I know a nomad

Did you know that you can get a digital nomad work “visa” in over 20 countries worldwide?

When we mention in conversation that we are living a nomad/work/lifestyle almost everyone has a friend/sibling/cousin who is doing the same as us.

Digital nomad-ism is growing

It is indeed a growing trend when we see countries launching digital nomad “visas” to attract remote workers. Interestingly, the development was predicted over 20 years ago by Japanese technologist Tsugio Makimoto who wrote that remote working would force nations “to compete for citizens”, and that digital nomad-ism would prompt “declines in materialism and nationalism”.

Co-written by David Manners, this book was published in 1997 and over the past 25 years, the lifestyle has indeed grown. One of the repercussions of COVID-19 has been a boom in people adopting some form of nomadic lifestyle. For us the pandemic was the birth of the dream becoming a reality because there was a forced proof point that we didn’t need to be in the same city as our clients. Our relationships with long-standing, and new clients, flourished and we were not only able to deliver great service but in some cases, developed and deepened personal relationships.

It would seem that most nomads fall within the 18 - 39 age bracket and this becomes patently clear when you look at the insurance available for this lifestyle, it’s not aimed at over-50s. The feeling of rejection was real when we found this out and the message we got was we love digital nomads, just not you. ;-D

Logically, it makes sense to experience life as a nomad when you’re young and relatively rootless. An owned house sets down roots and then more roots grow when children need to go to school and the roots thicken and hold people down as comfort, convenience and routine set in.

It is a dramatic lifestyle change

Global nomadism is a dramatic lifestyle change with the need for organisation, forethought, planning as well as flexibility.

For those over 39, it could be a step too far to let go of all the furniture you’ve collected over the years. The idea of not having your own bed/pillow/knives/pots is appalling and the need for always thinking ahead of where to next, what will the weather be like, what Visa and vaccination requirements are there, not to mention the need to search for and book flights, suitable accommodation that has a good Internet connection with a minimum of 20mbps up and down, must have a shower and a washing machine as a minimum. It could be seen as creating more work for yourself (ain’t nobody got time for dat)

Older (read more mature), over 50 nomads

The thing with being over 50 nomads is that we’re not into co-living, nor are we into co-nomading. That’s just a hard no for us! The idea of joining a group of digital nomads with communal living spaces, curated events and activities, wanting to network, learn, and travel together leaves us both a bit cold. There are also nomad organisations that put together a full program - almost like a Contiki tour for digital nomads - that steps a group of high-paying individuals through cities with shared working spaces, good Internet connectivity and a program that negates the booking of flights and accommodation and the dreaded visa challenge. For us, that’s not our definition of nomading, it’s a working tourist who is going back home after travelling for a while.

Can you call it nomading?

It’s inaccurate to call yourself a nomad when you’re going home to a permanent abode after paying someone to guide you around the world while you work remotely. Or the other version is “we’re nomads, we own a home in different places and we travel between them”. Nomads are people having no permanent home. It should be true to say that “wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home”. Sorry Paul Young (and no, we’re not giving away our age cause we’re not quoting the original by Marvin Gaye).

Starting the journey

We lived in one house for 19 years, had three children grow up in it and collected stuff that was put in the attic or the cellar for just-in-case. This meant there was a lot to consider when starting this journey.

Here’s a short tour of our spreadsheet of key things to be done before leaving.

1. Health check

We’re pretty sure that the health check To Do list before leaving home is a lot shorter for twenty-something year-olds. At our age, things like visiting the dentist, doctor, physio and ear specialist are necessary to ensure all the paperwork for meds is in order and that everything is in working order as travel can take its toll on the body.

2. Dealing with belongings and admin

Look carefully at removal companies, how to sell the furniture, what to keep, and where to store it. Make sure you map insurance coverage with the offering of the storage facility. This is a common mistake. If your insurance requires an on-premise camera - with surveillance of the footage, don’t even look at facilities that don’t have this.

There’s also a list of things to think about like insurance, safety deposit box, wills, organising international roaming on phones, international fees on credit card usage, expiry dates on credit cards and if you need new ones before you go. Then lastly the stuff to buy. Do we have portable laptop stands, power banks, RFID wallets, universal power adapters and light garments that wick and are warm or cool, depending on what's needed?

3. Where to go

Building an itinerary of where to stay, what cities to visit, weather and what season we want to be there in, accommodation, budget, background info on the country and town, what we need to know, what the time difference is between where our current clients are based vs where we will be working, what to take - and what we will be able to carry with the allowance of 23kgs per suitcase.

Thinking things through includes how to get from this door to the next with minimal waste of time and money. All these things take time, focus and energy.

If you’re travelling with someone, it’s best to systematically work through each point together so that you’re both on the same page and agree on things. As an example, @ingridlotze doesn't do well working in coffee shops each day. @gavinmoffat is a-okay with it so a compromise needs to be found for both to feel comfortable and be productive.

4. What to take

It took a couple of dry runs to local destinations in South Africa to get the balance right. We packed as if it was an international trip to see what was needed and what could be left behind. We’ll share our lists in the near future.

There is a lot to do and consider prior to departure and it was an exciting journey if somewhat tiring and taxing at times. So far we haven’t yet missed anything and, in fact, we have realised we didn’t need so many socks.