The 7 things I learned when I became a digital nomad /

The lifestyle of the digital nomad. It’s often put on a pedestal as the shiniest object in the room, but does it live up to the hype? I’ve always wanted to work remotely and on my own terms. This is why I finally took the plunge to become a digital nomad.

I lived in Amsterdam from Minneapolis for a little over 7 months. My entire small family consisting of myself, my 2 year old toddler daughter, my wife with a great career and our dog just decided to jump into a new area because. A question I hear all the time in Amsterdam is…. “why? Why did we move here from the United States?”

Stranger: “Is it because of your work?”

Me: “Yeah. Sort of. Actually, I just wanted to.”

Personally, I consider it a hybrid of both work and personal choice. In the end, I mainly wanted to explore a digital nomad lifestyle. Here’s why and what I learned in the process.

What I learned from a Digital Nomad lifestyle

I hate monotony.

Monotony is scary to me. I am always looking for a place to discover and experience something new. I felt that after several years of the same old, same old, I had to break out of my shell and see what the world has to offer. Of course I had already visited more than 10 countries before making the switch, but I knew there was more to learn, discover and grow from the outside.

If it’s up to me, I prefer challenge and chaos to conformity and routine. Being uncomfortable is an incredible thing, it can make you grow as a person in so many different ways.

While the general thought is that digital nomads are just walking around with their laptops and living the dream life… it’s kind of the opposite.

The digital nomad lifestyle can be isolating and frustrating. These daily challenges have helped me work smarter, not harder. Plus, remote working is the new normal, so if you don’t adapt, you might lose, I think.

Becoming a digital nomad was a life goal.

Not many people know this, but the first day I visited Amsterdam, I said I wanted to live here one day. Yes, I was a senior student at the time. There was somewhere between that point and when I was a mid-level pro working under fluorescent lighting at 8 p.m. that made me question everything. That was one of the main reasons I became a digital nomad in the first place.

Back to that monotonous thing, I guess. But I learned something about myself, deep down. I wanted to achieve a goal worth striving for day in and day out. Sacrifice a day at the office for a future day of freedom. Learn a new skill today to unlock freedom for tomorrow.

This goal became a neurotic habit where I couldn’t think about anything else. For better or worse, I had to have it. So I started educating myself all about blogging and content marketing. Eventually that grew into something bigger, but the main thing was to do it in areas of interest to me, like travel.

There is also tremendous community support with digital nomads, which helps somewhat ease the feeling of being alone. For example, with SafetyWing I can receive medical and financial support, but also be part of a strong digital nomad community.

As a digital nomad, you can focus on your personal growth.

Sometimes ignorance is a blessing. So that’s what they say I guess? But it’s kind of right. Political and social issues in the United States are really exhausting. Combine that with a 60-hour work week and life becomes a time warp.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate America. It’s just that you need to spend time focusing on what’s important for your personal growth as a person, without too much influence from outside forces.

If you simply don’t have the means to know what’s going on, then you don’t need to dwell on it or worry about it unnecessarily. Plus, a 7 to 8 hour time difference means many of the things you’d like to know aren’t already in your front-view mirror.

It’s in the rearview mirror. Let’s keep life going and not worry about some political tweet on Twitter from some billionaire.

Cultural perspectives unlock personal growth.

Listen, I’m not here to bash. But let’s be honest. Living to work and working to live is a tough pace in the US. At the same time, it’s really not just about that.

Yes, that is certainly important. However, the most important thing is to say that you have lived your life fulfilled with the perspective of seeing the lens through other people’s eyes.

We get one chance to live the life we ​​want to live. If you can say you’ve done this by absorbing, living and breathing at least a few other cultures in your lifetime, that’s an absolute win in my book.

Moving abroad can help one grow and challenge themselves, learn new skills, gain confidence and develop a new perspective on the world. It can also help open their eyes to different cultures and ways of life, and allow them to meet new people from all walks of life.

You have a more diverse set of experiences as a digital nomad.

Living in a foreign country can be an exciting way to experience different cultures, meet new people and see new places. The digital nomad community is generally open-minded and made up of people from all over the world, not just one culture or place. This makes it easy to explore different cultures and learn from each other.

The downside to this lifestyle is that there is no set place to call home, so your home base can change frequently. Finding a way to stay in touch with friends and family can be a challenge when living abroad.

I am 100% happy that I made the decision to become a digital nomad and live a new lifestyle. This was incredibly scary at first, but I’m so glad I took the plunge.

Being able to work remotely, travel the world and discover new cultures has been the most liberating experience of my life. I have met wonderful people in every part of the world and now feel more connected to others than ever before.

I have seen an overall improvement in my quality of life.

Digital nomads tend to put their wants before their needs. The nomadic life means you can prioritize a lifestyle that is important to you.

I used to come from the United States where my healthcare costs were sky-high as a solo entrepreneur. Now that I live abroad, my health care coverage costs have dropped dramatically, and combine that with the SafetyWing digital nomad health insurance plan, and I’m just as covered as I was in the United States when I worked for a company with a high-quality , affordable insurance.

See Related: Best Digital Nomad Insurance

Making friends is hard.

I didn’t realize how difficult it is to build connections in countries whose language you don’t speak. Yes, here in Amsterdam almost everyone speaks English. However, meetups generally have a balance between Dutch locals and expats that can be difficult to navigate.

I’ve been trying to learn Dutch, but it’s not easy, as everyone will postpone English unless you actually speak Dutch like a local. Fortunately, Amsterdam is a city full of digital nomads and expats, so it could have been a lot worse.

If making friends is hard, it can be fun in a way. It’s a bit of a challenge. So, back to that whole personal growth thing. As an introvert, this has helped me become more personal and curious.

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