We all heard the story: a freelancer living in the Bahamas who only works from a laptop on a beach with a pina colada in their hand. For many, the romantic image seems like a dream. And while you can totally work from a beach as a digital nomad, the lifestyle does come with some challenges and obstacles that might not be for you. Here are the most important ones.
Time management
One of the things you need to be really good at as a digital nomad is managing your time well. Freelancers and even fully employed nomads all work remotely and so all the projects and tasks from your bosses or your clients need to be done on time.
This is no mean feat. If you want to stay ahead, you need to be able to juggle multiple projects and assignments at the same time, don’t miss deadlines unless you’re sick (and sometimes even then), and not let it affect the quality of your work. This can be very stressful which brings us to the next hurdle.
Isolation and stress
Living abroad can mean experiencing some intense isolation. After all, if you travel the world with just your backpack and a laptop, you will leave behind friends, lovers, and family. You can message and call, sure, but we all know that’s not really the same. The best way to combat isolation is to go out and meet people. Join expat groups, and start a hobby or a sport. But if socialization does not come easy to you, this might be too great an obstacle.
Stress is another well-known problem. Many people start their digital nomad journey as a way to relax and have an extended vacation. What they don’t think about is that being a digital nomad can be just as stressful as having a regular full-time job. Sure, years down the line you might work less for more as you find your clients and have more experience, but the beginnings can mean a lot more work, not less, than staying and working back home.
Administration and red tape
The last thing worth mentioning is the mountains of paperwork you’re likely to encounter as a digital nomad. This might not actually be so bad for people from the European Union. EU citizens can live and work in other EU countries without much of a hassle and they don’t even need a passport to enter the country (an ID is enough). So if you are an EU citizen or a national, you should definitely take advantage of this and choose your first digital nomad trip within the EU.
For everyone else, however, things can get tricky fast. To get a visa in many countries, you might be looking at a months-long process that begins with extensive documentation. And there’s no guarantee that it will work. What can also give you a headache is how different visa rules can be. The USA is not in the EU but there are agreements whereby US citizens can enter the EU for a few months without a visa. But EU citizens don’t have the same luxury when they travel to the US. And that’s just one example out of thousands. So if you cannot stand red tape, maybe being a digital nomad isn’t for you after all.
