With in summer in full swing, now is the perfect time to think about what you want from the rest of 2017. Whether it’s learning a new skill, developing yourself personally or professionally, tapping into your creativity, hiring a coach, or taking a break to rest and recharge, making time to nurture yourself and your dreams every once in a while is vital for your health and wellbeing.
Here’s our pick of the best upcoming festivals, events and talks to help you on the path to doing what you love…
This a guest post by adventurer, author and motivational speaker Alastair Humphreys. Find out more about Alastair here.
Let’s begin with your dreams.
Allow me to guess a few easy ones for starters:
Imagine the life of your choice. Tell me, what would it be like? What would be different?
I am writing this at my kitchen counter, glass of wine in hand, dinner dishes stacked high in the sink waiting for some attention. A voice in my head keeps reminding me that my large travel bag is still lying on my bedroom floor, in the exact spot I left it there on Sunday after arriving back from 19 days’ travel in the USA. The floor by my feet is strewn with children’s toys – an open jewellery box with a sleepy ballerina, done with pirouetting for the day; a plastic teapot ready to serve a tiny tea party, a slowly wrinkling balloon. Mr K is catching up with one of his superhero programmes in the next room, and the girls are sleeping upstairs. As I cast around my home, I could not be happier to be here.
Travel is amazing. Adventure is life-enhancing. And yet today, after so many days away, there’s nowhere I’d rather be than right here, in the middle of the chaos of home. As I count down to my 40th birthday on Saturday, and look at the ‘state’ of my life, I’m feeling grateful for all of it. Even the wrinkly balloon bobbing around my feet. (You can read my personal essay on ‘Treasuring the chaos’ in the utterly beautiful Wildling Magazine here, for free)
It’s funny how sometimes the chaos can be a source of stress, and yet today it is a source of comfort. It all depends on how you look at it, and what else is layered beneath.
Whether or not you have children, I would like to encourage you to take a moment this week to find a way to treasure whatever chaos is going on in your life. Because mess births beauty. Chaos is progress.
BethXx
Today I want to talk about something that we don’t often speak of. Something that’s confusing, and difficult, and stops us pursuing our dreams. It’s the paradox of escape.
When a bird or an animal in captivity is released into the wild, somewhat surprisingly it doesn’t burst out of its cage and race headlong into its new world. It emerges timidly, hovering near the cage, clearly stunned by the reality of their new situation, and often looking back several times before tentatively moving away.
And so it is with us. We’re rarely trapped one moment and free the next. Even if we make bold moves to change our lives, opening the door of the cage that has been trapping us, after an initial high, we are struck with the heartstopping realization that the world outside the cage is freaking terrifying. It’s just so huge and vast, we have no idea where to go, and we’re not even sure if we remember how to fly.
And the cage doesn’t usually disappear as soon as we leave it. The reality is more complex than that. We hover at the door, tempted forwards by potential but held back by fear.
If that sounds familiar to you right now, you might appreciate this video I made for you:
Here’s to taking the leap anyway, knowing that when it’s hard, that’s normal…
BethXx
I can hardly believe it’s nearly time to release Freedom Seeker into the world. I cannot wait to share her with you. I have made a series of ‘Inside the book’ videos and wanted to share the first with you today:
If you think Freedom Seeker is for you, please pre-order it so you can access our free bonus alongside the book (a brand new online course called ‘How to be happy (+ calm, focused + organized) which will run for four weeks from May.
In it I’ll be sharing:
Plus you get access to a private Freedom Seeker Facebook group where I’ll be offering direct support as well as regular Facebook Live sessions.
If you think you’re likely to buy the book you might as well get this lovely bonus for free! Get yours here.
Fly free my friend, fly free…
Beth
Today we share an insightful post from digital nomad Mike McLeish. A keen cycler Mike has found his true calling in life as a bicycle blogger, Pinch-Flat
The original name for this site was “Mike The Bike” but I had to change it after people were getting the wrong impression.
So with that, Pinch-Flat was born.
and he is currently taking full advantage of the of the warm weather in SE Asia. You can find him cycling through traffic in Kuala Lumpur, attempting to drink coffee from a plastic bag, or eating Nasi Lemak at a local corner shop.
“I have enjoyed every second of my journey, but to get to where I am now has been harder than I ever imagined it would be,” he says.“If you have more motivation than ability (like me!) and are looking for inspiration on how to take action, then read on…!”
Smug laptop hammock shot taken especially for this post. If I’m honest hammocks are uncomfortable, and I’m way too pale to be out in the sun!
Why did I decide to make a change?
To quickly summarize a cliched story – I had a job with potential, but I knew I’d never be happy working for someone else’s company and living someone else’s dream all my life.
It’s not that I disliked my job. It’s just that I got to the point where I found myself dramatically asking “is this it?” on more than just a Monday, and I found myself complaining about the little things more than enjoying the good things.
I first came across the term digital nomad on a typically hungover Sunday while feeling sorry for myself.
Live anywhere while working from your laptop.
I’d be lying if I didn’t immediately have a Dan Bilzerian style daydream as I lay weakly on my sofa in rainy Southern England.
A big dream was of being a “location independent entrepreneur.” was born. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted it. So I began to plan.
With my idea set, I visualised the steps need to get there and listed them out. All I needed to do was:
The first step to reach my goal was to save some money…
How much money I needed to achieve my goal
Before I left, I was living with my mum and working as a returns administer. Not quite a rock star lifestyle but living at home meant I had very few outgoings.
I never bought anything I didn’t need, and I cycled 10 miles to and from work each day. This lifestyle was super boring, but I didn’t care, I was on a mission!
My frugal ways enabled me to save £5000 ($6200) in eight months.
With the money in the back pocket, I moved onto the next step. Telling my friends and family.
How people around me reacted to my decision
Not surprisingly my plans were met much like people’s opinion to marmite.
Reactions varied from being slapped on the back and bought a drink, to people seriously questioning my sanity.
While I think it’s important to listen to what people say, it’s also important to stay true to your original reasonings for wanting to do something like this in the first place.
Be honest with yourself and be very careful who’s advice you take. Sometimes people with the best intentions will negatively impact your decisions. Ultimately the choice is yours, and only you know what’s best for you.
The double-edged sword that is my immense stubbornness enabled me to stick to the plan. With telling friends and family out the way, the next step was the big one for me. Quitting my job.
How I felt when quitting my job
I’d recently finished a degree in public health, and the job I had was one the first that I could find. I started out stacking boxes on the factory floor and then moved into the offices. I was a returns administer but I was being considered for higher paying roles.
I felt I had an opportunity to climb the corporate ranks and quitting was like slamming this door shut for good. It was a big deal for me at the time and one that caused me question myself.
In reality, I’d only just started out, so I had nothing to lose.
After realising this, I was able to stop being a wimp and hand in my notice. I still remember the shocked look on my manager’s face and choking up when handing it over.
If I’d been further along in my career this step would have definitely been harder. I have great admiration for anyone who decides to do something like this who is further along their career path.
At the time I was on a temporary contract which meant I only had to give two weeks’ notice.
Handing in my resignation made it official that I was leaving. Up until that point, it didn’t feel like I was going anywhere, so there was no real sense of urgency to plan anything.
Getting everything ready to leave
Not planning anything meant that the two weeks after handing my notice in were rushed. It fact, they resembled someone who had overslept their alarm and was already 30 minutes late for work.
In those two weeks, I did everything from booking my flight, renewing my passport, and buying sun cream. It was all a bit of a blur, but I think that was good for me, as I didn’t have time to question my decision.
How I eased the transition
Something I did that helped to ease me in to my new life in SE Asia was volunteering for two months at a community bicycle project in Kuala Lumpur. I did this through WorkAway, which I’d used numerous times before in Europe.
Bike Shop, Kuala Lumpur
Using WorkAway felt familiar and it was a good way to let anyone who was finding it difficult to understand my plans that I was doing something useful and meaningful with my time. Spending a few months volunteering and then coming home to a proper job is a slightly easier pill to swallow for many.
As well as working in the bike shop I helped to launch it’s brand new cafe – Makan at The Basikal
Me (back) with staff at The Basikal
Whilst I was here, I learned basic web design and started to build a site for my bicycle project, Pinch Flat.
New skills I picked up and how I learned them
Once I’d successfully broken free of my old life and completed two months’ volunteering it was time to learn some more.
There are many remote working jobs out there, and I enjoy Search Engine Optimisation [SEO]. Luckily there are sites out there that give excellent advice on where to start. Some, like Niche Pursuits, have huge free case studies that you can follow. Using them, together with a few other resources gave me all the knowledge I needed to get going.
The skills I learned enabled me to get a job which involves Youtube SEO for an infographic company. Working for around one-and-half hours a day earns me enough to support my modest life.
My goal right now is to expand my cycling blog so that it can support me financially. I hope to do this through articles like this for affiliate earnings and this for Google Adsense earnings. Once I’ve done this, I’d love to move into developing products, but this is a little way off yet.
The biggest challenges that I faced while learning
After I’d finished volunteering and looking for places to stay in Kuala Lumpur, I checked into a Sleeping Pod hostel. I had a bizarre case of self-doubt and decided to spend almost 24hrs in my pod eating peanut butter from the jar….
Luckily for my sanity (and waistline) I snapped out of this mindset and was able to carry on.
I’ve found that while learning, I’ve had feelings of elation combined with feelings of utter despair – often in the same day! The biggest challenge for me is what goes on in my head!
The truth is that I’ve worked more recently than I ever have. For the first two months after leaving the voluntary project, I worked at a co-working space from 9am-10pm seven days a week. I lived in a $3 a night, 10-bed dorm room with a fan to keep cool. I only really spoke to other guests when they asked me to turn off the light, and I was woken most nights by either mosquitos or bed bug bites on my hands.
It would have been much easier to check into a nice hotel, but I was conscious that I was living on my savings, and they wouldn’t last forever. I was tired, dirty, and loving every second! I knew it wouldn’t be for long and living in a hostel motivated me to work hard so I could get out of there!
What a typical day in my life looks like
Five months down the line things are easier; I’ve left hostel life behind and I now rent my own room.
If I wanted to, I could live on the money I earn from freelancing and work around one-and-a-half hours per day, but I want more than this, so I put lots of time into my own projects.
I’m currently living on an island called Langkawi in Malaysia. I’ll be finished with this post at around 2pm, and I think that’ll be enough for today.
I’m going to walk 10 minutes to the beach and spend the rest of the day playing football with some other remote workers I’ve met.
My life is unrecognisable to what it was just half a year a go. This is the first time I’ve really reflected on what I’ve done and I’m so happy I made this change.
Ultimately, my dream is to grow Pinch Flat so I can continue to offer my readers the best news, tips, and travel recommendations for bicycle-related business.
Advice to others
Sensible advice to others considering this way of life is to: learn a skill that you could do remotely while you’re at home; get some online clients; and save enough money to live comfortably while you make the transition into the life of work and travel.
Of course I did absolutely none of that rubbish and went in all guns blazing like a scene from Die Hard.
Doing it the way I did meant I was fully committed and my motivation was sky high. The only other piece of advice I’d give is to make sure you find a place where you can work effectively, be persistent, and believe in yourself.
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For more information about Mike visit his website.
This a guest post by adventurer, author and motivational speaker Alastair Humphreys. Find out more about Alastair here.
“This is your life. Do what you love, and do it often. If you don’t like something, change it. If you don’t like your job, quit. If you don’t have enough time, stop watching TV.” – Holstee
Rain rattled the windows. An elderly man on a mobility scooter urged his machine a little faster across the wet grey car park. I sighed.
I had driven all the way to west Wales for a microadventure with some of the guys from howies. They had never slept a night in a bivvy bag and looked a little reluctant to start now. I had slept many nights in a bivvy bag and was very reluctant to add to my tally in this weather.
But we persisted. And that is the key to doing almost anything interesting in life. You’ve just got to do it. Team howies turned off their computers and shut down the office. We began.
Leaving the office for an overnight adventure
Ade, Alex, Ruben and I pedalled through the damp, grey town, through a heavy rain shower or two. And then we were out into the fresh air and brighter skies of the countryside. Wet hedgerows sparkled in the sunshine as we stretched our legs and cheered at the feeling of racing down a quiet road towards the coast.
Taking a break to watch the sun set
The roads became smaller and narrower and quieter. We turned up a bridleway laden with blackberries. Up and over a hill then racing like mad little things through exciting singletrack and down to the coast. We were just in time. The sky was heavy grey. The sea had a strange deep purple sheen. But between the sea and the sky blazed a brilliant golden sunset. We were so happy to be out here.
Seals bobbed quietly below us. Alex observed that we had been riding for only as long as his normal car-bound boring drive home. He had swapped his daily commute for a bike ride, a fabulous sunset and the open sea. And -for one night only- this was home. We unrolled bivvy bags in a grassy clifftop hollow. Hidden from the wind, open to the sea and the stars. We ate and drank and chatted and then we lay down to sleep.
I lay awake for a good while, enchanted by the clouds rolling above us. A lighthouse beat its regular rhythm through the night. Each time I woke in the night I noticed the stars moving above us. The Big Dipper was so bright and distinct it looked as though it had been painted bright onto the sky above.
The Big Dipper
To my relief it did not rain and we woke refreshed and happy. Espresso, a clifftop view, and a stonking singletrack downhill makes for a happy start to a day.
Waking up in the fresh air
Follow that with a swim in the sea and a bacon sandwich and you really do have all the necessary ingredients for a short, sharp microadventure.
All this, all this in just those hours we waste so often, the hours between finishing a hard day’s work at the office and beginning the next one.
Try it.
Try it.
Try it.
You won’t regret it. (Unless it rains!)
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Are you ready for a new challenge or adventure? Have you been doing the same thing for so long that you’ve forgotten who you are? Are you questioning what you really want from life? Then now’s the perfect time for a change.
Whatever your year was like in 2016, this is a chance to start again, right where you are, and choose how you want your year to feel in 2017.
‘New Year’s Revolution‘ is a free tool for meaningful planning to help you make this coming year amazing. Our FREE 24-page e-book will help you extract the good from 2016, look ahead and shape your 2017 into the year you want it to be. It includes a powerful technique to help you make dreams into reality, and make your ideas happen.
Print it out, grab a pen, make a cuppa, go somewhere you won’t be disturbed, and get ready to embark on a fantastic voyage of self-discovery.
Today we want to share something very special with you – the Prologue to Do What You Love founder Beth Kempton’s book ‘Freedom Seeker: Live more. Worry less. Do what you love.’
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You can order Freedom Seeker here!
Fly free my friend, fly free.
What’s your soul calling for? This lovely article from New York magazine Chronogram is a great way to begin discovering. It includes words of wisdom from our very own founder, Beth Kempton, and offers a great insight into the Do What You Love e-course which starts on January 16 (there’s still time to join us if you want to really shake things up and start doing what you love in 2017 !)…
Image by Annie Internicola
In January 2014, Natalie Martin decided to quit her comfortable corporate job in London and go backpacking in India. It was a trip that changed her outlook on life for good and gave her the confidence to kick off her writing career by self-publishing. Since then, her debut novel, Together Apart, has become a No.1 bestseller on the Amazon charts and Love You Better, her second full-length novel, became a bestseller on release last October.
Despite having a base in both London, UK, and Germany, Natalie is always on the move. As a digital nomad she has lived and worked in Japan, India, Thailand, Cambodia, and a host of European countries, and this is just for starters. According to her, the adventure is just beginning. Here Natalie shares her inspiring story and explains why remote working is the way forward…
Credit Janograf Photography
It’s almost four years now since I left my comfortable life and well paid job in London to make the world my office. I’ve wandered around Cambodia’s magical Angkor Wat temple, glammed it up in Monaco and listened to the Dalai Lama at his temple in Dharamshala, northern India. I’ve had the time of my life but I am not special. There was nothing to set me apart from anyone else in my pursuit for happiness. I was not, am not (and probably never will be) rich. When I left my job, I had just under £3,000 in my bank account. I had no job to come back to or degree to fall back on. All I had was the feeling that I didn’t want to work in a rigid structure and a choice, although it didn’t feel like that at the time.
Bags packed and ready to go… laptop included!
Before I’d even thought about leaving my job, I came out of a long relationship and decided to take up French. I’d always loved the language, especially French film. Meanwhile, my career was approaching a crossroads: either I studied for a promotion or looked elsewhere. With no idea what to do, I stumbled upon Workaway, a site connecting volunteers with hosts to exchange skills in place for accommodation worldwide. I felt inspired enough to apply and instead of taking the usual two week summer holiday, bunched up my annual leave and headed to southern France.
I’d barely managed a Wagamama lunch alone before this but there I was, meeting new people and basking in sunshine all day long. I’d never felt happier or healthier. One day, I heard some musicians playing in the market. We got chatting afterwards and I was in awe of their lives. They busked around France during the summer, making enough money to spend the winter in Goa, playing in bars and restaurants. They invited me to join them but of course I said no. My life could never be like theirs, whether I wanted it to be or not.
In Monaco – the trip that changed everything
Soon enough, I returned to England but something had changed and on my second day back at work, I cried. I couldn’t justify having a job that didn’t fulfil me anymore, or a lifestyle that was slowly wearing me down. I wanted to be my own boss or at least be able to work more flexibly. I desperately wanted to try something else, so I decided to apply for a sabbatical to join my musician friends in Goa. To my disappointment, my request was denied and I was faced with a choice: stay and be unhappy, or not. I handed in my resignation that day.
I know this all makes me sound a little flighty and fearless, but like I said before, I’m not. I’m just a regular girl who craves routine and stability, cleanliness and order. Quitting my £38k job to go to India was never part of my plan. In fact, I’d never even really made a plan for anything before.
Looking back, I know that things started to change when I decided to make things happen. I chose to learn French and go to France. I chose to leave my job to take a trip of a lifetime. Ultimately, I guess I chose to open my eyes to what could be. I met countless people who worked while travelling, staying connected with smartphones and laptops. They inspired me to self-publish the novel I’d been secretly working on and most of all, to trust that it didn’t matter if things went wrong.
The novels I was inspired to write along the way. My books feature real-life-like characters – people who could well be your sister, uncle or best friend – and issues that are far from the stereotypical ‘fluffy’ romance storylines. They’re what I like to call contemporary fiction with love.
Worst case scenario, I’d go back home, use my skills and get a job. I wouldn’t end up destitute and homeless. In fact, I added to my skills, certifying as a Yoga Teacher and Thai Yoga Massage practitioner.
Six months later, I returned to England and, ironically, to my old job, covering maternity leave. I sat at the same desk, went to the same meetings and earned even more than I had before. But after a few months, I felt exactly how I had before leaving for France. With everything I’d seen and done, I knew the office life wasn’t for me, so I returned to India where I met my wonderful German boyfriend. I’m now happily settled (for now at least) in Bavaria, and I’ve never looked back.
Having the freedom to choose my own way of working has completely changed my life. I work when I have the most energy and relax when I don’t. Being free to take the afternoon off to rejuvenate instead of being forced to work means my concentration is much better than before. I sleep longer and wake up at a time that suits me before having a long yoga practice and relaxed breakfast. And instead of eating expensive lunches, I have time to make something during the day (or, being honest, eat what my boyfriend makes). Having three good, healthy meals a day means that I feel stronger, with less sick time and more output than before.
During my travels I discovered a passion for teaching. Here I am leading my first Yoga class
But it hasn’t been all easy. It was difficult at first to find my own rhythm and be disciplined when it came to carving out ‘work time.’ Some people assumed that because I was at home, I was available for unannounced coffees and chats. And of course, I’ve questioned my choices – emigrating for love, learning yet another language and becoming a full time writer – in case it all went wrong. It took a long time to learn to trust myself and my inner voice. I’ve also had to change my attitude towards things, especially money. My earnings as a writer are extremely variable and I’ve had to rein myself in on spending. I can’t just go and buy gorgeous shoes whenever I want, but it’s a tiny sacrifice to make for living the life I’ve always wanted. Plus, when I do treat myself, it feels that bit sweeter. It hasn’t been perfect, but I’ve learned that even during the tough times, I always have a choice. So often, it can feel like life is out of our control, that it happens to us and not for us, but that’s not true. And I know that because it was the choices I made years ago that have brought me here, and nobody else.
Me being interviewed by the BBC Interview in London
The beauty of life is that there are endlessly different ways of living it. Taking your work outside of the normal structure doesn’t mean having to completely up sticks and leave. It’s simply a case of listening to yourself. Ask yourself: How do I want to feel in my every day life? What do I really want? Where am I feeling most unsatisfied? When we start being active with ourselves instead of passive, that’s when change happens. It can be choosing to walk to the station instead of driving, or reading a book instead of watching TV. They’re small changes, but that book could spark your dream of being a writer. That walk might start a fitness journey leading to you running a marathon.
We humans can move mountains when we need to get things moving, or even become the mountain when we need to be strong. [Tweet “We might not know the outcome, but we always have a choice.”]
Worktime! Today’s choice of office: a Cornish beach
How to make the world your office
Remote working doesn’t necessarily mean making a drastic lifestyle change like I did. It could be a simple case of asking your boss for more flexible hours, or the opportunity to work from home one or two days a week, something that can be hugely beneficial to both employees and employers. In fact research by Stanford University has found that remote workers are 13% more productive, take fewer sick days and enjoy a quieter working environment than their commuting colleagues.
However, if like me, you crave the freedom, flexibility and opportunities that life as a digital nomad brings, here are my top tips for making a bigger change…
My favourite quote is: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”, so ultimately my advice to anyone who dreams of making the world their office, is make plans, get out there and go for it!
For more information about Natalie visit https://nataliekmartin.com or connect via email at [email protected], on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/nataliemartinauthor or on Twitter: @natkmartin
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Are you ready to make a big change in 2017? Are you curious to find out if digital nomadism is for you? Download Do What You Love’s free resource and unleash the remote worker in you!
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