Since the slow easing of the worldwide lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic digital nomadism stopped being something a few bold freelancers tried out for a while and started being a lifestyle of its own. Nowadays, there are millions of people traveling and working remotely and this trend is going nowhere. But what will the future of digital nomadism look like? Read on and find out.
Companies
The forced remote work within most companies became a trump card for digital nomads. Before the pandemic, the general consensus was that people are more productive in the office and that work from home is somehow inherently lesser quality (despite the fact there were tons of freelancers working from home even then). But the stigma is wearing off because pretty much anyone who worked in an office during a lockdown had the experience of working remotely. And for many, they saw their work was just as good as before.
One of the largest hurdles for digital nomads today is finding work that will support their travel. There are only a few occupations where a company isn’t necessary (like teaching, coaching, or being a social influencer) while most need a job or clients that will let them work fully remotely. The trend seems to be split: on one hand, there are many companies (especially international ones) that are willing to introduce working remotely in full-time positions while other companies are staunchly against it. But the shift has begun and now it’s only a matter of time before more and more employers will offer remote work as a way to attract talented people.
Communities
Fewer and fewer digital nomads travel completely alone. Whether it’s a whole nomad family that travels from country to country or it’s nomad communities within larger cities, digital nomads aren’t as alone as they once were. This is in part due to the rising numbers of nomads as well as the fact that nomadism is more well-known now which brings more people together.
This has a knock-on effect where larger and more vocal communities are both able to attract more potential digital nomads as well as show countries that they are a viable group that is worth recognizing on the political stage.
Most countries, even in Europe, struggle to have a good legislative understanding of digital nomads. But the fault is only theirs - nomads are ideal workers from the point of view of the state. The money they make often comes from outside while taxes and products are purchased locally. In the same way that companies face the challenge of accepting remote work, countries are increasingly more likely to enact legislation that will make it easier for digital nomads to cross national borders.
Who gets to be a digital nomad?
One of the largest changes that happened over the past few years is who really gets to live a nomadic lifestyle. While it used to be mostly students with part-time jobs and more affluent nomads, these days, remote work is much easier to find and many people who could never afford to be nomads now have the opportunity to try it out.
However, one thing is unlikely to change. There are tons of manual jobs as well as jobs in care, medicine, and social work that are unlikely to see much change when it comes to remote work. There will always be work that cannot be done remotely and it’s worth keeping that in mind when one thinks of the possible future of remote work and digital nomads.
