If you're an office slave or a student you're probably ripped out of a warm, blissful slumber by the most evil invention known to man - the alarm clock - and launched straight into a blind, flailing attack on the snooze button.

When you do finally separate yourself from your toasty warm bed and start to get ready, you probably cast nervous glances at the clocks around your home (perhaps whilst hopping around putting your socks on, if you're anything like me). On your way to work, school or university, the unblinking digits of your phone or the sweeping hands of your wristwatch define whether you'll be sneaking in late or not. As the day drags on, the seemingly unmoving clock on the wall or on your computer dictates your day, no doubt in between daydreams of being in far more exotic places.

The sad fact is that for the vast majority of us, our daily lives are inescapably defined - and constrained - by time. It's all around us; you can't get away from it.

Or can you?

When you finally act on your daydreams and embark on a period of extended travel such as a round the world trip, you have a very real opportunity to temporarily decouple yourself from the leadweight of time - but only if you allow yourself to.

So how do manage to break out of your habit of dependence on the clock whilst traveling?

It's simple. When you're packing for your trip, just leave your wristwatch behind. Whether you're exploring Beijing's winding hutong, biking through the Black Forest or lying on a beach in the Perhentian Islands with a Mars bar shake in hand, what need do you have to know that it's 10:43am? Absolutely none at all.

Travelling without a watch can be disconcerting for some at first, especially after years of living to a routine. But fight the urge to replace your daily work/school routine with a regimented travel routine, and as you start to relax and get into the flow of travel, you'll get used to it, and begin to really appreciate the unrivaled sense of freedom it gives you.

But I need to know the time! I hear some of you cry. Yes - there are rare times on the road when you need to be somewhere at a particular time, for instance to take an onward flight. There are plenty of public clocks around town that you can glance at when you need to know - churches, town halls, and railway/subway stations are all a safe bet for you to realign your internal clock. Or you could always ask someone, or sneak a look at someone's watch.

But most of the time when you don't need to know, why keep a constant reminder of what enslaved you in your previous life strapped to your wrist?

Steve James has undertaken two year-long bouts of budget travel and has recently started putting his experiences to paper in his very own guide to budget travel. By teaming up with a number of big names in the backpacking industry, his guide offers a number of discounts off products and services for backpackers, most notably an exclusive World Nomads promotional code http://www.worldnomadspromocode.co.uk giving 6% off a backpacker insurance policy.