I recently participated in a survey asking about my transition to a nomadic lifestyle:
What were the challenges for you to transition into a digital nomadic life?
Before I started my journey, I owned a home and had a routine with family/friends, career and local community. Making the change from a stationary life to one of constant international travel required an adjustment in those relationships. In addition, I had the ongoing challenge of sustaining myself physically, financially and mentally in an ever changing environment.
How did you tackle those challenges and make money while traveling?
When I started, I was employed full-time by a great company that fully supported remote work. While traveling, I was exposed to other people who were able to travel and make money in other ways (freelance, contract, product sales, etc.) and I began to rethink my approach. I’ve learned many methods to make money using my existing skillset. I’m still exploring which ones work best for me and the nomadic lifestyle.
What is advice that you’d share with other nomads?
Have a general plan for your nomadic journey but be flexible. Your most deeply held notions are subject to change based on new experiences. I started with the goal of traveling for one year while working full-time, returning home and opening a co-working space. That was two years ago and I’m already planning for a third year.
Also, don’t underestimate the impact of timezones when working with people around the world. Finding and protecting your most productive hours is important, especially when working on distributed teams.
And always keep a quick drying towel handy.
Answering these questions prompted my thinking on what is necessary to create a sustainable nomadic lifestyle that works, which I will discuss in an upcoming post.
The Cocoa Nomad 