Can you stand a little rain?
Is the sheer depth and breadth of your swanky office cubicle not doing justice to your productivity? Does the workplace where you spend ruthless hours daily not satiate your creative hunger?
You will be pleased to know that the digital world has coined a term and introduced new opportunities to make it “work” for you, no pun intended.
Enter digital nomads
A simple yet lucid term. Being a digital nomad means hacking your way to work by traveling to new locations and meeting your creative and professional pursuits on the go. It is escaping the usual and ushering in the new. A digital nomad is someone who yearns for freedom without compromising the quality or output of their work.
If all of this sounds more like a cross between a modern day vagabond and a hipster, you’re in for a surprise.
The internet has helped the digital nomad trend to overcome the challenges, insecurities and uncertainty that comes along with living the remote life. So, what brings people to take the plunge and bid adieu to the mundane blues of their usual work environment?
Related: If You Could Work From Anywhere, Would You?
For some, it’s the love of travel and an independent lifestyle. For others, it’s the luxury of getting away from the pack and exploring the unknown. If there is one common reason which binds them all, it is the simple joy of living their dream (while also creating one). The dream of thriving beyond your comfort zone. The dream of venturing beyond the known capabilities of your mind. The dream of trading the known for the unknown.
Take the case of Demir and Carey Gjokaj, a nomad couple who decided to design their own life. They have worked remotely out of Spain, India, Thailand, Croatia, Bali and the U.S., helping small businesses and entrepreneurs achieve peak performance through their company, Lifehack Bootcamp.
Living as a digital nomad is not for everyone, nor is it the typical startup lifestyle. It’s easy to paint a picture of a day-in-the-life of a typical digital nomad, living remotely and enjoying the sun without the worry of a sneaky co-worker or a grumpy boss.
Such professionals are drawn to the low-cost living and scenic destinations. Countries like Cambodia and Thailand are hubs for digital nomads, as both are the perfect recipe for productivity or getting things done in a creative and limitless way.
Canadian-born Sara Graham is a content producer and communications director working out of Sweden as a digital nomad.
“It is all about taking risks and riding the waves to taste success, all while staying disciplined and treating your business the same way as you would a traditional 9 to 5.”
Sara is moving to Turin, Italy this year. She recently published her first guidebook, “How To Make Big Moves: Relocate Without Losing Your Mind.”
Digital nomads represent the new class of entrepreneurs who run their business, build their startup or work remotely in order to live a truly fulfilling personal and professional life.
A good starting point for most of us are digital nomad programs like Hacker Paradise and The Remote Life. They provide entrepreneurs and professionals with a starting platform to let loose of the control they are accustomed to and work remotely with a trusted pool of peers and surroundings. All this and more, while making a sustainable income.
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Fortunately for today’s entrepreneur, life and work don’t need to fit around the shackles of a 9 to 5. Meeting interesting people, experiencing new things and living the remote life, digital nomads represent the next big move!
And yes, they can stand a little rain.
