The 5 Secrets to Becoming a Full-Time RVer ASAP
You CAN Do This. We are Here to Help!
“The only thing that’s keeping you from getting what you want is the story you keep telling yourself.” -Tony Robbins
Who are We?
Matt and Laurie from the great state of Michigan! Matt is a recently-resigned police officer, and Laurie’s background is in the medical field. We purchased our first RV in February 2020 and had such a great summer exploring upper Michigan. We had NO idea that a little over a year later, it would become our home!
How we got here
Our story is a little different than a lot of full-time RVers. We don’t have multiple streams of income. We don’t have remote jobs. We aren’t influencers. We aren’t retirement age with amazing pensions. We’re just an everyday, middle-class couple who dreamed of living tiny and traveling full-time “someday.”
We had a comfortable life, and we were in the routine of Matt’s 7p-7a shifts as an officer. He started experiencing some health issues that were impacting his ability to process situations and make decisions, and his line of work leaves no room for error or hesitation.
Life changed very quickly for us, and he resigned from his position knowing he needed time to heal. Without his income, we couldn’t afford our living arrangements at the time, and neither of us desired to return to corporate life. We sold or gave away an incredible amount of items and decided to hit the road in our little 28′ travel trailer while we worked seasonal jobs in locations that we would only ever have dreamed about visiting for a week or two if we were still living the 7p-7a life.
Our 5 Best Tips
Now that you know a little about us, we are super excited to share the top 5 secrets to becoming a full-time RVer ASAP that we discovered on our OWN path to achieving life on the road!
Secret #1: You DON’T have to have the perfect RV or truck to get started.
Wait…what?
We started with our 28’ travel trailer and our 2010 Ford F-150 (which we still have)! We have been surrounded by huge, beautiful fifth wheels and new trucks the whole time we’ve been on the road. Who wouldn’t want that? BUT…by starting with what you have or starting with something smaller and more affordable, you have little to no debt, and you get on the road sooner than you ever thought possible! This also gives you time to really discover your needs, likes, and dislikes as far as a floor plan goes. We learned A LOT about our needs and preferences, and we share in much greater detail here!
Would you rather have your house full of stuff for the next few years or a heart full of love, adventure, and beautiful memories?
Secret #2: You can make money, travel full-time, and live in some incredible places FOR FREE!
How is this possible?
Are you concerned about making money on the road? Would you like to have the peace of mind that you at least have a place to stay for free? Camp hosting or workamping could be a perfect opportunity for you! With camp hosting, you often work a certain number of hours per week to receive your site and utilities for free. If you need additional income, there are many workamping positions that pay you for all hours worked, provide you with a free site and possibly even your utilities, WiFi, and laundry! The best part? You get to decide where home will be each season!
Secret #3: Fear is a liar.
We can all identify times in our life or specific situations when we’ve allowed fear to win. Maybe there’s a feeling of regret or a wondering what life might look like had you chosen to make that move or leave that job or taken that trip. What if this is one of those times? Wouldn’t you love to be able to say, “It was terrifying, but we did it anyway, and now we are living our dream!”
One of our favorite quotes is, “Scared is what you’re feeling. Brave is what you’re doing.” -Emma Donoghue
It is okay to acknowledge that making a change this big is scary! We felt the same way! The key is to not allow fear to paralyze you. You can do ANYTHING you set your mind to.
What are you most afraid of when it comes to transitioning to full-time RV life? Now ask yourself what would your life look like without that fear? Which one feels better to you?
Secret #4: Simplifying NOW gets you on the road sooner!
Does the thought of simplifying overwhelm you? Taking small steps NOW will make a world of difference when you are ready to make the move to full-time RV living! If you aren’t ready to sell your home or move from your current location, there are plenty of things you can do to start simplifying right where you are.
We have always had a desire for less. When we knew we were close to becoming empty nesters, we sold our home and downsized to a duplex that we rented. We didn’t even have plans to go full-time. That was a dream for many years down the road. We just longed for a more simple life. Moving and cutting our square footage in half forced us to be even more intentional with our belongings. We were shocked at how much we had accumulated, and we couldn’t believe how much we sold and gave away. We are here to help you through this process by sharing our experience of downsizing to a 28′ travel trailer!
What is the most overwhelming part of downsizing to you? Drop it in the comments below on this video/this post, and we’ll respond back with some actionable steps you can take to beat the overwhelm!
Secret #5: Everyone needs a dream board in their life!
“The only thing that’s keeping you from getting what you want is the story you keep telling yourself.” -Tony Robbins
We have told ourselves plenty of stories over the years. “We could never travel full-time because…” We don’t have remote jobs. We aren’t influencers. It costs too much. We aren’t retirement age and don’t have pensions to support us. We’re sure you can add to the list?!
A couple of years ago, we decided to change the story in our heads! We started by creating a dream board! If we’re being honest, we didn’t have any solid beliefs that looking at this on a consistent basis and allowing ourselves to dream would result in anything. Here’s the crazy thing. Our circumstances changed pretty dramatically in a very short and unexpected period of time. Everything that was stable for us at the time, including our main source of income, quickly became questionable due to health issues. The end result? Nearly everything on our dream board became reality for us, not AT ALL in the way we ever thought it would and definitely not in the timing we thought it would…we’re talking YEARS sooner than we ever dreamed. God’s hand was in the details, and we are so thankful He blessed us with this opportunity.
Your dreams matter. They’re worth chasing. Let’s create a board so you have a visual reminder of your dreams!
You Can Do This
What’s stopping you? What one step can you take today to move toward the life of your dreams?
We are here to help you and encourage you to live the life you’ve always dreamed of…starting now!
