Digital Nomad, Remote Work, Vs. Working from Home

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My Remote Work Life

7 min readMar 8, 2019

Remote Work Coffee Talk with Betsy:

This will be a monthly series where I answer frequently asked questions about remote work or working from home. Have a question that you want answered in a future edition of Coffee Talk? Fill out the form at the bottom of this post and I might answer it in a coming episode!

Hi friends! I’m so glad that you’re here for this new blog series. I know that I have 3 camps of people who read this blog. First, those of you who are interested in remote work but are still working a traditional job. Second, those of you who are just getting started with remote work. Third, those of you who have been working remotely for at least a year. This post will be most helpful for those are brand new to remote work and are wondering what the differences are between digital nomads and remote workers. Here’s our first question:

Question: Digital Nomad, Remote Work, or Work from Home. What’s the difference and how do I choose which is right for me?

Digital Nomad:

A digital nomad is typically someone who works online and just needs an internet connection to do their work. The work itself can be almost anything from a Social Media Manager, Teacher, Software Engineer, Writer, Blogger, etc.

The nomad part means that this person is also traveling. Perhaps they have a home base abroad and travel to other cities or countries on occasion. Or, some digital nomads just stay in a set location for short periods of time, maybe a week, month, etc. Either way, for a digital nomad, the flexibility to travel is often one of the primary motivators for choosing a remote work lifestyle.

I know of so many people who have been able to travel the world and have experiences that never would have been possible in a typical 9–5 life.

If the thought of exploring more of the world sounds like something you’d like, then being a digital nomad might be a good fit for you.

Also, if you want more specifics about this, there is a fantastic podcast and community called Location Indie which can give you a lot of tactical info and logistics. To start, they have a post called, How to Be a Digital Nomad.

Next, let’s move on to the broadest category, Remote Work.

Remote Work:

Remote workers come in SO many shapes and forms. And out of the three, this is definitely the one with the most variation. It can be complicated to explain because digital nomads can be considered remote workers but not all remote workers are digital nomads.

Some remote workers are employed with one company and have the same job and benefits that you would think of with any traditional company.

Remote workers can work from….

Home
Co-working spaces
Coffee shops
Anywhere with an internet connection

Some remote workers might have set hours that they are expected to be working, while others might just need to put in a set number of hours, but when they do the work is up to them.

Other remote workers are freelancers, contractors, entrepreneurs, etc. where they set their own hours, schedule and might go from project to project working with different companies, clients, etc.

With remote work, you can either take your current job and try doing it remotely. Or, you can consider what transferable skills you might have and transition to a new industry or field.

Finally, let’s talk about Working from Home.

Working from Home:

As you can see from the name, someone who is working from home is basically a remote worker that probably does most or all of their work from their home. Just like the other two, the job options here are endless. You can do almost any type of work from the comfort of your home.

If you are an introvert (like me) this can be a great option! Or, if your work requires silence and highly focused work time, working from home can be really efficient and productive!

For me, another advantage is having extra time in my day. When you work from home, you don’t have to worry about scheduling commute time into your day. You can either use this extra time to sleep, plan out the day, spend time with family, schedule a coffee date, or pursue a hobby that you’ve wanted to try but haven’t found the time for.

While working from home can seem like the dream for an outsider looking in, it’s important for me to share that it’s not always glamorous. It can also be incredible lonely if you aren’t intentional about scheduling in time for family, friends, and time outside the house. This is something that I learned the hard way through trial and error.

If you’re undecided about which option is best for you, that’s ok, that’s what we’ll talk about next and you can always try all three or a combination of the above and see what you prefer.

How to Choose…Digital Nomad, Remote Work, Working from Home?

This is a HIGHLY personal decision, and doing one, doesn’t exclude you from switching to another. For instance, 90% of the time, I work from my home office in Florida. However, because of the nature of my work, I’d also consider myself a remote worker because on occasion I will work from another state or country if I’m visiting friends or family. I find that I’m most productive in my home office, but I also love the flexibility of working from anywhere I want to, as long as I have wi-fi.

Don’t stress out about this. You can always try all 3 options and see what works best for you. What it really comes down to is the lifestyle that you want to live and your motivation for choosing remote work.

Also, it’s important to note that some jobs require workers to use an Ethernet or be working from a set location. Therefore, when you’re thinking about your options, you’ll want to keep this in mind.

Do you want to….

Live like a local in another city or country?
Skip the commute so you have more time with your kids or spouse?
Work from a different coffee shop everyday?
Work in your sweatpants?
Sleep in till 9?

If any of the above get you excited and motivated, then the remote life might be right for you!

Next Steps:

I want this to be HIGHLY practical so here’s what you can do now.

Think about why you want to work remotely? Then, write it down.
What lifestyle do you want to create for yourself?
Digital Nomad, Remote Work, Working from Home? If you’re not sure which one, start with working from home or from a coffee shop and see how it goes?
Or, if you’re considering the digital nomad life, think about doing a trial run for a couple weeks or a month and see how it goes!

Don’t stress about this! There’s no right or wrong answer, it’s about finding what is right for YOU. Also, you can always try one option and switch to something else later on, it doesn’t have to be permanent. It’s also important to realize the remote work is NOT for everyone. Yes, you heard me. In fact, sometimes people start working remotely or from home and then go back to traditional 9–5 jobs and that’s awesome.

The best thing that you can do for yourself is be honest and find a company or job that is meaningful to you. Whether that’s as a digital nomad or working in a 9–5 job, it’s up to you.

However, if you’re still reading this and want to dig deeper into this whole remote work thing, make sure to sign up here for weekly updates from me on all things relating to productivity and remote work!