Photo: Contiki
Back in 2023, I was right in the depths of my quarter life crisis. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t unhappy – in fact, I was satisfied with my career, living arrangement and social circle in New Zealand. However, I couldn’t get past this overwhelming desire to travel, and felt that I hadn’t fulfilled that part of me enough.
With this desire in mind, I had already begun dreaming of international destinations. I started exploring how to balance work and travel, and whether a digital nomad or working holiday situation would be better suited for me. To this present day, I am still able to enjoy what work and travel equally have to offer.
If you’ve considered taking your work abroad (the majority of us have), or just taking a well-deserved break from the work you’ve already accomplished, then take a mindset of thinking outside the conventional workplace so you too can spend more time overseas.
What is a digital nomad?
In our current day and age we often hear the term digital nomad thrown around, and equally it appears a large population of people are trying to chase this remote working lifestyle nowadays. Why shouldn’t they? It redefines the standard workplace, moving beyond a designated office, and allows one the option to work from hotels, coffee shops and even in the greater outdoors (think Thailand beaches, the Japan ski fields, or a Parisian bakery). Many digital nomads chase this lifestyle, adopting it in countries that typically have more affordable living costs, and in those that have the option of a digital nomad visa.
By using technology to both dream up a location, and then finding work nearby, I had found my definition of digital nomadism. Equally, having my home country of New Zealand to return to, and the option to work and explore different remote and regional Australian locations allowed me explore the working holiday visa scenario option also. As such, it’s never been as easy to explore taking your job abroad.
Image source:Contiki
How do I maximise my travel time and/or take my work abroad?
Listed below are the 6 crucial and equally exciting steps of how to balance work and travel that I discovered, and now I pass on to help assist with your transition into this satisfying lifestyle!
Step 1: Have a dream
The easiest step to achieve – box ticked! If you have a dream to travel, take your work overseas or use your hard-earned leave hours and PTO to avoid burnout, then you are already a majority of the way to achieving this! Walt Disney quoted “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them”. Keep channelling that vision for the below steps.
Step 2: Dream up a list of amazing locations
Assumingly, when you dreamed or envisioned yourself working and/or holidaying overseas, you would’ve had certain countries and locations in mind. Make note of your ideal working setting or holiday location and how your work life may look. Get creative and collate a Pinterest vision board for example, or make a list of all the countries that would incorporate this ideal working life.
Image source:Contiki
Step 3: Investigate the legalities – i.e. Visas and immigration
Okay, so this step is probably the least exciting step, but it is important to know the legalities and conditions to working and holidaying in those locations and settings you have put together. The immigration website of each respective country is the most up-to-date and reputable source to make sure you’re getting the most out of each available visa. Get inspired also by those that have already done the hard work for you and listed the countries that you can obtain a working holiday visa or digital nomad visa for example. Dependent on your job and profession, certain countries also short-list particular skilled workers and fast-track their respective visa applications.
Step 4: Pitch to an employer
Put all those hours watching Mad Men, Suits or any other renowned office shows to good use, and channel your inner Don Draper or Michael Ross to pitch to your employer (or even yourself if you’re considering self-employed work) why you should take the chance either on an extended holiday, or be given the opportunity to take your work remote and internationally. Think of the life experiences you’ll gain, weaving inspiration and reality into new, interesting content, adventures and productivity overall.
Step 5: Gather your courage and go for it!
Summon that courage further and maintain motivation. Take a deep breath and just do it! It’s important to understand that no great story comes without the ability to take a chance and be open to experiences. Refer back to Walt Disney above.
Image source:Contiki
Step 6: Maintain your dream lifestyle and wellbeing
Using your annual leave and PTO helps reduce stress levels that can increase days otherwise taken off sick. Going abroad on holiday, and/or achieving a nomadic/working holiday lifestyle is equally rewarding and liberating – yet, with freedom comes different responsibilities. Examples include being super organised when it comes to travel, (and in the instance of working internationally, in constant contact clients or employers to secure work that’s not always straight-sailing) and being comfortable with being away from family and friends long-term. The extra time we secure to travel and spend away from home can bring up some uncomfortable and equally enlightening feelings/realisations. Maintaining your mental wellbeing and health is just as important abroad as it is at home.
Hack your annual leave/PTO
Use those annual leave and PTO hours and satisfy that itch to travel! If you’ve read this far and are just wanting a holiday, as opposed to uprooting life to work abroad completely, then hacking your hard earned leave hours, or PTO, may give you maximum time to take those bank/federal holidays internationally!
We’ve taken the hard work out of everything – all you need to know is how many annual leave/PTO days you have available to use – easy! We’ve done the pesky math, and you can even add your ideal holiday dates straight into your calendar so you know exactly when to book. You’re welcome!
Annual leave hacker: here
PTO hacker: here
If you think outside the box, you can pretty much take your work anywhere. For example, as I write this piece I am situated in the tropical Australian Outback, lapping up all the heat and sunshine imaginable. The only thing stopping you is not attempting to try! By taking your everyday job, and learning how to balance work and travel, you too can make travelling the priority!
