Hiking meditation and travelling all of Africa with Francis Tapon

Hiking meditation and travelling all of Africa with Francis Tapon

Author: travelwisdompodcast@gmail.com (Ladan Jiracek) March 2, 2022 Duration: 40:35

Francis Tapon rejected his normal Harvard Business school life and instead chose to hike the Appalachian trail and travel in Africa for 5 years. He hosts the Wander Learn podcast where he talks about the benefits of being a wanderer.

Top 3 Takeaways:

  • "Sometimes I think the best way to learn is just to forego college and then just go travel the world and spend a few years going traveling around. This probably costs you even less than college."
  • "That is a more important question than how to make a billion dollars is what you do once you have a billion dollars, because once you have a billion dollars, how you spend your time is extremely telling it shows whatever you're spending your time at that point is your passion is what you really want to do."
  • "The protest during the Occupy Wall Street and people are saying like "the top 1%, the top 1%, top 1%." And I felt like walking into that crowd and just saying "You guys are all in the top 1%, every single one of you protesters, because compared to most of this planet, which lives in India, China, Asia, and certainly Africa, you guys are way wealthier than most people out there.""

0:45 "Do you want to do a brief synopsis of all the travel you've done and then why you think why you like this name wander learn?"

7:45 "Have you continued doing robotic vision stuff or have you done only the travel stuff?"

13:45 "So you haven't grown tired of this?"

16:15 "Let's talk about Wander Learn"

21:45 "Sounds like you like hiking"

23:45 "So what's the point of walking so much for weeks and months? What do you get out of it?"

30:30 "How about you for the meditative hiking stuff? Does time go by quickly?"

38:15 " Is there anything that you wanted to talk about that you wanted to cover?"


The Travel Wisdom Podcast explores the profound, lasting value hidden within our journeys. This isn't just about destinations; it's about how the languages we stumble through, the cultures we briefly inhabit, and the people we meet far from home fundamentally shape who we are and how we see the world. Host Ladan Jiracek draws from personal experience across more than eighty countries, examining how travel plants seeds of practical and personal wisdom that can grow into unexpected opportunities, deeper understanding, and even professional success. Each episode delves into the tangible lessons learned from foreign concepts, business practices, and social customs, arguing that the world is the most dynamic classroom available. Listeners will hear specific stories and reflections on turning global exposure into a tool for personal growth, improved communication, and a more nuanced approach to life and money. The podcast moves beyond the simple romance of wandering to consider how these experiences compile into a unique form of education, one that challenges assumptions and builds a resilient, adaptable mindset for navigating an interconnected world.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

Travel Wisdom Podcast -travel and learn languages for success and money
Podcast Episodes
Culture matters in your success with Hunter Maats [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:15:22
In this second round with one of my favorite guests, Hunter Maats, we talk about his trips to the United Arab Emirates and how their culture affects the way they think. We then talk about Hunter's experience on the Joe R…
Richard Nisbett on how how culture determines our outcome [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:57
Richard Nisbett is the author of 3 books which deal with the psychology of thought. His first book was about the differences between Eastern and Western ways of thinking. Eastern is more holistic and Western is more atom…
Nasos Papadopoulos on how to be the most effective learner [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:15
Nasos is the host of the MetaLearn podcast all about how to become the most effective learner. When we met at the Polyglot conference in October 2016 we really hit it off and knew he would be a great guest! I love learni…
Bonus: 90% off Paradise Pack offer with my buddy Jason Moore [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:40
My buddy and former guest, Jason Moore is launching the Paradise Pack for one week only starting May 30th! There are some really cool deals in there on how to be location independent, learn languages quickly, and of cour…
Gina Gotthilf on meeteing Obama and whats coming up in Duolingo [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:34
I am a huge fan of Duolingo and credit it with me learning 3 of my extra languages. Because its like a game and you get the immediate feedback you can learn very effectively and much faster than in a course. Gina is the…
Jon Levy on how to never burn out on great adventures [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:29
Jon Levy is the author of the 2am principle all about how you can have the best adventures. He says that the most interesting adventures are the ones that make the best stories. If it stands out in people's minds it will…
Bonus! JP Sears satirical comedy on University's limited value [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 6:35
I recently stumbled upon JP's funny sarcastic videos and love them because they uncover our sometimes silly beliefs in a funny way. The newest one is on the value of a University education. He starts out with "I know the…