Digital Nomads and the Jobs of the Future
By: Rebecca Druce
Tags: Online Business, Digital Nomads, Startup, Location Independent, Freelancers

Would you like to earn a fortune working from your laptop, while travelling the world?

How about swapping your desk in the office, for a hammock on the beach?

Watching the waves, and the cash, roll in, taking a dip in the ocean and sipping a fresh cocktail at the end of a hard day’s graft….

It sounds glorious…and too good to be true, right?

Well, for most people, it certainly is, but a distinct and growing minority have figured out how to make this crazy pipe dream a reality.

Digital nomads. The subject of both ridicule and envy, they are the rockstars of our time. They rebel against the constraints of the typical 9–5 tradition, with an exotic lifestyle that previous generations could never have imagined.

And their numbers are rising.

What is A Digital Nomad?

Research from Global Workplace Analytics found that the remote workforce has increased by 140% since 2005.

According to The MBO Partners 2018 State of Independence in America research, 4.8 million independent workers currently describe themselves as digital nomads.

But what does the term actually mean?

A digital nomad, or location independent worker, is someone who can work from anywhere in the world, with nothing but a laptop, a smartphone and an internet connection. They may be remote employees of a company, freelancers or online entrepreneurs.

This flexibility gives them the opportunity to travel, and popular destinations include Asian countries like Indonesia which have a low cost of living — but there are nomads in all corners of the world.

While some have a settled home and choose to take extended working holidays, others commit to a truly nomadic lifestyle — with no home or fixed address, they own few possessions and never hang around one place for too long.

Many nomads run blogs or vlogs to document their exploits, so hop over to Youtube and search for digital nomads to get a glimpse of what their life can be like.

What Kind of Jobs Can Nomads Do?

Do you order groceries online, or do Christmas shopping on Amazon? Have you ever taken an online course?

Do you watch Youtube videos, or browse social media in your lunch break?

I’m guessing you answered yes to more than one of the above.

Over the last decade, the amount of time (and money) we spend online has skyrocketed, and it’s clear that trend is only going to continue.

It makes perfect sense that new jobs and industries have emerged based on this ever-expanding marketplace — jobs that can be conducted entirely online.

Of course, there are many jobs which, by definition, could probably never be compatible with the nomad lifestyle. It’s hard to imagine lawyers, schoolteachers or doctors taking their lives on the road.

The most common nomad professions fall within the creative, IT, marketing and e-commerce sectors.

Freelance writing is a popular choice, along with content creation, design, programming, web development, social media management, drop-shipping and running e-commerce stores.

Some nomads are bloggers, or influencers, and may generate income from travelling by partnering with hotels and travel companies to promote their services.

Many choose a combination of different types of work to diversify their income.

But whatever service they provide, and whether they work as freelancers or business owners, they all have one thing in common.

Freedom.

A Day in the Life of a Nomad

If you work in a traditional job, there’s a good chance that your daily life follows a fairly predictable routine.

Get up at a certain time, commute, work, have lunch, back to work, commute home. Evenings and weekends are yours — but for 40+ hours a week you’re locked into a pretty strict schedule.

The nature of location independent work is completely different. Digital nomads have the freedom to choose their work days and hours.

Sure, they might have the odd client call or Skype meeting pencilled in the diary. But in general, they design their lives however they see fit.

They also have the ability to scale their business up or down, depending on the work/life balance and income goals they want to achieve.

Despite this relaxed timetable, many independent entrepreneurs talk about the importance of forging strong, healthy habits and designing clear routines for their life.

It goes to show that, even without a boss or an office to go to, it’s important to have a clear idea of what you want your day to look like. Self-discipline is essential to make life work as a digital nomad.

It’s not that digital nomads ditch routines altogether, but they have the luxury of creating and adjusting their own daily rituals to their liking, rather than being trapped in the one-size-fits-all work week.

The whole world may be their office, but some digital nomads choose to spend part of their time in co-working spaces.

Co-working spaces are different from traditional offices. Freelancers rent desk space in a shared office, and can experience some of the perks of office life, such as socialising, networking and having access to practical tools like fast Wifi.

WeWork are one of the companies leading the way in providing shared office space for nomads and small companies. They currently have 787 offices in 124 cities around the world.

They recognised that the growing demographic of location independent workers needed somewhere to sit down to work — and sometimes a hammock won’t cut it.

How Can I Become a Digital Nomad?

There are several different ways to become a digital nomad.

Here’s three examples.

Be employed by a company as a remote worker

Depending what you do, and where you work, you might have the opportunity to turn your role into a remote position.

As the workplace evolves, evidence suggests that many companies are becoming more open to the idea of distance workers. A recent study from IWG found that over 75% of workers around the world consider flexible working as “the new normal”. It also found that over 50% were working away from the office for 2.5 days a week.

This might be the simplest way to become a digital nomad, but it might not be easy to convince your boss to let you go fully remote.

Browsing on job boards, you might find roles that offer remote work as an option.

However, as an employee you might not have the same level of freedom that other kinds of nomads enjoy.

Offer services as a freelancer

If you have a skill that could provide value for potential clients, it’s worth looking into turning that into a freelance business.

Copywriting, content writing, UX design, web design, graphic design, social media management — these are just a few examples of services that you provide to clients anywhere in the world, without the need for any face to face contact.

This is an ideal way to dip your toe into location independence — starting a freelance business takes hard work and determination to land clients and sell your skills, but minimal set-up costs and investment.

Build a business that you can operate fully online

This might be the most tricky route to digital nomadism, but it’s potentially the most lucrative.

Options include running an e-commerce store, a drop-shipping business or creating and monetising a blog.

Here’s a great resource to get you started learning about out how to launch an e-commerce business.

Trouble in Paradise?

Recently I watched this documentary, following the lives of digital nomads. I realised that, while it might seem like a dream come true, nomadic living comes with its own unique set of struggles.

Life on the road can be lonely. Farewells get harder and harder, and sometimes nomads find themselves avoiding making too many friends or lasting connections, because they know it’ll be harder to say goodbye.

There’s something to be said for the sense of camaraderie, the community and social interaction that comes with being part of a regular office. Co-working spaces go some way to providing this, but changing faces coming and going is not quite the same as a solid team of colleagues who’ve always got your back.

When you’re working for yourself, lack of motivation can be a problem. It’s not easy to be your own boss, so as mentioned previously, self-discipline and healthy habits are crucial for digital nomads who want to be successful.

Despite the fact that many nomads don’t have a home, they still have to be registered to pay taxes somewhere in the world. There’s also the matter of medical and travel insurance to cover them if something unfortunate were to happen.

This can be a logistical nightmare, but many digital nomads combat the problem by hiring specialised accountants to make sure their affairs are in order.

There are lots of new companies emerging, like World Nomads which are geared towards finding solutions for the obstacles that digital nomads face.

The Future of Digital Nomads

The nomad experience is not for everyone. And in fact, many don’t see their wandering lifestyle as permanent. Travelling constantly may sound glamorous — but it also gets tiring. Never putting roots down anywhere makes it difficult to sustain relationships, start a family or plan for your future.

However, as more and more opportunities for location independent careers emerge, I believe that nomads are paving the way for the traditional model of work to become a thing of the past.

When the children of today graduate from school or university, and head out into the world of work, they are much less likely to accept the constraints of the 9–5 and more likely to pursue location independence.

Maybe we can’t all be digital nomads — but as they break the mould of the 9–5, we all stand to benefit.

Do you dream of becoming a digital nomad?

Are you already location independent?

Tell me all about your experiences!