Many of us have read about the digital nomad lifestyle and wondered if we could give it a shot. The freedom of working from wherever you want, the exciting new experiences and new opportunities all make it an enticing way of living. But too many people think of it as a young people’s game. Here’s why that’s not true.
The digital nomad age gap
There are no two ways about it, most digital nomad spaces are focused primarily on young people in their 20s and 30s. Whether you’re in a co-living space with many other nomads or in a co-working office, you will notice that they mainly attract young travellers and remote workers. This is also true of many events where the organisers seem to expect younger faces. But this is not really what’s going on.
People of all ages, from their 20s to 70s and 80s, travel the world with a suitcase and a laptop and have been for many years. Sadly, some older digital nomads have reported that they had problems finding a community among their younger peers.
As any digital nomad knows, having a tightly-knit community can be the difference between a wonderful experience of living abroad and a nightmare. Anything from understanding local customs to needing help with administrative matters or even just to have someone to talk to—a community is indispensable. However, it would seem that the younger generation does not treat older digital nomads with the same friendliness and openness as they should.
Advantages of being an older digital nomad
Though many see it as a young pursuit, having a few years of experience in a more traditional setting under your belt can make things much easier in the long run. Firstly, having employment experience in just about any field will make it much easier to find a more flexible job in that field which can be done remotely. This also goes for opportunities found in your new home. A start-up might be looking for young talent, but they might be also equally eager to work with a senior, experienced worker. So when it comes to work, age can be a big advantage.
It also needs to be said that while sometimes hard to find, there are more older expats out there than you might think. And sharing experiences with someone who has been a digital nomad for a few years and has much more life experiences can be far more useful and interesting than talking to excited nomads in their 20s who are about to experience it all for the first time.
Difficulties with being an older digital nomad
While the digital nomad lifestyle is for everyone, it would be disingenuous to say that there are no difficulties at all. The most important thing to think about is healthcare. Younger digital nomads can, and often do, forgo quality healthcare for a few years before they settle in a country, but the older we get the more important it is to have a stable and reliable healthcare plan.
Luckily, this can be achieved in a variety of ways – your new home might offer high-quality private insurance which might cost far less than going private in your own country, or your employer might offer you healthcare insurance. After all, working remotely does not mean working part-time or freelancing. With a bit of preparation, there is no reason why you can’t travel the world and stay healthy at the same time.
