Aakanksha followed her dream of travelling the world solo, and shows her 2 Million+ followers how it’s done, it takes courage to embrace the unexpected, and Aakanksha Monga has demonstrated exactly that. An army background meant moving from one town to the next every 2 years, and this exposure drove her interest in travelling.
Ever since she was 19, Aakanksha has showcased her travel experiences on her blog through money saved from stipends.
After college, Aakanksha worked as an analyst at Bain and Co, a stable,cushy, and well-paying corporate job that most would die for. But she had other plans.
“There’s no way I’d spend that much time doing something I didn’t love, that didn’t excite me when I woke up, or give me any purpose. I love helping people, always have.” she explains.
“As I sat day in and day out at my desk, in front of my laptop, I realised, this could be my life for the next 30 years if I didn’t take the leap now.”
And she did. A year and a half later, Aakanksha opted for a more flexible job at LinkedIn as a Creator Manager, where she worked out of a rented apartment in Goa while exploring the area on weekends.
“I built everything on the side and finally left to chase the dream, to travel the world, help other women like me travel better, and share stories that actually matter.” she explains as she chose to pursue content creation full time.
In the four years since, Aakanksha has managed to grow her follower count to more than 2 million across Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms, who all await her latest reel showcasing her experiences travelling across the world.
With her laptop and suitcase as her permanent companions, Aakanksha has had unforgettable experiences throughout her trips.
“I’ve received help, love, and support from strangers in countries where I didn’t even speak the language. The news might not show it, but there’s so much goodness out there.” she says.
Understanding diverse cultures offers an enchanting experience like no other.
“While living with tribes in Ethiopia, I learned you can amass all the wealth and fame in the world, but what brings true happiness is community.” she recalls.
“The news might not show it, but there’s so much goodness out there.”
Despite the unforgettable experiences, being a solo female traveller has come with risks, and Aakansha has had to learn (and unlearn) many things she believed growing up.
“I saw a very fixed idea of what women are supposed to be – how we should look, behave, speak, love. But traveling showed me that those ideas aren’t universal. Every culture sees women differently, and it made me question so many rules I once thought were facts.” she says.
Aakanksha has had to deal with sceptics when she decided to explore the world all on her own.
“I had to convince my parents, face my own fear of leaving a conventional path, and constantly hear people tell me it’s unsafe for women. And maybe they meant well, but if you’re truly passionate about something, you cannot live your life dictated by other people’s fears or narratives.”
Now that she’s shown how its done, Aakanksha is eager to help others emulate her.
“You don’t need a lot of money to start. Just your phone, your dream, and your ideas.
My first video was SO cringe. But you know what? Everyone starts somewhere. You don’t have to be perfect to begin, you just have to begin.” she explains.
Aakanksha is now helping aspiring creators understand what it takes to create viral travel content through Travel Amore, which offers a guide to everything needed to identify travel and content creation opportunities.
“People are seeing travel as an essential part of their life. They want meaning, culture, deeper experiences. People are craving unique, intentional, and culture-rich travel! Not just the typical cookie-cutter stuff.” Aakanksha explains as she guides creators to understand how attitudes toward travel have evolved, and which narratives can help their content go viral.
After this, she now wants to take this further with a new venture, the Travel Creator Lab, which will offer a comprehensive roadmap to help you turn travel content into a career, built on years of boot camps, sessions, and lived experience.
Through these initiatives, Aakanksha is motivating a generation of girls to step outside their comfort zones. She intends to show them the fun in learning, experiencing and immersing oneself in an alien environment without the fear of judgement. There’s always something new to discover, it’s only that you have to work towards overcoming your fears and insecurities.
<p>The post How Aakanksha Monga overcame fear to become India’s 1 travel guide first appeared on Hello Entrepreneurs.</p>
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