Memento Mori for Travelers​ | Author, Jodi Wellman

So many of us intuitively feel that travel changes us – that it makes us more alive, more curious, more connected and our guest today will help illuminate some of that for us. Jodi Wellman is a speaker, author of the book, You Only Die Once, fellow Penn graduate, and founder of Four Thousand Mondays. Jodi’s work centers on a powerful idea: that our time on this earth is limited and precious. And when we really let that sink in, it changes how we choose to live.

In this conversation, we unpack the psychology behind the Latin phrase memento mori, and how this awareness of our fragility can actually increase vitality and meaning. Then we bring it into travel. How does knowing our time is limited shift the trips we take, the experiences we prioritize, and the way we show up? How do we return home not just rested, but more alive?

So, if you’ve ever told yourself, “We’ll take that trip someday,” this episode might gently challenge that.

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Listen to hear:

• 02:21 – When Jodi first realized life is finite, and the moment that made her feel fully alive
• 05:19 – What “Four Thousand Mondays” means and how it reframes our time
• 09:50 – About the deeper thesis behind her work: finding depth in the life we already have
• 12:11 – Why thinking in Mondays is psychologically powerful
• 16:03 – How temporal scarcity changes the way we spend our days
• 20:22 – What “autopilot interrupters” help wake us up to life
• 23:52 – Why we delay experiences that make us feel most alive
• 29:53 – What people regret most and where travel fits in
• 34:59 – How to balance the width and depth of experiences
• 39:38 – How Bell & Bly Travel plans trips with both structure and serendipity
• 41:20 – Why the idea of Four Thousand Mondays can reshape how we design travel
• 45:31 – What simple interventions help us get more out of our days
• 50:56 – How parents can deepen kids’ sense of curiosity and aliveness
• 54:40 – About Jodi’s favorites on life and travel
• 58:49 – What travel can teach us about living more meaningfully every day