What makes my digital nomad lifestyle possible?
If you are curious to get a 'behind-the-scenes' look into the engine that drives the practical side of my digital nomad journey, this one is for you.
Revisiting previously written articles (that never got published, mind you), is an interesting exercise in and of itself. Imagine walking through the relics of your past, dusting them off, being surprised by some and not remembering the others.
Well, I wanted to pull out one of those for you and publish it today, just like I’ve intended almost exactly a year ago but I had to pause.
A rewrite followed, which in essence, is what you are reading now. The most notable difference being the change in a way I tell stories these days and what I decide to carry through as the narrative.
Don’t worry, this won’t be a lesson in creative writing or story telling for that matter. It’s merely an observation that I believe is a testament to this soulful nomad life I chose for myself a few years ago.
So, let’s talk about that instead, shall we? It only makes sense to go back to the beginnings and set the scene for you. Without focusing on too much detail let me just say that there was a fraction point where it all began.
If at all possible, imagine me as a corporate-ladder-climbing individual who just experienced a rather unpleasant blow to her ego and confidence. The year was 2014 and the reset has just begun. Although at the time I thought my world was ending, in reality, the new chapter was being written in the most auspicious of ways.
Around this time a lot of blogs popped up and anyone I was inspired by at the time, had some kind of a blog and shared stories about their interests. So, I started one too and called it ‘designed by life’. This name I chose because I believe we’ve all been designed by life to express our unique gifts helping us live in alignment with our inner world (or call it values, soul or purpose). This leads to inner peace, meaningful creations and truly connected, joyful and happy relationships and friendships. I still believe in this, btw.
After a couple of years of writing and sharing I’ve realised, this was what I was yearning for deep down. I didn’t want to admit this to myself at the time, but I knew the corporate world was not for me. Societal pressures and perceptions about success had me imprisoned in a job that was paying well and slowly, but surely sucking my soul at the same time.
My writing must have struck a chord with others as I started receiving emails where people shared their stories with me and how I’ve inspired them to change. Slowly but surely questions started flooding in and with that, requests to work with me.
I really had no idea what that meant at the time. Someone mentioned I should start coaching but I had no coaching experience nor qualifications. Initially I’ve offered a few mentoring calls, which were just chats with some wisdom shared and eventually I’ve decided to study coaching and get certified.
That process alone was a huge personal development chapter in my life. Everything changed on the back of that – my social circle, my outlook on life and slowly, but surely, I started parting from the worldviews I held so strongly before. Perhaps it’s relevant to note that I was doing all of this whilst working full time in corporate.
A great shift followed and with that, things accelerated. Although I was still in that corporate job, things around me started changing. Almost like the Universe conspiring in my favour, there was a restructure at my work and with that I finally got a boss who was supportive of me as a person.
If you are interested in this transition in detail, let me know in the comments but for the purposes of this story I’m going to skip to the part where I exit my corporate job completely. Designed by life was a side hustle for about 3.5 years before I went all in.
Transitioning from a job with a monthly pay check to running my business full time wasn’t easy. My mindset had to shift on so many levels and I had to lean into uncertainty all the time! A lot of ups and downs followed, including the pandemic and a large pivot in the services I’ve offered.
So, why am I telling you all of this? By far, the most common question I get living a life as a digital nomad is how I make money to afford this lifestyle?
In addition, there are the ‘oh-you-are-so-lucky’ comments that assume I’ve got a sugar daddy in the background paying for everything so I can gallivant around the world carefree but the truth couldn’t be further away from this.
The luck started with a blow – that faithful May in 2014. The story I’ve just shared. And what followed was years of hard work, investing in myself, learning like crazy online, keeping up with all the latest tech in the world of online business, doing most things on my own, pivoting AND never giving up.
Imagining and manifesting the life of travel, freedom of choice and abundance in all sense of that word was attached to all of this effort like a background noise that never goes away. That unrelenting belief in myself that I can do this!
Yes, it helps to have a self-built machine that supports you on the road of living your dream life. But let’s make no mistake, this has always been an intentional path towards something my soul knew all along.
I just wasn’t ready to admit that to myself for a long time, let alone do something about it. The day you decide the time is now, will be the first day of the rest of your life. This has been an 11-year journey for me, of those over 3 years now living the digital nomad lifestyle and over 25 years of living abroad.
It’s fitting I share this story as I celebrate 11 years in business on the 4th of July this year. Quite poetic, really, as it coincides with Independence Day in the US (although I am not American, mind you).
There are a number of ways to make this lifestyle a reality. This is just one of those – it’s my story and yours will likely look different as we are all unique.
A story that runs parallel to this journey of building a business was my spiritual awakening and how that shaped me into the person I am today. But we’ll leave that story for another time.
For now, all I’d like to say is thank you if you’ve read (listened) to this all the way to the end. It’s an important behind the scenes perspective that many don’t know about but I felt it was relevant to share.
Until next time!
Jarka