Most people are chained to a desk or at least a physical building, for 8 to 10 hours a day. But, there’s a small subsection of society that’s nomadic – telecommuting to work. These people are able to live what many people believe is the dream life. They travel and work from anywhere and everywhere. What’s life like for these people? What do they do during the day? And, most importantly, how do they get any work done while lounging on the beach?
What Is Life Like?
Although it largely depends on the person and the company they are running or working for, life for nomadic workers is not always what you might expect it to be. Because there’s a stereotype built up around “work from home” or “work on the go,” digital nomads often face the impossible task of trying to get work done while others constantly interrupt them.
This is especially true for stay-at-home moms and dads as well as independent contractors with demanding siblings or other family members. Because a person is home or “out and about,” it’s presumed that they can do errands for others. They’re not chained to an office chair, after all.
But, they are busy people, just like you. In fact, they face even greater obstacles, because they have to fight the urge to goof off all day long. They are out there, in the “wild,” you know?
For some, travelling is extensive. They’re not just down at the local coffee shop. They’re moving all over the world. Some individuals, like Fred Perrotta from Tortuga Backpacks, work all over London and then take trips around the world – for weeks or even months at a time. How can they do that? Well, part of the secret is in technology.
As long as there’s a reliable Wi-Fi connection, work can be accomplished anywhere.
For example, Perrotta uses services like Airbnb to find affordable places to stay when out of town. Since a lot of apartments and homes rented through this service are cheaper than staying in a hotel, and since many homes have wi-fi these days, it’s a great way to save money and get access to that oh, so valuable, Internet.
How Does Work Get Accomplished?
Work gets accomplished like work gets accomplished at any other job. But, usually, additional precautions need to be taken. For example, most people who work remotely try to section off space that is dedicated solely to working.
Some people even use timers to block out a work day. Still others will use distraction filters – special apps that prevent you from visiting social media sites (and other distracting websites) so that you can get some work done.
But, sometimes, the workday is shorter. If you run a backpacking company, for example, and you have all of the fulfilment taken care of as well as the design, order-processing, and customer support systems in place, you don’t really need to work all day long at the business.
But, what about freelancers? Admittedly, they still work hard, but probably not as hard as you might expect. There’s always a trade-off with income and freedom. The more work that gets done, the more money made, but also the less enjoyment one can experience while working in the back yard or at a local coffee shop or in the middle of a wi-fi-serviced field.
What Do They Do During Downtime?
During downtime, digital nomads do all sorts of things. They play games and yes gamble – like online gambling using bitcoin. Sometimes, they just read or take a nap. Sometimes, they may work half a day and then go backpacking in the afternoon or explore a new city.
If they’re not strictly working, they may write blog posts or visit with friends or do any number of other interesting things.
There’s a strong sense of work/life balance in this community. It’s generally understood that the more breaks one can take during the day, the more work gets done, within reason. It has to do with creativity and workflow. Jobs that can be made nomadic also tend to be in the creative fields – writing, programming, owning and running certain types of businesses.
These fields and industries do not benefit from a “nose-to-the-grindstone” workday. Rather, individuals must have downtime to build up creative “juices.” They must have frequent rest periods interspersed with blocks of time dedicated to intense work. That’s how anything gets done. And, it really is a wonderful life.
Photo Credit
Photo is from Microsoft Office Clipart Collection
Guest Author Bio
Jessica Short
Jessica Short loves the digital nomad lifestyle. An avid writer, she likes to help others who also want to pull up roots and get out there. You can find her enlightening articles on a variety of blogs and websites.
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Great description of the digital Nomad Lifestyle :).
Its really incredible how people are able to live these days – thanks to technology, but perhaps more importantly a shift in values. I think this is the beginning of a bigger shift, as western society is slowly changing its idealized lifestyle to one that is focused on quality of life over career, experiences over possessions, and freedom above all else.
Digital nomads living out of Airbnb’s aren’t the only indicator of this shift though. I recently wrote an article highlighting some of the other ways people are choosing an non-traditional lifestyle:
https://www.mattressinsider.com/blog/complete-guide-8-amazing-ways-living-offbeat-location-free/
Great work on this Post Jessica 🙂