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I went full nomad and it almost broke me

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Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#51

Post by wes-k »

overcast wrote: post #21
TeeWEE wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Driving alone around in Africa is what you consider life? I know working 9-5 is not a good life. However working on something you love, in an environment with friends and family and fun, is a good life i.m.h.o. I always have the feeling nomads always need to shout of the roofs of "how much better their life is". However I do think, what you are doing is super cool. However seeing it as "this is the only life thats wo…

Honestly, it sounds more like just an advertisement for their "lifestyle blog". Just like everyone and their mother is vegan now, and has to make sure you know it every second of the day.

“Come on try it” “No thank you” “Oh it’s really good just try a bite” “No im alright thank you” “Really!? Just a bite”

.. sometimes telling people you’re vegan can help avoid awkward situations like when a friend got some cake they wanted to share.

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#52

Post by k__ »

skinnymuch wrote: post #41
aswerty wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Love what you're doing but I've always thought of your site as more of a "Lifestyle Porn" niche. Similar in a way to the money moustache guy who retired really early. Most people aren't going to actually try for the lifestyle since chances are it wouldn't work for them (or they won't work for it) but love the idea of hacking life so you can get away from the 9-5.

Do you know how the Money Moustache guy retired early? I always felt something off about his blog. Some good posts for sure in isolation but as a whole it never felt right. Now it makes sense. I and most others don't have the luxury of retiring early (yet ;))

Wasn't the whole Money Moustache thing based on the fact that he and his wife had both a good income to start with?

I read many things in that direction.

"I made millions with real estate! I simply bought a flat, refurbished it and then either became a landlord or sold it for much more money! It's so simple even you can do it. I started with getting like 50000€ after an car accident..."

"I retired with 40 and you can do it to, you just need a job that makes you 100k a year..."

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#53

Post by applebeesam »

acidburnNSA wrote: post #46
grecy wrote: post #2

I'm full nomad right now - driving my Jeep around Africa for 2 years - something like 80,000 miles through 30 countries over 2 years. [1] I'm absolutely loving it. I will never go back to full time 9-5 5 days a week. At this point, I don't even consider it life. Previously I drove Alaska to Argentina - 16 countries over 2 years and 40,000 miles. I also loved every second of that! [2] [1] http://theroadchoseme.com/afr…

Any idea what your Carbon footprint it? I've always been curious about this.

This will give you an idea for flights: https://my.flightradar24.com/

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#54

Post by overcast »

wes-k wrote: post #51
overcast wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honestly, it sounds more like just an advertisement for their "lifestyle blog". Just like everyone and their mother is vegan now, and has to make sure you know it every second of the day.

“Come on try it” “No thank you” “Oh it’s really good just try a bite” “No im alright thank you” “Really!? Just a bite” .. sometimes telling people you’re vegan can help avoid awkward situations like when a friend got some cake they wanted to share.

I'm not talking about becoming a situational mute. But you already knew that. Why does HN have so many pedantic instigators?

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#55

Post by JohnJamesRambo »

grecy wrote: post #2

I'm full nomad right now - driving my Jeep around Africa for 2 years - something like 80,000 miles through 30 countries over 2 years. [1] I'm absolutely loving it. I will never go back to full time 9-5 5 days a week. At this point, I don't even consider it life. Previously I drove Alaska to Argentina - 16 countries over 2 years and 40,000 miles. I also loved every second of that! [2] [1] http://theroadchoseme.com/afr…

How do you afford this?

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#56

Post by Scalestein »

skinnymuch wrote: post #41
aswerty wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Love what you're doing but I've always thought of your site as more of a "Lifestyle Porn" niche. Similar in a way to the money moustache guy who retired really early. Most people aren't going to actually try for the lifestyle since chances are it wouldn't work for them (or they won't work for it) but love the idea of hacking life so you can get away from the 9-5.

Do you know how the Money Moustache guy retired early? I always felt something off about his blog. Some good posts for sure in isolation but as a whole it never felt right. Now it makes sense. I and most others don't have the luxury of retiring early (yet ;))

I think he has an article that covers his finances from when he started working to when he retired. The short answer is double tech incomes and very limited spending. If your household is pulling 250k and living off 25k a year it makes retirement a lot more attainable.

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#57

Post by Kluny »

I was hoping to find out what a "magnitude 8" burnout actually looks like, but I didn't get it from this article.

What made his mentor ask if he was okay? What does low energy mean for this guy? What came between the realization and the recovery?

For me it was burying myself in social media, reading books, and binging pirated TV shows. I had a pattern of beating myself up internally for not going out and making friends, taking on or finishing projects, or even doing basic tasks like laundry and cooking. When the voice of self abuse started - usually the moment after my partner left the room, but sometimes even before that - I'd whip out my phone instantly to quieten it. Many days I'd sit at the kitchen table for five or six hours, scrolling feeds and watching shows, waiting for my partner to come home and give me enough motivation to pretend to be human for a while.

I kept thinking, how can I be stressed? All I'm doing is sitting in the kitchen. There's no stress here.

But I was living in someone else's house in a country where I had few friends and didn't speak the language. I had just started a new, remote job which was mentally demanding, and had no one, not even co-workers, to talk to about it. I stopped stopped doing my two healthiest activities - writing and cycling - except on rare occasions.

I got to the point where I left the relationship, and went home- though I didn't want to- because I couldn't recognize myself at all anymore and didn't know how to get back to myself except by returning to the last place where I felt like a human. I'm two months into recovery now and have only just gotten to the point where I can sleep through the night, sometimes.

That's what it looked like for me. Hope it helps someone else realize what that feeling is. It took me way too long to recognize it, and by then it was too late.

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#58

Post by jondubois »

I've been a nomad for almost 2 years now changing countries often (about 10 different ones) while working remotely for various companies with a dependent spouse and practically no savings.

It's stressful because changing countries always turns out to be a lot more expensive than it seems, also changing companies as well is difficult; it's mostly contracting so sometimes they don't pay on time. Remote work is also draining because the boundary between your work and personal life is blurred.

Also, one time I had to leave a hotel without checking out because I knew that I couldn't afford the bill on a Sunday because my international payment was delayed and due to arrive during business hours on Monday; I had to check out over the phone the next day. The worst part was that in the process the client I was working for probably figured out that I was broke.

You need a really high income in order to do it and ideally if you have partner they should be able to find remote work as well (it's not always possible depending on the profession).

After 1 year, it's really not fun at all but I guess it builds your character; it pushes you to the edge of your abilities and gives you confidence that you can survive anything in any environment. Initially I did it because I wanted to travel but eventually it just became an effective career-optimization strategy. If you're willing to relocate absolutely anywhere, a lot of opportunities open up to you and you become better at identifying good ones.

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#59

Post by dougmwne »

jondubois wrote: post #58

I've been a nomad for almost 2 years now changing countries often (about 10 different ones) while working remotely for various companies with a dependent spouse and practically no savings. It's stressful because changing countries always turns out to be a lot more expensive than it seems, also changing companies as well is difficult; it's mostly contracting so sometimes they don't pay on time. Remote work is also dra…

Do you mind sharing more about how being nomad helps your job hunting? Do you spend time on-site with clients? Do you interview with local clients, then take the job with you?

Re: I went full nomad and it almost broke me

#60

Post by nickthemagicman »

IkmoIkmo wrote: post #11
icebraining wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nice, glad it's working out for you! Just curious, you wrote that you funded the first expedition by saving from your salary, but how are you paying for the second?

The first trip was in 2009-2011. His second trip started in 2016. He must've put in some work inbetween. He's also monetised his traveling with books, partners etc. More importantly though, from the info he posted, it shows he spends about $1200 a month traveling mostly through South-America. Which isn't too crazy, gdp per capita in the continent is about $450, Africa is even 'easier', in that the gdp per capita is a…

The modified jeep alone was 50k or more.

Gas is 5k.

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