Getting Ready for a Digital Nomad Lifestyle

Getting ready for a digital nomad lifestyle has been interesting to say the least. I’ve been doing research on this lifestyle for months now. Ever since I returned from studying abroad in France, I knew I would make this transition one day. Being able to live life nomadically isn’t for the feint at heart, but with research and a great backup plan in place, one can really do a lot within this lifestyle. Here’s what I’ve learned thus far. 

1. Back up plans are a must. Having back up plans for your back up plans are important. The reason being that you don’t know where this life could lead you and you have to be able to deal with all kinds of emergencies at the last minute. 
   
2. Don’t have expectations. Not having expectations of different locations and countries is one of the best things ever. It leads to new possibilities and new experiences that having expectations would otherwise mess you up at. When I visited Morocco, I truly didn’t know what to expect because I hadn’t heard much about Morocco, and now Morocco is place I would go to happily again. I saw medina’s met people from all over the world, and tasted some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life (mint tea for me please!). I also got got for $500, took the longest train ride of my life from northern to southern Morocco, and got lost in the medina (which was actually quite fun to be honest). Either way, not having any expectations helped me when I was in those situations to have a clear and open mind to handle those tough and beautiful situations as they came. 
   
3. Travel insurance is a must! Although traveling can be fun when spontaneous, sickness exists worldwide, especially with the Covid pandemic, and it’s important to have something in place for emergencies. Not doing so can really mess up your life and your finances. I’d rather pay for something upfront and have something just in case than to not have anything and deal with that financial blow in the moment. 
   
4. Do your research. Although spontaneous travel is nice, you do want to have some type of understanding about the socioeconomic world that is happening around you. You don’t want to walk into certain situations while abroad that could have been avoided had you simply understood what was going on around you. 
   
5. However, with the being said, sometimes be able to look beyond the media and see what the actual people on the ground are saying. Sometimes, it’s not quite what the media portrays things to be, or even if certain unrest or problems are happening in one part of the country, it really hasn’t spread to every part of the country. Therefore, be aware and don’t simply fall for everything that the media says or portrays. It really comes down to personal choice, understanding what you can stomach, and doing what is right for you with regard to travel destination and location. 
   
6. Because of the “Great Resignation” more and more people are demanding to work remotely and a lot of jobs are now moving online. Because of this, this makes it somewhat easier for job searching and being able to find an independent contracting gig that can allow one to work outside of the country.