493 What Breaking a Global Travel Record Taught Cassie De Pecol About Life

"Use fear as fuel to your inner fire." - Cassie De Pecol If you enjoyed this episode, check out show notes, video, and more at http://lewishowes.com/493 Get more from Lewis! Get my New York Times Bestselling book, Make Money Easy! Get The Greatness Mindset audiobook on SpotifyText Lewis AIYouTubeInstagramWebsiteTiktokFacebookX

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Speaker 00

  This is episode number 493 with Cassie Depeckel.

• 0:07Lewis Howes?

  Welcome to the School of Greatness. My name is Lewis Howes, a former pro athlete turned lifestyle entrepreneur. And each week, we bring you an inspiring person or message to help you discover how to unlock your inner greatness. Thanks for spending some time with me today. Now let the class begin.

• 0:33Lewis Howes?

  Mark Twain once said, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." And many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime. Welcome to episode 493. We've got a great show for you today. I'm excited about this topic, about traveling the world. And our guest today is Cassie Depeckel. She's a world traveler, environmental activist, explorer, women's rights and peace activist, triathlete, entrepreneur, you name it, she's doing it.

• 1:14Lewis Howes?

  And in July of 2015, after a year and a half of planning, saving money, obtaining sponsors and endorsements, she launched on her expedition on a stage at a major public event called the World Domination Summit. And in 2017, at just 27 years old, she finished her journey, which was called Expedition 196, in a Guinness World Record time. And as of February 2017, she traveled to 196 countries alone as a female all over the world. And Cassie has some incredible stories to share and lessons that she learned while traveling the world alone. But first off, we talked about what Cassie learned while being on the TV show Naked

• 1:54Lewis Howes?

  and Afraid, also how she handled running out of money only six months into her 18-month expedition, and how she stayed on track to complete her goal even when it looked like she wasn't able to. Why committing to your goal is so crucial to achieving. The biggest lessons that she learned about herself while traveling the world alone. And the power of making your own choices instead of listening to other people make them for you. This is going to be a big one. If you've ever traveled the world or any parts of the world, you know how meaningful it is. And what actually opens up to you and the awareness that you bring into your own life when you come back home. And for those who haven't traveled much, then I urge you to listen and explore this in your own way.

• 2:38Lewis Howes?

  So let's go ahead and dive into this episode number four, nine, three with Cassie Depeckel.

• 2:45Lewis Howes?

  Welcome back everyone to the School of Greatness podcast. Very excited about our guest, Cassie Depeckel in the house. Good to see you. How are you?

• 2:52Speaker 00

  Thanks for having me. Good. How are you?

• 2:54Lewis Howes?

  I'm excited to, I'm doing good. I'm excited you're here because you've done something no one else on this show has done. Except for maybe Chris Gillibee, but I'm not even sure if he's done what you've done. But you've been to 196 countries. Is there, I didn't even know there are 196 countries first off in the world, but then all of them are countries or they're something else or what?

• 3:14Speaker 00

  Sovereign nations.

• 3:15Lewis Howes?

  Sovereign nations. What is the difference between a sovereign nation and a country?

• 3:19Speaker 00

  So they have a centralized government monetary system and yeah, they're kind of independent from, from other countries.

• 3:26Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 3:26Speaker 00

  Like Puerto Rico is part of the states. So I didn't go to Puerto Rico and same with Scotland is part of the UK. So I had to go to like London and Northern Ireland and yeah.

• 3:35Lewis Howes?

  So you didn't go to Puerto Rico?

• 3:36Speaker 00

  I didn't go, yeah.

• 3:37Lewis Howes?

  Cause it's part of the states.

• 3:39Speaker 00

  Yeah, exactly.

• 3:40Lewis Howes?

  Got you. Now, uh, you made this declaration, this announcement in 2015 at an event that I was speaking at called World Domination Summit.

• 3:50Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 3:51Lewis Howes?

  And that you said you were going to go on this trip, right? And do 196 countries and how, how long?

• 3:57Speaker 00

  Uh, I, I said two and a half years, but I knew that it was going to be a year and a half. But I was like, just in case.

• 4:04Lewis Howes?

  I get like kidnapped or I'm in jail or whatever.

• 4:07Speaker 00

  Someone's trying to beat my record, you know, I gotta be a little bit careful with my.

• 4:11Lewis Howes?

  You want to say two and a half, but actually.

• 4:12Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 4:14Lewis Howes?

  And how long did you, did you plan this out beforehand?

• 4:17Speaker 00

  Yeah. So it took a year and five months to plan out the entire thing. Um, yeah, I had to start off with. Uh, just mapping it all out. And then I had to find the nonprofit endorsement, the supporters, the funding, then the visas and the setup, social media, the website, the branding, everything. Just, yeah, it took a year and a half to really get it going.

• 4:37Lewis Howes?

  How many visas did you get?

• 4:39Speaker 00

  Oh, that's a question. I don't think I can even, I mean, it must, because there was visas kind of in advance and ones on arrival and

• 4:46Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 4:47Speaker 00

  I don't know, maybe around thirty, something like that, forty.

• 4:50Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 4:51Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 4:51Lewis Howes?

  How much did the whole thing cost?

• 4:53Speaker 00

  So it was, I, it was about a hundred and ten thousand and

• 4:58Lewis Howes?

  To go to every country?

• 4:59Speaker 00

  Yes.

• 4:59Lewis Howes?

  It's not that bad when you think about it.

• 5:01Speaker 00

  It's not, it's not bad. It could be a little bit more, it could be a little bit less because I kind of had to take into, um, take into account kind of the free hotels and flights and everything that I got as well. So, but it was around that figure.

• 5:12Lewis Howes?

  So the flight, so that was not including the free stuff you got, the sponsored stuff?

• 5:15Speaker 00

  I think that was including the free stuff.

• 5:17Lewis Howes?

  So if you went on every flight and paid for every hotel?

• 5:19Speaker 00

  Then that's kind of what the cost.

• 5:20Lewis Howes?

  That's what it costs, a hundred grand.

• 5:22Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 5:22Lewis Howes?

  To see the world, that's not a bad.

• 5:23Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 5:24Lewis Howes?

  Take it, you know?

• 5:24Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 5:25Lewis Howes?

  Hundred thousand for a world.

• 5:27Speaker 00

  And you're on a budget too. Like I wasn't staying in, you know?

• 5:29Lewis Howes?

  You're not staying at Ritz Carlton or whatever.

• 5:30Speaker 00

  Yeah, no, no.

• 5:31Lewis Howes?

  But you're not staying in a hostel either, right?

• 5:32Speaker 00

  No, no. So it's kind of in between. A lot of Airbnb's, local bed and breakfast and, um, yeah, so.

• 5:38Lewis Howes?

  Now, before this expedition and journey, you were doing door to door sales, is that right?

• 5:44Speaker 00

  Yeah, I was, I was in DC, kind of going door to door, business to business, selling a cell phone service to people that just didn't want that or need it.

• 5:53Lewis Howes?

  They didn't want them.

• 5:54Speaker 00

  Yep, spit in the face, like dead of winter in DC, you know?

• 5:59Lewis Howes?

  That's the best lessons though. You learn the most going to door to door.

• 6:01Speaker 00

  You do.

• 6:01Lewis Howes?

  I did door to door selling books.

• 6:03Speaker 00

  You did?

• 6:04Lewis Howes?

  For a guy that couldn't read, that was kind of ironic, yeah.

• 6:06Speaker 00

  Oh, man.

• 6:07Lewis Howes?

  I only did it for like a day and a half.

• 6:09Speaker 00

  Really?

• 6:09Lewis Howes?

  And I was like, this is not for me.

• 6:11Speaker 00

  Yeah. And you're on commission too, right? So it's like

• 6:14Lewis Howes?

  It's all commission, yeah. And I was like, yeah, it was a struggle. It was like a college summer thing. And I was just like, there's no way.

• 6:19Speaker 00

  No, no, thanks. But you do learn a lot.

• 6:21Lewis Howes?

  How long did you do it for?

• 6:22Speaker 00

  I did it for six months.

• 6:23Lewis Howes?

  That's

• 6:24Speaker 00

  All I could hold out.

• 6:24Lewis Howes?

  That's a long time.

• 6:25Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 6:26Lewis Howes?

  That's really hard.

• 6:26Speaker 00

  People came and went. It was one of those pyramid scheme things. So I didn't find out till after and I went to go get unemployment. Cause I was like unemployed and then they couldn't even get ahold of them. Like, you know, they're like, yeah, we're still in business, but they were. It was

• 6:38Lewis Howes?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 6:39Speaker 00

  Yeah, not a good situation.

• 6:41Lewis Howes?

  Okay. So you're doing that. And then how did you come up with this idea to go on an expedition? And why the expedition around the world?

• 6:47Speaker 00

  Um, so I will bring up the show that I was on, just because it was, it was Yeah, it It was.

• 6:55Lewis Howes?

  She came up with this during the show.

• 6:56Speaker 00

  So, yeah, so one day after work, I was watching TV, my roommate's TV, and I saw a bunch of naked people running across the TV screen.

• 7:03Lewis Howes?

  I wanna be that person.

• 7:04Speaker 00

  I was like, I need to be there right now. Like, I need to be in that situation. And, um, so I filled out a casting application. It was for a Discovery show and, yeah, I just.

• 7:13Lewis Howes?

  Was it called Naked in the Jungle?

• 7:14Speaker 00

  Afraid.

• 7:15Lewis Howes?

  Naked and Afraid.

• 7:16Speaker 00

  Yeah, you are afraid, you know.

• 7:17Lewis Howes?

  You were terrified?

• 7:18Speaker 00

  Afraid.

• 7:19Lewis Howes?

  Well, there's camera people that aren't naked.

• 7:20Speaker 00

  Yeah, that's the weird thing. And they were all men, too. My first, like.

• 7:23Lewis Howes?

  No way.

• 7:24Speaker 00

  My first ten days was all, even the camera guys.

• 7:27Lewis Howes?

  Everyone, sound people, they're all like, just take your clothes off.

• 7:29Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 7:30Lewis Howes?

  And they're just watching you all day.

• 7:32Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 7:33Lewis Howes?

  That's weird, isn't it?

• 7:35Speaker 00

  It was weird. It was, it wasn't fun.

• 7:36Lewis Howes?

  And they're like eating like sandwiches and hamburgers and you're like.

• 7:40Speaker 00

  They'd be having an egg salad sandwich and I'm like, oh, man, now I gotta, now I gotta forge and I can't forge. I mean, let's be honest, I can eat like a coconut. Anyways, so the, the experience was, I survived, but it was the best, worst experience of my life up until that point. And afterwards, I didn't realize, it's like when you sign those papers, like, the hate could like really destroy you, or you're gonna get, we're gonna edit you in a certain way to make you look a certain way.

• 8:04Lewis Howes?

  Any way they want.

• 8:05Speaker 00

  You know, yeah, yeah. They'd be like, had that snail taste? I'm like, well, I'm grateful to have a snail, you know, and then they'd be like, but was it crunchy? And then I'm like, okay, it was a crunchy, disgusting snail and it's, you know, like, um, so that's kind of how it went. And, yeah, the aftermath of it, like the hate, I'm like, oh, am I really that terrible of a person? Am I really that selfish? Am I really what they're saying? And I'd never experienced that before. So I was like, you know what? I'm gonna, I wanna do something bigger than myself and I wanna pursue my dream of going to every country. That I always had this like dream of going to every country in the world, since I did travel before, before this expedition a little bit. And.

• 8:39Lewis Howes?

  How old were you at this time?

• 8:40Speaker 00

  I was twenty four. Yeah, twenty four. And I was like, you know, I gotta make it happen. You know, I have to make it happen. So I moved out to LA for the weather. Like, let's be honest.

• 8:51Lewis Howes?

  You were living in DC, miserable, cold.

• 8:54Speaker 00

  I was living in DC, yep. Then I drove across and I, you know, I was like, I drove across in three and a half days. I was like, I just booked it. Didn't have any money, you know, going off my savings. And right when I got to the last pit stop before my apartment that I had paid first and last, up on Lake Arrowhead, um, I'm filling my tank and it stops halfway. I ran out of money. Like, my debit card was, was out. I was like, okay, I think I can get up that hill up to Lake Arrowhead. Okay. And I did. And at that point, I was like, I never want to be in the situation again. And I have to make this this expedition happen. So I started like I was babysitting. Full time, two jobs, eighty five hours a week for that, like year and a half. I was planning out this whole.

• 9:37Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 9:37Speaker 00

  Yeah. I saved up about ten grand during that time. Um, but yeah, that was, that was even really challenging, you know, like. You know, raising kids and I myself don't want kids. So I was like, I'm not, it's not like I'm furthering that part of my life either, really, you know? Um, but it was great. I mean, the great, the kids were great and everything and but it was a lot of hard work and I was really stressed out and trying to plan this whole thing and trying to find sponsors. I had no idea what that even was. So.

• 10:06Lewis Howes?

  Wow. And so then you you kind of realize, okay, I can make this happen.

• 10:10Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 10:11Lewis Howes?

  Right?

• 10:11Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 10:12Lewis Howes?

  And you kind of were putting the pieces together. You're getting a sponsor here and there. You got like a flight sponsors, right? You got some hotel sponsors, I'm assuming.

• 10:18Speaker 00

  Yep.

• 10:19Lewis Howes?

  How are, what are all the sponsors you've got? Travel?

• 10:22Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 10:22Lewis Howes?

  Hotels?

• 10:23Speaker 00

  Cash, goods and services. So some companies, you know, cash sponsorship, some were services, um, travel services. Like insurance, that sort of thing. And then goods like flights and hotels and stuff. And yeah, I had no idea what, you know, what a sponsor was, and I didn't know where to go. I looked at people like Michael Phelps and I was like, how is he gonna sponsor? You know, how does he, how is he?

• 10:48Lewis Howes?

  He's the best in the world. He's got a massive audience.

• 10:50Speaker 00

  How is he like promoting these brands? And what does that even mean? So, yeah, it took, it took committing to the idea. Like, I don't think people realize like the amount of commit, you have to fully commit to in order to make something like this happen. You can't just be like, yeah, we'll see if I can get a sponsor. It's like. Once you have, you have to commit yourself, then you have to go after it like hundred and ten percent. It's gotta be like living, breathing, like your, your whole life, you know? And that's how you're gonna make it happen.

• 11:16Lewis Howes?

  It's almost, I tell people sometimes, like if, if your life was on the line for your dream, like and they had a gun to your head.

• 11:22Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 11:22Lewis Howes?

  In thirty days, you had to get a sponsor or you were dead.

• 11:25Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 11:25Lewis Howes?

  I guarantee you'd figure out a way to get that sponsor. You know what I mean? Or you'd figure something out.

• 11:30Speaker 00

  Exactly.

• 11:30Lewis Howes?

  If your life was on the line.

• 11:31Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 11:32Lewis Howes?

  I think people don't want it enough. Sometimes they're like, eh, like you said, unless you're a hundred and ten percent in, it's like, if you're half in, you're not gonna go all.

• 11:38Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 11:39Lewis Howes?

  You're not gonna go after it. So. So you've got all these sponsors.

• 11:43Speaker 00

  Yeah. And I didn't get all of them to fund the whole trip. So I had just enough. And then by the time when I left at the summit, I, I was like, ready to go. And then, you know, at that point, I had about 10,000 saved up from my babysitting jobs because I just like, had no social life for that year. And let's just be honest, I was like, drinking a bottle of wine in my apartment alone most nights, you know? I had to save as much as possible. And so, yeah, I had that. Then I had a few sponsors to kind of get me going through the first like six months. And I was like, they'll come, I'll be in the media and then they'll, they'll start coming along, you know? No, like, big mistake, you know? So about six months in, I was, I don't know, maybe about 40 or so countries in at that point.

• 12:27Speaker 00

  It was January, I ran out, like I ran, I was, I ran out, dry, you know, and I had these sponsors, these commitments. And I was like, you know, I had to come back home to Connecticut. I didn't tell anyone. I was like, I'm gonna have to like, quit, you know, like, this is extremely embarrassing. I can't tell anyone I'm coming home, like, so I didn't, you know, only my parents knew. And I was like, what am I gonna do? They're like, you gotta, you gotta keep pushing. My dad especially is like, you gotta push, you gotta do what you were doing and do it now, like 110% again. And so I did in those two weeks, I, I was able to rack up enough to get going. And I was like, you know, I can't stop. Now I gotta just keep this going throughout. It's not like, you know, I gotta keep, you know, going on LinkedIn, reaching out to CEOs, sending my pitch, my deck, my proposal, like,

• 13:12Speaker 00

  every single morning so that I can continue to obtain funding to cover the rest of this trip.

• 13:17Lewis Howes?

  So what do you do? You just reach out to CEOs and say, hey, can you give me a thousand bucks?

• 13:20Speaker 00

  Oh, yeah, I wish, you know, I wish it were that easy. But I, and that did work once.

• 13:26Lewis Howes?

  Sure.

• 13:27Speaker 00

  Well, it was for flights. It was like the CEO here in New Zealand. And I was like, well, you wanna, you know, sponsor my trip? And he's like, sure, you know, but that was a fluke thing.

• 13:35Lewis Howes?

  Right, right. And what are these people getting in return from, you know, them helping you out?

• 13:38Speaker 00

  Yeah. So of course, the media, when I finished, I think they saw that. But it was a huge risk for them to take. You know, a woman traveling alone, who knows what's gonna happen in their mind. It was a huge risk. But I was filming an educational documentary and that from the beginning was something that I decided to commit to. And they wanted to be seen in that, you know, like for a cause, you know, a cause documentary. And they saw kind of like, all right, well, we'll contribute, you know, biting their tongue.

• 14:05Lewis Howes?

  Right, right.

• 14:06Speaker 00

  Taking a risk, but it's paid off. And I think now they see that. And I still have strong relationships with a few of them.

• 14:13Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 14:13Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 14:14Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 14:14Speaker 00

  But.

• 14:15Lewis Howes?

  So you were just, you, you just kept emailing people and reaching out and they would. What would get them to kind of like support you then?

• 14:21Speaker 00

  You know, actually, I gotta say, a big, they're, so networking is huge. And before I left on my expedition, the International Institute of Peace for Tourism was the organization who endorsed my expedition. Not financially, but they connect me to a lot of people. And I went to their symposium in Johannesburg, six months before I left, and I met a lot of people there. I met Naomi King and Nandi Mandela, Nelson Mandela's granddaughter and Martin Luther King Jr.'s sister in law. And it was like a huge peacemaking event. And that's where I really met a lot of influential people. And the King of Spain was one of them.

• 14:55Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 14:56Speaker 00

  Yeah, but that's, they're, they're kind of like, let me connect you to this person. So I ended up attending the World Travel and Tourism Council Summit. And that was a big, kind of like the jackpot for me for finding sponsors.

• 15:08Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 15:08Speaker 00

  I was just there for the third year in a row, two weeks ago, I was in Bangkok. But there, it's like you have the CEO of Expedia, of Airbnb, of, you know, you know, cruise line, you know, everything. And so I'd kind of dress up, you know, get a decent outfit, give them my pamphlet with my face on it. This is what I have to offer and just like guerrilla marketing, you know? And that's how I was able to, to get a lot of my sponsors.

• 15:31Lewis Howes?

  So you got them through that, that advance?

• 15:33Speaker 00

  On that, yeah, yeah, yeah, every year.

• 15:36Lewis Howes?

  Crazy. So every flight was taken care of?

• 15:38Speaker 00

  Oh, no.

• 15:40Lewis Howes?

  You had to pay for a lot of stuff?

• 15:41Speaker 00

  Yeah, I had to pay for a lot of flights. Yeah.

• 15:43Lewis Howes?

  But you got cash from people to pay for it too?

• 15:45Speaker 00

  Yeah, I did, I did.

• 15:46Lewis Howes?

  Essentially, it was paid for.

• 15:47Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly. And I use like credit card, you know, the, I got the.

• 15:53Lewis Howes?

  The point deal.

• 15:54Speaker 00

  Yeah, I tried to get into that. It was, for me, it wasn't really that easy.

• 15:58Lewis Howes?

  The like travel hacking thing, it's kind of hard, right?

• 16:00Speaker 00

  It is, yeah.

• 16:01Lewis Howes?

  You're always opening a new credit card and always like.

• 16:03Speaker 00

  I would like email Chris, I'm like, but I didn't want to ask him too much, you know? Um, give away secrets for free, but I was like, I gotta figure this out on my own. I never really did.

• 16:12Lewis Howes?

  So what was the whole vision then? Was it to promote like traveling alone as a woman? Was it to promote education? What was promote going after a dream? Was it like promote doing the impossible, making it possible? Was it to break a world record? You know, what was the real mission?

• 16:27Speaker 00

  That's the question, I think to this. No, so it was to break a Guinness World Record.

• 16:34Lewis Howes?

  Which was?

• 16:35Speaker 00

  Which was the fastest person to travel to every country, every sovereign nation. And that was actually kind of led to the women's achievement aspect of it because six months in Guinness Records emailed me and said, we're breaking the record category up into two separate ones. So female and male. Females get four years to break the record and males get three years to break the record. I'm like, why do women need more time to travel?

• 16:57Lewis Howes?

  Hmm, interesting.

• 16:58Speaker 00

  More lung capacity? Maybe? I don't think so.

• 17:02Lewis Howes?

  Wow, that's funny.

• 17:03Speaker 00

  So, um, so I didn't agree with that. So I was like, you know, I, I thought that like to the very end. And finally they're like, okay, you know, we have, we will have still the fastest person, but then you'll get all, you'll get another category as well. Fastest female, so I do or whatever. Um, and then it just came down to the women's achievement aspect. My dad was like, you're, you're a woman, you know, and you're traveling alone to these places. You should really be talking about that more. And I'm like, ah, I never thought of myself as, I mean, I, I know, like I know a woman, but I never was really into like women's rights and everything. I just kind of lived my life and I, I just didn't, wasn't really, I don't know. I guess I wasn't that educated on it, you know? Um, so I thought maybe going into like Saudi Arabia or promoting women's rights wasn't something I should do

• 17:47Speaker 00

  because I wasn't really educated on it or informed that well.

• 17:50Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 17:51Speaker 00

  But I started educating myself on it and that's, I started getting passionate about women's achievement. Um, promoting more women's achievement, women's empowerment. And then the sustainability aspect of it, so promoting peace through sustainable tourism. So just, you know, I could break it all apart, but for my goal was to promote peace through sustainable tourism and women's empowerment through breaking two Guinness World Records and becoming the first woman on record to do so.

• 18:15Lewis Howes?

  Got it.

• 18:15Speaker 00

  That's that.

• 18:16Lewis Howes?

  There you go. Got it.

• 18:17Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 18:17Lewis Howes?

  And what were some of the, uh, uh, most unsafe places you went to then? That you thought maybe weren't going to be that bad, but actually were in the places that you thought were to be bad that actually weren't?

• 18:28Speaker 00

  Yeah. Um, so I would say, uh, one country that I, I didn't think was going to be that bad was probably Somalia.

• 18:37Speaker 00

  And I was like, should I go to Somalia land, which is obviously it's a, it's an okay place to go. Um, they're pretty peaceful actually right now, but I was like, no, I'm going to go into Mogadishu and like have the real experience of Somalia. And so, and that place was pretty, pretty, pretty bad.

• 18:53Lewis Howes?

  Alone as a woman, was it like scary? Were you like turning your head left and right everywhere?

• 18:57Speaker 00

  It's just, you have to take an armored vehicle to go two minutes to the hotel.

• 19:02Lewis Howes?

  What? From like the airport?

• 19:03Speaker 00

  Yeah. And the hotel, they, I was like, I'll just walk there. I'll walk to the hotel.

• 19:07Lewis Howes?

  You're kidnapped and dead.

• 19:09Speaker 00

  Yeah. They're like, no, we have to, and we have to have a truck behind you and in front of you with, with guards with machine guns.

• 19:14Lewis Howes?

  What? Just to get to the hotel?

• 19:15Speaker 00

  Yes. I was like, I wasn't, I didn't even get that in Afghanistan and Kabul and Syria and any of the other countries I've been to.

• 19:23Lewis Howes?

  I'm surprised they even just let you in then. Why would they?

• 19:24Speaker 00

  I know, I know. I don't.

• 19:26Lewis Howes?

  What's the point if there's that much of a risk?

• 19:27Speaker 00

  Yeah, exactly.

• 19:29Lewis Howes?

  If they have to spend that much money just to escort you.

• 19:31Speaker 00

  I know. And they, they're so, they're so humble. They actually sponsored me. I was like, you know, and they're called the peace hotel too. So I think they just really appreciated, you know, what I was trying to promote. And then they took me around and they're like, okay, we can get out now. Okay. There's something weird over there. You know, it was very like, you know, you're on your toes, you know? Um, and then, you know, Kabul wasn't really, I thought Kabul was going to be worse, but it really wasn't, you know? I mean, just covered up and walked around and I talked to some guys on the street, you know, filmed them, asked them.

• 20:00Lewis Howes?

  Fully covered up.

• 20:01Speaker 00

  Yeah. I mean, I didn't wear the full burka, but just the.

• 20:04Lewis Howes?

  Your face was exposed?

• 20:06Speaker 00

  Yeah. The face was exposed.

• 20:07Lewis Howes?

  Everything else was covered up, yeah.

• 20:08Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 20:09Lewis Howes?

  It's not allowed to go around exposed and then.

• 20:12Speaker 00

  You cannot, yeah.

• 20:13Lewis Howes?

  The face is okay.

• 20:14Speaker 00

  The face is okay. Yeah, yeah.

• 20:16Lewis Howes?

  What happens if you were exposed? Like your arms or like your, you know, your knees below or something?

• 20:20Speaker 00

  It's a good question.

• 20:22Lewis Howes?

  You didn't test it?

• 20:22Speaker 00

  I don't know if I want to try. I'll leave that up to someone else. I mean, I wouldn't want to do that. You want to respect their culture, you know what I mean?

• 20:29Lewis Howes?

  Of course.

• 20:30Speaker 00

  Um, and that's really important, especially as a woman, you, you want to go and respect. So when I was actually heading into Saudi Arabia, I thought I had to wear the full burka, like, you know, only the eyes to be seen. And so I was putting on the, the hijab and wearing my abaya and on the plane. And we were like, no, it's okay. It's okay.

• 20:47Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 20:48Speaker 00

  I was like, all right. So I had my hair down like this and just this long abaya kind of thing.

• 20:52Lewis Howes?

  And they were like, it's cool?

• 20:53Speaker 00

  And that was fine. Yeah. That was fine. So, yeah.

• 20:58Lewis Howes?

  Powerful.

• 20:58Speaker 00

  Kind of crazy.

• 20:59Lewis Howes?

  What's the, so where did you go into it expecting and then what did you come out of it learning?

• 21:04Speaker 00

  Um, okay. So I think what I expected was number one, I'd die in a plane crash.

• 21:10Lewis Howes?

  You thought that was gonna happen?

• 21:11Speaker 00

  I thought it was really, that was gonna be my demise.

• 21:14Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 21:14Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 21:15Lewis Howes?

  Why?

• 21:15Speaker 00

  I don't know. I just, yeah, I kinda had a fear of flying.

• 21:17Lewis Howes?

  So many flights and you're like, uh, what are the odds, you know?

• 21:20Speaker 00

  Yeah, exactly.

• 21:21Lewis Howes?

  How many flights did you take?

• 21:24Speaker 00

  A little over two fifty. I stopped counting.

• 21:26Lewis Howes?

  That's a lot.

• 21:27Speaker 00

  It's a lot. It's like twenty thousand trees.

• 21:29Lewis Howes?

  And what consisted of a, how much time in a country did you have to spend for that to count?

• 21:35Speaker 00

  Yeah. Um, for me, okay. So for Guinness, you had to get your passport stamped, stamped and leave the airport.

• 21:43Lewis Howes?

  That's it?

• 21:43Speaker 00

  So, yeah.

• 21:44Lewis Howes?

  So you could have left and walked back in?

• 21:45Speaker 00

  Yeah. And I did that in a few places, about ten to fifteen places. Like, oh, I'm not gonna lie, you know? And it came down to budgeting too. It's not like I can really, Tuvalu, okay? The middle of the Pacific Ocean and, you know, they had a flight coming in. Their next flight leaving wasn't for the, until the following week. And they have like two hotels on the islands. They're like two hundred bucks a night. And I'm like, I can't be here for like a week waiting for the next, for two hundred a night. I mean.

• 22:09Lewis Howes?

  So you went out for like ten minutes or you just kinda?

• 22:12Speaker 00

  I circled right around, you know? Yeah. Went out for ten minutes, came back in and.

• 22:16Lewis Howes?

  Like looked around and like?

• 22:17Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 22:18Lewis Howes?

  See you later.

• 22:18Speaker 00

  Got a photo, got my GPS, got my proof and then scooted out. And that's, that happened in like ten to fifteen countries, you know?

• 22:24Lewis Howes?

  You gotta hack it a little bit sometimes.

• 22:26Speaker 00

  Yeah, exactly. Exactly.

• 22:28Lewis Howes?

  And what's the country you stayed the longest in intentionally? Not because of like, oh, I didn't have the visa or some, you know, hiccup.

• 22:34Speaker 00

  Yeah. Um, so according to Guinness with the regulations, I, I wasn't able to spend more than fourteen days in a country either. So I kind of had that limitation. Um, so I spent about two weeks in Russia in St. Petersburg. And I also was a good week in Pakistan.

• 22:54Speaker 00

  And a good week in Mongolia.

• 22:57Lewis Howes?

  Cause I'm sure some of these places you wanted to like explore, right?

• 22:59Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 23:00Lewis Howes?

  It's like otherwise you have to go back again.

• 23:02Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah.

• 23:02Lewis Howes?

  It's exhausting.

• 23:03Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 23:04Lewis Howes?

  Might as well enjoy the process, not just like check it off a list, right?

• 23:08Speaker 00

  Yeah, exactly. And so I had to pick and choose, you know, um, for my, like, I really wanted to be in the Mongolian wilderness, like for my birthday. So I was able to get sponsored by this Yurt camp and there was no cellphone reception, no wifi. Like no one was even staying there till my last day. So I was really alone for that full week and in the wild. And there was a little husky dog who followed me around and we went on hikes and like, that was really, uh, one of the most memorable times on my expedition, just because it was so like peaceful.

• 23:38Lewis Howes?

  Right, that's cool.

• 23:39Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 23:41Lewis Howes?

  What's the biggest lesson you learned about yourself on the journey?

• 23:44Speaker 00

  Um, I think, you know, so to never judge anyone and to be completely open minded. Um, I think when I went into this, I was definitely much more selfish person, I'd say. Um, and I didn't really have a complete understanding about the world and religions and everything. And so this expedition really opened up my eyes to be more humble towards all people, cultures, ethnicities, genders, you know, um, everything and cultural differences as well. And to really not just accept, but appreciate and learn someone's story, not just go there and, and kind of talk about the weather,

• 24:27Speaker 00

  but learn, learn their story and learn where they come from and what makes them happy. And, and that's one thing I realized on this trip too, is how, how kind really everyone is around the world. We see all this negative stuff on the media and in the news, but, um, at the end of the day, everyone just wants to help one another and they just want a hot plate in front of them. They want a roof over their head. They want a loving family. And that's just a universal thing that everyone wants. And so I've learned to just really appreciate people more, more in general and becoming less judgmental, more accepting.

• 24:57Lewis Howes?

  Hmm, wow, that's cool. And is there one person you met that really stood out?

• 25:04Speaker 00

  Oh, I've been asked that a couple of times that it's so hard to kinda to think about that one.

• 25:09Lewis Howes?

  But maybe shifted your perspective on something in life or

• 25:12Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 25:12Lewis Howes?

  Open you up to a different way of thinking.

• 25:14Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah. Um, oh, man. That's actually a good question. There are so many people that really, I would say, um, there's someone I met in Syria, actually. And this was most recently and she, she was my age and we were sharing a taxi. And she said goodbye to her sisters. And I didn't know they were her sisters, but she was like, I saw her, I was sitting in the back. I saw her kind of tearing up in the front rear rearview mirror. And I asked her, you know, who were they and what was that about? And she said, well, she's 27, she's leaving her, her sisters, she's leaving Syria for the first time.

• 25:57Speaker 00

  This was in Latvia and she's gonna go be with her husband who's a refugee in Germany. And um, she's, the next day I was gonna go into Yemen alone and she was about to get on her first ever flight. You know, to go to some foreign country, Germany for her, that was a big deal, you know?

• 26:13Lewis Howes?

  Absolutely.

• 26:14Speaker 00

  And for me, going to Yemen was a big deal. So it didn't matter, you know, where we were from. It didn't matter our religion, anything at that time. But what we connect, like we connected, we both knew the universal word of love, you know? And she's like, I love you. And I was like, you know, it was just this moment that I, I'd never really had that sort of moment on the expedition until then and it was just, um, yeah, it was really special and really eye opening. And um, yeah, so she definitely changed, changed me a lot.

• 26:43Lewis Howes?

  That's cool. What do you say to people about, uh, who have, who don't think they're allowed to go after their dreams? Or allowed to go after something crazy or some expedition or journey? Because maybe they don't think they have the resources that they're not capable of. You know, maybe all the things that maybe you were struggling with at one point of like tackling this journey. What would you say to people who are trying to do something more?

• 27:06Speaker 00

  Um, you know, you own your life, right? And I, it's, it's hard to, to act on something you want to do when, you know, especially if you're under your parents roof or people all around you are telling you can't do something. But at the end of the day, you own your life and you know your truth more than anyone else. Um, you, you're born alone, you know, you die alone. I mean, just thinking of the scientifical aspect of it, you know, and you know what you go through in your life. You can achieve anything that you set your mind to. You know what you can do and you own your life. And at the end of the day, you have to think about that. We're here for such a short period of time, you know, a few years in the grand scheme of things.

• 27:45Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 27:45Speaker 00

  And you just have to take advantage of these moments and pursue, um, pursue your own life in that way. Pursue your own path.

• 27:53Lewis Howes?

  So how do you feel after now? You know, a year and a half or two years almost? How do you feel after? And are you able to travel, uh, with a sense of like relaxation now or more of like, I don't know, a different sense or, and what are you focused on now? What's the vision moving forward?

• 28:09Speaker 00

  Um, so I'm tired now.

• 28:13Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, a lot of travel, a lot of plane rides.

• 28:16Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah. But, um, it's, so right now it's actually great because everyone's like, what's next? I hate that question. I mean,

• 28:24Lewis Howes?

  That's the worst.

• 28:25Speaker 00

  You know, I, what's exciting for me right now is focusing on my career.

• 28:29Lewis Howes?

  Which is what?

• 28:29Speaker 00

  And, you know, speaking engagements, kind of furthering this message of, you know, promoting peace tourism, women's achievement, um, all over the world on a grander scale, you know, through speaking, through branding, through starting my own nonprofit, completely offsetting my carbon footprint by 2020 through my nonprofit, you know, finishing up the book, the documentary. So it's, it's kind of working on my career, but working to address, you know, three or so of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and helping people pursue their own projects aiming to address one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Because I think we all, you know, Entrepreneurial or not, we get into these career fields and you know, for money, obviously

• 29:08Speaker 00

  to survive, but we can also focus on enhancing our world. And I think the UN Sustainable Development Goals is a great guideline to doing so. I mean, starting little projects or going abroad and doing so. And so I think people just really need to focus on that in their careers. That's at least what I'm trying to

• 29:25Lewis Howes?

  Sure, sure.

• 29:26Speaker 00

  To educate at least.

• 29:27Lewis Howes?

  That's cool.

• 29:28Speaker 00

  Through my mission.

• 29:28Lewis Howes?

  Very cool.

• 29:31Lewis Howes?

  Awesome. Was there anything you wish you you want to share more of before I get to the final few questions? Anything you think would be meaningful to share or valuable for people to understand about the world or your travels or?

• 29:43Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 29:44Lewis Howes?

  If anyone wants to go on their own trip?

• 29:46Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 29:46Lewis Howes?

  Any advice you'd give for them?

• 29:48Speaker 00

  Yeah, I would just say you really have to study your mentors, people who inspire you, not following their footsteps, but study them and know them and know how they got to where they are. And kind of take tips and tricks, tricks from like where they've, you know, the lessons they've learned, their failures in order to create your own success. And be 100% passionate about it, 100% committed to it. And yeah, you'll make it, you'll make it happen.

• 30:17Lewis Howes?

  Cool, cool. Well, a couple of final questions for you. Where can we learn more about you online? Where can we connect with your message and everything you're talking about, your nonprofit?

• 30:26Speaker 00

  Yeah, yeah. So the nonprofit will be up hopefully later this year.

• 30:31Lewis Howes?

  Cool.

• 30:32Speaker 00

  But I'm doing actually Google expeditions, kind of educating people on what I did through that, through Google expedition. So I'm working on that course now. It should be out in the summer. But CassieDePeckle.com, if you want to learn about my project, expedition196.com. And then of course, I'm on social media, Instagram, Cassie DePeckle, Cassie DePeckle on Facebook and Cass Pecol elsewhere.

• 30:52Lewis Howes?

  Cool, awesome. Cool. Well, before I ask the final couple of questions, what are you most grateful for?

• 31:02Speaker 00

  Um, my health. Because I don't think I'd be able to do any of this if it weren't for my health. And I think I have my parents to thank for that, for raising me.

• 31:14Speaker 00

  Um, yeah, I think it stems from health and that's something I'm really passionate about as well. So.

• 31:19Lewis Howes?

  That's cool. Yeah. Seem fit, seem healthy. And you probably wouldn't be able to go on a journey like that if you're unhealthy. I mean, it's probably need to.

• 31:25Speaker 00

  To keep up with it.

• 31:25Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 31:26Speaker 00

  I was only sick once, which I think was shocking. It's shocking. Yeah.

• 31:29Lewis Howes?

  You probably take a million shots, huh?

• 31:31Speaker 00

  God, you gotta get all those vaccines. Otherwise you're.

• 31:35Lewis Howes?

  It's crazy. Wow. Um, want to acknowledge you for a moment for your incredible courage to go on a journey like this alone. Even though maybe it didn't seem like it was very courageous for you, but I think for a lot of women, it's probably, you know, something they would never think about going to every country alone. So to be an example and to, yeah, and to really like say, hey, you can do this. And here's what is possible. And here's what you need to look out for and don't do it blindly, but you did it and you accomplished your dream and your goal. I think it's powerful. So yeah, acknowledge you for that. Yeah.

• 32:08Lewis Howes?

  This is called the three truths. So, uh, if there is three things you could share with the world about all your lessons you've learned from the, the naked TV show to the journey around the world to childhood, to everything you've ever done. And you could just share three truths. What would your three truths be? Three lessons?

• 32:30Speaker 00

  Okay, um, I would say, um, embrace failure. Okay. Number one. Um, use fear as fuel to your inner fire. Um, whether that's like fear from hatred online or from an experience, use that as fuel, um, to pursue your own passion and to like really pursue it big. Um, and of course brace, embrace your failures. And then, um, yeah, and then I would just say, learn someone's story. Be respectful, be accepting of people and learn their story and be completely open minded towards humanity. What's it offer to her?

• 33:14Lewis Howes?

  Yeah. Awesome. Final question is what's your definition of greatness?

• 33:20Speaker 00

  Um, let's see.

• 33:24Speaker 00

  I think this is gonna sound really cheesy, but um being humble towards others and embracing your own successes. Um, you know, like, don't depend on others to tell you whether or not you've succeeded or not. It could be something big, it could be something small, but embrace the work that you've put into something. Embrace your own successes and, and, and just to be really humble towards other people. Yeah.

• 33:53Lewis Howes?

  Awesome. Cassie, thanks so much for coming on.

• 33:55Speaker 00

  Thanks, Lewis. I appreciate it. Thanks.

• 33:59Lewis Howes?

  There you have it. I hope you enjoyed this episode with Cassie. If you did, make sure to share with your friends. lewishowes.com/493. Tweet me out. Say hi to me there. Tag me on Instagram story. I'm always replying to people over on Instagram story. Post it on your Instagram feed. Let me know what you think. Have you explored the world? Is this making you think more about traveling alone, even if you've been afraid? Make sure to share with me in the comments, on the show notes, or on social media. I hope you guys enjoyed this one. We've got some big episodes coming up. We're almost coming up on the 500th episode. What would you guys like to hear or have me talk about on episode 500? Let me know over on Instagram or Twitter, or message me online,

• 34:42Lewis Howes?

  wherever you'd like to message me. Tell me. 500, almost at half a thousand episodes. It's hard to believe, but I'm so grateful we're almost there because you guys make me want to continue to find the best information, the most inspiring individuals in the world to show us how to unlock the greatness within us. Let me know your thoughts. @LouisHowes on social media. I love you very much. And you know what time it is. It's time to go out there and do something great.