Around the World in 80 Days: The Travel Mindset That Makes Retirement Bigger (SB1811)

The Stacking Benjamins Show

Joe Saul-Sehy and Josh ‘OG’ Bannerman, CFP

Personal Finance, Financial Planning, Education, Retirement, Investing, Cfp, Business, Money

4.4 • 2K Ratings

🗓️ 4 March 2026

⏱️ 71 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What if retirement isn't about doing less, but about becoming more? George Jerjian spent his career as a retirement mindset coach, helping others navigate life after work. Then he decided to practice what he preached. He planned an 80-day round-the-world journey, intentionally choosing unfamiliar countries where he'd be forced out of his comfort zone and into transformation. This greatest hits crossover from Stacking Adventures brings George's story to the basement, not because it's about exotic travel (though the destinations are incredible), but because it illustrates something crucial about the retirement mindset. The question isn't whether you can afford to travel. The question is whether you're willing to reinvent yourself when the structure of work disappears. George shares the planning behind his epic journey, including why he used a travel agent (yes, really), how he chose destinations that would challenge him rather than just relax him, and what each stop taught him about identity, purpose, and staying relevant after a career ends. From South Africa's Robben Island and a five day safari that taught him about patience, to Australia's Great Barrier Reef and a Melbourne Immigration Museum exhibit that forced him to rethink identity, to New Zealand's Milford Sound and a Maori dance lesson about seeking approval, to Japan's samurai service culture and Hiroshima's lesson in resilience, to Canada's awe inducing Rockies and French-flavored Quebec. Every stop was chosen deliberately to teach him something, not just show him something. The conversation explores his DARE method for retirement planning, why so many retirees struggle with identity once their business cards disappear, and how intentional travel creates the mindset shift that makes retirement feel expansive rather than diminishing. Along the way, Joe and Crystal plug the "Where in the World is Crystal Hammond?" guessing game (she's not in the continental U.S. or Aruba), announce Seattle and Boston community meetups, and mention the Vault tool for credit monitoring. Plus, you'll hear about George's book, Odyssey of an Elder: Around the World in 80 Days. What You'll Learn: • Why retirement success depends on mindset transformation, not just financial preparation • George's DARE method for retirement planning and identity • How to plan transformational travel versus just vacation travel • Why choosing unfamiliar destinations matters more than comfortable ones • What each stop on George's journey taught him about life after work • How travel forces identity shifts that make retirement feel expansive • Why so many retirees struggle once their professional identity disappears • Practical strategies for reinventing yourself when work ends • How to use travel as a tool for personal growth, not just leisure This Episode Is For You If: • You're approaching retirement and worried about losing your identity • You've saved enough money but haven't thought about who you'll become • You're recently retired and struggling with the transition • You want retirement to feel like expansion, not contraction • You believe travel can transform you, not just entertain you Question for You: If you could take an 80-day trip designed to transform you (not just relax you), where would you go and why? Drop your answer in the comments or the Basement Facebook group. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Well, hey there. This is going to be such a fun one on today's show. We're talking travel.
0:07.3	You might not know that we have a sister show or is it brother's show, I don't know, called
0:12.0	Stacking Adventures. And on that podcast, we just had a topic that's at the intersection of
0:17.4	retirement planning and travel, which is why I wanted to include it this week on Crater his week. George Georgian is the guy we talked to. He's a retirement mindset
0:25.4	coach from London, and he traveled around the world. He shares his best tips and what he
0:31.2	learned about retirement along the way. So it's perfect for this Wednesday episode. By the way, stacking adventures is,
0:40.3	if you've never heard it, it's a user-created show for the most part. Most of our guests are you
0:44.8	regular people finding out the good, the bad, and the ugly as they travel around the world.
0:51.1	We kind of learn from each other all of our adventures. We love it because
0:55.9	it's so unpolished. It's like this group of friends sitting around chatting about their
1:00.0	latest trip. It also, by the way, is a labor of love. It kind of comes out when it comes out.
1:04.1	But generally, it's every week. I should say nearly every week. We also play a different game there. You know, we have trivia here at Stacky and Benjamin's, but there we play a game where in the world is Crystal Hammond, like where in the world is Carmen San Diego, if you played that as a kid. Crystal's my co-host. She's got this place that she's been dreaming about, and people call in, and number one one they make a statement to narrow it down so a
1:28.8	couple weeks ago it was well and you'll hear it actually on this episode uh the the question is are
1:34.0	you in the continental united states um and i won't share what crystal said but every week we narrow
1:40.6	it down a little bit and by the way don't worry about episodes that you missed because we'll give you the list so far every episode in.
1:48.4	And we play for a backpack.
1:50.9	And of course, the bragging rights to your friends.
1:53.8	So you can brag to everybody that you've won the Stacky Benjamin's Where Where is Crystal Competition?
1:59.6	But subscribe to that show if you like travel and also play the game with us by submitting
2:03.6	your guests.
2:04.2	And that's at stackyton adventures.com slash my story.
2:07.4	All right.
	...

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