After five and a half years of freelancing on Upwork as a digital nomad, I’ve experienced highs and lows, and seen the platform evolve. Whether you’re just starting your remote work journey or you’re an experienced freelancer looking to expand your client base, I’m here to help you decide if Upwork is the right fit. …
Digital nomad tips: How to survive slow periods as a freelancer
One of the biggest perks of the digital nomad lifestyle is the freedom to choose where you live, and how and when you work. But if you’re working as a freelancer that flexibility comes with unpredictability — especially when it comes to income. Even the most seasoned freelancers experience dry spells. Budgets tighten at the …
Month 66: What’s around the corner?
Do you ever get the feeling that everything in your life is about to change, you’re just not sure how yet? Halfway through my sixth (!) year as a freelancing digital semi-nomad, a lull in the work that has given me the freedom to live where, how and when I want has me questioning whether …
Digital nomad tips: Prepare for anything with these tech backups
I recently had a situation. I was working on writing an article for a client on my laptop, running from the battery. After the battery had run down, I plugged it in to take it out of sleep mode, and it wouldn’t. Instead, it claimed it had no boot drive. The horror. Thankfully, I’m in …
Month 37: Three years into the digital nomad life
Time flies when you’re having fun, the saying goes. I can certainly vouch for that, considering that January marked the start of my fourth year as a digital nomad. When I flew from London to Barbados on 1 January 2020, I had a vague plan to travel for at least a year. That plan would …
Month 15: Year one in the rearview
It’s no coincidence that my last post here was in August. My freelance writing workload ramped up, which was exciting and satisfying, and blogging fell down my to-do list until it completely slipped my mind. Life happens that way. In August and September I got into a pleasant routine where I would have a leisurely …
Month seven: Island exploration
The extended time I’ve spent in Barbados is now longer that the original three-month stint I had planned. It’s a striking thought, especially because the days are sliding by at a seemingly accelerated pace. It’s certainly not what I expected when I left London in January with plans to be in my fifth country of …
Lust list: eyeshadow palettes
Coronavirus lockdown and its socially-distanced aftermath has been the longest period I’ve gone without a daily full face of makeup for a long time. I love to wear bold eyeshadow and I’ve got a weakness for brightly-coloured eyeshadow palettes. One of my go-to everyday palettes is literally Editorial Brights by Viseart. Living in Barbados it’s …
Barbados launches visa for digital nomads
The government of Barbados has come up with a unique response to the way coronavirus has upended the lives of so many people. With companies in various countries keeping their employees working remotely for the foreseeable future, so many people forced into self employment by redundancy, and the growing population of digital nomads who had …
Months five & six: Time flies when you’re having fun (even under lockdown)
It was bound to happen, that I would slack so soon on my monthly updates! In my (somewhat lame) defence, I got new freelance work that kept me busy, to the point I was pulling multiple all-nighters in June. And excuse me for the cliché, but where is the time going? I’m now in my …