4 Mistakes You Must Avoid To Be A Successful Digital Nomad
In this day and age, we’re living in a time where technology has made everything so accessible. Whether it be doing your grocery shopping from home or traveling to different countries… technology has made it possible to do with the tap of a finger.
On the subject of traveling to different countries, this used to be a luxury among families when planning where you had to plan at least a year or two in advance, and for good reason, but you see, that was just a family trip and you would return home. For some people, this is not just a family trip… for some people, this is a way of life. They travel the world and earn a living in various ways while doing it. They are what is called a “digital nomad.”
Living a digital nomad lifestyle definitely has its perks, but if you’re not careful, it can be very challenging, realizing that it’s harder than expected. Some people lead very successful lives as a digital nomad while others fail terribly at it. If you are looking to live the unconventional life of a digital nomad, then take notes on five mistakes to avoid if you want to be a successful digital nomad.
1. Not Having a Plan
In theory, the idea of being a digital nomad sounds awesome. You live and work by your own rules and can really just go with the flow, but hopping on a plane with zero plans in place is not a smart idea, and you’d be surprised at how many people do this!
You figure you can just plan things when you get to your destination. If you have enough money saved up, that could actually work for you, but not for too long. That money will soon disappear, leaving you clueless as to what your next move will be due to lack of finances.
What you can do is make a plan for the next couple of years and set some goals. Where do you see yourself in two years? What are you trying to achieve with your new career? Where do you want to go next? You can also set small milestone goals such as wanting to be able to live solely off of your income without having to dip into your savings accounts anymore. The key here is to be realistic with your planning.
2. Traveling Too Much
Starting out as a digital nomad, everything is fun and exciting. You get to see and experience all these wonderful things in this foreign destination, and can’t wait till you get to your next destination! A rookie mistake people make is getting to a destination, stay a few days (even a week), and then they’re jetting off to the next place.
To truly experience your destination, you have to stay there for a while. You will not have the same experience in your temporary home in one week as you would get from staying there a couple of months. This is important especially if you’re a travel blogger. Staying for a set amount of time will give you travels with plenty of inspiration and material for your readers.
3. Leaving Too Soon Without Enough Money
When you finally make the decision to become a digital nomad, you get so excited that you are ready to hop on a plane right then! Stop. Pump the brakes. It’s totally understandable to be excited about traveling the world, but it will more than likely be in your best interest to wait a little while longer to make sure that your finances are in order to live such a lifestyle.
To live such an unconventional lifestyle, you absolutely need to have money and a nice chunk of it, at that! You don’t need to have millions of dollars saved up by any means, but you do need to have enough saved up to where you won’t have to be coming back home five or six months in or stressed about where your next check will come from.
With this type of lifestyle, you cannot be reliant upon your savings. You absolutely need to have a steady income coming in to be successful. Before you hop on a plane into nomad land, you need to be a freelancer of some sort with a steady flow of clients to ensure steady income. If you’re not a freelancer, then you should be running some type of online business.
Creating a website specific to your niche is what will determine the success of your business, and you want to make sure that is in line first before you start your nomadic lifestyle.
4. Relying Solely on WIFI
These days, almost everywhere you go there is WIFI available, but just because a particular place says they have internet, that doesn’t mean that their internet connection is strong enough to handle the amount of work you’ll be doing.
What you can do is check with your hotel and inquire about their internet quality and speed. If you’re going out of the country, then you need to get mobile broadband for the country you’re traveling to. Look into the internet providers there and get the biggest package they have.
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Thank You for such a very nice helpful information. I will keep it noted. It is indeed true especially coming from an expert travel vlogger like YOU.
Right now, I am in the middle of starting my blog, though, my niche is self-development. And will continue to do so while seeing the world full of awes.
I am from the UK, a lone parent who decides to stands out among from the masses.
Thank You for the inspiration.