Rising Stars: Meet Kayla Reid

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Reid. 

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
When I graduated from college and accepted my first job as a registered nurse, I knew I had to find a way to achieve a healthy work-life balance. I wanted to be able to climb the corporate ladder but also tick off items on my travel bucket list. So, I begin taking advantage of my long weekends and strategically maximizing my PTO. I was known as the girl who always had a trip planned. This caused my friends, family, and co-workers to ask how I was able to travel so often and how I was able to afford it. I loved giving advice and helping others escape the 9-5 whenever possible. 

I always had a passion for photography and sharing my vacations through photos on Facebook or Instagram. But it wasn’t until I received a GoPro for Christmas one year that I decided to bring my trips to life and share my travel moments on YouTube. What started off as a hobby has now evolved into a travel community of corporate world millennials who want to start prioritizing travel. Through my YouTube channel and Instagram, I share my travels around the world to help inspire others to travel more and give tips to help people travel more efficiently. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There definitely has been some struggles to get where I am today. Working full-time as a nurse means I can’t always travel when I want to or be able to put the time or effort into my YouTube channel that I would like to. I have these aspirations and goals for myself that sometimes I feel like I will never obtain. I find myself comparing my success to others. Not mention going through creative ruts. And then we had the pandemic. The pandemic crushed a lot of my travel plans for 2020 and 2021 which in return affected the growth of my YouTube channel. Can you imagine trying to grow a travel YouTube channel during the middle of a global pandemic? 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
If you take a look at all of the travel content creators on YouTube or Instagram, they share beautiful photos and the glamorous life of full-time travel. They make people believe that you need to quit your job and sell all of you belongings in order to travel the world. And that’s simply not true. For me, I felt like there wasn’t a travel content creator that I could full relate to. Where was that millennial who works full-time but also likes to travel? Knowing that I wasn’t the only one looking for someone I could relate to, I decided I wanted to be that person for my fellow corporate world millennials. So, I decided to start my YouTube channel and start focusing on sharing insightful travel tips, how to maximize your PTO, and inspiring others to start traveling the world. Because who else would be good at telling corporate world millennials on how to escape the 9-5 than a fellow corporate world millennial? I want to shift the mindset of travel. I want my fellow corporate world millennials to realize that you can want both: a career and a life of adventure. Who says you can’t slay your corporate goals and your travel goals at the same time? 

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Some of my biggest supporters and cheerleaders have been my co-workers and friends. I have met some amazing people along this journey and in the travel content space who have also been huge supporters. One of my best friends, Cheraya, has been a huge supporter and someone I can lean on. She also has a YouTube channel, and it has been nice to be able to talk with someone about the struggles and success. People who are not involved in YouTube sometimes fail to understand the complexities. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thewanderfullifeofkayla.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylanreid/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWanderfulLifeOfKayla
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/thewanderfullifeofkayla
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/3hlSdlrNAgUnHxauydHmUm?si=f4f9ee1e71b548be

Image Credits
Kayla Reid