What I Learned After 1,5 Years of Interviewing Digital Nomads

Hey Nomads, welcome to Digital Nomad Stories, the podcast. My name is Anik Lassen and, together with my co-host, kendra Hosse, we interview digital nomads. Why? Because we want to share stories of how they did it. We talk about remote work, online business, location independency, freelancing, travel and, of course, about the digital nomad lifestyle. Do you want to know more about us and access all previous episodes? Visit digitalnomadsco. Alright over to Kendra for today's interview.

Welcome to Digital Nomad Stories, the podcast. My name is Kendra and I'm your host today. Today I will do a solo episode. We kept paying like almost one and a half years of interviewing other digital nomads about this story and, yeah, I'm just going with the flow and I'm trying to remember, wing of all this inspiring interviews I had with other digital nomads and putting for you together some of them for my main inspiration and learnings. And now, when I was thinking about all the interviews I had, I realized that many of us of us digital nomads started with this wish and deep desire of changing our lifestyle, of waking free from this 9 to 5 job, of waking free or going out, leaving the corporate world and just starting to live a life where we feel fulfilled, where we feel that we are really tapping into the steps of walking on that path, of living our vision, of wishing to live a life that aligns more with our values, a life where we can allow ourselves to create day by day, without being in this castle or this fixed structure and this is what I see more and more that as soon as we start embracing or becoming brave of really allowing us to dream, to dream of a lifestyle we really like of the day we want. More and more of us see the opportunity in becoming digital nomads because some of us start building our own business. A lot of my interview partners, including me, together with this digital nomad lifestyle, started that we became entrepreneurs. So, being our own boss, we can create our day by day, and even for many of us who started online business, we can start traveling the world, and that is what I saw as one of the main motivations of this main driver Replying that question what is it what I really want in life?

Who do I want to be? How do I want to create my life? What do I maybe want to achieve? And also, that with this comes together. What all have in common is this being brave. Being brave, following this intuition, is in the question of what is what if I'm really a citizen of the world? What if I'm really creating a life full of freedom where I can go to the country I wish, where I can just go to the city I want to be in? What if I really take this leap or this next step? What if I really trust in the universe or in my capacities and doing so? And what is the worst that can happen. We always can go back home right and in the end, what is home? All our integrates started also creating home within us and I feel the more and more we embrace the stage of normal lifestyle, the more and more we became confident also in us and our capabilities to create the life as we want.

Because some in the outside believe, oh amazing, living by the beach or living in the city you want, working on the computer whenever you want, taking free whenever you want, discovering new places, meeting new people. That sounds also beautiful and looks so beautiful on the outside, but no one really looks to the inside. Or the stress we need to handle Planning again the next destination, all the logistics, this anxiety of where to go next, of having like the world for us as possibilities and not being able to decide, dealing with different time zones, with internet struggles, with so much time spending on planning the next travel, like booking a flight, finding a new apartment, understanding also the culture in other countries to really arrive there and also then meeting other people. But by all of these challenges we become more and more confident in ourselves and really being able to create these lives Because we are still alive in the end, all the challenges make us more grown. We even become more resilient to challenges. So, being a digital nominator still to your own personal development growth path and you are facing what you need to face challenges that wait for us when we go out of our comfort zone.

Because with every new destination we go a step again out of our comfort zone. Because at home or when we stay longer three months or longer in one place, we create this little comfort of it. That's amazing. That's where we can go twice, where we just can be ours, where everything is organized, where we have maybe a routine. Having routine also helps always, but as soon as we go to the next destination, we kind of start from zero again and this also helps us to getting ourselves to understand more and more who we are right, who we want to be, and also understanding maybe what stresses us, what causes us Also these emotions we don't like to feel by anxiety, loneliness, stress, overwhelm, being lost. But in the end, tapping into these emotions is what makes us grow, and so I want to talk also about this emotion of maybe loneliness maybe talked about with a lot of interview partners Because it's human, it's a human desire, the sense of belonging, of creating meaningful connections.

And yes, to be honest, it's more difficult if we are not staying at the same place all the time. Or maybe we make new known friends and then they go on with their travels and we stay at the same place and I might say that this friend, this community we created, is leaving more and more. Or maybe we are the ones who are leaving this nice, beautiful circle of friends we made Because our visa expands, or we just want to go to the next place and then there. Then we need to deal again with this sadness or the loneliness and start building from scratch and your community, because we all have this wish of community fostering it. But then the beauty is also in this. We can find the beauty and the magic because we find digital norm that's all over the world.

The community is growing, thriving and there are so many digital norm that helps so many cities where, like so many meetups, events going on, maybe we can meet other norm. That's why I think we're partners or even deep dive into the culture with locals. So we have those opportunities to build meaningful connections where we go, and they may even want to say the longer we are normal, the longer we go to new places, the more often, the better we become and creating meaningful connections. Because we, by some time, we start asking this questions that are a little bit deeper. They're not just about what's your last destination where you're going. Then right, we are already coming with this intention of okay, I want to create some friends, some community, and we know how to do it. We know, okay, maybe we check out the Facebook group's a little bit earlier. We go with more patience to events, not expecting that at the first digital norm meetup you meet like your best for our five new friends, that it might take time, that it's or maybe sometimes not, but that we have this patience that we can read and also, the more we travel around, we go back to places and maybe meet new people.

For me it happened a lot like now I meet like digital norm. It's all over the world. I met, maybe in another country I had an interview with. It's like it's beautiful. So the world becomes kind of small within this little bubble and we also can embrace that. We choose who we want to be with. We know how to find the people we vibrate in the same energy with. So, for example, I'm mainly on my normal time, almost time of the year.

The last year I was in Medellin, in Columbia. So if I want to go dancing, I know I find dancing community. If I want to be between the norm, between the entrepreneurs, I find events. I find events for partying. I find events for being a volunteer and help others there doing sports, whatever you want, whatever you've bought games, I don't know. Whatever you really want you can find. So you do likely know the community you want to meet digital norm at friends. One thing for me talking about creating community is what really helps me is going to woman circles. Either I host woman circles and there I meet so many beautiful friends connections, or I join them when I go to a place, because then we create a really beautiful connection between women. So that's a huge tip I can give you is joining woman circles, searching or maybe, if you cannot sign the white event you want to go to and create it by your own. Maybe a co-working after or whatever is calling you yet to really be able to create this life that you want.

And one, also one beautiful thing I was talking with a lot of interviewed partners was freedom. Freedom has this one value we are all looking for, which will that makes us thrive. We are grateful for all those independence we are creating and that's, in the end, why we are doing it right, like having the world as our playground, being able to explore what we want to explore, working free from this limited mindset that maybe was waiting for us at home when you run this 9 to 5 job. Now, having all this freedom, we can also broaden our perspective. We can open up and, to be honest, I become more and more grateful for this once I learn to deal with this uncomfortable feeling of having the freedom, where sometimes it can also be overwhelming.

What do I do next? When do I go where? How do I create new community? How do I deal with all the logistics, this emotions, but then really starting to see this beauty and this freedom of being able to create the life that we want. But really also what I love is embracing authenticity, stepping really into our full potential, allowing us to be who we want to be. That in itself is such a gift and beauty and this freedom we have in being a normal. It allows us to be who we want to be, even in little things. It's maybe one month. I want to be a full business woman amazing. Then I go to a city and then I go to co-working, free, embrace my entrepreneur spirit. Maybe another month I just want to be by the beach, just jumping into the ocean, connect with nature. Beautiful, I do it.

And now, realizing it more and more, I'm really grateful for this freedom, for this freedom of places where it can be, feeling also this up and down of this freedom that somehow, realizing everything always walks out, and also grateful for all the people I meet on the journey, for all these inspiring stories of people who are really brave, living their dreams, living these calling. Also, what if I just give my normal corporate world and travel the world in my own rhythm, building maybe my business and finding always different ways of getting income and learning and glory from all such challenges? I already said we have, and I think that is something beautiful I don't want to miss if in some point inside I want to settle down and not be in the mood anymore, having made myself on a deeper level because in the end, I am the one who is who I am spending most of the time with, with who I am first stepping out of the plane going to a new country. I am sure I need to organize all this logistics, or when I have like a problem, I really need internet or maybe it's like so bad connection and finding all those problems.

Also, diving into new cultures how enriching are all those experiences when you need to look at people, when you learn new cultures, when you understand these differences and maybe something that for me was really normal, for example, with what I learned of the Colombian culture and from Germany, and in Germany it was always okay, we make a plan.

In three weeks and four weeks we have this dinner appointment and then I show up there and my friends are waiting for me. But in Colombia when we say, okay, we need for dinner next week, it's more kind because they don't like to say directly that they might not want. But then you show up and there's no one like allowing yourself to go with the flow, whether you like, with the kind of means. They're just feeling that moment, what makes sense, they're good and just do it. This might be challenging for us when we are yeah, when we are like responsible with our plans, but in the end, when we start learning to go with its culture or flow of each country, embracing this country and doing, for example, for me. Don't take it personally. If the Colombian is not showing up, it's just because they make what makes them feel good. And then just meeting another day and you says free time for yourself and start playing with it, start enjoying it that is something I don't want to miss.

Having learned, who do I want to be authentically? How can I be authentically me? What lifestyle do I need to be authentically me? What surroundings do I need? And with nature do I want to be? And with kind of city's migrants, what kind of home do I want to create? Like, what is my next? Maybe apartment, hotel room, hostel, or, and saying the word home. One last thing I want to share is what, for me, is something beautiful is giving home a new definition, finding home.

Rosin was, rosini was in my heart. Some of you might know me as if my passion is connecting to my heart, inspiring others, creating experiences to connect to our heart, because, in the end, our heart is a safe space, a safe place where we find love. We really connect to this feeling of being home by yourself, like in your own home. Finding love, rosini, and also finding all the answers, rosini. For more time we embrace this lifestyle of anornment, of really understanding who we want to create, asking ourselves, the more we also have time and space to connect to ourselves, ask us meaning and questions to ourselves like what is my vision alive? What life do I want to create? What adventures do I want to live and I think this is also a gift I don't want to miss anymore, having connected more and more to myself and finding home, rosini, and also knowing how I need to create my surroundings to feel wrong, if I example, I need my little cozy corner in the morning so I can put a van, a candle, where I can prepare coffee, for example, for me. Any place where I go needs a possibility where I can boil water in the morning for me to tea or my coffee and then just sitting there with my journal and starting the day understanding how I'm really fully saying hello to myself.

Then I always feel at home when I can feel well in every place and embrace like a new day of meeting new people or finding ways toward, maybe, of trying new food, of trying new local activities, discovering or also being fine with being in paradise. But you need to sit 10 hours at the computer because somehow we need the money, right. But that's also part of the play, part of the game. It's also something we just shouldn't waste and enjoy. So from this little episode, reflecting on all the, on some interviews, of what we said, maybe the message, if you would ask me, what is this one thing you should remember. I want to give this Enjoy, just enjoy, and trust, which is uncomfortable. Allow yourself to be you and using this lifestyle, and be brave to love this lifestyle by embracing your authenticity.

I ask you where do I want to go really, what lifestyle do I really want to live and how can I create it?

And one is this freedom of having the world as your playground, and just go there and trust that when you are aligned with what you really want, with what your heart is telling you, what is your deep desire, it's universe is co-creating with you and you will find your perfect next destination where you just feel that you can be there in that moment, at home, where you will create meaningful connections with other people, with knowledge, with loan, funds, with yourself. Just be brave, go your next step where you feel that you're falling to and enjoy it, and that's the way home will be able to create this fulfilling life as normal.

I hope there was like a little inspiration for you in this episode. If you're maybe thinking about, shall I become a nomad, maybe you find your answer now. Maybe now you could declare me to, or you're just a nomad and wanted to listen to another nomad story. Maybe it was just for you some insight, some story, something that gave you a new idea. And if you have any questions, you can always reach out to me my Instagram is self-loved journey.

You find it also in the show notes. Text us here on digital nomad stories. If you are interested in any content you want to hear about, if you want to share your story, if you have any questions, I'm always here to join your nomad story, your nomad journey. A big hug, your kind one.

And that's it for today. Thank you so much for listening. I appreciate it very, very much. I would appreciate it even more if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts for me. That way, more people can find this podcast, more people can hear the inspiring stories that we're sharing, and the more people we can impact for the better. So, thank you so much if you are going to leave a review. I really appreciate you and I will see you in the next episode.