Being a – doing online jobs while traveling around – is some pretty uncertain business. A lot of digital nomads are freelancers and the amount of work and money they get each week or month is quite unstable. Therefore, one of the prerequisites for living this kind of a life is to have some sort of a financial cushion in case you get stuck. Another challenge digital nomads face is remaining focused and productive. It’s difficult to concentrate on your work when there’s new places to discover, new people to meet, and a lot of other distractions that can put you off.
Here are a few tips I’ve put together on how to deal with this problem!
Get to know yourself
In order to properly organize your workday, you should first be well aware of your habits and preferences. You should know best if you’re and how much work you can handle in a day or a week. Also, get your priorities straight as soon as you come to a new place – decide whether you’re into sightseeing, nightlife or just wandering around the town discovering new stuff. This will all affect your next step – preparing a timetable.
Make a schedule
The key to being productive when you don’t have strict working hours is to be well organized. You should make daily schedules, preferably the day before. Again, knowing yourself is vital – you should be aware of how long you can maintain your focus or how often you need breaks. Some people like to finish the job as soon as possible, riding on a wave of adrenaline, while others prefer to take their time and are most productive when they don’t rush things. Whichever of these groups you belong to, it’s crucial to have a plan for the next day and stick to it.
Keep your devices away
Your daily plan can be devised in many ways, but “scrolling through funny pictures of dogs on Instagram for 45 minutes” definitely can’t be on the checklist. All sorts of distractions on your electronic devices are just a click or a tap away and we all know how tempting this can be. Keep your phone away from yourself and turn the sound off whenever you’re in a position to do so. If necessary, use apps like that will block the content that distracts you the most.
Working space
Avoid working from your apartment or hotel room. It’s a healthy thing to keep your working and living premises separated in general. Your workspace should be your work space, and there are all kinds of things at your new home that can damage your focus – there’s the TV, the comfy armchair, cozy bed or simply a full fridge. Working from cafés or bars with Wi-Fi is out of the question as well, since it’s all too easy to get carried away by the vibrant and energetic atmosphere of the metropolis. such as the city in which I live, Melbourne, you have multiple distractions – in my case, the sunny beach on one side and the busy and dynamic downtown on the other. Thus, renting a or finding a decent co-working space is probably the best idea.
Have some time for yourself
All work and no play is definitely not why you became a digital nomad. You won’t be too happy nor productive if you forget the ultimate reason why you chose to lead this kind of life – if you intend to think only about your job, then you could’ve stayed back home. Everyone needs to switch off at some point in order to be fully motivated and eager to work the next day. .
To conclude, boosting your productivity as a digital nomad comes down to three very simple things – good organization and at least a decent amount of focus and discipline. It’s all about your general approach, and if you have a determined and disciplined mindset, then you probably have nothing to worry about.
This is a guest post by Lauren Wiseman.
Lauren Wiseman is marketing specialist, curious observer and stubborn dream chaser. With her passion
for travel, she realized there was no other way than to change the game and to become a digital nomad.
Enjoying life from completely different perspective, she helps her clients grow their personal and
professional brands. Lauren is also a regular contributor to .
