Citizen of the World — Matt Clement

Matt Clement is in his first month with We Roam, he kicked off his remote work adventure with the Orion group in Berlin. We caught up with Matt to hear what his experience has been like so far working remotely, traveling the world, and joining the We Roam community. Give this a read and find out what it’s like to be a citizen of the world.
How did you hear about We Roam?
“I had been living in Boston and I was considering a move to Seattle. Right around this time, I came across some ads for We Roam competitors, which led me to do some more research. In my search, I stumbled upon We Roam. I decided to apply and find out if the experience would be a fit for me.”

What do you do for work?
“I’m a web developer for The Gnar Company — a small Boston based consultancy. After some coordination with my team and the client I was working with, we decided that it’d be okay for me to give remote work a go.”
Does anyone else at your company work remotely?
“No, we’re an office of ten and I’m the only one that’s remote. We’re testing it out and so far it’s been great.”
Had you traveled much before We Roam?
“Yes, a bit. Five years ago a friend of mine had planned a trip to Spain, specifically for the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I wasn’t employed at the time, and I thought — hey you only get a chance to do these sort of things every so often, so I went for it. It was such an amazing trip with good friends and really interesting experiences. It was that trip in particular that made me realize travel was something I should be spending my money and time on. From that point on, I made decisions in my life that would allow me to travel more often.”
What made you decide to go the group route?
“I had traveled before, but never for more than a couple of weeks at a time, and certainly never while working. I realized that being a digital nomad is a skill like any other: it’s helpful to be surrounded by other people who are doing it. Also, the fact that We Roam is taking care of a lot of the basics makes it easier for me to focus on getting work done and allows me to plan cool stuff to do in every city that I’m in.”

Is the We Roam experience what you thought it would be so far?
“I keep coming back to this… it’s more hectic than I thought it would be. And not in a bad way at all. I honestly thought that coming on this trip, I would have had fewer things to do. Like I said, I lived in Boston before coming and I had a bunch of friends there, there was always something to do. I thought this would be a step back from Boston, but if anything there has been even more going on here. Everyone on this trip is enthusiastic about some aspect of travel, so it’s interesting people who are planning interesting things all the time. Why would I say no to joining in the fun?”

The Orion Roamers take lots of weekend excursions, have you joined them for any of those trips?
“I haven’t yet, partially because I’ve been to Berlin before and I was really excited to come back here. Berlin, in particular, is a city that I wanted to fully experience. I really enjoy traveling, but when I was doing just travel vacations it was always a little bit crazy. I felt the need to take in as much as I could and then move quickly from one place to another. Part of the appeal of We Roam is that I can be in one place for a longer period of time and really experience it. Going forward, I think the sweet spot for me will be taking one side trip a month. I’m looking forward to it.”
How long do you plan on staying on?
“I signed on for six months. I figured I would know if the experience was right for me after a couple of months in.”
Is there a destination you’re most looking forward to living in?
“Berlin has been the spot I’ve been looking forward to most. But then I’m also really excited for Rabat. I’ve spent quite a bit of time in Western Europe, but I’ve never been to Africa so that’s going to be great. Also to see the African/ European influences collide in Morocco is something I’m really interested in. I feel like it’s going to be a significantly different experience than most of my travel experiences so far. I also want to do some rock climbing and mountain biking, and I think Morocco is going to be a great spot for that.”

If someone were debating joining We Roam, what advice would you give them?
“I would say do it. It’s an experience you’re not going to get anywhere else. The final decision for me wasn’t if We Roam checked a certain number of boxes. It was more that, I had no reason not to do this. That thought was what really kicked me into gear. So that really goes for anyone considering if they want to join on. Give it a try, why not?”

For questions or to speak with one of our team members, shoot us an email at — info@we-roam.com

