I am in a beach bar
in Brazil with a hundred or so digital nomads and entrepreneurs, and I'm gonna walk around and ask them what they do to
make money from this beach. Hi. Are you guys digital nomads? Can I just ask you a
couple questions about how you became digital nomads? Okay. Okay. So what's your
name? Where are you from? I'm Verena and I am German. And how long have you been a digital nomad? For Uh, three years. And what do you do to make money online? I am a brand and web designer and helps entrepreneurs
to build their business. Are you self-taught or did
you go to school for that? I studied international management, so I do have a business background. Um, uh, most of the design, uh, like web design things
is self-taught. Yes. What made you go nomadic?
Why not stay in Germany? I have not lived in Germany for very long, uh, most of my life. I lived in Brazil, actually <laugh>. So, um, I went nomadic,
uh, during the pandemic. I was working remote, uh,
before the pandemic as well. Um, and uh, right after the pandemic I
just, uh, wanted to travel and, um, yeah, here I am. Do you ever see yourself, uh, going back to a traditional lifestyle or do you think you'll
always travel in some way? Uh, I will always travel in some way. That's how I've been raised. That's how I've been living my whole life. Um, so I am not, I'm
not a white fence, uh, and, uh, settle down person. No. Thank you, <laugh>. Thank you. Sorry to interrupt, but are you guys digital nomads? Yeah, we know. Can I ask you what you do to make money online? Hi, I am Dev and I'm from, uh, Pennsylvania in the United States. And how long have you
been working remotely? Uh, probably, uh, since 2021,
like two and a half years. What do you do for work? So I run a, a blog. So affiliate, I basically
have affiliate, uh, marketing. And then, uh, I also do consulting, uh, helping business owners
with their operations. How did you learn how to do that? So I was in the Navy,
um, for like six years. I worked as a project manager engineer. I learned about like managing people and teams and processes. And then from there, uh, it just like, like I just wanna make the
pivot into online business. What would you say your
average cost of living is as a digital nomad? Uh, probably like 2 to 3,000 a month. Yeah, 2,000 at the, the cheaper places and then it can even cheaper,
but I like nice things. And then 3,000 and the
more expensive places. What are some of the countries
you like to go to the most? Oh, definitely Mexico.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Oh yeah. Mexico City, Oaxaca, Playa
del Carmen. Nice. Yeah. And then in Europe, Lisbon. What would you say to
people that are thinking of getting into this lifestyle but they're not sure how to do it or they don't think
they have enough money? I think pick like a
cheaper cost-effective place. Pick a easy place to start like somewhere like Bali or Thailand. It's very friendly, easy
if you're in the Americas. Uh, Mexico's not, not too bad. Um, and then I would say like
surround yourself with people who, uh, bring out the best in you, but also like, you could always prep. So one thing I did was like, before I wanted to be
nomadic, I spent a year trying to figure out like, you know, how like what skill I could monetize and then, um, just like really
saved a lot of money too so that I had a buffer. How much did you save
before you went Nomadic? I probably saved like,
probably like 40 to 50,000, but that's also 'cause I don't
spend, it was a pandemic. It was easy to save, but yeah. But also like I had a
really good paying job and I wasn't doing anything
other than just like, it was a pandemic times. Yeah. Thank you so much and enjoy your day here at the beach. What's your name and where are you from? I'm Jesco from Munich, Germany. How long have you been working remotely? Since 2012. Have you been traveling
during all of that time? Like usually half of the
year I'm traveling. Yeah. So you keep a home base there? Well, my home base has
been changing as well. Like, like Medellin
for example, six months and then just completely
go somewhere else. So it changes a lot too. And what do you do to earn money online? I, I work for an agency
that recruits people through Facebook ads. So I, I create Facebook ads and I do the whole process
of, of guiding the clients to getting their leads
for their businesses. Okay. So basically how to
set up their Facebook ads and their, their customer type or their market that
they're advertising to? So that they can get
good people applying for their jo for jobs. So it's for recruitment?
Yes. Oh, okay. Yeah. And you've been doing that
for more than 10 years now? No, this is, I, it's, that's also changes
basically from year to year. So this is what, just what
I'm currently doing, I just do what whatever just comes up basically. So I've also, uh, done a lot of blogs, I wrote a lot of blogs and search engine optimization. Also, I produced a movie and also like there wasn't cinema, so all kinds of things. Oh. That is so cool. What do you think are the core skills that make you successful
as a digital nomad? Well, definitely the
networking is important if you are in a free
freelancer so that you, people know you and what you offer. So then a good network just
helps that, you know Yeah. Who, like, how to get new clients if
you're in this industry. And so traveling definitely helps to strengthen that network. Of course, just to keep
learning new skills, just educating yourself with the, just the new technologies. Yeah. Do you use any sort of courses or online learning platforms or do you just kind of
use YouTube tutorials and things like Google? Yeah, I used to do, I
used to do Udemy courses, but for some reason that's,
yeah, it's been a long time. Like YouTube is providing a, a lot of strong context content, so I've been relying mostly on that. Do you have any kind of
passive income that comes in to help pay the bills or do you mostly work
per hour or per project? Yeah, different. I, I
have some digital products. Like I wrote, I wrote books. I'm coming out with a video
course also next year I, I have a rental property but it's not, not something
I can live from. Yeah. Yeah. Awesome. Well thank you
so much for your time. Hi, uh, what's your name
and where are you from? Hi, I am Sergio Sala. I am from Mexico. And how long have you been a digital nomad? Close to 10 years now. How did you start out in this lifestyle? What were you doing for work? I started as an architect, but then I, uh, learned to do websites. So I became a web designer. Then I started writing about my life 'cause I started traveling
and then I became a blogger. And for Blogger I became a YouTuber. And this is my full-time job now. Wait, how did you go from
being an architect to blogging? That's a long story. Uh, but it's a, it's, it's
just following what I thought. It was great for me and
following my creativity. And at the end everything is combined because YouTube for me, 'cause I, I review city
guides around the world, basically it's architecture and creativity altogether, you know? And when you first got started out, that was more than 10 years ago? Yeah. What was your
monthly income back then and where did you go to be able to afford this lifestyle? Wow. Yeah, the beginning
now I had to go like to, I started in Lima, Peru actually, and I was doing like
more like social projects and things like that, so I didn't have to spend that much money. But eventually we would,
I get more clients and I started to, to charge
more as a freelancer, started to get better places and one of the best places was Chiang Mai. I spent like a, a year there. So you don't, you don't,
the the, you don't have to spend there that much. So you can live there longer. I stay almost a year in something there. Do you know what you spent
in that year to live there? That is a good question.
But it was so cheap. I mean, I don't know, like 800 to a thousand top per month, you know. And what was your cost of
living in Mexico when you left? Ooh. I mean, when I started
making more money, I was able to, to get better places,
it's around a thousand to $500 per month. So from like 800 to 1500 a month you could
sustain this lifestyle. You've done city guides and
a lot of different cities. Uh, what is someplace that surprised you that you really enjoyed? I mean, the most recent one,
I just came from Fukuoka, Japan, which as the last video
that I just published and the first time in Japan. And realizing that Japan is a great place for digital nomads, it just blew my mind. And I want to go back probably next year. How was the internet there?
Because last time I was in Japan, it wasn't that good. It's so great right
now. Like the, the, the, there's a lot of co-working spots. It's a, it's a very, at least
for Fukuoka, it is a store, a whole start-up to community. So they focus on great,
great wifi speed. Nice. So what kind of person
would you recommend this lifestyle for? Any encouraging words or advice for people that
are thinking about doing it? Anyone, just follow your intuition. If you feel like you want to do what we do and live everywhere. I mean, there's so many options right now. The online skills that you
just need to learn own skills and find, uh, a way to
make it work for you. And, uh, slowly travel, you
know, it takes time takes to get, get used to this thing. It's not, it's not a vacation.
That's what I tell people. It's a different way of life.
It's a digital normal life. Do you think that the
most important skills you've acquired in this lifestyle
are more technical skills or maybe more soft skills? I think you need a bit of both. You know, like, but I
think to be honest, yeah, I think technical to
make it work, to make, start making money out of it. Soft skills is more when you
start exploring the cities and standing in the community
and things like that. Is there anything that you've struggled with in this lifestyle? Uh,
Yeah. Saying goodbye to people, <laugh> because we're moving all the time and it's nice to have things
like this, like Nomad Cruise, you get to see people that
you haven't seen in a while. Yeah. But that's the only thing. Like, it's, it's a great lifestyle, but we are moving all the time. It's just hard to, to to know that. Yeah. You, you won't see them for
that long, you know? Yeah. Well thank you so much Sergio. It was so good to see
you here on this beach and enjoy the rest of your cruise. Thank you, Kristin.
The first time we saw each other in person, it's, it's nice. I know. It's good to meet in person. Follow, subscribe to Sergio's
channel. <laugh> Yes. Hello. And what is your name? Where are you from? My name is Dina. I am
from California. Okay. And how long have you
been in this lifestyle? Probably about two years. Uhhuh. What were you doing for
work before you started and do you do the same thing now? I do do the same thing. Um, I was a clinical psychologist so I'm still a clinical psychologist. I just do everything remotely now. Okay. Is there anything you've
changed about your business since being a nomad and
being here in Brazil? <laugh>? Um, some of the hours I work
are a little different, um, because I do work US hours, so, um, and then just doing
everything via Zoom, whereas before I was working with
clients in person. Okay. What type of billing systems or software do you use to do your job? That's a good question. Um, the billing system is
through the agency where I work, so they take care of all of that. So you're still a
California tax resident and US tax resident, I guess Yes, I am. Do you ever go back
to California to visit or do you have a home base there? I have a home base in California, so I spend quite a bit of time there. Um, but it varies by year, but um, it can be anywhere from a month that I'm there to six months. Were you apprehensive about anything before getting into this lifestyle or did you feel really comfortable? Well, I think I transitioned in slowly. Um, so I was more comfortable doing that. And then building community helped to kind of ease that apprehension. And you have, you found
a lot of community here with Nomad Cruise and Nomad Base? Yes. Yes I have. And with
other, um, communities as well, but that's kind of where it
started from and branched out. How many cruises have
you been on so far? This is my fifth.
Wow. Yes.
That's amazing. Who would you recommend Nomad Cruise for? For people that are
interested in this lifestyle or who are also looking for
community and who travel a lot. Thank you so much Dina. And enjoy the rest of your time in Brazil. Thank you, Kristin. I always love talking with Digital Nomads about how they got started in the lifestyle and how they make money online. If you do too, then please
consider subscribing to my channel and click over
here for more videos, talking with people about how they
got into the digital nomad lifestyle.
