Do you have that strong desire to sell everything you own and start traveling the world, while carrying your job with you, so you never have to stop? That was something I dreamed of since I was a teenager. Even though I didn’t know anything about being a digital nomad at the time, I knew I wasn’t cut for a conventional life. I wasn’t ready to settle down and work a 9-5 job after school. I wanted more out of life.
After being on a road for almost two years, I noticed that it takes a certain kind of personality to become a digital nomad. Not everybody is cut for it, and it’s okay if you aren’t. But if you really want to change completely your way of living and start working online and traveling the world, there are a few traits you should start working on right away.
1) Be Courageous
It takes a lot of courage to quit your secure 9-5 job, to sell your car and your house and put that money towards plane tickets. If you don’t even have the courage to start looking for remote jobs and how you could make your new lifestyle work, you might be better staying home.
2) Be Creative
You don’t have to be an artist to start traveling the world, but you do have to think differently. I bet nobody in school told you you could actually start a boat parts drop-shipping business, but you knew you could make it work, and now it sustains your traveling. Digital nomads aren’t (in most cases) lawyers and doctors. They’re web developers, freelance writers, business owner, remote workers, bloggers, etc. They find creative ways to make money, and they don’t let anybody stop them.
3) Be Responsible
If you’re going to work from your computer and work full-time, you’ll have to know how to balance your time in a healthy way. You won’t be able to party or explore all the time. You need to be able to put your foot down and know when you need to work. Even if it’s not fun. Even if it’s not what you want to do.
4) Be Patient
You won’t start making $10K overnight. If you believe that you can simply start working and only work 4 hours a week and make enough money to travel, you’re wrong. It takes months, even years because you’ll be able to have enough money to travel full-time. If you’re just looking for a get rich quick scammed, you’ll be forced to come back home as fast. But if you really want to start traveling for the next few years, you understand you have to put the work first to earn your freedom.
5) Be Organized
You can’t be your own boss without being somehow organized. You don’t have to keep track of everything in your life, but you will need to know where you money is going, how much you expect to make in the next months, and how you’re going to spend it. Do you have a client call in two days while you’ll be moving from one place to another? You’ll have to stay on top of that, so your business doesn’t suffer from the fact that you’re on the road.
6) Be Independent
If you can’t handle making your own schedule and sticking to it, you’ll have a hard time on the road. You need to be able to set your own deadline, motivate yourself and take the right decisions for yourself. If you need somebody to take your hand and do that for you, being a digital nomad is out of the question.
7) Be Open-Minded
Even though you can technically be a digital nomad even though you’re staying in your home country, there’s a much higher chance you’ll end up in foreign countries with a very different culture. If you’re not open-minded and respectful of those new traditions you’ll be encountering, you probably shouldn’t travel in general. It doesn’t mean you have to appreciate it; only tolerate it for as long as you’re there. And when you’re gone, if you don’t like that fact that most stores are closed on Sundays in Europe, then just go somewhere else.
8) Be Friendly
You’ll meet a lot of people on the road, and they could change your life if you let them. You might not like everybody, of course, but it’s always nice to be polite. And you’ll always have a much better time and experience if you’re willing to meet new people.
9) Be Adventurous
You don’t have to go sky-diving every Sunder afternoon, but it’s not bad to spice up your routine once in a while. After all, you’re traveling and visit those amazing countries, so you’ll want to get the best experience as possible. This usually means getting out of your comfort zone and being adventurous from time to time…
10) Be Strong-Minded
People will ask you if you’re crazy. Not everybody will understand. They’ll judge you and talk behind your back. They’ll be jealous. If you’re not strong enough mentally to get past all that, you’ll either end up going back home, or your stress level will be through the roof. You won’t please everybody by following your dreams, but if you do follow them, who will?
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