15 Biggest Benefits of Being a Digital Nomad

Becoming a digital nomad is one of the biggest trends since the pandemic. Have you ever wondered about the benefits of being a digital nomad? Then you are not alone!

Being a digital nomad can be defined as working online in various locations of choice while making a living independently of fixed structures. While there are many obvious downsides to that concept, there are many things to consider before saying goodbye to your 9 to 5.

I have become a digital nomad in 2020, and I have absolutely not regretted my decision. If you are still wondering if that lifestyle is right for you, then keep on reading!

Learn about the biggest benefits of being a digital nomad in this post.

Let’s jump right in!

Table of Contents

• What is Digital Nomading and why is it such a Trend?
• 1. Freedom
• 2. Travel Full Time – Location Independence
• 3. Better Work-Life Balance
• 4. Less Stress
• 5. Healthy Lifestyle
• 6. Money
• 7. Personal Development and Growth
• 8. Family Life
• 9. Having Multiple Homes
• 10. Meeting New and Interesting People
• 11. Lower Cost of Living
• 12. No Commute
• 13. New Hobbies and Interests
• 14. Do it your way!
• 15. Interesting Work
• To Sum It All Up: Benefits of Being a Digital Nomad
• FAQ: Benefits of Being a Digital Nomad

What is Digital Nomading and why is it such a Trend?

Digital nomading has never been more in than since the pandemic. For the first time, people were forced to leave their conventional office spaces, set up their equipment in a (probably) improvised space (such as the kitchen table), and experience an entirely new way of working.

Office structures, as we knew them before, suddenly became history. While this new way of working has surely brought on many challenges.

Technical problems or mental health issues from suddenly being confined have arisen. But it has also paved the way for an entirely different understanding of how work should be done.

Now let’s first look at what actually defines a digital nomad.

Digital nomads are individuals who use technology to perform their job remotely and have the ability to live and work from almost any location in the world.

They embrace a remote lifestyle that allows them to travel, explore new places, and often live in different countries while earning money online.

Digital nomads typically use communication tools such as videoconferencing, cloud computing, project management software and social media for their work.

40 hour work weeks in an office are now passé. Why slave away your life for someone elses benefit when you could also just work on a beach in the Caribbean?

But apart from not having to go to an office anymore, there are other benefits to being a digital nomad. Let’s have a look at them.

1. Freedom

Freedom was hands down the most important factor for me to leave my corporate career behind. Not only did I gain freedom of movement by quitting my job.

I also got freedom over my working hours, my schedule, my office space, and countless other things. I get to pick which people I work with and with whom I surround myself. For many people, Freedom is the biggest upside of living the digital nomad lifestyle.

This does not necessarily mean you have to leave your life behind and work from a tropical island. Even though it would be entirely possible. But it is much more about having the choice in the first place.

You also gain more freedom about little things when becoming a digital nomad. It can be as simple as being able to take a walk in the middle of your workday to enjoy some good weather and recharge your batteries.

Freedom is, in my opinion, the most important reason for becoming a digital nomad. Modern-day employment situations contain way too little freedom and choice for its employees.

This is the biggest benefit of being a digital nomad for me! And once you grasp on how much your work life affects your private life – it will be of you to.

2. Travel Full Time – Location Independence

Being able to travel full time is another great benefit of becoming a digital nomad. This goes hand in hand with more freedom.

But if we take a closer look at it, it is not just about going to vacation more often. Being a digital nomad offers you an entirely new perspective on traveling.

You can live like a local. Experience the way of Slow Travel and Mindful Travel. You can take it all in without having to rush back home. It is nice to have a home base, but you only have to return to it when you feel like it.

When I was on vacation from work, I used to fret about what was happening back at the office. This is something I definitely left in the past.

Being able to travel full-time is one of the biggest advantages of becoming a digital nomad. Many countries offer digital nomad visa and even nice tax benefits. Pick a remote job you love and a country you want to see – there is nothing stopping you.

3. Better Work-Life Balance

By becoming a digital nomad I also managed to improve my work-life balance tremendously. By working on my own schedule, I get to choose the exact hours of work I want to put in every week. This is an often overlooked benefit of becoming a digital nomad.

Just as important as the number of hours is the distribution of work throughout my schedule. I am fully able to plan my work around my life instead of the other way around.

Cutting out travel times and unproductive times at the office, such as gossiping, means I have to spend less time on my workstation than ever before.

4. Less Stress

It can be quite challenging to suddenly find yourself all alone in your Home-Office. But over time it can turn into a huge advantage.

Office dynamics suddenly are not so important anymore. Gossip and schemes are a thing of the past. This was one of the biggest reasons for not going back to corporate life anymore.

I can choose more carefully with what people I surround myself with every day. This way, I managed to lower my daily stress rate.

All in all, I was able to find new motivation to work on something. Office dynamics are in most cases sadly very hindering on the career path.

In my experience, only a small minority of your colleagues will be able to support you and empower you. Most people in employment settings are under far too much pressure of performing well and climbing the career ladder themselves to be a good teammate.

Lastly, not having to answer to someone is a great upside of becoming a digital nomad. Being micromanaged and watched has made me very doubtful of my skills and made me under-perform for a long time.

5. Healthy Lifestyle

Lunchtime walks, midday yoga, mindfulness sessions, lemon-infused water, and fruit snacks are now a big part of my daily routine. Working on my own schedule allows me to allocate time for the things that uplift me. This helps me feel good all day.

No single person in this world always feels great – there is no denying that. By working on your own schedule it is possible to take it easier when you feel down.

And being able to give 200 % when you feel at your best. As a woman, I prefer an easier workload during that time of the month, which is in my opinion a great advantage to becoming a digital nomad.

Keeping up with doctors’ appointments and preemptive measures to preserve my health is also something that I have more time and patience with now. Especially because I do not have to answer to anyone about leaving my workstation during the day.

Being able to eat better food and spend more time preparing it is a great advantage of being a digital nomad. You don’t need to quickly stuff in some unhealthy snacks and a Red Bull – you can actually enjoy your meal.

6. Money

Working from home has not only improved my mental and physical health but also the health of my wallet.

By cutting out the middleman I get to keep the whole pie of income. There is no more sitting off time until the workday ends. Every minute I spend on work results in monetary compensation.

High performance means higher rewards and it can motivate tremendously to see the numbers on your bank account increasing.

Additionally, being creative and coming up with ideas for creating passive income will give you the possibility of earning money while you sleep, eat, and walk your dog.

7. Personal Development and Growth

Suddenly being responsible for myself in such a vast way has made me up my personality game. I acquired mad organizational and business skills. I have become my own motivational speaker as well as my work bestie.

I was also forced to learn more about personal finances and future planning. This made me learn so many skills I am grateful to have now.

There are so many powerful resources out there that teach you everything you need to know. And most of it is even for free.

Not knowing what the hell you are doing is not an excuse for not becoming a digital nomad anymore. Knowledge is available on any topic at the click of a button.

Working on your personal growth quickly becomes necessary when you are a digital nomad. There is no one else to pick up your slack anymore. The responsibility is with you – and you alone.

Many digital nomads up their personal growth while traveling. Meeting new people, maneuvering around a new environment and dealing with disappointments are great for personal development.

8. Family Life

Working at home with your spouse or your children can certainly provide some nice challenges. However, it has also improved my family life tremendously.

We eat meals together, we are more involved with the work struggles and achievements of one another. We motivate each other to do better every single day.

An outside perspective can sometimes be so very helpful with a professional struggle. So, having the possibility to discuss things with your SO in real-time is priceless for me.

An improved family life is a great benefit of becoming a digital nomad. Spending 40 + hours away from your family is not ideal. Digital nomad life allows you to allocate more time for your loved ones.

9. Having Multiple Homes

Becoming a digital nomad allows me to spend time with the people I love. And it allows me to have more than one home.

I was able to move abroad with my husband and travel alongside him whenever it pleases me. I did not really have to leave my life in Austria behind – because I can still go back and work there for a couple of months.

I can pick and choose where I want to live – and for how long. Escape the cold Dutch winter for Caribbean sunshine? No problem!

10. Meeting New and Interesting People

When becoming a digital nomad you will have many chances for meeting new and interesting people. This can offer many benefits.

Not only can it broaden your social network and connect you with potential business partners. But it also provides the opportunity to learn about different cultures, languages, and lifestyles.

Meeting new people from all over the world can be an incredibly enriching experience that allows you to broaden your horizon and have a balanced world view.

Lastly, you might even make some friends for a lifetime. Everyone you meet has their own story, and your life will be so much richer by connecting with likeminded people all over the world.

11. Lower Cost of Living

Digital nomads benefit from lower cost of living for a variety of reasons. First, many digital nomads are able to work remotely and therefore can choose to live in areas with lower housing costs.

Additionally, they have the freedom to travel to places where the cost of living is generally much lower. This includes cheaper prices for basic necessities such as food and utilities, as well as sightseeing and outdoor fun.

Digital nomads often share resources (like office space) with other members of their community. This really helps to keep costs down.

Sometimes digital nomads are able to take advantage of the local currency exchange rate. This means, they can spend less on goods and services in the areas they visit than if they were paying in their home currency.

Another big reason why being a digital nomad is so profitable for me is that I can pick clients that live in a high-income country. Catering to a US-clientele makes me much more money than offering the same services in India, for example.

All of these factors combine to make living as a digital nomad more affordable than ever before! This is definitely a great benefit of being a digital nomad.

12. No Commute

Commuting to the office is such a tedious way of spending time. Some people have an insanely long way to work every single day.

Not having to commute to an office every day is one of the biggest perks of being a digital nomad. You can work from your couch or a nearby café – the choice is yours.

Traffic jams and bad driving conditions become a thing of the past. Say hello to the new way of working, where 100 % of our working time is spent productively.

13. New Hobbies and Interests

With a lot more leisure time on your hands it is no surprise that many digital nomads find new hobbies and interests along the way.

Being able to pick up a book or my drawing pencils is one of the biggest upsides of becoming a digital nomad for me. I can carve out an hour in the middle of my work day and spend it on some hobby I love.

Not only can you pick up old hobbies you left behind, you might even discover new interests on your way. Having your own business takes a lot of skills, like graphic design, social media management or creative writing. Maybe you’ll find a new interest that you love by becoming a digital nomad.

14. Do it your way!

You can do anything your way. There are no rules anymore. This is one of the biggest benefits of being a digital nomad.

You hate dressing up for your corporate job? That can be a thing of the past. You loved it? Good, you can keep doing it.

There is nothing you can’t do – and you get to decide about 100 % of your time, your efforts and your environment. Being able to do things my way has helped me so much in growing my business.

15. Interesting Work

Lastly, you can pick your own work assignments and choose things you are good at and you love doing.

An amazing benefit of being a digital nomad for me is having more interesting work. I can farm out things I don’t like doing – and only do what I love.

It also gives you an opportunity to reinvent yourself. You can slowly move into a different direction with your professional life. You can mix it up and try new things.

An amazing benefit of being a digital nomad!

To Sum It All Up: Benefits of Being a Digital Nomad

In my opinion, becoming a digital nomad was one of the greatest decisions I ever made in my life. My happiness has improved so much over the last year that I cannot even begin to describe it.

There are so many amazing benefits of being a digital nomad. And the 15 upsides I have described here in this post are only the beginning.

Take the step towards becoming a digital nomad now, and experience more freedom than you could have ever imagined.

Admittedly, there have also been some challenges. However, I would not change a thing and go back to being employed for the world.

If you want to know more about the challenges that come hand in hand with the digital nomad lifestyle and how to overcome them keep on reading the following article on the downside of digital nomad life.

FAQ: Benefits of Being a Digital Nomad

Sharing is caring!