One year ago, I wrote an article about what digital nomadism has to teach us and today I walk the talk by taking the advantages of it which I shared back then, at the same place that got me inspired: Madeira Island, in Portugal.
With the last variant of covid-19, home office has been even more encouraged in the companies, so after an agreement with my team leader, I was allowed to work remotely from here for the first month of 2022. Therefore, the new year couldn’t start better for me! 😊
I rented an equipped appartment near to the center of Funchal, the capital of the island, with a balcony and a sea view. Since then I take the most of the nice weather and temperatures that reaches 25°C even in the peak of the european winter.
I am now, for instance, writing this text from my balcony while I get my daily dose of vitamin D and observe the reflex of the sunlight on the waves between one paragrapgh and another. Furthermore, after the end of every shift of work, I go for long walks on the promenade and sunset contemplations.
“People who choose to embrace a location-independent, technology-enabled lifestyle that allows them to travel and work remotely, anywhere in the Internet-connected world.” (Definition of Digital Nomadism by BBC.com)
When exploring the world while working, I am also interested in developing my social skills because for me, doesn’t matter where, it’s the people that really matter, always. Thus, I also connected again to the local community of digital nomads that I was in touch last year, and I’m joining some outdoor activities, like group workouts by the sea.
According to a BBC paper released last year, in mid-2020 the digital-nomad population in the US exploded by 50% from 2019, up to 10.9 million from 7.3 million. And, as more workers turn nomadic, the lifestyle has mainstreamed: telling your family or company you want to move around while you work might have drawn sceptical looks in the past, but the idea doesn’t seem so far-fetched now – especially as some companies are increasingly allowing their staff to work remotely indefinitely.
In one of the social interactions here, I met a German girl, who had spent 5 months in Vietnam while remotely having had worked from there, then spent a couple of weeks in the Canary Islands, and is now working from here for the next 2 weeks. After that, she will be preparing her next telework adventure: Cape Town. As she wants to spend 3 months in South Africa, only carrying a hand lugagge and her office with her (a laptop and a corporate phone), certain organization and planing are needed for making sure that in times of Corona nothing is hindering her to work overseas while she is experiencing completely differents country and culture.
“People don’t live where their work is, but work where they live.” Robert Litchfield, associate professor of economics and business at Washington & Jefferson College, US, is the co-author of a book about digital nomads
Another aspect that I found interesting is that the locals here in Funchal are getting even more used to the presence of the increasing number of digital nomads in the island! I went to a public hospital for getting the booster vaccine against covid-19, and easily I got registered in the city not as a tourist, rather as a type of a foreigner professional under the title of “digital nomad”. I got really impressed how the term is popularized even amongst people with job considered traditional regardless the culture, such as health care professionals.
Photo: View from my remote and temporary office. Madeira Island, Portugal. Jan 17, 2022.
The digital nomadism for me represents freedom and flexibility of working from anywhere, while taking the most from the free time also during working days, and not waiting for only when the weekend or retirement come for then enjoying life!
For sure, we all have different life commitments, therefore the work-life style has different meanings to people, and is a very personal thing. Therefore, only you can decide the lifestyle that suits you best, under the work conditions you have.
Stay tuned for other related articles and more on: www.cristianocoelho.com 😉
About me: I’m a High-Performance Coach who uses a Neuroscience-based method to support you in Achieve More with Mental Well-Being.
