Katharina von Knobloch

How Digital nomads think about their career

For my speech at the Families in Global Transition conference in Bangkok this month, I have been researching the career planning approach of Digital Nomads. I conducted a survey amongst experienced Digital Nomads and did some great interviews with some of them willing to open up about their career planning approach.

Here is how Digital nomads evaluate their career

While I will share my insights on what Expat Partners can learn from Digital Nomads soon, I want to focus on some key insights from the survey in this article.

Learn what professions Digital Nomads do pursue and what outlook they have on their future career. I have summarized the results in an infographic you will find below. Please feel free to share!

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Some key findings

Only 1/3 of Digital Nomads (DNs) are in possession of a valid work permit. However, whether DNs have a work permit or not does not affect their view on their career outlook or how confident they feel. Most DNs are working in a grey area and the constant moving lowers the risk of acting against the law.
There was a variety of professions named. Blogging and marketing consulting are amongst the more known professions while coaching has increased in popularity. Also, professions like teaching English and Freelance Writing are more common. Some DNs have started their own business along the way as well.
It was especially interesting to see that Digital Nomads do not really care what others think about their career decision despite biased media reports.
Along with the "in-the-moment" lifestyle, DNs are also not really worrying about their future career outlook. The extent of this depends a bit on the time you are already working on the road. In general, DNs are way less worried about their future career than for example Expat Partners.
Digital Nomads chose to work on the road to feel independent. Many DNs stated in interviews that they felt stuck in their former 9-to-5 world and were seeking more freedom. Well, this is what they got: Almost none of the participants rated the feeling of independence less than 80%.
One of the most interesting facts for me was the evaluation of skillset. Almost all Digital Nomads have been highly confident about their skillset and this value was not affected at all by the time working on the road, having a work permit or the profession they have.
Ask for what a Digital Nomad needs to be successful, the answers have been quite corresponding. The most common buzzwords have been: Flexibility, Adaptability, Organizational Skills, Curiosity, and Communicational Skills. Digital Nomads are wearing many hats and they have quite a broad skillset to offer. They never stop learning and developing and are taking their work seriously. For DNs, work is what allows them to live this independent lifestyle and so they are very business savvy and know the value of their work right away.

I will release more info from the survey in connection with the Expat Partner survey I conducted over the same time period soon. Stay tuned and follow my journey on social media or sign-up for the Share-the-Love Newsletter to not miss out on new posts.

If you are a Digital Nomad yourself and would like to share your story with the Expat audience don’t be shy and send me a message to info@sharethelove.blog. I am always happy to spread the word about you and your business. The goal of Share the Love is to help Expat Partners living abroad finding their professional identity. I am sure you have lots to contribute!