Five Ways to Make a Digital Nomad Bread and Butter

Original author: Jacob Laukaitis
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I wrote an article on Medium (the translation on Megamind is available here - translator's note ) about my life style as a digital nomad and why I will never live the pattern “from 9 to 5”. Within 2 weeks she gained more than 150 thousand views. Dozens of people contacted me in the hope of getting advice on how to make money while traveling, so I decided to write the second part of the article.

The decisive factor here is the ability to make money working online. This means that you need to work with something that does not set time and space for you. Here are five ideas you might find useful:

1. Freelance


Relatively easy freelancers can become people who have skills in areas such as design, copywriting, programming and marketing (search, social media, advertising).

You can start with platforms like UpWork and ask your clients to advise you to their friends. Finding customers may not be easy at the beginning, but here are some good tips on this.

In the end, you can start hiring other freelancers and build your profitable online business, but remember:

The most important thing is that the payment is based on the result, and not on time (when possible).

For example, you provide social media promotion services, and you need one project manager and one content manager for each client. Tell your employees that you will pay them a certain amount for each successful project, and not for the time spent on work. In this case, each of your customers will bring you profit, and your employees will be able to determine for themselves how many customers they are willing to work with.

That is how I myself became a nomad - I used this model for my agency, which is engaged in marketing in social networks, and we began to make a profit on the very first day. After a few months, I worked 3-5 hours a week and earned enough to travel wherever I wanted.

2. Teach languages ​​online


After graduation, many people go to teach in East Asia (mainly South Korea, Japan and China). This allows them to make relatively good money, get to know other cultures and travel.
It seems to me that this is great, although this cannot be called digital nomadism, because you are still attached to the place.

Nevertheless, you can teach languages ​​online on various platforms aimed at teaching foreign languages. My favorite service, with which I myself learn languages, is called Italki .
To get inspired, read this interview with an online travel teacher who travels around the world.

3. Work not tied to any particular place


If your current job is to solve various problems online, then you may be able to become a digital nomad without even quitting. Just tell your employer that you will do everything you owe, will be available on demand and save him money by providing minus one workplace in the office.

If this is not enough, offer to cut your salary by 20-30%.

Since most likely you will travel to less expensive areas than you are now, you will be able to afford more, even with a lower salary.

4. Start an online business


It will not be easy! However, if you have already chosen this path, then my advice to you is: start something simple and reliable that does not require a large starting capital and will make a profit from the first day of work. You can find more detailed thoughts on this subject here .

Personally, I had several online businesses: from popular websites and online agencies to the fast-growing online coupon site ChameleonJohn.com . And I don’t even think about stopping investing in them. But this is definitely not the easiest way to make money online.

5. Blog / Vlog


Blogging - Writing articles on your personal website. Video blogging - posting videos on the Internet (usually on YouTube).
Making money making online content is not easy for two reasons:

1) Competition . The sheer amount of good free content available makes competition fierce. You will not stand out if you just provide good content. You will need to either actively promote it, or hope that you are very lucky.

2) Monetization . Most content creators profit from advertising. The problem is that advertising revenue is very low. In the case of the video, you can expect a profit of 0.5-2 dollars per 1000 views, if we talk about articles on the blog - and even less.

Content should be good and ads should be perfect.

Despite the fact that making money for a living this way is not easy, it is still possible. My advice: create niche content, create your own database with the email addresses of your users (this is more valuable than all your followers on social media combined) and find new ways to monetize. For example, it can be the sale of your own services (consultations, webinars, online courses) and the promotion of related products.

If you want to get away from the lifestyle from 9 to 5, then one of these ideas can help you with this. Try them, fail, learn, adapt and repeat this as many times as needed.

And always remember:

The main thing is what you do, and not what you dream, talk or plan.

You can learn more about the author on his official website .

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