Remote Working Can Support Your Desire to Live Freely
Guest post by Sarah Saker
The world we live in is constantly changing and one of the biggest ways that the world is changing is in the way we work. In your parents’ and grandparents’ era, the concept of work was to simply go to work, work hard, and provide for your family. Today’s concept of a work ethic is to work smart, not hard.
Your parents and grandparents probably worked a single job to provide while people today will go on multiple job interviews before making the decision on which job fits them the best. They’ll stay at that job for a couple of years and then move on to another job… your parents and grandparents would stay on jobs until they retired!
This is where job loyalty comes into play and it’s a concept that is slowly becoming prehistoric… well, there is one job arena that more and more companies are getting more accustomed to and taking job loyalty to the next level with, and that is remote work.
Concept of Remote Work in London
According to Forbes, lots of companies today are welcoming the idea of remote workers with open arms and for good reasons too. They are understanding that certain jobs don’t require a person to be in-house to get the job done. That’s not only a perk for the employer but it’s also a perk to the employee too. That employee now has the opportunity to work from anywhere in the world and still be able to make money. Forbes states that remote workers are more productive, getting more work done in shorter amounts of time and that you have a larger talent pool to choose from.
This concept of remotely working from anywhere in the world is called living a digital nomad lifestyle and London is one of the top destinations and most popular destinations in the world for this new type of worker. Some people might think that working in London is overrated but the reality is that London has a myriad of wonderful work locations for digital nomads to choose from:
- Co-Working Spaces: London is full of co-working spaces that are the perfect location for digital nomads. These spaces are furnished with office desks and chairs, wifi, various office machines, and some spaces even have meeting rooms. Entrepreneurs looking to create their next biggest start-up or innovators meeting to brainstorm ideas have the perfect spot to do it at in some of London’s biggest co-working spaces.
The fees to work there are relatively low and considerably much more affordable than renting out an office space in a building. If you do decide to make the trip to London to get your creative juices flowing as a digital nomad, here are a few of the best locations to check out:
- Central Working
- Club Workspace
- Port of Entry
- Huckletree
- Rainmaking Loft
- Meetups: Meetup is a digital nomad group in London where freelancers can get together not only for business-related work but also as a getaway from business-related work. With meetup, you will be meeting up and socializing with like-minded people in and around London, you just visit the site and click on which industry you’re in.
To live the lifestyle of a digital nomad and take full advantage of the freedom it offers you might mean that you have to brush up on some skills that might not have been required of you at your last in-house full-time position. Once you have established these necessary skills, you will definitely be able to travel the world and make money while doing it.
First Things First…
In order to live a digital nomad lifestyle and get paid for your online products, you must first have your own website. Regardless of what industry you choose, you’ll need to have a place where customers can go to, to make their purchases with you. So to get started, you will most definitely need to buy and register a domain name to get yourself branded.
This actually plays a crucial role in the success of your business so just remember when choosing the right domain name to make sure it’s a name that’s memorable, not too long of a name, and that it’s reflective of the products you’re selling. Once you have that set up, you can start honing in on the skill sets needed to survive as a digital nomad in London.
Skill 1: Self-Motivation and Discipline
When going on the journey of living a digital nomad lifestyle, you are free to do whatever you want to do… there are literally no rules. Whether you’re sitting in front of Big Ben or debating on whether or not to do a little shopping on Oxford Street, you have the freedom to work as little or as much as you want so it’s very easy to lose a sense of obligation to do things necessary to keep your business afloat.
Although life as a digital nomad gives you immense freedom, you also need to keep in mind that you only get as much as you put in. So with that being said, there’s a small voice in your head speaking of being disciplined enough to be responsible with your business. Set goals and deadlines for yourself to hold yourself accountable. This will keep you from slacking off and essentially keep you from losing money.
Skill 2: Being Flexible… Going With the Flow
As a freelancer in your industry, you definitely need structure and discipline to stay productive but you also need to be flexible enough to be able to go with the flow. Maybe you intended to work at one of those co-working spaces but they were full once you got there… well, just because it was full doesn’t mean that it should stop your workday… that just means that you need to find another location to work at. As a digital nomad, you’re already not chained to a desk, so how is working in the park going to deter you from your work?
Skill 3: Being Able to Communicate Well
Whether it’s for work or in your relationship, communication is key. If you’ve looked at various job descriptions for many jobs, you will quickly notice that one of the job requirements is “good communication skills.” So if you’re relocating to London to work as a freelancer, you can best believe that brushing up on your communications skills is a must.
Most of the times, you’re not going to meet your clients in-person and because of that, you’re going to need to effectively communicate in other ways like by way of email or text message. Being able to send a well-written email or text is something that will save you time and frustration on confusing back and forth emails.
