Thanks to the digital revolution, it’s now easier than ever to work whenever you want from wherever you want, so if you’re sick of doing 9-5s in a corporate environment, happen it’s time to make a change. In this article, we’ll be showing you how you can become a digital nomad so that you can take back control of your life.
Tired of waking up at 7:30 am on a freezing cold December morning, crawling to your overcrowded bus to take you to your grey office block where the only news is that Sharon has dyed her hair and all the women think it looks awful but won’t tell her? Meanwhile, Darren from sales has just landed a big deal and made more money this month than you make in a year, regardless of how many TPS reports you write. If this sounds familiar then worry not, you can escape the rat race.
Let’s face it, nobody likes Mondays. Especially if you’re stuck in a dead end job, working 9-5 in a concrete jungle just so you can earn enough to pay the rent. We’ve all been there and we’ve all looked for a way out. Luckily, it’s now easier than ever! You just have to take your work life out of the office!
Who can become a Digital Nomad?
The chances are that if you are in a job you hate, then you aren’t following the pursuit you love. Being a digital nomad isn’t right for everyone, however, there are large swathes of people who can follow their passion outside of the corporate environment. Here is a short list of some of the most common nomad jobs:
- Teaching online
- Programming/web development
- E-commerce/Dropshipping
- Graphic Design/Photography
- Writing (Freelance services, blogging, proofreading, editing etc.)
- Affiliate Marketing
Most people will be able to do at least one, if not several of these, but it’s important to stick to just one in the long run. However, if you want a complete change and have a good command of the English language, then teaching online is a great place to start. It’s not easy to make huge amounts of money, but if you want to travel, you can make between €10-20ph quite easily, which will go along way in most countries. The good thing about teaching English is that you can do it in your own time and it’s not something you have to feel too invested in. Students come and go and teacher turnover rates are high. The market has become saturated in recent years, which has pushed prices down, however, if you can find students away from major platforms, then you can set your own rates and even give group classes.
One thing that all of the jobs on the list have in common is that they rely on marketing. You need to be able to sell your services and get the right people to buy them. This is one of the key skills of affiliate marketing, so if you can establish a brand in any of the others, then you should be able to become a successful affiliate.
Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money online and those at the top of their game can make €1000s every single day. However, that doesn’t mean you should quit your job today and jump in head first. It takes time to understand how to make successful campaigns. For more information on this, check out our Affiliate Marketing in a Nutshell series.
Starting Out
Being a digital nomad isn’t for everyone and you have to remain disciplined. Choosing when to get up and when to work may seem like a dream but at the end of the day you have to make money and when you start out, you might not be earning that much. If you are a programmer/web developer, then you can work for companies for a fixed salary, but they will still expect you to meet your deadlines. As for sourcing your own workload, it will take time and you have to be prepared to take the highs with the lows.
One of the best ways to start out as a digital nomad is to get yourself established whilst you are still in a normal job. This will take away a lot of the risk as you will have a steady income and can begin to build up a client base. If your hobby is photography, then use your free time to go out and take pictures, build a website and invest some money into building your brand. It’s much better to get the base level sorted whilst you’re employed than hoping to do it when you’re not.
Eventually you should find yourself in a position where your normal job is getting in the way of your nomadic job. Once this happens, you should have enough clients to go full-time into your new pursuit. Don’t relax just yet, however, as you’ll still need to find people to work for. It’s also important to understand that there are peak and off-peak seasons with nomadic work.
Affiliates tend to do quite well in the final quarter in the run-up to Christmas, however, January can bring a bit of a downturn. Similarly, if you work as a writer, then you’ll get a huge build up of work before summer so that people have enough work to publish whilst they are on holiday, without having to worry about it. It’s, therefore, a good idea to take note of these periods and plan accordingly for them. Alternatively, you can try to find clients in multiple countries so that you have a constant stream of work all year round.
The Nomadic Lifestyle
The nomadic lifestyle may sound like a dream, but it can be a bit lonely at times. Therefore, it’s important that you get out and about and interact with people. We’ve written a whole article on this here!
If you are planning on moving to another country to work, then here are a few tips:
Try to fit in and live like a local
When you go on holiday, it’s always tempting to be flash with your cash. After all, you’re only on vacation for a few weeks each year. However, once you become a digital nomad, if you treat every day as a holiday, you’ll soon find yourself penniless! Therefore, try to fit in with local people and other expats and digital nomads and find out where they go and how they save money. Tourist traps will kill your income after a few weeks and, more often than not, places that serve locals are better. You will get better food, better service and better prices. Not only that, but people will appreciate you more and may be more willing to give you useful advice.
Be Disciplined
As we have said before, you are not on holiday. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have fun, it just means that you need to work in order to live. If you are doing a job you love then the discipline should come automatically with the passion to improve. If not, then consider a transition to something which you are passionate about. The great thing about being your own boss is that you can delegate time into improving in different areas, so if there’s something you want to try, then try it. You can always plan your hours accordingly.
Plan Ahead
Try to plan your work week ahead of time and give yourself deadlines. If you hate Monday mornings then you can shift them. However, if you still dread getting up for work then any morning can feel like a Monday.
Moving
Here is one last, awesome piece of advice that you won’t find in many other places because companies really don’t want you to know about it! When it comes to your initial move, you’re going to need a place to stay. Therefore, you’ll probably try to find a hotel or an Air B&B. if you are looking for a hotel then use one of the booking sites like booking.com or expedia.com. Once you’ve found a place that seems nice and affordable, don’t book them through those services! Instead, find the hotel and call them directly. Tell them the offer you found online and then ask for it at a reduction of at least 15%. This is because booking services charge at least that amount in commission and, as a result, it is always cheaper to book direct. It makes 0 difference to the hotel and even if they only give you a 10% reduction, both parties end up with a better deal.