We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ryan Crain. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ryan below.

Hi Ryan, thanks for joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

In 2018, I was grappling with a big decision of whether to quit my steady and stable job to go see the world. I had an urgent itch to explore, but I just couldn’t seem to overcome this inherent belief that I had to keep my head down, work hard, retire at sixty-five, and then go travel. I was thirty-three years old at that time, and I knew the stoplights of my life would never have so many green lights as it did then. Yet, I hesitated… time and time and time again.

That is until a dear friend of mine at the same age passed away unexpectedly. It was gut-punching and heartbreaking, yet it provided me with the wake-up call that I so desperately needed. One week after his funeral, I resigned from my long-time corporate job; one week after that I sold all of my possessions; and one week after that I bought a one-way ticket to Lisbon, Portugal. Once my fear of NOT going and taking a massive risk became greater than the fear of actually taking it—that’s when I was spurred into action.

I landed in Lisbon a few weeks later with two bags and all of my possessions clinging tightly to my body, and I had zero plans of where to go after.

After 365 days, I formed footprints on 34 different countries, 6 of the 7 continents, and 5 Wonders of the World.

Through traversing vast landscapes, immersing myself into diverse and different cultures, and forging connections with people from every walk of life, I can definitively say the journey changed me in ways I couldn’t fathom before landing in Lisboa.

Each experience wove its own unique tapestry of memories. From dining with the mayor of Lagos for Christmas dinner; to witnessing a powerful Māori Haka dance at a funeral; to jamming out to Post Malone with an Arabic-speaking, Muslim man of the Bedouin tribe—some went deeper than a mere memory.

With every new experience, my perspective expanded, my curiosity activated, and my appreciation for the beauty and diversity of our planet deepened.

But I was also a witness to devastating and humbling abject poverty. Unfair circumstances that no human being should have to endure in this lifetime. Global issues on a scale so far beyond the comprehension of my mind that I still struggle to reconcile. Images of human suffering that are seared into my memory and flash across my consciousness every single day.

The unearned advantages—my immense privilege—I had to even be able to traverse the globe were never so apparent, and oftentimes crippled me with shame and guilt.

This potent dichotomy of highlights and lowlights are a powerful testimony to the transformative power of travel—reminding me how vast and complex our world really is, and how small and unwise I really am.

My journey changed me. It should have changed me. I just wasn’t prepared for the extent it would transform me.

We live in a beautiful, heartbreaking, mesmerizing, and tragic world. And while the beautiful and the mesmerizing are magical, it is the heartbreaking and the tragic that illuminates a spotlight on how we can do better, transforming together—for that is where the art of our shared humanity shines brightest.

And all of this was the most precious gift I have ever given to myself—and it has left an indelible mark on my consciousness.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Once my year-long journey ended, I started to look for the next chapter in my career. After more than 250 job applications and 11 in-person interviews, the next chapter I was so desperately looking forward to was nowhere in sight. So I created one. What started out as a deeply personal catharsis in my personal journal, somehow turned into a published book about my adventure more than three years after I returned home.

A book was never my intention and I was never formally educated in writing or literature. However, I decided to sit down for those three years and hone a new skill. I wrote my heart out, bleeding onto every page and digging deep into each experience and why it mattered to me; but also why it should matter to a complete stranger.

The end result turned out better than I could have imagined. The book hit #1 New Release in 5 separate Amazon categories during launch week, we have sold books in 12 different countries, and are for sale in 36 different retail outlets.

I am so, so proud of the stories and lessons learned that are gleaned throughout the book. I am even more proud of the amount of people who have reached out and thanked me for inspiring them to get out of their own comfort zones; to go after what they really want in this short time on Earth; and to approach others with kindness and compassion. More than anything, I am the most proud when someone reaches out to me and shares that they had a profound experience with someone who looks and speaks and dresses differently than they are used to. One of the main themes in my book is that “Different does not equal dangerous,” and I reinforce that time and time again.

How’d you meet your business partner?

I have a co-author for my book and the story of how that came to be is quite incredible:

I moved down to Mexico in 2020 with a roommate. After a month of living together, I asked her on a date and we have been together ever since. Fast forward another year: I had been working on my book draft for a year-and-a-half and had not shown her a single word. I was terrified that she would pick it apart, judge it, or simply say it wasn’t any good.

The night before I was set to hand in my third draft to my editor I finally caved and said, “Ok, I’ll send you one chapter. But I am not changing anything.” I emailed her one chapter and fell asleep. The next morning, she lovingly invites me to come sit down and read a few minor changes she made. She asked me not to say anything until I was done reading. I read one small section and started bawling. She didn’t change the story, or my voice, or my reflections; but she injected this life and spirit into it that I was missing at the time. I immediately knew I wanted to do a fourth draft with her.

I called my editor and asked for more time. She was completely on board and said, “Ryan, this is your story. Take all the time you need.” What we thought would take six months for another draft took twelve. What we thought would be a breeze nearly tore us apart. It was daunting on every level, but the end result was pure magic and bringing my partner on as a co-author was easily the best decision I ever made on that project.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I believe non-creatives won’t fully understand how deeply meaningful, cathartic, and even profound our own work is to us creatives on a personal level. And how scary all of that is to reveal to strangers. It isn’t just a piece of us or a small part of us—it is quite literally ALL of us. We put our entire hearts—sometimes our deepest, darkest secrets—out for the world to see.

Not everyone has to or will resonate with what we put out into the world. But I believe the absolute best gift anyone can say to a creative is, “Thank you for sharing your story. And I’m so glad I get to know this version of you, too.”

Non-creatives don’t fully understand how we have changed throughout our journey into the unknown—forging ahead into uncertainty and instability. We change during the process, and sometimes trying to communicate that change into words is difficult. So, we transmute it into our creative art. And those words above can be all the difference to a fellow creative who has put their entire heart into a project and put it out into the world for others to judge and potentially pick apart.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ryancrain-author.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryancrain_05/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ryan.crain05/
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/ryan-crain
• Other: Amazon Book Landing Page: https://www.amazon.com/Gravel-Roads-quest-around-regrets-ebook/dp/B0BCXYM6M3/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3N9L418ISPR4V&keywords=ryan+crain&qid=1702307789&sprefix=%2Caps%2C561&sr=8-1

Image Credits
All images are my own.