MAKING IT HAPPEN. EXPEDITIONS 103: MONEY

EVERYONE ASSUMES MONEY WILL BE THE #1 ISSUE, BUT PUT IN ORDER IT’S ACTUALLY FAIRLY EASY TO WORK OUT. LIKE TIME, MONEY IS A PRODUCT OF LIFESTYLE CHOICES. THE BASIC PARADIGM HERE IS TO BRING COSTS DOWN AND VALUE UP, TO GET THE MOST FOR WHAT YOU PAY SO YOU CAN TAKE IT FROM YOUR NORMAL WORLD OF PAYING RENT, BILLS & EXPENSES AND USE IT TO PADDLE, CLIMB OR EXPLORE.

IT’S RARELY A MATTER OF EARN MORE – EVEN WHEN PEOPLE DO THAT IT SEEMS TO MAKE NO DIFFERENCE TO PAYING FOR TRIPS, AND 9/10 PEOPLE WE RUN TRIPS FOR ARE AVERAGE INCOME WITH KIDS, RENT & RESPONSIBILITIES. THE DIFFERENCE IS HOW THEY MAKE THE COST WORK.

COST WHETHER YOU GO ON EXPEDITION OR NOT YOU STILL SPEND MONEY EACH DAY. PEOPLE FORGET THIS. THEY LOOK AT 3 WEEKS COSTS BUT OVERLOOK THAT SOME OF THOSE THINGS THEY WILL SPEND MONEY ON REGARDLESS OF IF THEY ARE ON A MOUNTAIN IN TAJIKISTAN OR AT HOME – AND IT’S OFTEN MUCH CHEAPER TO EAT AND LIVE IN A TENT ON EXPEDITION THAN IT IS AT HOME.

THE COSTS OF A TRIP HAVE MANY VARIABLES BUT NEED TO BE HELD AGAINST THE COSTS OF WHATEVER ELSE PEOPLE DO. LOOKED AT LIKE THIS, THE INVESTMENT IN THE TRIP AND THE ACCOUTERMENTS LIKE GEAR, FLIGHTS & VISAS BECOME MORE REALISTIC. BOOTS COST $700 – BUT CAN LAST 10 YEARS. TRAVELLING TO IRAN IS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN TO TENERIFE, BUT YOU EAT FOR $10 A DAY.

VALUE WHEN YOU PAY FOR AN EXPEDITION YOU GET AN EXPEDITION IN RETURN. YES $10,000 IS A BIG CHUNK OF INCOME, BUT FOR IT YOU GET SEVERAL WEEKS OF RESOURCES, LOGISTICS AND ABOVE ALL EXPERIENCE DOING SOMETHING INTERESTING. SOME PEOPLE EARN MONEY TO SPEND ON BEER, BOTOX OR PERSONALIZED NUMBER PLATES; IT’S ALL A MATTER OF THE VALUES YOU HAVE. $100 A WEEK ON DRINKS IS TWO AVERAGE NIGHTS OUT, $5000 FOR A YEAR – OR IT’S A 6000m PEAK IN TIBET.

WE HAVE PLENTY OF CLIMBERS WHO FIND VALUE IN EXPEDITIONS NOT JUST WITH THE PERSONAL SATISFACTION BUT WHO ADD IT TO A REFERENCE, OR PRESENTATION SERIES OR RESEARCH THAT CONTRIBUTES VERY TANGIBLY TO INCOME AND LIFESTYLE. THIS DOESN’T MEAN EVERYONE SHOULD WRITE A BOOK ABOUT IT, BUT IT DOES MEAN WHEN TRIPS ARE A FOCUS THAT A LIFESTYLE INCORPORATES THEY DON’T FUNCTION LIKE HOLIDAYS, BECOMING CLOSER TO EXTENSIONS OF WORK.