There are more and more people looking to travel the world and work simultaneously. Since there is no real reason to work in an office these days, the digital nomad movement is taking off. All you need is to have a good internet connection that is stable and offers high speeds. High-speed internet is available in almost every country, allowing you to work from anywhere. It’s a lifestyle that is exciting and rewarding in many ways.
Many people new to the idea often make many mistakes when starting out. Many of these mistakes don’t cause any harm and serve as a lesson going forward. However, some of them can jeopardize your entire life as a digital nomad and thwart your plans. It’s much better to learn from the mistakes of others so you can avoid them yourself. In this article, we will go over several of the common mistakes that people make so you can live as a digital nomad easier.
1 – Not getting insurance
Many countries require a visa to enter and stay for a predetermined amount of time. Of those, many of them require you to have insurance to be eligible for a visa. They want to make sure that you are not going to be a burden on the healthcare system since you haven’t been paying into the public option.
Even when you don’t need a visa to enter a country, it is a wise idea to get insurance. When an accident or sudden illness happens when you are traveling, you will need protection to avoid these situations from going very badly. Look for international health insurance such as Cigna Global Medical so you can be protected from just about any scenario that can go wrong healthwise when you are on the road.
If you are staying in a developing country then you should look into adding coverage that will airlift you out of the country to another that offers better medical so you aren’t risking anything.
2 – Not researching the visa
Many people assume that they can simply show up at the airport or border of a country and stay as long as they like. Although this applies to a lot of countries depending on your citizenship, it is often not the case that you don’t need a visa.
It is very important to always check what the visa requirements are before you plan to visit a country. There are some requirements that need to be met so you need to have time to put things into place. Not only that, but the process to get a visa can be lengthy and will need to be done well in advance of your travel date.
Although you may want to be a spontaneous traveler, it is a good idea to plan out your travel itinerary and make adjustments as needed based on what it takes to get a visa.
3 – Not making a budget
Many digital nomads travel to low-cost living countries so they can make their Western salaries stretch longer. This allows them the flexibility to stay longer in one place or travel to even more countries. However, the low costs can be very deceiving and many end up running out of money quickly.
It is extremely important to have a budget made so you can make sure that you always have enough money. It is more complicated to do when you are traveling as the costs are not always the same from place to place. However, you will be able to plan your trips better when you know how much money you will have at the end of the month.
4 – Not having a steady income
A trap many digital nomads fall into is hitting the road as soon as they think they are making enough money. What often happens is that there are periods in which there is less money coming in and things get difficult. This is a major problem for freelancers who work with clients. There can be gaps between clients when there is no money coming in. If you also didn’t budget or plan properly then you can get stuck with no money.
If you are a freelancer, don’t hit the road until you have plenty of experience under your belt. This gives you some resilience that will help you always have money coming in. When you have a steady stream of clients then you can often have more work coming in than you can handle.
This involves getting established for a year or two before you are able to start your life as a digital nomad.
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