Location independent working refers to working without the need of coming to an office to do your job. Location independent working is currently booming as the internet and new technologies have enabled certain work to be done without the need of ‘face time’ with your boss or customers. It is a concept that was largely made popular through Tim Ferriss’ book The Four Hour Work Week. [If you haven’t read this book yet buy it now! It’s a great book on entrepreneurship in the modern age.]
Examples of location independent work would be content writing, computer programming, app development, internet marketing, teaching or tutoring online, travel writing, translation work, graphic design, photography and the list goes on. Basically anything where you can use Email, Skype, Slack, Google Drive, Dropbox and similar apps to communicate with your manager or customers are jobs that can be done location independent.
But it is not only new technologies that are driving growth in location independent working. It is also the fact that millennials are finding it increasingly difficult to find fulfilling work in the corporate world. Graduating from university and then climbing up the corporate ladder for 25 years, with only a few weeks holiday each year, just doesn’t sound appealing anymore. Hence, more and more people are opting to go at it alone and work as freelancers or start their own businesses while traveling the world or living in places such as South East Asia or South America where life is cheap and every day is summer.
If you are considering taking time off from your 9 to 5 to work remotely, or if you are going all in and leaving your corporate job for good to travel the world and start your own business, I suggest checking out NomadList.com for a comprehensive guide on the cost of living of popular cities for location independent entrepreneurs and freelancers, such as Chiang Mai, Ho Chi Minh City, Ubud or Medillin.
