Back before everyone had a supercomputer in their pocket, only a very few people were able to finance their travels by working from the road. This was usually done by writing, and meant long stretches of lonely research and a bag of handwritten notes you had to turn into a book. People like legendary travel writer Joe Cummings paint a colorful picture of what it was like (especially when he was a guest on the Bangkok Podcast), but things have changed so drastically that an entire new classification of travelers has arisen – the ‘location independent entrepreneur’ or digital nomad. And I hate them.
Okay, I take that back – I don’t hate them. In fact, some of them I love. But I hate the assumption that the sit-on-the-beach-with-a-computer existence is the only existence worth chasing if you’re an expat, especially in Asia. Sure, it’s a neat dream if you can make it work, but many don’t or can’t make it work. Much has been written on how it’s actually a rather romantic pipe dream. Despite the reputation that Bangkok (and other cities) have, it is quite possible to have a real, productive, enjoyable career here that has nothing to do with the tropical beach-bum lifestyle. And that’s totally cool.
As an example of what I’m talking about, see this Tweet from Nomadic Matt:
To be fair, I’m not picking on Matt, a solid dude who talks the talk – that was the name of the article on Mashable.* But this rather negative view of office work is very prevalent these days, especially when you tell people you live in a tropical country like Thailand, doing pretty much the same thing your friends are doing back home.
So let me say this right now: I really like my 9-5 office job in an air-conditioned office. I really enjoy working with my coworkers, a fun, smart, interesting, and culturally diverse bunch of folks. I like the steady paycheck, the health insurance, my decorated cubicle, and – most importantly – the day-to-day structure that it brings to a lazy guy like myself who is too easily distracted by ooh look, a bird!
I’m not saying I wouldn’t enjoy working from a beach in Asia or a cafe in Europe, but the work I do is interesting, enjoyable, and challenging, and I definitely don’t think of it as rotting in an office. Unlike this guy.
However, while it’s hard to find that sweet spot between career and vacation, it can be done. The guy in this interview seems to have found it and is enjoying a pretty sweet life, which is great.
Point is, one lifestyle choice does not fit all, and thinking that doing anything else other than digital nomad-ing is a waste of time is a myopic way of looking at things. If it’s your bag, then enjoy it, but for me and many others, I have a rich and rewarding home/work balance that I quite enjoy. And that’s totally cool.
*Incidentally, the Greg Jorgensen mentioned in that Mashable article is not me, but another Bangkok expat with the same name as me. Who, incidentally, is also another solid dude.
Thanks Greg. Funny, I had some of the same thoughts after a bunch of digital nomad tweets hit my feed yesterday. Last year you had to be an entrepreneur or CEO of your one-person startup or you were a loser. Now if you aren’t blogging and tweeting 24/7 about hostels in Bali and the startup scene in Chiang Mai you’re a slug.
Thanks GJv2.0. Indeed, seems that the definition of what it takes to be working online is changing as fast as the work itself is.
There is a rather large ‘digital nomad’ population that floats between Thailand and The Philippines, I know a few of these guys making good money – heck I tried my hand at it for 12 months previously – the reality is they sit in front of the computer 16 hrs a day, because it is their business AND most love their work.
As a nomad of NFA (try that at Immigration centres around the world) “You have a home?” Is a fantasy after the initial travel excitement wears off
Yeah, it’s a lifestyle that only a select few can attain, I think. Like most things I guess – 90% of the people who go into banking are just…bankers. The other 10% become very successful. All work very hard.
PS Also it is impossible to work on a laptop screen on the beach, the only screens good enough to date were used by Nokia phones several years ago – nothing else even comes close to being bright enough with enough contrast to read.
Yeah, it’s sold as a luxurious destination, but it often ain’t. See here: https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-realities-of-beach-fashion/
Most digital nomads here in Chiang Mai- and there has been a massive influx recently- are people living in a delusion it seems. They scrape together enough money to buy two bottles of Leo to drink while they jabber about how they make money just writing a few paragraphs a week for a website. Then they constantly question other people about how they make money. The answer: we have jobs or are retired from long careers. I don’t begrudge people not working, but people who don’t are a lot more bearable if they actually have money already. Like you said, there are upsides to having a job- relationships with coworkers, a mental focus, and a regular schedule. Acting like you are living the dream because you can sleep in and then spend your evenings groundlessly self-promoting does not seem like a great alternative. My few friends who make money online, selling actual products or because they are experienced IT professionals, all say the same thing. It’s different work, but you still have to put in the hours.
Nailed it, DEGG. I know a few here who are much the same – saying they live like a king, but are sleeping on a mattress in a room with a tiny balcony and a sink in the corner. Cheap Thai food and nice weather is about the only thing that’s actually really awesome. Granted, that lifestyle might be perfectly fulfilling for some people, and that’s great – if you like it, then more power to you. But selling it as the only way to go to westerners – whose definition of ‘living like a king’ is probably much different – rings a bit hollow to me.
But hey, to each their own. If I was 22 again I might be doing the same thing. Damn kids. 🙂
Haters gonna Hate