked out its not the end.”

When coming home...

Emotions and feelings Mike faced - finding life rhythm, juggle finances, career and life. Unknown of what will happen next.
Biggest stress - Not wanting to come back to the 'normal,' trying to figure out what his next chapter was all about, continually maintaining the relationship with his wife and daughter.
How Mike supported himself - Support has always been around him with his wife and family. Diving into setting up his new website and podcast.
3 Lessons learned from travel and reverse culture shock.

Time is the true currency.
Our kids are always in contact with us.
The trip is only one part of the journey.

Advise to himself when coming home - This is just another stop on the adventure, this is not the end, just another destination so enjoy the ride.

“You don’t know what the end result is and you think you might be able to predict how something will turn out, but more times than not it turns out completely different, but even more beautiful.”

— Mike Campbell