The Hidden Challenges Of Becoming A Digital Nomad Entrepreneur
The press and social media often idealize entrepreneurship, but it's not as easy as it looks.
Personally, I embarked on this journey to gain more control over my time and life, as well as to achieve financial freedom. While I don't yet know what the destination looks like, the journey has been filled with bumps along the way. On paper, it might seem like I spend my time working just a few hours here and there between visiting places and enjoying the beach (this is what many digital nomads share on their Instagram). However, as I write this, I'm in a café where I spend a considerable amount of time each week. There are days when I'm glued to my laptop indoors, whether in a room or a café, without exploring any new destinations. It's not the glamorous side of the journey, but it's the reality.
Being an entrepreneur, especially when your business is small, does grant you more control over your time and schedule. However, as you've probably heard, because you can work whenever you want, you often end up working most of the time. Evenings and weekends become ordinary hours for getting things done. Personally, I enjoy this flexibility. I feel that when you have a job with fixed hours, you're stuck indoors during the day when the weather is lovely, and you can only enjoy your free time when it's dark or on weekends when everyone else is out. I like being able to visit places or be out during the week when it's quieter, and I make up for it by working during evenings and weekends. This arrangement works for me, especially since my business partner is on the other side of the world, and my family and friends are far away, so I don't have to align with the typical weekend schedule.
What I find most challenging personally is the financial aspect. While I aspire to achieve some form of financial freedom, not knowing when the next paycheck will arrive can be stressful at times. The nature of my current business, Warrior Flow School, means that we receive substantial amounts of money around three times a year when we start a training program, but in between, it's relatively quiet. This necessitates careful cash flow management, and the uncertainty of whether the next training will perform well or not can add to the stress. It often seems that people love to make purchases at the last minute, which doesn't help with the anxiety!
For 11 years, I knew when and how much my next paycheck would be, and I never had to worry. Regardless of what I was doing, the money consistently came in. However, that's no longer the case, and I'm learning to embrace the uncertainty that comes with this lifestyle. It's a tradeoff, I suppose, and I hope to reach a point where our business has grown enough to provide a stable, regular income from various sources, so this is no longer a worry. We’re working hard toward that goal!