You may have seen videos and articles of digital nomads talking about how they’ve failed with their location-independent lifestyle. They will have mentioned how they were often broke and disappointed as well as how they want to go back to their former ‘normal’ routine.
How frustrating their experience must have been, right?
There’s a lot of appeal in being able to work from anywhere in the world, meeting different people, learning different cultures, and trying new delicacies. However, it’s not as easy as it might seem. There are just so many reasons why it doesn’t work out as it should.
What Causes Digital Nomads to Fail?
Being location-independent is something that’s gaining more popularity everyday. Motivated by the success stories, many are quick to leave their jobs, sell their belongings, and depart for the biggest adventure of their lives.
But while some are smart, skilled, and lucky enough to make it work, most struggle and fail.
If you don’t want to be among those who return home with their tail between their legs, sit down and consider the following common mistakes to avoid them.
Not Enough Funds
Travelling to different locales takes an ample amount of money. All the more so when you want to sample their local cuisine and visit famous attractions. This is why the most fundamental step to take is assessing if your finances are capable of supporting your way of life.
Even if you’ve set up your online career properly, a huge investment is needed to cover your transportation, food, and accommodation costs until your income becomes stable. Assuming you’ll suddenly be able to earn a lot is risky. Once your savings are spent, you’ll be forced to return home.
What to do:
Before quitting your office post and buying a plane ticket, make sure you have a steady remote job or a reliable means of funding your travels for at least 6 months up to a year. Start saving as early as possible and sell things you won’t need too.
Compute how much is required each month to cover your expenses. Remember to put extra aside for emergencies, such as medical bills. A document for monitoring your income and spending is going to be useful for this.
Be realistic in determining if you can afford the shift. Ask yourself some hard questions, like if you’re willing to:
- Always live within your own means.
- Put in enough hours at work.
- Have enough drive to succeed.
- Live and work in an environment that hinders your productivity.
Not Enough Flexibility
Few people are ready for the considerable effort required to develop a career abroad, or while going from one place to another. Many learn the hard way that much of their time is consumed by paperwork and other administrative matters.
There are also personal matters to address. Some cultural differences that seem fascinating while on vacation can become annoying when living abroad for long periods. Issues may arise when you can’t adapt to the differences or have flawed expectations about yourself and the people you work with.
What to do:
Acquire enough information about the destination before leaving. Study about the legal parts too, so you’d know if you need to apply for a visa or working permit in advance. Examine the working conditions as you may be expecting co-working spaces when they have none.
You might also want to look into international health insurance to avoid exorbitant hospital fees. Open a bank account with good conditions for long-term travelling as well. In some cases, you’ll still have to pay taxes in your home country even if you don’t live there anymore either.
There’s plenty of information for aspiring remote workers everywhere so read them as if there’s no tomorrow. Make it clear what you’re getting yourself into before you dive into the deep end. Get professional advice if you feel it necessary even.
Not Enough Socialisation
It’s possible to feel lonely even if you’re in a comfortable job and married with kids. Even so, loneliness is one of the biggest concerns of those who are on the road. Developing your remote career alone plus living in a foreign country can be particularly isolating.
Though you may consider yourself an independent person, you’ll have to cope with not having a support system or a group of friends with you. Simply chatting about the weather with a loved one on the phone becomes complicated due to time zone differences and the like.
What to do:
Reflect how much you need the kind of moral support that’s only available when you’re at home. You must realise that even the most advanced technology can’t replace having your friends, family, and romantic partners around physically.
It’s easy to meet people while you’re travelling but it’s also hard to part, especially with those you’ve grown attached to. This also means that dating is going to be challenging unless you meet someone who’s willing to go where you’re going.
The transience of the location-independent lifestyle may work for introverts yet even the most withdrawn individual seeks social interactions every now and then. Therefore, decide if you’re willing to say goodbye as often as you say hello.
Not Enough Clarity
Certain areas that need to be made clear when making the switch to becoming a digital nomad. If you don’t know where you started and where you’re going or why, you won’t know when you’re off course or when you’ve arrived.
A lack of clarity or focus will leave you adrift or in the wrong place when it comes to professional or personal goals. In other words, you’ll eventually feel lost and believe that the only choice left is to go back home.
What to do:
Carefully think about why you want to become a digital nomad in the first place. Lay out the things that you want to achieve and the process you’ll undertake to make them happen. Note these all down where you can easily see them during your adventure.
Stay practical when establishing your goals though. Don’t just say that you want to ‘travel to many places while working’ or that you want to ‘experience different cultures while you’re young’. Be concrete. Be specific. Be realistic.
For instance, “I want to earn this much each month so I can stay in Japan for 3 months while working this many hours per day” sounds reasonable compared to “I want to become a digital nomad so I can explore Japan while I work”.
Another Step to Take to Avoid Failure
By taking the necessary precautions we’ve outlined above, it’ll be possible for you to become successful with switching to a nomadic lifestyle. Other issues not discussed may arise but if you have the main points covered, then you should be good to go.
As mentioned in the first part, a steady remote job is essential—we at Remote Workmate can help you with that! We work with reliable employers from all over the globe and can connect you with them to get the part about a stable income right.
Browse our updated listings and see which roles you’re qualified for.
