I move 7 times a year. I collect all my things, leave my old apartment and move into a new one. On average for 3 years, this is one move every 52 days. Sometimes new housing is located in another part of the city, sometimes in another country.
If you stop the story at this, then people think that I am a fugitive criminal or a circus performer. This is not the case, although I can throw knives.
There are already a lot of people like me. So much so that some progressive states create special conditions to make the country more attractive to us. While for officials of other countries nomads are still people with a leather tent, a tambourine and a personal herd of horses.
If you work in IT, then you are especially prone to nomadism. In this article I will try to introduce you to modern nomads. At the end we will interview a few representatives.
You might like it and want to try it. There will be a bunch of links to the community and resources for finding work / orders.
History of appearance
Digital nomads are people who are not tied to a place due to remote work and, as a result, are constantly moving. With a laptop on your knees, you can be by the sea in Goa today, tomorrow at a table in a London coffee house, the day after tomorrow on the veranda next to the barn of the Hungarian shepherd Gustav.
One of the first to take the job on the trip was Steve Roberts in 1983. Almost simultaneously with the launch of the Motosat satellite network, which made the Internet more mobile. Traveling around the United States on a recumbent bike, he continued to earn money by writing articles for the magazine.
If there are readers of Nabokov here, then you will remember that in the novel "Lolita" (1953), the characters travel across America for more than a year. At the same time, in the book there is a hint that the main character does not stop writing all this time, for which he lives. It can be assumed that digital nomads were preceded by analogue (postal) nomads.
Globally, the digital nomad movement took shape in 2008-2010, when access to broadband grew throughout the world. In parallel, Skype (2003), AirBnB (2008) and the book "How to work 4 hours a week ..." by Timothy Ferris (2007) appeared. PayPal for convenient remote transactions has been around for a long time.
It is difficult to estimate the exact number of nomads (or, as my foreign friends sometimes jokingly say, e-mongols). Among the citizens of Great Britain and the United States there are 9.6 million of them . The Wyse Travel Confederation study found that 0.6% of all tourists call themselves digital nomads. It can be concluded that today there are at least 12-15 million digital nomads. Experts believe that by 2035 their number may reach 1 billion people. !
In 2035, every 9th person will be a nomad. But it is not exactly.
Freelancers, remote employees of companies, entrepreneurs become nomads. Areas that nomads most often work in: programming, design, news and entertainment, marketing, consulting.
Nomad or Traveler?
I must say that nomadism is very similar to frequent travel. The only difference is that the traveler has a permanent place of residence, where he always returns in the end, and the trip is perceived as a change of circumstances. For a nomad, however, moving from one place to another is just "household chores", and home is the place where you are right now.
Nomads can also stay in a new location for a long time (several months), organize trips without travel agencies and (perhaps this is the most important difference) carry everything they have with them.
Relations with countries
Some states create conditions for attracting digital nomads, others have not even heard of such a concept. Let's talk about a few particularly noteworthy ones.
Less suitable countries
Russia
Among our compatriots there are people who wander without leaving the country. Popular destinations are farther from the "center": Ural, Siberia, southern regions. Traditionally attracted by the price level and / or climate.
The status of a digital nomad is not legally established, freelancers and businessmen have to formalize in the old fashioned way and try to tactfully float questions about personal presence at the registration address. At the same time, be afraid of account blocking and tax audits simply because you are suspiciously not in one place.
But it should be noted that with the introduction of the self-employed status, the position for freelancers is improving markedly.
USA
Despite the huge number of nomads, the states are not considered the best place for them to live. It is easier for the citizens of the country, but tourists are faced with two main problems: poor internet and undeveloped transport.
The USA is a country of cars, without a car you are deprived of many opportunities. And for a nomad, having your own car is impractical, you can't put it on a plane with you.
There is a difficulty in obtaining a visa compared to other countries. Some people are offended by a gun permit. And it's better not even to think about the cost of medical services.
More suitable countries
Estonia
Here the digital nomad is considered such a full-fledged member of society that special visas are even issued for him , which give him the right to live in the country for a year with the possibility of extension. Their issuance was suspended for the duration of the pandemic, but I hope that soon everything will return to normal.
It's also a digital entrepreneur's paradise. Estonia issues an electronic resident card . The author of this article has such a map. It does not give citizenship, but it allows you to open and run a business in the EU via the Internet.
An Estonian LLC (OÜ) with such a card opens in a day. You can find a bank and an accountant right on the government website. There is still a vestige of the fact that you still need to rent a physical address. But such addresses are inexpensive and the government does not expect the real presence of an entrepreneur at it. You can buy an address where 1000 more companies are registered and it will not be suspicious.
Estonia is also the first country in the world to declare the Internet an inalienable human right back in 2000.
Croatia
will also legalize nomad status soon . It is expected to launch a visa for digital nomads, allowing them to live and work in the country. It already attracts freelancers not tied to a place thanks to cheap accommodation, stable (albeit slow) internet and developed transport.
Portugal
Lisbon is the best home for the digital nomad. This is the opinion of the nomads themselves from the Nomad List community . Fast, affordable internet, active international flights, pleasant weather in any season. And here they speak English surprisingly well.
Czech
Prague is one of the cheapest European capitals. Free Internet in all cafes and WiFi points on the streets of the city allow you to sit with your laptop anywhere. With a Schengen visa, it is convenient to get to neighboring countries - Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia. Although the state does not provide any special opportunities for nomads, it is worth living in Prague .
If we talk about the general convenience of staying, digital nomads choose: Portugal, Mexico, Indonesia, Germany, Thailand, Czech Republic, Serbia.
The rating is regularly updated, the criteria can be viewed on the Nomad List .
Job
Here are some resources where you can find a job if you suddenly want to become an "electro-Mongol".
Remote Jobs:
Flexjobs , AngelList , Indeed , Hubstaff Talent , Outsourcely , Power to Fly , Virtual, Vocations , Stack Overflow , Good People Jobs , Premium Remote Job , Norm Job
Freelance:
Upwork , Fiverr , Toptal , Freelancermap , FL.ru , Weblancer , Freelancehunt , Habr Freelance
Community
The disadvantage of remote work is the lack of communication with colleagues and like-minded people. Especially in an unfamiliar country, whose language you hardly know. Therefore, nomads have a need to join a community - real or virtual. You can find them here:
Coworking
spaces and meetings: Coworker , Workfrom , Creative Mornings
Coliving:
Roam , Remote Year , Be Unsettled , Digital Nomad Girls Retreat , Nomad Cruise , "Station Change"
Online communities:
Nomad List, Nomadbase , Nomad Soulmates
Facebook Groups:
of Global the Digital Nomad the Network , the Digital Nomads Around the World , the Digital Nomads, Hub , the Digital Nomads Medellin , Bali the Digital Nomads , Female the Digital Nomads , the Digital Nomads & Entrepreneurs
Telegram-channels:
@DigitalNomadCommunity , @interviewdigitalnomads , @digital_nomad_pro , @mirgamarjoba
We got confused and interviewed
We talked about life with six nomads. Here's what happened:
The bottom line is the following statistics:
Average age: 28.2 years
Average experience of nomadism: 5.3 years
Average monthly comfortable income: 115,000 rubles.
Previously worked in an office: 83.3% (5 out of 6)
Found rapport with relatives: 100% (6 out of 6)
Are afraid of being unemployed: 0% (0 out of 6)
Have a permanent job: 83.3% (5 out of 6 )
Work in a coworking space or cafe: 33.3% (2 out of 6)
Work from home: 66.7% (4 out of 6)
Clean the house by themselves: 16.7% (1 in 6)
Buy medical insurance: 33.3% (2 out of 6)
Want to put down roots: 0% (0 out of 6) This
article was written by Denis Elianovsky . Thanks to Stanislav Lushin and Tatiana Kitaeva for their help and editing, Olga Khaletskaya for the picture in the header. And also to Dmitry Dobrodeev for filming the interview, Sofya Morozikova for animating the cover in the video.
I would be glad to receive feedback if you are interested in learning more about nomads.