Your Nomadic Profession

“I work for myself. I have a company registered in the States, so I employ myself.”

Ragana, not her real name—just the one she signs with in Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree forum—was the first to reply to a call on “Nomadic Work Experiences” by LaptopHobo.com (the companion site to NuNomad.com). Five questions were queried: For whom do you work for (a company, NGO, or yourself); how did you arrive at (or prepare for) this type of vocation; has working remotely been fulfilling; any advice for those who are contemplating this sort of nomadic working environment; suggestions on possible vocations?

To date, thirty-nine have offered their experiences of and suggestions to a work-while traveling life. And though the feedback on types of vocations were mostly within the realm of expectations (such as translators, managers of either their or their client’s investment accounts, Internet pros) there were a few who were taking working-remotely via the Internet to greater levels. “Gypsytoes” teaches undergraduate and graduate level classes through private-sector online universities. She receives a U.S. pay scale wage and enjoys flexible schedules. “I wanted to have the ability to travel and live abroad without worrying about a work visa in another country. I have two advanced degrees and 20 years of on-ground teaching experience.” “Ris” is a technical advisor for a government department in Africa. “I applied for a fellowship and was posted to Botswana.” After his fellowship was completed, he was asked if he wanted the posting as a paid job. The respondents were pretty much in agreement that, although it is not a cinch to make your job nomadic, many of today’s communication-intensive occupations can be done far away from the traditional office/work setting.

The dream of waving goodbye to the 9-5 grind is certainly more within reach today than ever. As for transitioning from your “at home” or “office job” to the furthest reaches of your travel destinations, the key is advance preparation. You’ll need to communicate—and sell—the idea to your clients, supervisor or colleagues if you want to ensure that you’ll have work to do once you arrive at your new dream location. These new working nomads (nu nomads) warn that you must meet with your clients or supervisor well ahead of your departure so they are not taken off-guard by your sudden change in location. You will need to point out to them how much money they will be saving by not having you on their “employee” payroll (and no longer having the expensive benefits to pay out), that your time-zone variance can be a great asset to them, and that they are still getting the reliable old you in the bargain. And if they are still a little resistant, drop your fee/wage a bit.

Taking advantage of the Nu Nomad economy! If you are going from, let’s say, North America to Southeast Asia (as the writer of this article has) you’ll have quartered your cost of living, thus making it possible for you to live twice as well on half of what you used to make. Remember, you have room for negotiation. And with personal and business overhead greatly reduced, it is quite possible to save even more money than you were able to back at home.

With the exception of one poster—who believed that one’s goal should be not to work at all over enjoying the work one is performing while traveling the world (a response that was received with heckles since the purpose of the working nomad is to, yes, work while traveling)—all had no regrets for (per miss asperina) “leaving the rate race behind”. Achieving some sort of balance between work, play, living and exploration was the primary goal of the posters, and all had felt that they had found this personal center. People were enjoying their new surroundings (Germany, Buenos Aires, Malaysia, Tanzania, Thailand, etc.) and planned to continue to live this way of life for the foreseeable future. And the advice that was offered for those contemplating this sort of nomadic working environment, it has been just good, common sense, reminders.

Quality and dependability were the key suggestions when it came to working remotely. “There’s a lot of competition in the translation industry” (offered “miss aspirina”, a translator) and I always strive for excellence and reliability, without which I wouldn’t have one chance to survive.” Taking advantage of time zone variances (as mentioned above) was also pointed out by the respondents: Those who were currently based in South America had 3-4 hours extra time to work before their European clients ended their day—which can be very helpful with last-minute, urgent, requests (which often gets completed before the nomadic employee’s day shift ended). As for those working in Asia, being between 10-15 hours ahead of the clock, it meant that they worked their normal day schedule while their North American clients slept. And all agreed that preparation was vital. Not just getting the right equipment and understanding the differences between a home office and mobile office, but that you had to build a clientele and your reputation first. Furthermore, most commented that if you provide excellent service, are totally reliable, and your prices are competitive, then you are well on your way to success. But before you leave for the airport, do everything you can to make money in the first-world economy. And, of course, have a good padding of money in your bank account.

So which professions can become nomadic? Any really—as long as your product or service can be performed via the Internet and/or by telephone/telephony. There is a lot of information about this in http://www.nunomad.com / www.LaptopHobo.com and from “Quit Dreaming and Go!: A Step-by-Step Manual on What it Takes to Travel the World and Support Yourself in the Process”.