In this post we’re going to talk about crazy myths about becoming a digital nomad. For many, becoming a digital nomad is the stuff of daydreams – a tantalizing cocktail of travel, independence, and entrepreneurialism. Who wouldn’t want to be unshackled from the desk, to live a life of location independence, traveling the world on their own schedule? Marching off to the beat of your own drum in search of fascinating new places while experiencing new customs, cultures, and cuisines is an exhilarating dream for many of us. If you’re sitting there, grinding away at a monotonous, same old same old 9 to 5, counting down the minutes until the weekend arrives, you’re probably thinking that becoming a digital nomad might be an incredible thing to try.
You’ve heard the term thrown around and you’re naturally curious about what a digital nomad’s life looks like: is it as great as it sounds? Getting a clear picture of a digital nomad’s lifestyle can be tricky, even after reading and hearing about those that have taken the leap. Many tend to grossly exaggerate both the pros and cons of the digital nomad lifestyle because it’s an easy thing to do. It’s human nature to dramatize the bad and embellish the good, especially when it comes to talking about traveling and living an unconventional work-life. There are so many common misconceptions floating around about the digital nomad lifestyle that it’s extremely hard to make heads or tails of what’s true.
For those who haven’t experienced it, fear of the unknown makes the downsides seem much worse than they actually are. Likewise, when we get excited about something, your mind is like a runaway train, racing away imagining how great something is going to be while turning a blind eye to any potential pitfalls. Stopping to consider the nitty-gritty details and logistics can be challenging to do.
So what is the reality, and how can you sift through all the myths to find the truth? Becoming a digital nomad is definitely something worth considering – it could be something that changes your life and the way you see the world forever! But knowing what you’re getting yourself into is essential. Below are the 15 most common myths about being a digital nomad.
6 Crazy Myths About Becoming A Digital Nomad
1. You’ll Be Lonely All The Time
This is easily one of the funnier misconceptions people have about the digital nomad lifestyle. Sure, it can be hard to leave your friends and family behind and set off to places where you don’t know a soul in sight. It’s easy to get in your head about how hard it might be to meet new people on the road while you and everyone else are just passing through. What’s important to focus on here is that yes, you and everyone else are just passing through, and that’s the tie that binds you. Everywhere you go will be filled with travelers as excited about their journeys as you are and looking to meet new friends along the way. This is one of the most amazing parts of traveling. From Prague to Bali, there are cafes, bars, hotels, and hostels filled to the brim with fellow travelers and digital nomads looking for awesome people to share adventures with! Sure, there may be some places you pass through where you’ll have a hard time finding people you can speak English with or connect with, but this is the exception, not the rule.
2. The Friends You Make Will Only Be Fly-By-Night Friends
Now that you understand why it’s actually quite easy to make friends along the way, you’re probably wondering how you could possibly form any real bond beyond a surface deep friendship while living life on the road. Sure, these friends won’t have been there while you were growing up or have known you for a long time, but what you end up sharing with the friends you meet as a digital nomad can often far surpass what you’ve shared with friends from back home. It’s hard to overstate just how intense a bond shared adventures and experiences can make, even if it’s with someone you only recently met. No one back home will ever truly understand your fantastic and unique journey like the ones who were actually there for it. Sharing an understanding and memories of once-in-a-lifetime experiences truly creates solid friendships that can last a lifetime. You’ll come out the other end of your digital nomad journey having good friends you can visit peppered throughout the entire world!
3. You’ll Have A Hard Time Finding Places To Stay
You already know what a pain it is to move to a new apartment or house. The idea of constantly moving from place to place can seem pretty daunting when you start to think about the reality of it. Most people wouldn’t want to go through the moving process more than once every couple of years, so how’s it going to feel when you have to do it every few weeks or months? First of all, moving houses and moving as a digital nomad are entirely different animals. When you move homes, you have to think about moving all of your clothes, furniture, and other belongings and deal with annoying logistics. There’s also the application process, paperwork and fees if you’re renting or buying. Fortunately, as a digital nomad, moving locations isn’t even in the same ballpark as that process. Chances are most of your belongings will fit into a bag or two so moving everything is as simple as stuffing your pack and most destinations now have a whole host of affordable living options. From cheap Airbnb’s and short stay apartment rentals to the very reasonably priced hostels for shorter stays, every city you go to will have plenty to choose from, and the application process is as simple as handing over money. As time goes on, you’ll get better and better at finding great places to live for a good deal, and you’ll laugh at yourself for ever letting this be a worry.
4. You Must Not Care About Your Career
This couldn’t be further from the truth. Ask any digital nomad you meet and you will see that they all care deeply about their careers, are extremely hard workers and take pride in their work. The only thing that separates a digital nomad from the average 9 to 5’er is that they took a chance on the road less traveled, chasing the freedom, independence, and experience that comes with it. As the world matures into the digital age, more and more types of work can be accomplished with just a laptop and a good internet connection. It’s not just freelance computer programmers and website designers that have the luxury of living this lifestyle. Writers, copywriters, virtual assistants, and an ever-growing list of other types of freelancers are finding a place for themselves in the online marketplace. Even large corporations are coming around to the idea of working remotely and are adjusting accordingly. Every day more companies are opening up positions to remote workers. So, if killing it as an entrepreneur isn’t your jam, there are still plenty of ways for you to climb the corporate latter while enjoying the journey of a lifetime.
5. You Get To Do Awesome Things Every Day
If you’ve ever followed a digital nomad on social media, you’ve seen their feeds filled with pictures of beautiful beaches, stunning sunsets, and breath-taking nature. You’ve seen the endless exciting pictures of their off the hook adventures. From bungee jumping off bridges to kayaking through the jungle, their pictures are enough to fill anyone with envy. Those things do happen and as a digital nomad, you will get opportunities to experience great big things that most people could only ever dream of. However, those pictures paint an unrealistic view of what the experience is as a whole. What they don’t show is that your job is still very much a grind like any other. Hard work is required for you to be successful and be able to maintain your nomadic existence. Especially when you’re starting out, you’ll often have to work harder than the average Joe. Sure, you won’t have to adhere to the traditional 9 to 5, but if you want to make any livable wage, you will be putting in the hours. For as many adventures as you get to say yes to there will be even more you have to say no to while you struggle through the streets of a strange city looking for a decent Wi-Fi connection so you can finally get work done. No one takes pictures of themselves up all night on a cramped train struggling to get a client’s assignment finished on time due to lack of internet. No one puts up an Instagram story of working three twelve-hour days in a row so they could get that awesome pic.
6. Your Problems Will Go Away
It’s nice to fantasize about packing up and catching the next plane out of town, leaving all of your problems behind you. It’s enticing to think that you can leave them all in the past and look forward to a carefree adventure with new places and a new you. Life is still life wherever you go. Don’t fall for the illusion that just because you’re frequently moving location on an exciting journey that your life will somehow be free of any problems. You may have left many of your problems behind back in your hometown, but the reality is that you have just traded them for new ones. The old job stresses will manifest themselves in new ways that go part and parcel with life as a digital nomad. Those annoying people you couldn’t wait to get away from will be replaced by new ones you meet along the way. Another sad fact you will be confronted with eventually is the realization that most of the problems in your life, in one way or another, are self-made. How you interact with the world and how you choose to take things and see the world isn’t going to magically change overnight as soon as you step on that plane. You won’t be immune to the same old problems manifesting themselves in new ways. If you were disorganized or had trouble meeting deadlines before you left, you won’t find that this suddenly changes just because you are sipping out of a coconut in Thailand.
All In All, It’s A Great Way To Live
There are plenty of pretty funny misconceptions in both the negative and positive camps. If you’re seriously thinking about becoming a digital nomad, the biggest take away is to be careful not to lose your head in the clouds when dreaming about life on the road. Whatever form your life takes, it will still have its own unique challenges and difficulties. On the flip side, if you catch yourself spending too much time considering the potential pitfalls and obstacles, remember that fear is almost always worse than the reality. At the end of the day, life is always what you make it and your digital nomad journey is your own to shape and mold as you please.
Now that you have a more accurate picture of what things are like for a digital nomad, it’s also important to understand that it truly is an incredible life. It’s a life filled with adventure, excitement, and having your horizons broadened. With proper planning and execution, there isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t be able to have a beautiful life living as a digital nomad. There probably aren’t too many old people sitting back in their chairs at the old folk’s home talking about how much they regret going on that grand adventure way back when: it’s the things we don’t do that we regret!
Getting started is often the hardest part. Giving up the security of a steady income and roof above your head for a life on the road can be especially daunting. If you’re still yearning for the digital nomad lifestyle, a great way to prepare for the journey is setting up a few passive income streams before you leave. Having a safety net in place before you set sail for new horizons will give you peace of mind and make it far easier for you to fully enjoy the incredible journey that awaits you. To help you get started, check out this website’s homepage where you can sign up for an invaluable toolkit that gives you a free step by step guide on how digital nomads can build their own passive income streams!
