How to Become a DIGITAL NOMAD in 2024 (3-month plan)

Summary

In this video, the speaker shares their journey of becoming a digital nomad, moving to Bali with just $3,000 and no steady online income. They discuss their struggles, mistakes, and successes, emphasizing the importance of pursuing something you're passionate about while building remote income streams. The speaker advises viewers to save money, acquire skills, and explore remote job opportunities or freelance work before transitioning into a full-time digital nomad lifestyle. They also highlight the growth of their income, now averaging $5,000-$6,000 per month, and provide practical tips for achieving this lifestyle.

Takeaways

• 🌍 Becoming a digital nomad can happen within three months, even with limited starting funds.
• 🏖️ The speaker moved to Bali with $3,000 and no online income, initially only expecting to stay for three months.
• 📸 Early mistakes included trying various online businesses like Amazon FBA and affiliate marketing without passion, which led to boredom and burnout.
• 🎥 Focusing on long-term goals and doing what you love is crucial to sustaining the digital nomad lifestyle.
• 💼 To support himself, the speaker leveraged photography skills and brand collaborations while building his YouTube channel.
• 👥 Networking with other business owners and entrepreneurs in Bali shifted the speaker's mindset and showed him new possibilities.
• 🖥️ A key turning point was securing a remote job with a company he had previously worked for in Finland.
• 💰 Saving up $3,000–$10,000 before moving to a location like Southeast Asia is recommended to ease the transition into the digital nomad lifestyle.
• 📈 Income started small but steadily grew over time, with the speaker now averaging $5,000–$6,000 per month.
• 💡 Having multiple income streams and savings is essential for long-term sustainability, as income can fluctuate.

Q & A

What motivated the speaker to pursue a digital nomad lifestyle?

The speaker was motivated by a desire to live a digital nomad lifestyle, despite initially lacking an online income and having limited savings. Their goal was to live in Southeast Asia, starting with Bali.

How did the speaker sustain their digital nomad lifestyle in the first few months?

The speaker focused on leveraging their photography skills, taking on brand deals and collaborations, and was eventually able to support themselves through a remote job they obtained from a previous employer in Finland.

What mistakes did the speaker make when initially trying to create online income?

The speaker tried various online business models, like Amazon FBA and affiliate marketing, without focusing on something they were passionate about. This led to a lack of motivation and ultimately failure in those ventures.

Why does the speaker emphasize the importance of enjoying the work you choose?

The speaker emphasizes that choosing something you're passionate about is crucial because you need to sustain interest long-term. Doing something solely for money can lead to burnout and boredom.

What key advice does the speaker give for people aspiring to become digital nomads?

The speaker advises first saving some money, developing marketable skills, and exploring remote job options. Building multiple income streams, like freelance work or a small business, helps provide financial stability.

What was the speaker’s financial situation when they first moved to Bali?

When the speaker first moved to Bali, they had $3,000 in savings, which they estimated would only allow them to live there for three months.

How did moving to Bali affect the speaker's mindset?

After moving to Bali, the speaker met people in different businesses, which helped them realize that achieving their desired lifestyle was possible if they focused and worked toward it.

What remote job helped the speaker sustain their income during the early stages of their digital nomad journey?

The speaker was able to secure a remote job with a company they had previously worked for part-time in Finland, which provided the financial support needed while building their YouTube channel.

What income range did the speaker achieve after a few months of being a digital nomad?

After a few months, the speaker’s income ranged from $1,000 to $3,000 per month, with fluctuations during certain months.

What long-term goal is the speaker working towards while maintaining their remote job?

The speaker's long-term goal is to become a full-time YouTuber. However, they are being cautious by maintaining their remote job to ensure financial stability in case of unpredictable income from YouTube.

Outlines

00:00

🌍 How I Became a Digital Nomad in 3 Months

The speaker shares their journey of becoming a digital nomad, starting with a move to Bali with only $3,000. Initially, they had no online income and faced the challenge of needing to find a way to sustain themselves within three months. They reflect on the early struggles of trying various online businesses, making mistakes, and eventually finding the right direction. The key takeaway is to avoid focusing solely on making money but instead find something enjoyable and sustainable long-term.

05:02

☕ The Journey to Making Sustainable Income

The speaker recounts their early mistakes of chasing money through ventures like Amazon FBA and affiliate marketing. They emphasize the importance of pursuing something you are passionate about to avoid burnout. After moving to Bali, they were inspired by their surroundings and the people they met, which motivated them to focus and develop their skills. They found success in photography, which allowed them to secure brand deals and support their lifestyle, along with landing a remote job.

📸 Finding Remote Work and Building Your Dream Lifestyle

The speaker explains how they leveraged their photography skills and network to secure freelance work and a remote job, which allowed them to stay in Southeast Asia. They encourage viewers to think about their own skills and connections, emphasizing that building a remote lifestyle requires effort, but it’s achievable. They advise looking into remote work opportunities and exploring freelance options while saving money beforehand to reduce stress during the transition to a digital nomad lifestyle.

💼 How to Diversify Your Income as a Digital Nomad

The speaker shares their experience with income fluctuations and stresses the importance of having savings. They explain that in the first few months, they earned between $500 and $3,000, but after some dry spells, they learned to diversify their income. Currently, they earn around $5,000 to $6,000 per month, mainly through remote work, and plan to focus on building their YouTube channel further. They emphasize saving money, paying off debts, and gradually transitioning into full-time entrepreneurship while maintaining multiple income streams.

Keywords

💡Digital Nomad

A digital nomad is someone who leverages technology to work remotely while living a location-independent lifestyle. In the video, the speaker explains their journey to becoming a digital nomad in Southeast Asia, emphasizing the importance of finding remote income streams that allow flexibility and mobility.

💡Remote Job

A remote job refers to work that can be performed from anywhere without being tied to a specific location, often online. The speaker stresses the importance of securing a remote job as an initial step in sustaining a digital nomad lifestyle, such as when they got a remote position from a previous employer to support themselves in Bali.

💡Freelancing

Freelancing involves offering services on a contract or project basis, rather than working as a full-time employee. The video suggests freelancing as a viable option for income while building a business or pursuing long-term goals, with the speaker sharing how photography helped them gain brand deals and support their nomadic lifestyle.

💡YouTube

YouTube serves as a platform for creating video content and generating income, often through ads, sponsorships, or brand collaborations. The speaker shares their goal of becoming a full-time YouTuber, mentioning how they initially focused on YouTube while doing other jobs to sustain their lifestyle.

💡Brand Deals

Brand deals involve collaborating with companies to promote products or services in exchange for payment or other benefits. The speaker mentions how brand deals for photography helped support their digital nomad lifestyle, providing an immediate income source while building their YouTube career.

💡Savings

Savings refer to the money set aside for future use, particularly for financial security during uncertain times. The speaker advises aspiring digital nomads to save between $3,000 to $10,000 before embarking on their journey, as a safety net while they build sustainable income streams.

💡Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia refers to the region that includes countries like Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, known for its affordability and digital nomad communities. The speaker discusses their move to Bali and Vietnam, emphasizing how the lower cost of living made it easier to sustain a digital nomad lifestyle.

💡Mindset Shift

A mindset shift involves changing one’s perspective or approach to achieve a desired goal. The speaker describes how moving to Bali altered their mindset, making them realize that living as a digital nomad was possible, which motivated them to focus on building their dream lifestyle.

💡Income Streams

Income streams refer to different sources of earnings, such as a job, freelance work, or passive income. The speaker highlights the importance of diversifying income streams as a digital nomad, sharing how they combined freelance photography, YouTube, and a remote job to support their lifestyle.

💡Passion

Passion refers to a strong enthusiasm or desire to engage in an activity that brings fulfillment. The speaker advises others to focus on pursuing a passion when building a business, as working solely for money can lead to burnout, and emphasizes that long-term success comes from doing something you truly enjoy.

Highlights

How to become a digital nomad in as little as three months.

Moved to Bali two years ago with only $3,000 in savings and no online income.

Initial focus was on making money from various online ventures but learned that passion is crucial for long-term success.

Mistake: Trying different methods like Amazon FBA and affiliate marketing just for the money, leading to burnout and lack of fulfillment.

Key realization: Success requires focusing on something you enjoy and have skills in, rather than chasing easy money.

Life-changing decision to focus on photography and YouTube, leading to brand deals and freelance opportunities.

First remote job came from a part-time employer in Finland, highlighting the importance of leveraging past connections.

Practical advice: Reach out to former employers or connections for remote job opportunities.

Building multiple income streams is essential for stability, especially in uncertain times.

Recommendation to save at least $3,000 to $10,000 before pursuing a digital nomad lifestyle to avoid financial stress.

Started earning $500 to $1,000 per month initially, eventually scaling to $5,000 to $6,000 per month.

Realized that income fluctuates, reinforcing the importance of savings and diversified income streams.

Balancing freelance work and YouTube growth was crucial to long-term financial stability.

Focus on one main venture (YouTube) while maintaining a remote job for steady income.

Upcoming content on income breakdowns and lessons from the digital nomad journey.

Transcripts

do you want to become a digital Nomad

this year let me explain to you how you

can make that happen even in just three

months

[Music]

two years ago I moved to Bali having

this dream of living it is a normal

lifestyle but the problem was that I

didn't have any online income and I only

had three thousand dollars in my bank

account so I basically would only live

three months in Bali before I need to

return home so how am I still two years

later living in Southeast Asia my dream

lifestyle in this video I will explain

to you exactly how I made that happen in

only three months oh it's so hot I

really had to jump to the pool but yeah

basically before I moved to Bali I was

already trying a few years all different

kinds of businesses online I made so

many mistakes and I will explain to you

how to avoid toast and how to get the

right direction to achieve this

lifestyle in only few months I will tell

you all my secrets as soon as I get some

coffee

[Music]

better in Vietnam the coconut coffee is

so good I was so tired today but yeah

the mistake I made a few years before I

moved to Bali was that I just wanted to

make money with any method I tried the

Amazon FBA making my website Affiliates

and like so many different things I

basically didn't necessarily enjoy those

things so much but I just wanted to make

money and that's a big thing mistake in

my opinion because then you just get

bored of it there's no easy way of

making money so basically you need to do

something you really want to do for a

long time you're passing out about you

enjoy you have some knowledge about so

there was a few big changes when I moved

to Bali that made it possible for me to

actually achieve this lifestyle finally

like I'm a basic dude from Finland I

studied in University Engineering I

didn't enjoy that so I don't have any

knowledge or any experience or I didn't

know anybody who's doing this kind of

life so I couldn't really look up to

anybody else than just watching YouTube

videos and trying to learn by myself

when I moved to Bali of course my

mindset changed a little bit because I

realized that oh my God I love to be

here I want to be here I met a lot of

people who made different businesses so

I realized that anything is basically

possible but I clearly need to focus on

something I need to make this happen and

back then for me making money on YouTube

was my goal but I wasn't so close to it

I was just starting off so I thought it

might take even years to achieve that

income from YouTube so while I was doing

YouTube I think it's really really

important to do something you want to do

long term but of course you need to make

money especially if you dream business

or job and requires you to be in Bali or

leave this alone lifestyle in Asia or in

Mexico whatever of course then you need

immediately to make money to support

that so you can build that business and

that was basically the situation for me

and how did I do it is that I thought

what are my skills what can I provide I

was quite good at taking photos back

then and when I really focused on that I

started to actually get some brand deals

some collabs I was shooting for people

for Brands and taking photos so that was

turned to actually support my lifestyle

and I realized that okay if I just focus

on this while I'm doing YouTube I can

actually support myself and then I was

also really lucky after a few months I

managed to get the remote shop from a

company I used to work part-time in

Finland when I'm studying so if you have

any connections your old jobs your

people you know maybe some companies so

you can contact him and ask that hey I

could help you I don't need to make that

much money because you live in Asia or

whatever so you don't need that much

money but you just need a job you can do

remotely and especially if those people

trust you then it's quite easy to like

why wouldn't they give you an

opportunity to help them with something

so this is what I would recommend for

most people try to figure out all these

ways how can I start making money so I

can support the lifestyle while I'm

building my dream lifestyle that's what

I've been doing for the last few years

so yeah if you want to support me I'm a

full-time YouTuber Please Subscribe and

like this video is actually so awesome

for this announcements has got a huge

Falafel ball for four dollars and the

coffee was like 250. so it's really

affordable and the Wi-Fi is cool there's

Community here and it's just really

comfortable for a longer stay but after

this video you can check my last few

videos from Danang if you're more

interested in this city so yeah I often

get this question that I want to be a

little Nomad but I don't really know how

to get started so what I would recommend

is to first check the remote job option

and while you do that it's really good

to develop a skill or even before that

when you're still in your home country

it's good to save some money and learn

some skills so when you are coming here

you actually have many ways of making

money because you never know maybe you

lose your job or maybe you don't get

clients anymore for one thing so it's

good to have few options so yeah first

maybe you can have a job then maybe you

can develop a skill and maybe you can do

some freelance work and then the last

stops and the best option for a lot of

people is to have your own business so

going in this order checking all the

options and doing hard work for a few

months I think a lot of you guys can be

able to achieve a digital normal

lifestyle in HR Mexico or any of these

little bit affordable countries quite

fast and if you're super eager to start

your digital normal journey and you

don't have any income yet I would

recommend to have at least three to ten

thousand dollars saved before you come

here so it's not gonna be too stressful

for you in the first months to figure

out how to make the income but you also

have a little bit of motivation because

you know you need to go back home if you

don't make it so yeah what is my

situation after two years of living this

lifestyle after starting pretty much

from zero basically in the beginning I

made only like five hundred dollars one

thousand dollars per month but after a

few months I started to make more like

one thousand two thousand even three

thousand so I was super happy with that

but then after like four or five months

I actually got a few months of like not

making much money at all so yeah that's

why it's really important to have some

savings but yeah from the beginning to

this point the income has been growing

slowly and steadily a little bit more

and more and now the average is around

five thousand to six thousand dollars

per month and yeah I really never

expected to make that much money so I'm

super happy with that and I hope this

shows you that anybody can actually

start making quite good money online

when you're doing remotely leaving this

digital normal lifestyle but yeah a lot

of that money is actually coming from

the remote shop I'm still doing and as I

said my goal is to do YouTube full time

but I want to be smart about it and not

quit my job immediately when I feel like

I'm making enough money on YouTube

Because as I said you never know what's

the next month's gonna be so now it's

time to save money and I already paid

off my student loans so it's going

really well and later I will make a

video explaining all my income streams

and how much money I made from them

during this whole journey what I have

learned that it's really really

important to focus on one thing because

even in Bali I was still doing like

seven different business models so yeah

now I'm focusing on YouTube while doing

my remote job to really push forward my

business to the direction I want the

most the long term so yeah subscribe if

you want to see more digital annulment

content and all my travel and lifestyle

content in Southeast Asia and see you

next week