Tag Archives: work

Can I Be a Digital Nomad? What You Need to Know

You’re sipping a piña colada and lazing on golden-sanded shores. You’ve just finished work for the day and finally logged off. Now, it’s time to relax in some glorious haven before jetting off to the next place on your travel bucket list. Sure, it might all sound too good to be true,  but, for digital nomads at least, this scene could be oh-so-familiar. 

What is a Digital Nomad?

In a recent survey from MBO Partners State of Independence, 4.8 million Americans described themselves as digital nomads. The truth is that it can be applied to just about anybody who travels and works at the same time. They frequently move from place-to-place, never settling on one destination, AKA living the dream.  

digital nomad working at airport

Step 1: Get a Remote Job  

If traveling while you work sounds like bliss, you may be wondering how you can make it happen. The first step is landing a role that allows you to move around. Many digital nomads are freelancers who work for themselves. Of course, should you want to go down this route, it’s vital that you build a strong, stable client list first.

However, another, more secure way to go is to look for a remote role. Luckily, these job types are becoming more and more popular. A massive 43% of American employees had careers which allowed them to work remotely in 2016, according to a Gallup Report. That means that snapping up this kind of flexible role could be easier than you think.

Step 2: Choose Your Destination

You’ve decided to become a fully-fledged digital nomad. Next, comes the hard part – deciding where in the world to go. Nomad List, a crowdsourced database listing the best places to live and work, could have the answer. The site analyzes major cities around the world and looks at criteria such as the average cost of living, internet quality, fun and activities, and, perhaps most crucially, safety. 

digital nomad

Topping the list are booming urban areas such as Canggu, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Buenos Aires. Of course, when you’ve chosen a place that suits you, it’s important to do a little research online and find out as much as possible. The more you know about the place and its culture, the easier it will be when you get there.

Step 3: Finalize the Minor Details 

Once you’ve got the right role and found a city you’d like to visit, it’s time to hammer out those final details. Finding short-term lets can often be the hardest part, but you can get decent enough deals on Airbnb and Uniplaces. You will also need to pick a co-working space you can use while you’re abroad. Not only is a workspace a great place to meet fellow nomads, but it will also keep you sane when you have deadlines to hit. Apps like Croissant allow you to find flexible spaces and book online ahead of time. 

If all of the above sounds like a headache, there is another option. Travel companies, such as Remote Year and WiFi Tribe, can take care of everything from your accommodation and co-working space to flights, trips, and excursions. When you go with one of the package deals they offer, you will travel with a group of like-minded workers over the course of several months or even an entire year. Simple. 

Step 4: Meeting Fellow Nomads 

digital nomad beyond words 3

Let’s not beat around the bush – traveling to a foreign country alone is scary. Scratch that, it’s absolutely, positively terrifying. When you arrive, you’ll come up against the biggest obstacle of all. Perhaps for the first time in your adult life, you’re going to need to make friends. Thankfully, you won’t be alone for long. Here are some of the resources you can use:

Bumble BFF: The well-known dating app isn’t just for finding ‘the one.’ It actually has a friend-finding feature, too, called BFF. Create a profile and start swiping for new contacts in your area. Why not arrange a friend date?

Facebook Groups: Search groups for a ‘digital nomad’ community in your area. You should find that there are loads of options, including female-only groups. Of course, you should always put your safety first when meeting people online. 

Meetup: Want to meet interesting people who share your interests? The Meetup app is the way to go. Once you’ve downloaded the app and set up a profile, you can start searching for groups in your area, such as wine and book clubs. 

Ready to take the leap and become a digital nomad? If you’re filled with wanderlust but need to work to live, it’s the ideal solution. This brief guide should have given you an overview of the basics. However, it’s important to realize that there are many different ways you can make this lifestyle work for you. Start researching destinations and schemes today and see what you can find out. After all, there’s a great big world out there!

3 Simple Attitude Adjustments for Better Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is all in your head.

But closing your eyes and visualizing an empty inbox or a completed to-do list isn’t quite enough to take you from stress-emailing under the table all through dinner to a full night’s rejuvenating rest free of work-themed dreams (or nightmares).

One of the worst side effects of work creeping into your personal life is all the feelings of negativity and guilt: they somehow seem to slip right past the five o’clock cutoff to accompany us on our commute home, through family hour, couch potato time, and straight into bed with us, where we wake up the next morning to their screaming with the voice of a menacing alarm clock.

If you want to leave work at work, you need to unwind your mind and put work in its place.

Me-time is a lost cause when all you can think about is office time. Try these three simple attitude adjustments to start your transformation from overworked, overstressed corporate burn-out to balanced, whole person with respect and reverence for your own personal time.

 

Attitude Adjustment #1: Swap prescriptive thinking for descriptive thinking

In our hectic professional lives, we devote unrecoverable quantities of time and energy to fretting about what we should have already done or really ought to be doing right now, realities and constraints of the current situation be damned.

Most of us are should-ing all over ourselves by late afternoon: I should’ve had a shorter lunch, how did I spend an hour and a half on that meeting, I ought to have finished this project an hour ago… But that kind of prescriptive thinking, prescribing what we think ideally should be happening despite the circumstances and constraints around it, is just making us more neurotic and stealing our time.

Handsome man working

The attitude adjustment: drop the prescription and switch to descriptive thinking, simply observing your situation without judgment and reporting to yourself on it: “Today I expected to spend one hour on this project. It took nearly three hours.”

Avoid the knee-jerk reflex to wag a mental finger in your own face, and instead take a dose of reflection: Why did this take me three hours? Did I forget to set aside time for research, preparation, etc.? Did something happen outside my control to change my schedule today? Was I maybe just not feeling particularly motivated?

These questions are infinitely more useful than berating yourself for not living up to your ideal reality. Should focuses on a past that you’ve already lost control of, while descriptive thinking is all about observing what happened today to better take on tomorrow.

 

Attitude Adjustment #2: Switch time management for energy management

Every day gives you the same 1,440 minutes of opportunity, and no matter how you “manage” those minutes, you’ll never budge that total by a single minute.

All the to-do lists and productivity hacks in the world are impotent against traffic jams, alarm clock malfunctions, gregarious coworkers, and the flu. Instead of starting your work day focused on managing your time, try looking to that other precious resource that you do have some control over: energy.

women working

Just as circadian rhythms like sleep determine our day-to-day physical cycles, we’re also subject to shorter biological rhythms that occur multiple times within a day: ultradian rhythms. And where you find yourself in the throes of these constantly-revving rhythms largely determines your energy levels at any given point throughout the day.

The secret of energy management is finding the rhythm of your own rhythm and moving to it instead of trying to overcome it.

Ultradian rhythms come in cycles of about 90-120 minutes from an energy peak to an energy trough, and those highs and lows are higher and lower at different times of day: Morning people get their most creative and productive work done after a crack-of-dawn yoga session, whereas for others the lightbulb only switches on at 4:00 in the afternoon while the rest of us are slumped over a desk in a pile of empty Starbucks paraphernalia.

By monitoring, understanding, and responding to your body’s own natural energy levels, you can mindfully ask yourself the right questions and deduce how to strategically apply your limited energy. Sometimes better work-life balance is as simple as moving that hour-long email session from your energetic morning hours to the energy-deprived afternoon.

 

Attitude Adjustment #3: Round up with the Rule of Quarters

Hofstadter’s Law is ridiculously simple yet infallibly true and unavoidably relevant to time management: Everything you plan for will take longer than expected.

And the Rule of Quarters is an equally simple and potent way of compensating for our inability to expect the unexpected. Just add 25% to every time estimate on your schedule.

check time watch
Image via Pixabay under license CC0

One hour meeting at noon? Give it an hour and fifteen. Four hours needed to prepare your presentation? Let’s call it five.

For extra efficiency, follow the spirit of this law more closely than its letter. Round everything up to the next hour or logical increment. (Your 35-minute commute is really closer to an hour anyways when you include parking, polite morning hellos, and making a cup of coffee at the office.) And when you feel like your estimate still might be cutting it close, don’t be shy about allotting an hour and a half for the hour-long task.

Indeed, overestimating is where the true bliss of the Rule of Quarters can be found. When you expected your errand to take an hour, planned for an hour and fifteen, but it only took fifty-five minutes, you’ve suddenly gifted yourself a surprise 20 minutes!

accounting working woman
Image via Pixabay under license CC0

The mental separation of work and life is just as important or more than the physical separation of leaving the office and heading home. This week, whenever you catch work stress creeping into the after hours, try checking it with one or all of these three attitude adjustments and get the down time you need and deserve.

5 Workplace Fashion Rules You Should Never Break

It’s been said that you should dress for the job you want and not the job you have, but working nine to five is hard enough without having to stress over what to wear each and every day. Whether your office dress code is pretty laid-back or super strict, there are some general guidelines you’ll want to follow in order to look and feel your best. We’ve got you covered with five workplace fashion rules you should never break (plus suggestions on how to give your work wardrobe the promotion it so deserves).

5 Workplace Fashion Rules to Follow

Rule #1: Wear sheer fabrics very strategically.

A see-through mesh panel along the neckline or sheer sleeves on an otherwise modest blouse? A-Okay. A semi-sheer top that reveals your bra in direct sunlight? Not so much. Sheer fabrics are a challenge to pull off in the workplace, so it’s best to always err on the side of caution. When in doubt, layer the garment in question with a camisole or slip for foolproof coverage.

Try:

workplace fashion blouse

Pixie Market Mimi Organza Polka Dot Top, $99

Rule #2: Re-work backless styles to make them more appropriate.

Backless tops and dresses are modern essentials that show off just a hint of skin, but it’s usually a good idea to save them for your weekend outings. One exception? A reversible sweater. Choose one that you can wear as a cardigan at the office or flipped around as an open-back statement when you’re off the clock.

Try:

sweater for workplace fashion

J.Crew Point Sur Open Back Sweater, $98

Rule #3: Short skirts aren’t so good for climbing the ladder.

Midi skirts are a dream come true for modern working women thanks to their versatile style and overall professionalism. Skip the minis in favor of these longer (and more practical) wardrobe essentials — and wear them year-round with blazers, sweaters, and blouses alike.

Try:

midi skirt for workplace fashion

J.Crew Pleated Midi Skirt in Party Dot, $99.99

Rule #4: Leggings are like vacation days. Use them wisely.

Leggings aren’t exactly a workplace no-no, but they’re a little risky for the corporate environment. A basic pair may look fine at home but reveal way more than you ever imagined in the light of day. Ponte-knit designs are a safer option (especially when paired with tunics), but your best bet is to stick with dress pants instead. Many of today’s styles are surprisingly fashion-forward and figure-flattering with high waists and slim silhouettes.

Try:

dress pants for workplace fashion

Pixie Market Oslo Double-Waist Pants, $106

Rule #5: Don’t go too casual on Casual Fridays.

Fri-yay is cause for celebration, no doubt. But it’s easy to take the casual thing a little too far. If your go-to Friday jeans have rips and tears or embroidery and bedazzling on the butt pockets, then I’m talking to you. Reach for basic denim in dark blue washes for the most sophisticated take on TGIF.

Try:

jeans for workplace fashion

H&M Skinny High Ankle Jeans, $9.99

 

Which workplace fashion rules do you live by, and which ones do you think are outdated? Sound off in the comments section below!

Things You Need to Know About Freelancing

Who doesn’t want to be self-employed, enjoy a flexible schedule where you can plan last-minute vacations, and create a life that other people dream of living? Sounds pretty good, right? Working in your pajamas from the comfort of your own home, without a supervisor glaring over your shoulder, are a few more perks and there are no words to express the beauty of avoiding rush hour traffic (can I get an amen?). There is more to freelancing than meets the eye, however, and this lifestyle is fraught with both advantages and disadvantages. Here are a few things you should know about freelancing for the next time your bossmakes you want to jump ship and set off into the sunset behind your own sail.

There is no set schedule.

Freelancers don’t follow a 9-5 schedule, and although this can be amazing, it also has its drawbacks. More times than not, we work around the clock in a frenzied attempt to meet deadlines, build our craft, and find more work. Lunches and breaks can easily be forgotten until our stomachs (not-so-gently) remind us that they need to be fed, and it’s possible to fall asleep at our home work stations. On the other hand, it’s worth it when you can buy groceries while the store is slow or when you’re en route to a tropical paradise and your friends are in the office.

freelancing 3

 

You have to hustle to get work.

We are not the only people who do what we do and the job search doesn’t end once we find our first gig; actually, it’s just the beginning. Someone out there has more experience and/or is willing to accept lower pay. And companies won’t start beating down our doors the moment we decide “I want to be a freelancer!” (it would be nice!). Job security and steady income streams are rare; many companies only need one job done or look for short-term agreements. Once you’re a freelancer, you also become a marketer with one very important subject to promote: yourself. Before diving into this lifestyle you should ask yourself if you’re willing to go the extra mile to keep your head above water. Why should Company A hire your services instead of those from Company B?

 

It’s best to set a rate and stick to it.

Friends may ask to “pick your brain” and proceed to give you a task that you normally charge a fee for. Companies will also try to pay as little as possible, even suggesting that they will move elsewhere if your fees don’t match their expectations. Before going along, remember one thing: if you don’t respect your time, effort, and talent enough to set fair standards, no one will.

When beginning as a freelancer, agreeing to lower pay and pro-bono work will help build your portfolio. After some time, however, it’s best to sit down with a calculator and a computer and be prepared to crunch numbers.

freelancing1

 

Tax and social security payments need to be planned in advance.

Workers in the 9-5 grind don’t think about taxes until it’s filing season and they’re deciding which trips to plan with their beautiful return. As a freelancer, the opposite is true; it’s important to set money aide and be ready to pay the government at the end of the fiscal year. Spending each paycheck as it arrives is a common mistake made by new freelancers; remember, no one wants to dip into their savings or begin a drastic payment plan come February. To avoid an uncomfortable surprise, it helps to send a percentage of each pay check to a separate bank account and pretend like it was never yours.

 

Some freelancers go days without seeing another person.

Between finishing paying jobs, looking for new work, and becoming a specialist in your field, you may even forget what your own voice sounds like (especially if you live alone). Gym memberships and team hobbies can help break up the daily routine and maintain social interactions.

freelancing 2

 

When done right, freelancing helps us develop a work-life balance.

Once we fall into the routine that works best for us and sell our services for a fair rate, we’re able to fit in time to see friends, enjoy hobbies, and even take on extra work; in short, freelancing can help us achieve the ultimate professional goal: a work-life balance.

4 Ways Going Freelance Helps Your Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is a goal that can feel more and more unrealistic in the era of push notifications and economic crises. Ironically, it might be that same digitally-enhanced, post-crisis world we find ourselves living in that ends up bringing all of us closer to the kind of balance we’ve until now only dreamed of.

This month, the Freelancers Union and Upwork published their annual Freelancing in America report, reaffirming what most of us already see in our professional lives: All around us, our friends and colleagues are swapping contracts and salaries for gigs and flexibility.

About a third of the American workforce is already doing some kind of freelance work, and it’s estimated to reach 40% by 2020. The big question in these times of economic uncertainty is why?

One common answer is the never-ending quest for balance in our lives. Our society and our employers are becoming more affirming of our need to spend more time nurturing our partners, passion projects, and ourselves.

Whether you quit your job or make a new arrangement with your current employer, you’ll find making the transition to freelancing brings a refreshing dose of balance to your life in more ways than one.

how to freelance

Work-Life Balance

Being a professional certainly entails a busy schedule, but that doesn’t mean you have to sign away the rest of your life in your employment contract. When there’s no time clock inflexibly demanding your attention at 9:00 sharp, you’re free to balance work, family, and everything else important in your life as you see fit and as each day’s unique challenges demand.

Work-life balance isn’t just a touchy-feely buzzword: It’s key to health and happiness. The independence of freelancing allows you to dictate not only your own working hours, but also where you work and how. Some of us are bursting with motivation before the sun ever comes up; and for others, the sweet spot is 2 a.m. in sweatpants on the kitchen floor—as a freelancer, that’s for you to decide.

work life balance

Creative Balance

Gone are the days of committing your entire adult life to one employer and one professional field; and here to replace them is the era of the multi-passionate careerist.

Do you ever feel like you’re forced to choose between the marketing job that pays the bills and the inner-writer who’s constantly relegated to side-hustle? Well, you don’t.

As a freelancer, you’re free to become a professional Photographer-Fashionista-B2B Sales Guru who moonlights as an Android developer and teaches biweekly yoga classes at the local community center. In the new global economy, having multiple jobs is a good thing, and going freelance is the perfect way to reap the benefits and blossom into the modern-day renaissance woman you always knew you could be.

Cultural Balance

While you’re busy expanding your creative portfolio, go ahead and add badass nomad to your long list of titles: Going location-independent will blow the world wide open, and suddenly the globe is your playground.

balancing work and life

Few things are as personally enriching or practically valuable as learning about the world and the people you share it with. Incredible job opportunities all around the world are waiting for you to mix and match them like the resumé accessories they are. Even when your assignment calendar is bursting and you can’t make it to the nearest island paradise, you’ll still have time to take a rejuvenating half-day to play tourist in your own city.

Personal Balance

work-life balance

In addition to being a professional, you’re also a body, a mind, a soul, and a human being. Escaping the rigid bounds of the traditional nine-to-five will finally give you a chance to holistically nurture your being and strive for balance between the many facets of your being that make you you.

Your current colleagues might find it more than quirky if you were to plop down on the floor for a meditation break in the middle of the work day, but in your home or coworking space you can recenter yourself whenever you need. The time you save on the daily commute can go towards a morning run, learning a new language, preparing wholesome food, or just sitting by the fireplace with a good book. However you spend the time, the you’s that you’ve been neglecting at the office will thank you for it.

Convinced you’re ready to make the change and bring more balance to your life? Get started designing the perfect home office, plan for a successful transition out of the office, and carpe diem.