7 Benefits of Living the Digital Nomad Lifestyle
The digital nomad lifestyle is definitely one of the most trendy lifestyle choices these days. The number of people who travel around the world working from home has increased significantly in recent years. In some countries, you can find people who have set up their own little community in the jungle or on a beach. Among nomads, there are also those who live in one location, but travel to different countries every year to work remotely.
With the advent of technology, there are a number of platforms that allow employees to work from anywhere in the world. From Upwork to Freelancer, these platforms have allowed workers to literally pick up and be as remote as they like. Much inspiration for this came from Tim Ferris’ 4 Hour Work Week which advocated these platforms for both being a freelancer and also outsourcing as a client.
Flexibility: work from anywhere in the world
Flexibility is one of the main reasons digital nomads do what they do. Waking up and working at the beach and then taking a 3 hour break before working again is quite the dream. It can take quite some discipline – work has to be done at some point and without a boss or accountability partner, it requires lots of internal motivation. If you have it, then your location and how you live your life has freedom like nothing else.
Increased productivity: no distractions from coworkers or office politics
Digital Nomads can more easily focus on work and stay more productive. In addition, office politics has no impact since people are not constantly vying for attention from coworkers. Who has time to deal with HR, the office bully or that wierd girl who wants to chat for hours at a time, not the mention the rumours that Penelope made up about you. In fact, this is backed up by science: Recent studies have shown that working in an environment with little noise and no drama can increase your productivity by up to 50%. By focusing on the task at hand, work is much more productive and we can get more done in less time.
Having said that, our situation is a bit different being a digital nomad family with kids. There certainly are distractions, and lots of them!
Improved mental health: less stress, more freedom
This all results is great mental health. WIth more freedom, control, flexibility and purpose, we feel better about ourselves and we are happier. Sure we may not have that community around the office, but we do have many opportunities to create that community in our own way, or find one to join.
More time for travel and exploration: see the world while you work
With many countries having only 2 weeks of holidays per year, there isn’t much time to travel. Even 4 weeks is not much. Imagine travelling all year round. This is perhaps the most extraordinary perk. Add to that, more time for family and friends, a better quality of life and more time to do what we enjoy.
Digital Nomad Community: meet other digital nomads and collaborate
The digital nomad community is suprisingly cohensive. One of the best places to find online communities is in Facebook Groups. In fact there are groups to specific locations. So when you decide on a new location to move to, you can join a group of thousands to get tips and meet with the location nomad crew. The next best online community is Meetup.com. There are meetups for specific locations, so you can find like-minded people and meet with them in person.
A sense of purpose: working towards a goal, not just punching a clock
Self motivation is a central theme of being a digital nomad. It is not enough to just want to work from the beach or a coffee shop. To be a part of something bigger, to help make a change in the world, to be part of something that will last for years to come. You are less likely to achieve that working for someone else.
Growing demand for remote workers
Whether you run your own freelance business, or have a remote employer, the fact that remote work is in such demand, you know that whilst on the road, there is always a fallback. The pandemic has contributed to making this the norm, so it is acceptablepart of life for all work places.
Which of the above reasons get you most excited?!
