Deciding to sell up and throw in the towel on your nine-to-five life in pursuit of travelling around Australia sounds like a dream. A fantasy. Something we all think about but never actually do. Well, this is not the case for founder of The Barr Essentials and iLeads, Emma Barr. One day she decided she wanted to give it all up and hit the road with her husband and son. This is Emma’s story.
By Emma Barr
For us it has always been a question of ‘If not now, then when?’. Since I met my now-husband, Cam, over 10 years ago, we have always had a passion for travel and life experiences that are slightly out of the ordinary. From when we met on a tropical island in the Whitsundays to sailing through Asia on a 52-metre superyacht, life has always been about living out of the box.
At one point after doing some travelling, we came back to Sydney to “settle down” because at the time we both thought that’s what we had to do. It was what all of our friends were doing at the time. As we settled into expensive Sydney life, we very quickly realised it wasn’t for us and we started planning something different. A life where we could earn an income from anywhere and have amazing experiences along the way.
When our business idea iLEADS – an online lead generation tool for real estate agents – started to gain traction, we thought to ourselves, ‘If not now, then when?’. The business has been setup to be run from a laptop so as it grows it’ll become more automated and we can easily run it from the road. Most importantly, our passion for travel will never have to dull.
At 28 and 30 years of age, we are the happiest and healthiest that we’ve ever been. We also know how lucky we are to be living in this amazing country. A country that we have never had the chance to explore. Until now. As we prepare to head off, the thought of leaving the comfortable Sydney life does nothing but excite me. From the red plains of the outback to the coral coast in WA, there is honestly so much more that we cannot wait to see. Plus, when you are exploring our great country in a self-converted Mercedes sprinter van, it makes it so much easier as we’ll have all of our worldly possessions with us in our tiny home on wheels.
It has not been easy going against the grain, though. Striving to create a business that can be run as a laptop lifestyle is tough. With plenty of bumps along the way, the best part has not only been setting something up that I am truly passionate about but something that allows Cam and I to be at home with our son; making sure no one misses out on the precious moments that seem to come and go so quickly.
Flynn coming along changed everything for us. Cam and I are very easy-going people with a real love for adventure, but now this little boy, that isn’t even one year old, is showing us that the same sense of adventure and willingness to go with the flow is possible. He has made us realise that NOW is the time. It’s really important to us to show our son that anything is possible if you set your mind to it.
We know that traveling around Australia with an 11-month-old will not always be easy, let alone all living within a converted van, however, we also know that the trade-off will be worth it. There is so much of this amazing country that we can’t wait to explore together. Let alone experiencing everything through Flynn’s eyes.
If you want a business that you can take on the road and work from anywhere, you can have it if you have the passion to reach out and strive towards it.
You can follow our adventure on Instagram @6reasonswhy_travelblog
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