8 Digital Nomads Explain How They Make Money While Traveling

Sneak Peek:

Louisa:    00:00:00    Don't trust all the people that are telling you that it's too risky and that you can't do it.  

Cory:    00:00:04    Yeah, just do it. Just jump into it. I sold everything I owned in a week.  

Kristin:    00:00:08    How much money were you making online when you started?    

Introduction: Welcome to Badass Digital Nomads, where we're pushing the boundaries of remote work and travel, all while staying grounded with a little bit of old school philosophy, self-development, and business advice from our guests.

Kristin:    00:00:34    Hey there, Kristin Wilson from Traveling with Kristin here, and welcome to episode 244 of Badass Digital Nomads. I'm so excited to share today's episode with you because it really brings me back to the entire reason why I started this podcast, which is to share the stories of other digital nomads and people who are just living very cool lives. In today's podcast, I'm gonna be sharing with you eight mini interviews with digital nomads and remote workers, online entrepreneurs, consultants, you name it, who were with me on the Nomad Cruise from Spain to Brazil back in December. And I actually only knew one or two of the people that I ran into when I was walking around the boat asking people how they became digital nomads, how they make money online. And even with the people who I did know, I learned so much from them. And I'm always so impressed with how different everyone's stories are, where they're from, how old they are, what they did for work before their nomad lives, how they created their nomadic lives, and what their plans are for the future.  

Kristin:    00:01:53    And I also like talking to people who have been nomads for different periods of time, from Kseniia, who was just one or two months into her nomadic journey to people like Elmar who have been nomads for years, or even Jussi from Finland, who you'll hear from at the end, he looked so young and when he told me he'd been a nomad for eight or nine years, I couldn't believe it. I used to joke around before I had a podcast that I should just walk around with a GoPro strapped to my head to record conversations because I've met so many interesting people around the world. And this series of conversations kind of reminded me of that. But instead of just talking with people in private, I was recording these conversations. So I'm happy to share them with you today. I hope that you find a lot of value and ideas and inspiration in these discussions.  

Kristin:    00:02:50    And also, if you're new to the podcast, then welcome. And if you didn't know, I wrote a book a couple of years ago called Digital Nomads for Dummies. So if you are interested in this lifestyle and you wanna step by step guide on how to make extra money online, start a side hustle, Become a Digital Nomad, travel the world full-time, or part-time, then that is the best resource that I can offer you for only $20, $25. You can get a lot of information from my 20 years of being a digital nomad or an expat or living abroad or working abroad in some way, shape or form. Digital Nomads for Dummies is available wherever books are sold in major bookstores such as Barnes and Noble. It's also on Amazon. It's in audio format as an audio book. It's also available for Kindle. So you can get the ebook version.  

Kristin:    00:03:51    And you also get bonuses with this book that is something around 80 or 90 pages of extra digital nomad resources that I give to you for free. Anyone who has bought the book, you can download that with the link inside of the book to the extra resources. And this is all types of stuff from websites where you can find remote jobs to digital nomad gear and travel resources and more. So that is completely free with the book. And if you already have the book, then thank you. I hope that it's been helpful for you and you enjoyed it. And also, if you already own the book, please leave a five star review wherever you bought it, whether it was Barnes and Noble or Amazon, and that can help more people find out about it. Before we jump into today's show, thank you to Kat from the US who recently left a five star review for the podcast.  

Kristin:    00:04:47    She says, great podcast for nomads. Kristin is a great host and conversationalist as a seasoned nomad, she brings her own unique perspective to the discussion. Thank you, Kat. And to everyone who has left ratings and reviews, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, wherever it is, we really appreciate it. We have about 200 ratings now on Apple Podcasts and over 107 reviews. So thank you so much. Leave your review wherever you listen and we're sending you a big hug or a high five. Okay. So let's jump into the show and I'll see you on the other side with some comments and feedback from people who saw the video version of this podcast on YouTube.

Kseniia & Keith:

Kristin: I'm on a cruise ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with 400 digital nomads. So I'm gonna walk around this boat and ask them what they do to make money online. I have found some digital nomads, I think. What is your name? Keith Cummins, Kseniia. And where are you guys from? 

Kseniia:    00:05:56    I was born in Russia, and for the last 11 years I've been living in the United States. Today I'm resident of Florida, Miami, and I'm a nomad.  

Kristin:    00:06:04    How long have you been a nomad for?  

Kseniia:    00:06:06    Uh, two months. Interesting journey. <laugh>,  

Kristin:    00:06:09    Were you working remotely before you went nomadic?  

Kseniia:    00:06:12    Yes. Uh, I've been solution architect for the last nine years and since I started my journey, I always work remotely, but I've been always working from United States and today allowing or creating opportunity to work anywhere I want because I can.  

Kristin:    00:06:27    Is that your company policy or did you have to ask them?  

Kseniia:    00:06:30    Regularly? In United States, only allowed to work in United States and in the area and what I choose today to, to create my own company and work as being individual contributor. Work from anywhere I prefer to work and find the opportunities to, to help the world and create, uh, the business as it goes.  

Kristin:    00:06:50    Where are you from and what do you do to work remotely that allows you to be on this boat in the middle of the ocean today?  

Keith:    00:06:56    I'm from Dublin, Ireland and I build sales funnels. So sales funnel is is basically a process that allows people to, allows you to sell your stuff, allows you to sell your service a lot easier. It allows you to sell, uh, without chasing it. It enables people to come to you. So I set these process, process these systems up for clients. I started off as a web designer back in 2012. I left my corporate job and the first problem I ran into was how to get clients. And you think that this is gonna be something that's gonna be easy that, you know, they'll fall into your lap. But it turned out that wasn't be the case. So I had to learn marketing, I had to learn sales, and it was organic to go from web design, really into funnels. 'cause I just found that a lot of clients were coming to me to get funnels built. And it became, it just became more, it, it, it was organic just to kind of go down that road. It was natural, um, to be, to, uh, build myself as a, as a funnel, uh, builder and designer. So that's really how it happened. Uh, just working with people who were already in the marketing space. And from there it was a, a natural transition really.   

Kristin:    00:08:04    And did you have a traditional job before you got into this? Uh, what sparked this in Dublin?  

Keith:     00:08:09    I just wanted to do my own thing. Um, that was really it. Uh, I just, it was really, when you are self-employed, you're, you're restricted in terms of how far you can go in terms of how high you can go. And yeah, I just wanted more, I just wanted more freedom and.  

Kristin:    00:08:24   How long have you been location independent now?  

Keith:    00:08:26    Uh, it's actually just my 10 year. 10, 10 year anniversary. 2013.  

Kristin:    00:08:30    Now that you've been doing this for 10 years, what, how do you see your next 10 years as a digital nomad?  

Keith:    00:08:36    Well, it's not gonna be as, um, frenetic. It's not gonna be as crazy as it has been 'cause I'm getting old. Uh, that's not to say I won't travel, but I think really when you get to a certain stage, you, you still wanna travel, but you wanna be based more or less, you know, have your quote unquote base, um, and then kind of do trips from there. So that's what I'm, I'll be hoping, hoping to get my base established properly next year. It kind of, I lost it before Covid, so I want to kind of get back to Spain. Um, and I'm still choosing as to where I should, you know, spend most of my time in Spain. And I'm probably Barcelona, but I could go to the Canarys. I'm not really sure. So that's where I've been for the last few years mostly. And that, that to me is where I like spending most of my time.  

Kristin:    00:09:20    Is there anything particular that draws you to Spain?  

Keith:    00:09:23    Well, Spain to me, is the best country in the world. Um, I don't think that anywhere else has the, the same kind of climate, uh, cost of living, food, um, way of life, culture. Uh, I like the language, I like Latin countries in general. Um, everything about it is you just feel alive in Spain, you know, you walk the streets and everyone seems to be happy. Everything seems to be in a good mood. Uh, the weather's always good and it's a stark contrast to where I come from, where it's complete opposite. Like Spain, when I, when I first started spending significant time there, one thing I liked about it was it's an outdoor alfresco, um, country. People are outside, even in January, they're outside in cafes bars. Whereas where I come from, that's not the case at all. Uh, Ireland is, is an indoor, um, in, you know, people spend when they're out. There're in pubs indoors, they don't go outdoors. Um, yeah. And the weather, weather's miserable. Where I from, it's depressing. It always rains and it's, we get like maybe four weeks of sun if we're lucky. So it's a complete star contrast to, to where I come from. So it's, that's what I really love about it, you know,  

Kristin:    00:10:33    I'm sure the housing prices are quite a bit lower in Spain compared to Dublin as well. <laugh>

Keith:    00:10:38    Absolutely. Yeah. Um, although it's, that's changing too, but it's, you can still get great value in Spain both from, um, a renting point of view and, and, uh, buying, um, yeah, Ireland has a serious problem with, um, with housing and it's, it doesn't seem to be getting better any, anytime soon. Well, it is tricky as well in Spain, but it's, it's doable. And even if you don't, even if the cities like, you know, places like Barcelona, which are harder, um, to have spent significant time there, it is hard to get a place there, but it's, it's not impossible. There are other cities like Valencia, there's Malaga, Valencia, um, Almería um,

Kristin:  Seville

Keith:  Yeah, exactly. Granada, where it's, it's relatively easy. Uh, you can pick up, I mean, Granada for example, is a great little tar, great little city, and you can get a nice little studio power for like 500 euros a month. Um, so there's great valley to be had in Spain. The lifestyle is incredible. It's second to none in my opinion. So, yeah. Great.  

Kristin:    00:11:35    Yeah. Thank you guys so much for sharing your experience. Where are you going next?  

Kseniia:   00:11:39    The whole world is open. So, uh, in my, in my case, uh, I've been working in tech for last, uh, nine years. I've been working, um, not only working study, hard, grinding, like all in on nothing. And today I'm 30 years old. I, I, I know a lot, I know how to code <laugh>. I, I went to UC Berkeley studying computer science and cognitive science. And today being a woman, uh, living in the United States for so long, I realize that okay, I can do so much and I don't want to compete with man. Uh, it's not equal, equal like comparison. Um, yes, uh, equal opportunities need to be given. But at the same time, what I noticed, uh, being the only girl always in the jobs that I've been doing and all my clients, always male, uh, I decided to choose for myself not to be a man, but feminine woman, uh, continue, uh, contributing in the tech world and yet to, to create a better life, uh, experience for myself. Look at this, uh, sky, sun, boat. We are heading to Brazil.  

Kristin:    00:12:44    <laugh>. Yeah, but you make a good point. I actually wrote an article back in 2018 about how remote work and being a digital nomad as a woman can actually be beneficial because you don't have to play as many politics in the office. You don't have to deal with any harassment or any kind of favoritism. You can actually create your own network and your own bubble and community of clients, of partners that you work with and of remote employers. Yes. And I love it. <laugh>.  

Kseniia:    00:13:15    Yes.  

Louisa & Selina

Kristin:    00:13:16    What a great conversation. I'm so glad they were up here on the deck, but let's go find some more nomads, are you on Nomad Cruise? Yeah. Can I ask you a few questions about what you do to make money online? <laugh>. Okay. Where are you guys from?  

Louisa:    00:13:34    Berlin, Germany.  

Kristin:    00:13:36    And how long have you been digital Nomads? 

Louisa:   00:13:39   Three  and a half years now. Same company. So <laugh>,  

Kristin:    00:13:42    Did the company that you work for allow you to work remotely before the pandemic, or is it something that happened recently? 

Louisa:    00:13:49    My,  My company before didn't allow me to work remotely, so, uh, we both quit our jobs and started our own company. So it was very important for me to start a company where everybody was remote. So all of our employees are remote as well.  

Kristin:    00:14:00    What kind of jobs were you doing before you worked remotely and did you change your jobs or did you do the same thing as independent contractors?  

Selina:    00:14:09    Uh, I started out in the event industry, which has nothing to do with what we're doing now, but it gave me confidence on using other people's money. Uh, and then I moved on to working for Facebook at that time. Yeah, so that was the marketing start, I guess.  

Kristin:    00:14:26    And now what do you?  

Selina:     00:14:27    Now we have a company where we help people do their Facebook ads. <laugh>.

Kristin:   Oh, perfect. Yeah.  

Louisa:   00:14:32    Uh, I started in the fashion industry, so also nothing to do with online marketing. And then I started working at a social media agency, uh, for a year. And then we founded our company and that's been going ever since.  

Kristin:    00:14:44    Did you have any concerns about going nomadic?  

Louisa:    00:14:48    For me it was, I, I knew that we were gonna be fully remote and has a, have no doubts.  

Selina:     00:14:54    Agree.  

Kristin:    00:14:55    Okay. Do you plan on moving back to Germany full-time someday? Or how do you see your future in this location? Independent lifestyle  

Selina:     00:15:04    For me, for sure. I like, I, we still have a base in Germany, which I like having and I'm not ready to give that up. Um, but I think for the rest of my life I will skip European winters. Uh, one way or another, I'm not sure if for the rest of my life I'll be traveling around every winter or if it'll be one place where, you know, we buy something or rent something time, so we can always go to that one place. That's, that's what I have in mind, but I'm, I'm very open to more possibility.  

Louisa:    00:15:31     Yeah, same. I wanna keep Berlin as a base, but I don't see myself moving anywhere full-time ever again.  

Kristin:    00:15:38    I've done the same, I really like having a home base somewhere that I can go to a few months, a year, but also being able to travel full time. Um, do you have any advice or tips for people that are just finding out about this lifestyle and thinking about jumping in?  

Louisa:    00:15:55    Uh, the biggest advice for me would be don't trust all the people that are telling you that it's too risky and that it, that you can't do it and it's impossible. It's not sustainable. It is, it is a lifestyle. You can make money online and you don't have to believe in doubtful people. We had so many people telling us it's not possible, we should stick, stick with something safe. And it yeah, hasn't turned out like that at all.  

Selina:     00:16:20    One, get over imposter syndrome very, very early early because you'll have it. And for me, that's still something that I struggle with, but it's, if you help people, you're helping people and that's something you can't obviously do. Yeah. And two, which really helped me, but that's not the same for everyone, but the fact that we started doing it together made it a lot easier because maybe I was a bit afraid in the beginning that what if I don't find people I like, um, everywhere I travel and the fact that I have a, a partner to travel with definitely helps get over that anxiety, so for sure.  

Kristin:    00:16:49    Well, thank you so much,  

Louisa:    00:16:53    <laugh>.  

Elmar

Kristin:    00:16:56    What is your name?

Elmar:  Elmar.

Kristin:  How long have you been a digital nomad  for?

Elmar:    00:16:59     12 years. Something like that. 

Kristin:    00:17:02   How did  you get the idea for this 12 years ago?  

Elmar:     00:17:04    Kind of, uh, didn't like to, uh, be in the city that I lived and at the same time wanted to really explore a little bit more travel. So yeah, I, uh, started traveling. I, at the time I could combine it with my current, uh, or at the time work. And from there it kind of grew and then I never looked back so.  

Kristin:    00:17:25    What were you doing for work at that time and where were you living?  

Elmar:    00:17:28    Um, at the time I was living in Utrecht in Holland and I, um, uh, was freelancing, uh, in online marketing. I had one, uh, customer that I kind of had continuous work for, and that kind of in the beginning allowed me to do it because, uh, yeah, that gave me continuity in terms of income, uh, but not a lot, but enough to just get by in the cheaper spots, uh, on earth.  

Kristin:    00:17:55    I love that you could just start with one customer and make this lifestyle work. Yeah. And are you still doing online marketing now?  

Elmar:    00:18:02    Yeah, I'm, uh, I developed it. Uh, I've went many directions, but now I have, uh, an agency that, uh, provides online platforms for, uh, bigger companies and, uh, coaches that want to sell their courses online. And uh, so I built it up while traveling. It's, uh, yeah, it's been, uh, it's been real fun. I, I still travel. I now have a semi base in Hungary and um, kind of seven, eight months a year I still, uh, catch up with you guys on the stuff like this Nomad Cruise and stuff.  

Kristin:    00:18:37    What are some of the other countries that you find yourself going back to and how often do you visit your friends and family in Holland?  

Elmar:     00:18:44    So, uh, I do still have friends and family of course in Holland and in Norway as well. So I do tend to go back there at least one month a year. So one month Holland and one month Norway usually. Um, and for the rest, uh, Hungary is now a big part of my life because my girlfriend, um, and there's not, yes, south of Spain, Tenerife is always, uh, a place where I went to and still like to go to, uh, for kite surfing and a lot of nomads, uh, being there as well. Yeah. So, uh, yeah, a lot of fun.  

Kristin:    00:19:21    Any words of advice for people that are just getting started in this lifestyle?  

Elmar:    00:19:26    Yeah, I would, I would say, uh, if you can have one continuous client, if you're a freelancer, try to get that one client that kind of is continuous. You will meet a lot of people that, uh, give you opportunities and, um, try to niche down on, yeah, if you're a free, depends of course where everybody's different, but if you are a freelancer and, uh, yeah, not sure which way direction you want to go and how to get the income, try to niche down on a tool that is a little bit more premium, uh, because there are also more premium clients in that, uh, around that tool that really are looking for someone like you that can help them solving stuff with that tool. 

Kristin:    00:20:04    Alright,  so quality clients over quantity. Exactly, yes. Okay, thank you so much Elmar, and enjoy the rest of your day.  

Elmar:   00:20:11    Thanks, you too. 

The Maverick Show

Kristin:    00:20:18    Kristin, here if you like this episode, then I recommend checking out The Maverick Show hosted by my friend Matt Bowles. He has 270 interviews with location independent entrepreneurs about all types of topics. It is one of the top digital nomad podcasts out there, and among the top 1% of all podcasts according to listen notes. What I love about Matt's podcast is how much time he spends researching his guests and asking such thoughtful questions and also all of the crazy stories that he pulls out of everyone. He also has such a diverse roster of guests, of people, of all ages, all backgrounds, all countries. And he also talks about some really hard hitting topics, controversial topics. So if you're into adventure, travel, human rights, politics, geopolitics, all of that kind of stuff, definitely check out Matt Show. I believe I hold the record for the most interviews on the podcast with four episodes. So if you wanna check out some conversations with Matt and I, you can do so at themaverickshow.com/episodes and just search for Kristin Wilson or Traveling with Kristin and those episodes will come up. I've been listening to The Maverick Show since 2019 and I highly recommend it. Check it out at themaverickshow.com or search The Maverick Show in your favorite podcast app.  

Jussi

Jussi:    00:21:55    Hi, my name is Yui.  

Kristin:    00:21:56    And how long have you been a digital nomad?  

Jussi:     00:21:58   Yeah, like, almost eight, nine years. Wow. Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:22:01    How did you get started in this lifestyle?  

Jussi:    00:22:04    Yeah, it's a bit funny. I, I was kind of running out of money to be honest when I was in university. Uh, so I literally typed in Google how to make money online <laugh>. And then I, uh, got started with, um, simple things online, like translations and writing blog content for other companies. And then it's just grew and grew and grew. Now I'm, I'm part of a team. We're running like a big personal finance brand right now. We have about like 50 or 60 people in the team. So it's been, you know, growing quite a lot. Yeah, yeah.  

Kristin:    00:22:35    How much money were you making at the beginning when you were just doing some random freelance jobs to get by and where were you living at that time?  

Jussi:    00:22:43    At the time, yeah, this was, yeah, around like nine years ago I was still studying in Finland and I think like probably in the first few months I was making like 200 euros a month and then it slowly grew from there. 

Kristin:    00:22:59    When did you actually leave Finland and where did you go first?  

Jussi:   00:23:03    So that was, uh, I think it was 2016. I moved to Malta for, for one year because the company was based there that I, that I was working with.  

Kristin:    00:23:14    And did they give you any sort of compensation package to move there or it was all on your own?  

Jussi:    00:23:20    No, it was, yeah, it was, it was just on my own. I mean, the, the company that I was working with, they were renting a big house, so I was just, you know, paying for a room in the house in the beginning. 

Kristin:    00:23:32    Cool.  And where, what are some of the other countries that you've spent a lot of time in  

Jussi:     00:23:37    Recently? Uh, a lot of time in, in Bulgaria and also like Bali. Um, I go to Cyprus quite a lot because I have some friends who live there. Yeah, yeah. Different places every now and then.  

Kristin:    00:23:50    Do you see yourself ever moving back to Finland full time?  

Jussi:     00:23:54    Oh,  well, we'll see. I guess <laugh>, yeah, maybe. I mean, there's, there's so many nice places in Finland, like, uh, Lakeside maybe, maybe one day I'll get like a house on the, on the lake in Finland or something like that. But that's, that's in the future  

Kristin:    00:24:11    When you're living in these other countries, do you also spend time with local people or learning the language, or is it more just kind of working from home and hanging out with other foreigners?  

Jussi:     00:24:24    It's, it's, it's mostly living in the nomad bubble to be honest, but it depends a little bit on different country. Like, I, I spent a few months in Mexico and then I tried to learn some Spanish and, you know, interact with the, with the local people. Yeah, it, it, it really depends on the place. Like I, I lived also quite a long time in Estonia and I learned the language there and that made the experience so much nicer. But yeah, it, it depends so much on the, on, on the country and, and how long I'm gonna be there and, and, and so on.  

Kristin:    00:24:54    Do you feel like as digital nomads were well received in these places by the locals? Or is there more controversy over the impact that nomads are having?  

Jussi:    00:25:05    Yeah, personally, I, I didn't get any like, bad vibes or, or, or negative comments from, from the local people. Um, yeah, I, I guess like, yeah, maybe, maybe sometimes like taxi drivers have been saying like, oh, there's so many people here, or, or the prices are getting more expensive or something like that. But I, I, I, I really don't have personal experience more than that, so.  

Kristin:    00:25:31    Okay. Well thank you so much for sharing your nomad experience with us and enjoy your rest of your cruise.  

Jussi:    00:25:37    Thank you so much.  

Cory and David

Kristin:    00:25:40    Hey guys, how long have you guys been digital Nomads?  

Cory:    00:25:43    Uh, for me it was 2010.

David:  uh, three years.  

Kristin:    00:25:46    Yeah. And how did you get started with being able to make money from anywhere?  

Cory:    00:25:51    I was essentially, yeah, living the nomadic life in my own city, uh, doing affiliate marketing online and a friend of mine told me, you should read the book, the The 4-Hour Workweek. I read it and I'm like, okay, maybe I should just start traveling and do this from somewhere else. So I moved to Malta, uh, sold everything I owned in a week and moved to Malta and that was the beginning for me. 

Kristin:    00:26:12    Wow.  How was your experience in Malta?  

Cory:    00:26:14    It was great. I mean, that was my first like really big international travel destination. Uh, great weather, just a new culture to explore. Everybody spoke English there, so it wasn't too hard to really get going. And I went with a friend who I met at a marketing conference, so that helps. Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:26:28    About how much money were you making online when you started?  

Cory:     00:26:31    Uh, I was probably about like 80K, I think. 

Kristin:    00:26:34    Okay.

Cory:     00:26:35    Mostly from like SEO and my own websites and affiliate marketing.  

Kristin:    00:26:39    And are you still working in the same industry as before or have you changed? Yeah,  

Cory:    00:26:43    I've transitioned a bit. I still do marketing, um, but I also run a clothing brand now, and the marketing is more so for clients.  

Kristin:    00:26:50    About how often do you change locations? Do you just keep moving around or do you have a few places that you rotate between?  

Cory:   00:26:57    In the beginning it was, it was quite frequent. Uh, now I slow travel a little more. There's definitely places that I go back to that I revisit. Um, I would say a mix of both. Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:27:08    What are some of the places that are a really good, have good conditions for you to work remotely and be productive?  

Cory:    00:27:15    I really enjoyed my time in Ukraine when I was there. Uh, over the years, spend quite a bit of time there. Um, Poland also was, was really good, uh, infrastructure and good quality of life for the value. Uh, Asia, I, I've tried it all. Yeah. Europe is, is kind of my, my spot though. Yeah. Spent a lot of time in Tenerife, Spain, um, Malaga.  

Kristin:    00:27:37    Yeah. And how many Nomad cruises have you been on?  

Cory:     00:27:40    This is my fifth.  

Kristin:    00:27:41    Okay. What keeps bringing you back?  

Cory:     00:27:44    Just the people of the community. It's, it's a great bunch of people, um, you know, good weather, good times on a boat. And then because we all nomadic, we continue the travels once we arrive at our destination. It's just a great experience.  

Kristin:    00:27:55    Yeah, it's my third one, so I like it as well. And where are you from again? Remind me.  

David:    00:28:01    Uh, I was born in Alaska, USA and uh, I lived in Hawaii before I went, uh, nomadic.  

Kristin:    00:28:07    And what were you doing? How did you get from Alaska to Hawaii?  

David:    00:28:10    Uh, I was in the military. I was a active duty navy. I was a officer and um, I was in a high paying job and I had this idea of traveling and maybe working or traveling and just having money to, to just enjoy myself, uh, perpetually. I had this idea back in 2002 and so like I feel that there wasn't a whole lot of people talking about the kind of the lifestyle, um, back then. But over the years, especially like, you know, mid, uh, 2010s through the use of YouTube, Instagram influencers, this whole lifestyle started blowing up and I was thinking like, wow, that's exactly what I want to do. You know, like these other people just came up with a name for it and then the conferences, um, and uh, yeah, so I, I've been nomadic for three years now and, and it's great.  

Kristin:    00:28:57    So you stayed in your military job for a while. Were you trying to work out your plan for how you could go nomadic and what did you come up with?  

David:   00:29:07    Sure. So, um, I, I knew I was gonna do 20 years in the military, so I had a nice, nice long amount of time to plan and save money and invest. And that actually became my, kind of, my main thing now is like the hobby portfolio that I built, kind of building this, this nomad dream. Um, that's kind of my main thing now. So yeah, I kind of just built like a career into it as well.  

Kristin:    00:29:29    What are your different revenue streams?  

David:    00:29:32    Uh, I've got, uh, capital gains from stocks, sales stocks, uh, pensions from stocks, shareholder distributions from, you know, weird <laugh>, weird MLPs. Uh, I've got a pension from the military. I've got disability from the military. Um, yeah, I guess I'm kind of retired early.  

Kristin:    00:29:52    So you're basically a passive income nomad? 

David:    00:29:55    Yeah,  a hundred percent. Yeah. Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:29:56    How do you think that there's, there's a lot of people that, you know, have traditional jobs and they think, oh, maybe I'm too old to do it, or whatever. How do you think that having that stable job for 20 years prepared you for this lifestyle and do you think it would've been different if you would've just quit a couple years in and hopped straight into the traveling life?  

David:    00:30:16    It definitely made me appreciate it more. Um, the military, it's a lot of fun and it, it's a nomadic existence in and of itself. Like you move every one to three years. But it really made me appreciate the freedom aspect of this lifestyle. And, you know, I could travel before but I had to get 10 different people's permission and it was very difficult to get that permission now, and I had to get it before I even left. A lot of times now I can go wherever I want, I can go to a conference if, if I meet somebody or there's another group going to another area sailing or something, we can just hop on a plane and do it. We don't have to ask anybody's permission and we know that we're gonna be fine when we get there because we got all these great tools like Airbnb and uh, great websites to help us out.  

Kristin:    00:30:58    Well, I could definitely say that you've earned this freedom, you've put in a lot of years of service. And so do you call anywhere home right now? Do you still have a home base in Hawaii or are you fully nomadic?  

David:    00:31:10    Well, thank you. Appreciate it. Um, I, I don't have a home base right now. I'm fully nomadic. Uh, and it's been awesome, but it's, it's crazy. It's not for everybody.  

Kristin:    00:31:19    Yeah. What are some of the downsides of this lifestyle?  

David:    00:31:22    Um, it's very difficult to keep a social circle, like a coherent social circle. So you know, a lot of people all over the world, but from very different scenes. Um, basically your friends change every week or two weeks or a month and that's fine, you just need to know a lot of people and you just have to be open to just being friendly wherever you go, I guess.  

Kristin:    00:31:42    And are either of you guys in a relationship?  

David:  00:31:45    Uh, I was in something like that, but that ended recently. 

Kristin:    00:31:49   Was  it with another nomad?  

David:    00:31:51    Yes, but I can't say any more than that.  

Kristin:    00:31:54    Yeah, that's okay.  <laugh>, what about you, single?  

Cory:   00:31:56    Yeah, no, I'm single. Yeah, for a while. <laugh>,  

Kristin:    00:31:59    Do you find that that is difficult dating as a digital nomad?  

Cory:   00:32:02    Yeah, definitely. Um, I mean, we do have the ability to stay put, but if you already have some plans that are prearranged and everything and you gotta go, you know, we always get like the Tinder matches just as you're leaving a place <laugh> So it's like, yeah, keep those people in, uh, in touch. But yeah, you might go back.  

Kristin:    00:32:19    Any ideas about what we do about this? How do we solve dating for nomadic people?  

David:   00:32:23    Excellent question. Excellent question. Whoever does this is gonna be very, very rich with whatever app or service, uh, that they offer. But I would say in the meantime, uh, better communication, um, just talking about boundaries, what everybody's looking for, maybe even like the terms, you know, like, like we're gonna do this for a period of time, see how it works out. But I would just say better communication in general and, um, just people opening up their hearts a little bit more to maybe travel with somebody instead of just traveling by themselves all the time.  

Kristin:    00:32:57    Yeah, I, I think the hardest part about dating as a nomad is that when you meet somebody, you only have a short amount of time to explain these things, you know, if it's a casual date, you don't necessarily wanna go into detail about your lifestyle and, and all of these conditions. So I'm still figuring it out myself, but we'll report back if we have any solutions. <laugh>, thank you guys so much for sharing your nomadic journeys with us and any final words of advice for people watching that are curious about the lifestyle?  

Cory:    00:33:28    Yeah, just do it, just jump into it. Uh, like I said, I sold everything I owned in a week, uh, figured out my mail, let's left it at my sisters and just, just start traveling and just see how it works and kind of make your way as you go.  

David:    00:33:40    I'd say just do it also. Yeah, the freedom is is indescribable actually. It's amazing. I think it's the best part.  

Kristin:    00:33:47    Is there anything that you miss that you can't carry with you  

David:    00:33:50    Family and other friends? 

Kristin:    00:33:52    Yeah,  It's all about people here. Well, thank you guys and if you wanna see more videos about asking people what they do to make money online and travel, then click on these thumbnails right here. I think that's a wrap.

Kristin:  Welcome back. I hope you enjoyed these eight interviews with digital nomads who are sharing how the heck they make money while traveling the world full time. Scott says, I really enjoyed hearing all of these different conversations. It's great that they had some useful advice for all of us, and Cimas said great interviews by a world class interviewer. Thank you. One person, anonymoususer says, I really love the perspective of the ex-military. Would love to hear more from people who may be slightly older and had a stable lifestyle, quote unquote before they jumped in. Wondering if the fearlessness of your younger years helps people tackle this and how older people could find a way to transition into this lifestyle.  

Kristin:    00:34:51    Such a great comment. I also was very intrigued by the perspective that David had as far as hearing from more people who might be slightly older. I do have a couple of podcasts with my good friend, Palle Bo, the Radio Vagabond, about how to transition into this lifestyle in your fifties. And I also have some more guests coming up this year who will be sharing more tips about how they became digital nomads later in life or became roving retirees. The aspect of wondering if the fearlessness of your younger years helps people tackle this and how older people can find a way to transition into this lifestyle. I do talk about this in my book in Digital Nomads for Dummies, about all of the different ways that you can Become a Digital Nomad and also the misconception that's out there in the statistical realm that this is a lifestyle just for younger people.  

Kristin:    00:35:54    In fact, studies show that the average age of digital nomads could be late thirties into early forties. And I also think that this is a, a growing location, independent lifestyle for people in their retirement years. People who might have thought before that they would just retire in Costa Rica or Panama, are now thinking about being a little bit more mobile, at least for a few years, to maybe travel to three or four different countries per year before they ultimately settle down somewhere. So the great thing about this lifestyle is that there's no right or wrong answer. Whatever you feel is right for you is right for you. And it's also kind of ironic that when I first started living abroad, I felt like I was the youngest person because almost everybody that I met living in other countries was older than me and many of them in their late in their careers or retired.  

Kristin:    00:36:55    So I do think that this is something that you can do at any age and if you have any recurring income, like a pension, of course that always helps. But if not, then check out my book for lots of ideas about how you can start making an online income and how to budget for this lifestyle even with a thousand or $2,000 per month in remote income. Alpha Bravo commented a bit on the aspect of your friends changing every week or every month, and they say that in several companies they worked with, they had colleagues where their colleagues changed with high turnover at the office. So it's interesting to hear how, you know, having these different friendships and relationships, it can be the same even if you're working in a location dependent nine to five job, depending on the company. M.E says, please make a video about how to take care of your taxes as a digital nomad.  

Kristin:    00:37:59    We have a lot of episodes about taxes here on the podcast, so I'll link to that in the show notes if you are curious about that. And then I really like this comment from Grant who says, Hmm, a good video, Kristin, thinking about the opposite of what they represent here we have a boatload of people who have made a trade off in terms of not having a home, a pickup truck, a dirt bike, a family physician, a spouse, a best friend, just an observation. But the nomads do have an appeal. Certainly grant, there are trade-offs to any type of lifestyle. And I also talked about this in a video about the truth about full-time travel, which I can also link to in the show notes where I was mentioning how when you live this lifestyle, you're almost forced into a minimalist lifestyle. And if you're the type of person who likes to tinker around with old cars or wants to have your own art studio or lots of music equipment, welding equipment, surfboards, if, if you want to live somewhere where you have access to all of this stuff, this kind of travel lifestyle can make it difficult or impossible to do those things unless you find a place where you can set up a temporary studio and the places that you're going.  

Kristin:    00:39:25    So there definitely are trade-offs, but it's also a good contrast to having that life. So if, if that's a life that you've had for a long time, I would encourage you to try going on some extended trips where you are living out of a suitcase and away from your stuff and see what fills in the void there. You might be really happy to come back to your status quo or it might give you a new perspective, especially if you feel creatively blocked. Sometimes travel can be a really good remedy for that. And then the aspect about not having a family, a physician, a spouse, or a best friend that goes, whether you know you're a nomad or not, there are nomad couples and families and kids who were on the Nomad Cruise. Definitely a lot of couples people are married in this lifestyle, it's no problem.  

Kristin:    00:40:21    Of course, dating can be complicated sometimes, but these aren't mutually exclusive things. And then also with the physician comment was kind of funny. I do personally have a dentist in a few different countries and a doctor in a few different countries, but I also have my doctor's WhatsApp numbers in the Netherlands, in Costa Rica. And I do end up going back to the same doctors when I'm in those countries. And I actually feel like I have a closer friendship or doctor patient relationship with my doctors in other countries than I do in the US. Also. Someone was asking, when is the next cruise scheduled to sail and Nomad Cruise 13 was just announced. This is departing from Vancouver sailing en route to Japan from September 29th to October 13th, 2024. So Nomad Cruise 13, 300 people, 100 events, 13 days at sea, September 29th to October 13th. You can save 200 Euro by using my link in the show notes.  

Kristin:    00:41:35    And you can choose between shared rooms, single occupancy window balcony, hot tub on your balcony. I mean, there's all different options for all different price points. I've already been on three Nomad cruises, so I can highly recommend it and you can meet a lot of cool people that you heard from in today's episode. Thank you for spending time with me today. I hope you're having a great day or night wherever you are in the world. Grab a copy of Digital Nomads for Dummies if you want more of a step-by-step guide into how to achieve this lifestyle. And if you already have it, please leave a review or a review for the podcast and we'll see you again next week.