How are Digital Nomads responding to life in quarantine?
As a Digital Nomad, this pandemic has been an aggressive change of plans. As we collectively slow down and stay put this year, will we like it?
What is the future of travel for seasoned Digital Nomads? In this episode I interview two long term nomads - Saurav Arya (Indian Digital Nomad) and Samantha Elisabeth (Co-Owner of Female Digital Nomads) to find out how they're coping during quarantine and the impact it's already had.
Additional Links:
About the show:
✨ Freedom Lifestyle is an online community and podcast series that empowers the movement towards flexible work. Sam Laliberte interviews remote workers, digital nomads and self-employed people who've pursued a lifestyle that allows them to work from anywhere. Sam discovers their version of the Freedom Lifestyle, learn how they got there and reflect on the impact its had. ✨
How are Digital Nomads responding to life in quarantine?
As a Digital Nomad, this pandemic has been an aggressive change of plans. As we collectively slow down and stay put this year, will we like it?
What is the future of travel for seasoned Digital Nomads? In this episode I interview two long term nomads - Saurav Arya (Indian Digital Nomad) and Samantha Elisabeth (Co-Owner of Female Digital Nomads) to find out how they're coping during quarantine and the impact it's already had.
Additional Links:
About the show:
✨ Freedom Lifestyle is an online community and podcast series that empowers the movement towards flexible work. Sam Laliberte interviews remote workers, digital nomads and self-employed people who've pursued a lifestyle that allows them to work from anywhere. Sam discovers their version of the Freedom Lifestyle, learn how they got there and reflect on the impact its had. ✨
When you feel like you've been like the odd one out your whole life, and then you meet people who are also similar to you, you're like, Oh, like pursuing this isn't crazy. Like people do it all the time
Sam Laliberte:you're listening to episode 48 of the freedom lifestyle podcast series coming at you from a Whistler Canada, where I've spent the last eight weeks enjoying nature and avoiding COVID 19. This pandemic has been an aggressive change of plans for so many who jumped up a very different 20, 20 weddings have been rescheduled. Kids have been pulled out of school. Businesses have had to shift online and now everyone's a remote worker. 2020 has not been the year I expected it to be and has really made me reevaluate what freedom means to me. Pre COVID literally at any point in time, you could come up to me and ask me about my future travel plans. And I would have at least three trips coming up. There was so much movement. I was always planning so much to coordinate. My mind was always just full with the details. who's gonna watch my cat. Do I need to get an Airbnb tenant? Do I need to exchange currencies before I leave? Do I have enough makeup and stock or face wash or band-aids or Polysporin or altitude pills? You name it? There was always a checklist. And if I'm being honest, Most of my time was spent living in the future. I was always planning the next experience instead of enjoying the present experience that I had previously planned. Not very sustainable. Right. This pandemic has really slowed things down for me and created the space for me to even realize how peaceful it can be when I'm not moving so much. And I've still been traveling a little bit. I mean, I've been moving around Canada, spending my weekends at different campgrounds or. Exploring local hikes. But it's definitely been an awakening of how nice it is to just live in one spot and really to just be. What does this mean for the future of my digital nomad life? That part is still unwritten. The beauty of remote work is that you have the freedom to be anywhere that you need or want to be. And sometimes that just means be in nature, away from a busy and virus filled city for as long as possible. Sorry, Toronto. I still love you. And I'm going to be back soon. And I can't wait to see my friends in this episode though. I wanted to get the perspective of other digital nomads who are also stuck inside during the pandemic to discover what the impact this has had on them and what it means for their future of travel. You can find my first interview guest on Instagram under the handle, Indian digital nomad. You guessed it. He's originally from India, but he's also been to 91 countries and is on a mission to see them all. He's also a TEDx speaker. A host preneur with Airbnb. And has dreams of making his son a nomad to, as soon as he turns three, in the first part of this episode, we explore his transition from an engineering grad to an online entrepreneur, how he's using this time in quarantine and what the future of the digital nomad identity will look like. In the second part of this episode, you'll hear an interview with Samantha Elizabeth who runs the travel blog. There she goes again. She's also the co owner of female digital nomads, the world's largest online community for female nomads. And in this part of the interview, we explore very practical things like how to secure online work, how to price your offers, how to create memorable travel itineraries, and how to stay safe while traveling alone. Before we hop in today's episode, digital nomads in quarantine. Let's hear an ad from one of our very own freedom seekers. do you want to get a free ad for your business on season four of the freedom lifestyle podcast while I've totally got you in an effort to support more small businesses during COVID-19 I'm offering a new free podcast ad stimulus. Program simply go to what's. Your free.com/free ad and upload a 22nd audio ad for your business. You may just hear it on next week's episode. Welcome to the freedom lifestyle podcast.
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):I'm so happy to be here.
Sam Laliberte:Yeah. I'm so glad you said yes. I think your story is super impressive. I cannot believe how many countries you've traveled to. thank you for coming on and kind of demystifying what it's like to be a seasoned digital nomad.
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):I'm so excited to share my stories.
Sam Laliberte:Do you remember what you wanted to be when you grew up or how you pictured yourself making money? Because digital nomadism is fairly new. I know you've been at it for a while, but thinking back to your youth, like, what did you picture for yourself?
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):Growing up in, in the part of India where I come from. So the only options we had that time was either become an engineer or become a doctor. All right. So it's, it's like, you know, first you become an engineer and then you figure out what to do with your life. Right. So that's how it has been for me. I completed my engineering degree and then I got a regular nine to five job where I was working for a company in the steel industry. After five years of work, I felt like, you know, nine to five is not working out for me. I took a gap year. I started traveling and that changed everything.
Sam Laliberte:How did you know nine to five lifestyle wasn't for you? Like what about it? Did you not feel right with.
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):So I felt it was too monotonous for me, you know, Monday to Friday everyday put look same. And when I took a gap year after five years of nine to five, that was in 2012. the whole idea was to just travel for a year without having a boss or a subordinate. I called that ear a year full of Sundays. You know, I decided to have every day, like it's a Sunday, you know, go with the flow. Don't make a plan. And in that year, I first circumnavigated India. Then I went to Southeast Asia. Then I traveled in Africa and all of that, I did very, very frugally. And in that one year, by the end of the year, I felt that that was eventful. That one year seemed like 10 years. Yeah, then I felt like, Hey, this makes much more sense than, you know, going to office and working from nine to five, Monday to Friday, and, you know, wait for the weekends, wait for the vacation to do, do what you really want to do. That was a tipping point. That's when I decided, okay. Let's Think of way in which I can make this, my lifestyle, how to travel indefinitely, how to travel with my work. So that's when I started, you know, reading about location independence. That's when I got to know about four hour workweek by Tim Ferriss, that's the Bible for all of us. All, all those who are location independent. That's
Sam Laliberte:a classic. That, that was for me too. I'm like, wow, just even that sentence of four hour workweek, it's such a great title. It's so captivating who could not be, you know, tantalized by that. So you read that, but at the time when you're in your gap year, you weren't making. Right. You said you were not working for a full year
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):that year. I just use my saving to travel around. So just before I took the gap, year, two years, fortunately, I got a job where I had to work remotely. So I was not a digital nomad, but I was remote workers. I was working for a British company and they allowed me to work from anywhere they just wanted to work to be done. So that was the time when I, got to know about. Being location independent. And that time there was no word like digital nomad, but there was some content around, you know, work from home, remote working and how some people were, also traveling and working, but there was no word like So that phase prepared me. That phase kind of gave me an idea. You know, this could be a possibility. And by the end of 2012, when I had a clear idea that, okay, going forward, I would not like to work for other, I would like to have more control over my life. Then I felt like, okay, let's start with, with a content design agency, because back then I was interested into infographics and data visualization. So that was my first small business, which allowed me to be location independent. But then from there I got into hospitality. I became an Airbnb host and. You know, so that became the main business for me.
Sam Laliberte:You mentioned Tim Ferriss. I love Tim Ferriss too, but it also sounds like what you were doing back then was pretty novel. Was anyone that you went to school with or friends from back home living this lifestyle, or did you kind of feel like you were super alternative
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):There was no one to whom I could consult or there was no one I knew of was living additional my lifestyle. But, after reading four hour work week, I felt like, Hey, this makes sense. You know, it makes sense to work for yourself and live a life where you feel more alive. You know, it makes sense to give time to things you're passionate about.
Sam Laliberte:Yeah, no, it's super impressive. And I read you're at 91 countries, but the mission is all of them. Is that accurate?
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):Exactly. Yeah. That's, that's the plan. I mean, I feel like having a question your life, give your life a meaning and that's very important when you're a solopreneur or when you are additional math. Yeah.
Sam Laliberte:That's, that's the goal. Okay. So 91 and I think this whole COVID must be slowing down your momentum a little bit. I'm sure you had very different plans for 2020. How are you coping with that as a nomad? Who's so used to being able to move and be so free.
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):Yeah. I mean, it's a, everything has changed and there is lots of uncertainty now I'm sure that we all are on the same boat and feeling the same. We don't know how it's going to be. Even if it all takes five, six months, we don't know if we'll be in the same world, you know, I'm, I'm sure that most likely. You know, we'll be talking in terms of pre COVID and post COVID when it comes to anything. So yeah, it doesn't look like there's going to be any travel in the coming few months.
Sam Laliberte:How do you feel about that?
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):So, yeah, that's, that's, that's sad. It's sad that, you know, all of a sudden, we, we all are under lockdown and we can plan our travels, but also at the same time, I feel like, you know, it's, it's the time when we all can take a pause and just reflect on all the travels we have had. And also, you know, think about what to do next. I mean, we, we can't travel, but we can work remotely and that's great. And all the additional maps they have been used to working remotely. So they have an edge here, you know, so, so I can see that so many digital nomads will use this time and probably they can come up with the more small businesses or they'll they might come with new startups, you know, why not?
Sam Laliberte:There'll be good innovation that comes from this. That's so true. I'm a remote worker and I've been saying, I'm so glad I'm not learning how to work remotely while also learning how to cope with this pandemic. I do think people who are used to working from home who are financially independent are at an advantage right now because that's just like one less thing to be coping with. So that's good. And I can also imagine as a nomad, you're so used to collecting experiences all the time. Maybe you feel like you haven't properly reflected on all of them. So are you actively like journaling or how are you now using this time to really think about how you've spent the last 10 years? Is that how long it's been?
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):It's been a, it's been 10 years now, so, so yes. so what I see is, as you rightly say that, you know, we don't have to cope with both. Fortunately we were prepared to be able to work remotely. So I feel that additional maps, they should definitely see if they can help somehow train other people who have not been used to working remotely. And all of a sudden, it's no more a choice. It's a compulsion. Everyone has to work remotely. Right. So, so yeah, so I, I think that that's definitely, all the remote workers, additional mats can play a big role in. Probably we can help businesses in the transition from offline to online. And so many employees are not used to this lifestyle, so we can definitely share our best practices and consult them to be more efficient remotely. So that's one other than that. Yeah. I'm using this time to. for the throwbacks and revisiting all my travels and trying to get a better understanding of how it was there. And what are the things that I never blogged about a wrote about?
Sam Laliberte:What do you foresee as the post COVID impact on travel and digital nomadism? Do you think you're going to keep going as, is, has it made you think about movement? Do you think other people are going to be slowing down? What do you think is going to happen when things returned to the new normal.
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):Alright. So first of all, I think that a new normal is going to take some time. I feel like even if the COVID cases decrease in every country, probably will we'll live in a era of decentralization for long, you know, there will be, I think it will take time for, for the world to. Start allowing international flights. I, I'm not even thinking about when it's going to be. I'm more thinking in terms of, you know, more than being able to travel. Probably we can use this time to, to identify ourself more as a remote worker than as a digital nomad. Additional mass are just 1% of the total remote workers. Remote workers is a bit to me. Right. And fortunately all digital nomads are remote workers, you know, so, I mean, I think that our identity as a remote worker will be prominent in this time. And, that's what I'm focusing at at the moment.
Sam Laliberte:Okay. And prior to this, were you like speeding up or slowing down your digital nomad life? Like you mentioned that you recently had a baby, your first child. Right? Right. So how does that impact your digital nomad lifestyle? Have you been laying down roots over the past couple of years or are you one of those super open families? Like the bucket list family. And you're all going to go on the road. Like how has, you know, moving to this stage of life impacted your travel and movement?
Saurav (@indiandigitalnomad):I would very much like to additional man along with my family and with my kid, I've been following some nomadic families and they have been inspiration. And so I think that once the baby's around three years old, that's what. We are looking at. So we are preparing ourselves, we are super chill with educating on the move and, you know, being on the moon, we, we are okay with that. All the schools here in India, they have started, teaching kids online just because of this lockdown. And I, I think that, you know, it will be very soon, it will be well accepted it will be a new normal for kids to be educated at home. and that's a big plus, I mean, that will definitely help us, be nomadic.
Sam Laliberte:You can follow Indian, digital nomad on Instagram, where you'll find links to his Ted talks along with a medium blog post that he wrote that I love. It's called everything I have learned from my digital nomad lifestyle in 400 words. Go check it out, but not until the next part of this interview Next I'm chatting with Samantha Elizabeth, the founder of the travel blog. There she goes again. And the co owner of female digital nomads. Here's Samantha. welcome to the freedom lifestyle podcast.
Samantha Elisabeth:for having me.
Sam Laliberte:Thanks for making time. I know it's, it's either really late or really early where you are, right. Yeah.
Samantha Elisabeth:Yes, midnight.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Oh, wow. Well, thank you. I really appreciate this. Where are you taking this call from?
Samantha Elisabeth:I'm in ho Chi Minh, city, Vietnam.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:do you identify as a digital nomad? what does that term mean to you?
Samantha Elisabeth:I think a full 100% digital nomad is someone who their career is totally location independent. Whether they teach online or they are marketing, or they're like an accountant who can do online work. everything is location dependent. And instead of having a home base, they just travel the entire year, day in and day out, they're always abroad and they don't actually have a home base. I would say I'm like half a digital moment because I do have a home base. It's not my own home. It's with my parents. So whenever I'm in the States, I just go to see them. and that's like more my addresses. And when I get mail sent to me, but I am on the road at least like half of the year. And all my work is location independent.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Got it. Yeah, I guess I'm a half digital nomad too. I still have my place in Toronto, my condo, but I Airbnb it while I'm gone. So that's been like a really great way to make passive income. while I'm traveling, what ways are you making money? So you have your blog. Are you still teaching? Cause I know there's lots of teaching online programs now, too.
Samantha Elisabeth:No, I think, like after three years of teaching, I was kind of like, I don't know if I want this to be my career. So I can't like fall back on something as comfortable as teaching online just yet. I need to like push myself to do different things, but it is always like kind of a backup, like an immediate backup plan. I have like a bunch of different streams of income. Like that's the one thing I've always read is like, you should never put all your eggs in one basket because you never know what's going to happen. Like a pandemic.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:girl.
Samantha Elisabeth:So I have right now, I'm a, I'm a virtual assistant. I specialize in Pinterest. So for the longest time I had multiple Pinterest clients and I kind of stopped doing that so much, but I have like one or two that I still do work for. I used to content, manage a website and other travel blog. she blogged in a different language and then she had her English blog and I would basically just translate whatever she had written in her foreign language blog into her English one. And then I would just go through and edit it and format it. and then now I work as an editor for like editor slash co-owner for hippie and heels. And then I usually have like a random freelance gig that I take on, which is usually writing or something.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:And how are you finding most of these gigs? Cause it sounds like you have lots of different projects but let's say for someone who maybe wants to get that first virtual assistant role, or like that freelance gig to work online, how are you finding your clients and has that evolved over the years? Are you still using those same early tactics?
Samantha Elisabeth:I really liked my clients. The, the nice thing that I've realized, being able to do my own thing is that if you don't really get along with someone, you don't have to keep working with them. And there's always other people you can find to work with. My newest client is at least a year and a half old now. So I've stuck with the same people.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Good for you.
Samantha Elisabeth:thanks. Like all my clients are basically travel blogging except for freelance gigs are usually outside of it. I've always done a good job. and I get a lot of word of mouth with other bloggers who usually email me and want to hire me for projects.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:is that what you would recommend to somebody who is interested in working in content and content marketing and this type of work? did you find having that niche of travel was helpful because then you have all these travel clients or do you find that doesn't really matter? It's more about the skill.
Samantha Elisabeth:So you have to show you have the skill. and I think having a niche helps show what your skill is. So like I had my travel blog before I started freelancing. and anyone who hired me could go to my blog and see that I understood what was happening. Like it's always easier to hire someone who already knows the basics versus trying to hire someone and then teaching them or giving them guidelines. so I would say it's good to have something to show for yourself, whether you're really niche down, like obviously having a travel blog. It helps me appeal to other travel bloggers but I think it's more important that you do have a few skills mastered. So how I got started was with Pinterest and basically like I had my Pinterest set up for my blog, but I didn't really do much with it. And then at one point I sat down and I, like, I took a class, I did a bunch of research. I read like all the free pieces of content online. I looked at other people who were doing Pinterest management. And then I kind of applied it all to my blog to show that I could improve traffic. So then when anyone was looking for Pinterest manager, I kind of show them, this is what I did with my blog. Here are the numbers that I improved. If you want to hire me, we can do it like on a month to month basis. And if you're not happy, we don't have to continue after a month.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:that sounds really like practical and doable in terms of, maybe find something of your own that you can build and then tweak that learn, try to use new specialized skills and then being able to kind of demonstrate what you can do by showcasing your own project. That that makes a lot of sense. what was it like pitching your first client in terms of a price? Do they typically just say to you here's my budget? Can you either work within this or not? Or are you often asked, you know, what would you charge me for this type of work?
Samantha Elisabeth:I specifically remembered reading another Pinterest manager, talk about her income. and then if you go into like Facebook groups, like female digital nomads and you do a search, I'm sure you can find like a ton of different VA's who have their own websites or who are giving prices. or you can just ask in a Facebook group, if someone doesn't mind giving you a ballpark of what they would charge for something. and that's how I came up with my first price.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Tell us more about the story of, of this group, because it's the largest online community for female nomads, right? Pretty impressive statement. How many members are in the Facebook group right now?
Samantha Elisabeth:over 60,000 now.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:that's nuts. Wow.
Samantha Elisabeth:So MULU launched the community in 2015. I want to say, she is a Dutch travel blogger. and she used to have a marketing agency, and she started the community because she really wanted to have conversations that were a little more advanced than how do I get started? so she started it, we met in another Facebook group, which is called girls versus globe. that was just like a general travel group for women. And I think we were both just like we saw each other comment on different things. and then when she created her group, I joined it. And then at one point I was like, Oh, if you ever need help moderating, just let me know. I'm more than happy to be a moderator. so she added me like right away. And then, over the, the next year or two, we just got closer. I don't even know if she officially approached me, but we kind of like just naturally became partners, for the group. last year we actually like. Registered everything. So it's an official business in case we want to do like retreats or anything in the future.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:and have you monetize the group yet? I know a lot of people are interested in creating online communities and membership programs. Have you generated revenue or is that something that you're thinking of to start doing later this year?
Samantha Elisabeth:a big picture goal of mine that I, I think would be really, really cool is to do like a female digital nomads conference somewhere. That's just like, all about working online, networking, mental health, like everything that you could do and have different speakers and not just like content marketing or teaching online, but like the more unique speakers who are like traveling nurses or lawyers or accountants, We get so many random questions sometimes of people with unique careers that are asking for advice on how to turn it into something digital. And I think it would be cool to hear from someone who's successfully created a digital law firm.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:and I think there's going to be so much more of that to post COVID. Now that everyone's being forced to go online and figure out how to turn their services into online services. I think we're going to see a lot more of that. So you should totally pursue that. I would attend. Where would you have the conference?
Samantha Elisabeth:we were going to look in Bali just because it was a place that both of us were familiar with. It's already kind of a popular digital nomad hotspot. So it wasn't too out of the box to try and find people to work with. And then once we were comfortable working on a retreat and figuring out like the logistics, and then we could start to look into more, just like more unique places that you don't necessarily hear about digital nomads setting up shop for awhile.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Well, you probably have such a pulse on what even these trends are in terms of where lots of digital nomads work from what types of jobs that they have, what are some trends that you've noticed being so close to this community and having such a big data pool of women who are doing this.
Samantha Elisabeth:I generally can tell you, Oh, if you want to go somewhere where there's a lot of people. Chiang Mai Thailand is a huge spot. Bali is a huge spot, basically anywhere that's has nice weather and is relatively affordable is usually hotspot.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:and I guess has good internet too, right?
Samantha Elisabeth:Yeah. And good. And an earth. That's key. Are you even feel, Vietnam is becoming more of a hotspot because they recently in the last, like half decade have really upped their foreign. English teaching program. So they get a lot of experts that are coming here to teach and their rates are pretty comparable to, I would say Korea and Japan, but obviously the cost of living here is so much cheaper. So I, I feel like the more people that come here, the less. I don't want to say stigmatized Vietnam is, but I feel like if you're American, you grew up with like Vietnam war stories or like Vietnam vets telling you about how crazy the war was. people think of Vietnam is like this foreign jungle that no one would ever go to. And it's actually like a pretty modern area. and like hooking and city in a Hanoi's are pretty trendy and up and coming. and I think a lot of places like that are in general, just cause we're becoming such a global society and in general wifi, I feel like it's just getting better every year.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:What's your trip planning style. I know you did a post about slow travel versus fast travel. Can you educate us on what the difference is? And if you've done both, which one do you prefer?
Samantha Elisabeth:Yeah, that was an old post. So good on you for finding it.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Did my research.
Samantha Elisabeth:I don't know when I first heard about slow travel, but fast travel. I feel like it's typically what most people are used to doing. You usually get like one or two weeks for vacation and most people just choose to go to a beach and hang out, but people who want to travel, they're like, all right, well, If I'm going to fly all the way to France, I want to see France. I want to see Paris. I want to see like everything I can in France. So how do I fit that all into two weeks? and they basically just fast travel. Like I consider it kind of like when you order the sampler appetizer in a restaurant, You get a little bit of everything, whereas slow travel. You have the Liberty of taking a lot more than two weeks. you can even set yourself up in like one city for a month, which is what I did here. and you can just, you can like really get to know your area and almost feel like you've become a bit of like a local it's like you, you have a grocery store that you like to go to. You have the lady with the coffee that you love most, and you just kind of get comfortable. Being here versus just being like a traveler. Who's kind of like zooming in to see all the sites and then zooming out to the next place. So I personally prefer slow travel, especially when I'm coming by myself, because I just, I don't know. I don't like being rushed. It's like why? I don't really like doing tours, because I don't like someone telling me, all right, you've got an hour, make the most of it and then get back on the bus and let's go to the next spot. but obviously my other friends who aren't like location, independent workers, they don't exactly have a month to go take and chill out somewhere. So when I travel with a friend who's not a digital nomad or a location, independent worker, I do a little bit faster travel.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Do you have a lot of digital, no bad friends, or do you also have a lot of friends still who chose that career path and are in the United States and, and what's kind of the difference between those types of relationships for you?
Samantha Elisabeth:Yeah. So I actually have a mix. do you ever read Anna Green Gables?
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:I'm familiar.
Samantha Elisabeth:she calls like the people that she gets along with and she clicks with, she calls him kindred spirits, which is just like someone who just gets you and what you want to do in life. And like has similar values, like just someone you really click with. and she like throughout the whole series, she calls him like kindred spirits. So it's like just the thought I've always had in my mind. up until I left for Korea, I realized like afterwards looking back that I didn't actually have like kindred spirits. I had people that were good. People who are friends and, like we got, we get along, we still get along, but we don't have similar like, wants in life. So my friends at home. Or a little more traditional where they want to go into work. They want to have like a home. They want their one's married and one's getting married. They want like the traditional, like family structure, comfort. and like, they, we joke that like, I'm going to be the crazy aunt who just like comes in randomly with like gifts from different countries. but then all my friends who are abroad, who I talked to more regularly, they're all like creative people. You just like, it's easier to click with them. They get wanting to pursue creative career is and how different it is from doing something more traditional. They don't necessarily want children. They don't want to get married or like, it, it just makes it more normal. when you feel like you've been like the odd one out your whole life, and then you meet people who are also similar to you, you're like, Oh, like pursuing this isn't crazy. Like people do it all the time.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:totally. Did you feel that way when you were younger, that you were kind of in an outcast and that you were significantly different than everybody else in terms of what you wanted? Or did you just tell yourself like, Oh, I'll want those things one day and this must just be a phase.
Samantha Elisabeth:I think are like in between. So I still like, you know, I think about it and I'm like, you know, I still would like children. I don't know what that looks like. Like, I don't know if that's going to be on my own if I'm going to try to adopt or if I'm going to try to do something like that. but there's still like traditional things. I would like, like a home base. but I did feel, I was always kind of like, my mom puts it as that. I would always March to the beat of my own drum. all the people I know from childhood have pursued basically science careers, whether it's teaching science, working in the medical field, just anything around like they've all pursued science careers. And I'm just like, I don't know. I think I want to go teach English in Korea or maybe I'll teach online and then go live in Bali for 30 days, stuff like that.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:What's it like coming home and, you know, for the holidays or catching up over dinner, knowing that everyone's kind of the similar, and then you kind of come in with these wild stories. Is it, is it awkward? Do you find yourself kind of holding back and talking about your adventures or you just embrace your uniqueness around them and they're captivated, what's that vibe like?
Samantha Elisabeth:I've learned that people are not actually interested in your travels. Like they kind of they'll ask you about like, Oh, you went to Vietnam. How was that? And then you tell them, Oh, it was fun. Like I saw this and they're like, cool. like, unless they're planning a trip to the same place, like they don't actually want to hear you talk about like every story that you have from that trip. and they also, there's like very basic questions. Everyone always asks me, which is like, did you meet anyone? Are you dating anyone? Do you have any plans of moving back? What are you doing with your life type of stuff? it was harder when I first started because, so I did two years in Korea and then I kind of had a year. Where I was trying to make freelance happen. And I just like that first year is so hard because you feel like you're constantly grasping at straws and you just are getting nowhere. no one really knew what I was doing or understood what I was doing and they didn't think I was making any money, which I really wasn't making much money at the time. And then now that I'm more established and they see that I'm making an income and they see that she's not clearly not asking for money. And she's clearly like working. So now they're more understanding and they just, they're just like, Oh, she works in like marketing online and that's all we really know.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:sometimes with people where I'm just like, they're not going to get it. I just say, Oh, I work online. It just sounds like you're just doing some really sketchy, illegal stuff on the internet. Like my data, you times has taken me aside and he was like, no, seriously, like, what are you doing?
Samantha Elisabeth:Well, my poor dad, my poor dad is like, I just want to see you marry or nice boy and settle down near us. when are you going to settle down in life? I'm like, I don't know why, like, why do I have to have a timeframe for it?
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Well, I'm sure that the community then that you're part of that you're a co owner must be so helpful to have 60,000 plus women on top of that who are pushing these conventional norms. Beating at their own drum and kind of carving out their own careers. How is the community coming together right now? Like during COVID while no one can travel. What are some of the topics in the group and what have you noticed?
Samantha Elisabeth:a lot of it is about specific situations like, Oh, I'm in Vietnam. What do I do if I need to extend my visa or does anyone know what's going on with so and so, or what's this. Occasionally, there are some job offers. and then occasionally there are some like mental health things where people are like, Hey, have you tried doing this today? Or can anyone help me? Like I can't focus type stuff. the one thing I've always liked about the group, is that we've always had a really strict policy of being respectful and being. not necessarily kind, but just being respectful of each other and not dumping, don't be a jerk. and I'm like, I personally, I'm really strict with it. Like if I think someone is just being a total jerk and a thread, like I won't even give them a warning.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:can you give us an example? I'm so curious, but who are these jerks? And these Facebook group was time to be mean like this. what have you encountered?
Samantha Elisabeth:So let's say someone posts a question there. They got stuck in Bali. Like, let's say they got stuck in Bali. They don't know what to do. They're their us citizen. And they can't figure out how to get home. So they ask a question and they're like, what should they do next? Like if someone's, if someone's being rude, they might comment and be like, why are you in Bali, Indonesia and Indonesians don't want you here. Like go away. Like, that's not helpful. And that's kind of mean, and you're already like pouring salt into a wound, so like just stuff like that, kick them out. there's no place for that attitude. And speaking like that, no matter how distressed you are, like, there's just not, there's no room for that.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Have you ever found yourself in a particularly dangerous situation while traveling by yourself or traveling with anyone really.
Samantha Elisabeth:not really only because I am like 80 years old, so I don't drink because I actually like makes me really sick. Like I get, no, I get none of that. Like buzz or like happy feelings when I drank, I just go from like, Fine too, really hot to feeling dizzy and having tunnel vision. So I'm just like, why would I go out and make myself sick without having any fun in between? so I don't drink. So I think that makes it a little bit safer for me just in general, because I'm never not alert.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:what about women who do like to drink or party in that traditional sense? do you think that they need to be extra careful while traveling solo? Do you think that the media blows it up too much about women shouldn't be traveling by themselves? What, what advice would you give to a friend who might be apprehensive about whether she should embark on a trip on her own?
Samantha Elisabeth:Oh, I think you should totally solar travel. Like even if you, you can enjoy a drink and go to a bar and go clubbing, Probably alone too, if you really wanted to. I think just be smart. a good tip. I have is to always tell someone where you're going. I always give my dad my itinerary when I travel. Like I tell him like, these are my flights. this is where I'm going to be. This is like where I'm living. I always tell at least a friend, I give them like an address. Like, this is where I'm staying. If you can't find me or fuck, I'm not checking in, please like alert someone on the ground.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Well, those are some good tips to keep in mind, but still go for it because you know, there's so much to be gained.
Samantha Elisabeth:Just be smart. Like that's the biggest thing is just be smart. Make sure someone knows where you are at all times.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:don't take out money at night from HTMS. That was one of my big tips that I always did when I was traveling. Just like a few little things here and there. Okay. I want to be mindful of your time because I know it's getting to like one in the morning and you probably want to be going to sleep soon. So we're going to do a quick little speed round. There's no right or wrong answer. You just say the first thing that comes to mind. Are you ready? Okay. Kendall or hard? Copy.
Samantha Elisabeth:Kendall.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:Suitcase or backpack, museums or parks,
Samantha Elisabeth:Oh,
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:favorite city you've lived in
Samantha Elisabeth:soul.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:most challenging country. You've traveled.
Samantha Elisabeth:I think maybe Thailand,
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:beaches or mountains,
Samantha Elisabeth:beaches,
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:sun or shade,
Samantha Elisabeth:son,
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:and then favorite podcasts that you're listening to right now, while on the road are stuck in quarantine, I guess.
Samantha Elisabeth:boom. I love it's called the simple sophisticate and it's all about like living. The nicest life with what you have.
female-digital-nomads_recording-1_2020-04-17--t03-02-59pm--whatsyourfree:I'll have to check that out. That sounds beautiful. Well, thanks so much for coming on the show, Sam, it was great to, we went all over the place. I'm looking at my questions that I had here for you, but it took so many good turns So thank you so much for being open and joining me so late in the evening for you. It's. It's been really cool to have you on the show
Samantha Elisabeth:Well, thanks so much for having me.
That's it for episode 48. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you want to meet more freedom seekers, like the ones on my show, or as Samantha calls them kindred spirits. You should join our online community. It's free. We have almost 700 members in our Facebook group and literally there's no rules. In fact, I encourage you to promote, self-promote share your offers. In fact, I would love that you can find the freedom lifestyle community on Facebook or find the link by visiting what's your free.com. Until next time enjoy your freedom