Living life as a digital nomad (or a location-independent professional) is one of the most exciting ways to live life. Ten years ago it was called telecommuting. That term has come to describe someone who works for a company but doesn’t go into the corporate office each day. I like to call that a Tier 1 nomad. We’re talking about the Tier 2 nomad today.
Leveraging technology with work with travel with freedom is one of the perks of living in this day and age. With a laptop, cellular phone, Internet connection, and a bit of enterprising one can work and live/travel anywhere they want. Common digital nomad occupations are writers, photographers, web developers, personal assistants, graphic designers, and even work-as-you-go laborers. And now with the prominence of social media you can build up your brand and market internationally even as a team of one!
The real truth is that it has never been more easy to work professionally and travel consistently at the same time!
But sometimes when things seem too good to be true, they are. There are a few downsides to the ‘life nomadic.’ Besides possibly never feeling grounded or like you have a home, you also have to consider the requirements for professional work and the mental and emotional strain of generating income while on the path just to stay on the path. Not one to focus on the negative though there are a few more subtle (and perhaps obvious) plusses as well that go beyond the cut-and-dried “I travel all the time and work on the road. Isn’t that cool?” idiom.
I invite you to spend the next 3 minutes as I outline some of the plusses and minuses that make up the secret(s) of a digital nomad. Just click on the standard YouTube play button. When you’re finished watching be sure to subscribe to the Tiny r(E)volution YouTube channel.
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By Andrew M. Odom for the [Tiny House Blog]
Your video was a great starting point when discussing the pros and cons of being nomadic. If you ever have a boring afternoon (I doubt it), you could edit in cell tower connections and the typically higher rates per GB. Video content eats away a lot of download allotments. Meanwhile, I couldn’t be happier for you and your family. It looks like you’re having a blast with this current chapter. Each day is a new gift. You difference is you never know where you’ll unwrap it:)
I could write ALL DAY about the WiFi situation. I have found myself paying at even the smallest domestic locations (truck stops, state parks, etc) only to find download speeds that are slower than we had in dial-up days. As Thomas Jefferson once said in his immortal declaration, “All Internet signals are not created equal.” 😉
One word.. McDonald’s.
Being another digital nomad… I have travelled for the past 8 years with having an “online” job. The best place in America for wifi is by leaps and bounds LIBRARIES.
Starbucks has good WiFi. I use it all the time.
My wife and I really enjoy paraphrasing the comment from Firefly ” You can’t stop the signal, Mal” to “You can stop the signal, Mal”. When you live at the corner of No and Where of NE Nevada, it is not just your download speed that is an issue. We are off-grid and use a combination of Verizon mifi and Hughes net to get out internet but there are times when you just do not get a signal.
Working at a cafe/restaurant/pub, etc. to use the “free” WiFi is oftentimes not a real option other than a last minute one? Why? In order to maintain a nomadic business that generates income you typically have to work more than a couple of hours a day and sometimes you have to be conscious of time zones. If you are working with a developer in Greenland you likely have to work on their timezone which may not fall in the Starbucks operating times. Beyond that, most places frown upon patrons just sitting at a table using the Internet without purchasing anything. So now you are accruing expenses you will have to budget for. Starbucks coffee? $4. McDonalds value meal? $6. And so on. For a good explanation of this in action visit Gone With The Wynns at: http://www.gonewiththewynns.com/mobile-internet and read towards the bottom of the page.
Awesome, just subscribed to your YouTube channel!
I feel your pain on the wifi, connectivity issue. Being a writer that is at times on the move I have come up with a couple options that may sound foolish but, they work when I have a story to upload along with photos.
McDonalds is a great idea but you can not always be there when they are open, but the wifi is always on. Pull up close and you get signal. I do it all the time, same at Tim Horton’s if you have them where you are at.
Good luck on this.
I wish wifi was an option for us. We live on the edge of cellular connectivity and even with a booster, it is weak at best. But the worst part is the expense. Where we live it costs $10 per 100MB. That translates to checking email, sending a few messages and may be a quick web search on two days a month. Of course, we can pay more. Our provider just loves it each time we bump our data rates up. – Margy
But what do you actually DO for a living? That’s not clear to me at all.
Hi there Sparrow. Are you asking what I specifically do or what digital nomads are able to do? I would be happy to reply more once I understand what you are asking.
Hi, Andrew. I guess I’m asking what YOU do. But it’d be cool to know what digital nomads overall are able to do. Thanks!
Hi Sparrow. I work a location-independent job for a corporation. It is essentially a 9-to-5 so I have to get up and “go to work” like so many others. However I also spend a lot of time contributing to the the modern tiny house movement through blog authorship, video creation, workshop speaking, etc. That keeps me busy and on the move. Overall though there are a number of jobs digital nomads can do and the list is growing longer. Just a few are:
• Freelance Writer
• Web Designer
• Social Media Consultant
• English Teacher (or any subject for that matter)
• Voiceover Artist
• Virtual Assistant
• Digital Product Creator
• Computer Programming
• App Development
• Book Editing