Planning a Coronavirus Summer Staycation

Well, ya'll. It looked for a minute that we might be getting close to being able to travel this summer, and if you're into outdoors and hiking, then you might be interested in road tripping to less populated places like National and State Parks. For the rest of us, who want to travel, but are also seeing worrying spikes in destinations we want to travel to, and know that most borders are closed to us, here's what we can do close to home.

Head to the beach/lake

While we can't go on our annual Vegas t

rip this summer, we have been thinking about what we can do close to home. Many beaches and lakes are great alternatives, because there are much fewer people, especially during the middle of the week. You're able to social distance while still getting away from home and soaking up some sun. I'd definitely try to keep away from the popular areas, just to stay on the safe side, but being outside is really helpful, too. 

Take a self-catered break

If you don't mind making your own food and your own entertainment, then this might be the way to go. Since many things are not open, or aren't safe to do, your vacation is going to feel a lot different. By staying in a vacation rental instead of a hotel, you'll get a nice change of scenery without being around a ton of other people. Bring your own cleaning products to sanitize throughout your stay. A lot of travelers are going this route right now, just to get away from home and relax and recharge.

Create an outdoor oasis

Take a portion of your vacation budget and invest in making your backyard, porch or balcony a space you want to hang out in and enjoy. Whether that means new furniture, a firepit, a movie screen, cool lighting, or an above-ground pool. Make it a space you are excited to hang out in, and then order some delivery food and it'll be super relaxing and also can get your kids out of the house and off their video games. get some backyard games out there and you've got the makings of a summer full of awesome family memories.

Participate in Zoom activities

Whether you want to learn a new activity like cooking, get fit, or mix and drink and participate in pub trivia, there's so much available through Zoom right now. We host a weekly brunch for a group of friends, just so amid the monotony of working from home and getting grocery deliveries there is at least one thing that's fun to look forward to. Often we choose a theme and we dress up or find an appropriate background, then we share what we made four our meals and just chat for an hour or so. 

Have a small "Quarantine" party

Last weekend was my husband's birthday, which he was sure was going to be lame, but I wanted to make it special. Usually we do something fun, like have people over for a party or go to an escape room and out to eat. I was seeing a lot of people doing drive by parties and graduations, and people bemoaning not getting to travel, so I came up with a travel party. I purchased some props, including an airplane backdrop, decorated our front yard/house, set up a snack and drink cart and then made some antipasto skewers and two different kinds of sliders that I wrapped up in tin foil and served in to-go containers with a Biscoff cupcake (like the cookies you get on the plane). 

I told everyone we would be wearing masks and social distancing. When people arrived, they got their picture taken "in the plane" and were served food and they could either leave or hang out on the lawn for a while. Souvenirs were available (we gave out sleep masks and passport stamp books) as a thank you for coming to celebrate. We had about 14 people rotate by, and it was really fun and safe. 

Tips for your party: Keep it short and manage expectations. I let people know that we'd be out between 12 and 3 and they could come by anytime during those hours, say hello, get some food in a to-go container, and have a little fun. Keep it outside and let people know that social distancing will be observed. By letting them know this and to-go containers will be available, it lets people know that you won't be letting people in the house if at all possible.

Sightsee in your own city/state

I bet there are a lot of outdoor things in your city you haven't seen yet. Beautiful parks you haven't visited. Street art you didn't know was there. History you haven't absorbed. One of my favorite ways to see the city is through a virtual scavenger hunt. You download to your phone, solve puzzles to get clues to the next spot, and learn about spots you've never even seen. Do some research or ask friends for suggestions on what to see near you, charge your phone, gas up your car and go check it out. I mean, I walked around my neighborhood to find joy, you can do that, too.

What are your plans for summer vacation?

Doing the 30-Day Challenge to Get More Site Traffic

This post is brought to you by our sponsor, “Traffic Secrets”. The opinions expressed below are my own.

I've been blogging for nearly 10 years (on Shereen Travels Cheap - I have had blogs before this one) and gaining traffic has always been a big challenge for me. I have been wanting a tried and true way to increase my traffic, and the 30-day challenge of Russell Brunson's Traffic Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Filling Your Websites and Funnels with Your Dream Customers 

Russell Brunson is the author and CEO of software company ClickFunnels that has made hundreds of millions of dollars to date. By using tried-and-true methods that work on and off the internet, he and his partner, Todd Dickerson, have amassed a following of over a million entrepreneurs, so if it can work for them, why can't it work for my little blog? The purpose of this book is to show how sales funnels can keep customers buying more, whether you have a book of your own, software, a product, or a service. 

Traffic Secrets walks you through what to do every day for 30 days in order to connect with your Dream 100, gain more subscribers, own your list, and get those on the list to buy from you; hopefully, more than once.

I have tried other methods, half given to me during webinars that then ask for an outrageous amount of money at the end for the "true step-by-step", but Russell Brunson gives you every step you need in this book, plus you can get the other two books in this series for just the amount of shipping, if you want to become an expert in sales funnels. 

In just the first half of the book, I learned to identify people I want to be connected to, work with, and hopefully even get them to promote me. It's called the Dream 100. Basically, you make a list of your dream customers, who you then try to develop a relationship with before you ever sell yourself (or your product) to them. 

By leveraging Facebook groups and other social media platforms, and then signing  up for newsletters, and reading blog posts that your Dream 100 may have written, you get to know them and their product, so you can know how they can help you and you can also help them. You want to create a symbiotic relationship that's beneficial to both of you, and then you do that over and over again before you start to market to them. 
So, it can be a lot of work, since much of your "homework" is actually research, but it also helps you network and learn more about yourself in the process, giving you the tools to implement these lessons with every product you have, no matter how the internet or social media changes. This is what everyone wants: an evergreen system that helps them gain customers, the right customers, no matter what they're selling.

I'm about 2/3 of the way through the challenge and am finding so many good ideas that I never even thought of trying for gaining readers. While I've made connections with other bloggers, I've not gone through to make a list of ones I want to emulate or connect with on a higher level. I've also not utilized Facebook groups in the way I should, because I always put it off due to not having enough time. Apparently, I'm wasting my time consuming social media instead of producing social media.

At first, I found this offensive, but the more I thought about it, I realized that it made sense when you think about your name being out there more often. Stop scrolling endlessly through Instagram and post more to Instagram. Stop engaging on so many other posts, when you can be more engaging and thoughtful on fewer posts. I think that makes a lot of sense when you really dig in.

I will be making more time in my schedule to go back and do some of these steps more thoroughly, because I think that's important, especially when I'm given every tool I need and just need to do my part of it. Seeing how this has worked for so many others, it will definitely be helpful to have put in all the effort when I really need it, and also when I start doing the same for a company I work for. I feel more empowered and armed with a lot more useful knowledge, thanks to Traffic Secrets.

I can't wait to get through the last third of the book and learn every secret. You can follow along with my 30-day challenge on Twitter. You can also get your free copy of Russell Brunson's Traffic Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Filling Your Websites and Funnels with Your Dream Customers, you just pay shipping costs and then you're on your way.


What are some of your biggest struggles in gaining traffic to your website or your product page?

This post is brought to you by our sponsor, “Traffic Secrets”. The opinions expressed above are my own.

How To Choose Who To Go Travelling With

If you’re spending quarantine planning your next big adventure, whether a road trip or a luxury hotel visit, you might be wondering who to take with you. Travel can be a test of a friendship or a relationship, and no matter how well you get on with someone at home, that can all change when you’re sharing a hotel room. Here’s to choose the right travel companion. 

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Choose Someone With Common Interests

If your idea of a good vacation is exploring the local area and checking out museums, you need a travel buddy who enjoys the same things. If your vacation companion would rather stretch out by the pool all day, you’re likely to have arguments about what to do, and end up getting on each other’s nerves. 

Choose someone who enjoys the same things as you, or at least someone you are happy to compromise with and take it in turns to choose different activities. Before you agree to go away with someone, check out some travel advice for the area you’re thinking about visiting and make sure there’s something for both of you there. 

Discuss Your Budget

Everyone has different ideas about what is reasonable to spend while you’re on a vacation, and it’s important to discuss the limits before you go. If you have more disposable income than your friend and like to treat yourself to expensive dinners and cocktails while you’re away, you’re going to fall out with a travel buddy on a tighter budget who prefers to seek out a bargain meal. Have a chat about budget first and agree on what you’re willing to spend when you’re out together. You can always take yourself out without them if you’re looking for a pricier treat. 

Match Your Personalities

The fastest way to fall out is to head off on vacation with someone too different from yourself. If you like to plan everything in minute detail, you’ll definitely end up annoying a free-wheeling friend who prefers to just head out and see where the day takes them. Make sure you choose travel companion who you have lots in common with, feel comfortable with, and are able to talk to for hours a day without running out of things to say. 

If you go with someone who has a similar personality to you, you’re more likely to agree on what you want to do, where you want to go, and be able to spend all that time together without finding one another irritating. 

Avoid going away with anyone who is too opposite to you. At home, their zen-like approach to life might be a great counter-balance to your talkative, excitable nature, but if you’re together for an extended period without a break, these differences of personality can easily lead to clashes. 

Choosing the right person to travel with is important if you want to have a good time together and still be the same good friends when you come home. Much like living together, enjoying each other’s company socially is not a guarantee of success.