The idea behind this post has spent more time in my head than it’s taken me to write it down physically.
I’ve had to conquer countless little fears, anxiety-driven moments, and overthinking the naming, branding, and other things that most people outside the marketing world can’t fathom.
These are exactly some of the issues I plan to help my audience deal with here.
A little about me:
I’ve been into digital nomadism and had the idea seeded to me in my teens, and now, 12 years later, I’m working on it.
All these years, I’ve adopted photography, exploration and a general curiosity of things to be my core personality pillars.
These 12 years have had more failures, lessons and life changing moments that made me come full circle on this abandoned project.
This tree of thought started as a seed, got cut, its branches grafted and replaced, pruned, and weathered storms I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemies (if there are any?)
I’ve had to learn a lot, unlearn a lot, but in the end it’s about coming back to the root of my value system and grow from there.
I haven’t traveled across 90+ countries, I’m not so successful at the point of writing this – that I travel in extreme luxury places around the world, or even my country.
But I’ve got one thing going for me – my script has kept me sane and keep the attitude of exploration alive all these years.
Not big for others, but I know my journey so far, and that is all that matters.
Why the Nomad Script is my way out, and your branch to hold on to:
There is a lot of uncertainty with work and life as two interwined concepts that never really goes away.
Money is the main driving force behind the life of the average person, and deservedly so – because it “buys” you time, “stuff”, the best life has to offer and in extremes, the worst life has to offer as well.
When all you live for is money, your main driving force is the carrot at the end of the task.
Your sole reason for existence is the destination and not the journey.
It doesn’t matter who you hurt, trample over, ignore – and often that even ends up including yourself – your own psyche/soul in the way.
The Rat Race isn’t dead just because more people are realizing a 9 to 5 isn’t enough anymore to pay their bills.
You need to work more. More work = more money. But how often is that really the case?
Be an entrepreneur → learn to sell, and you’re set for life – that’s been the rhetoric ever since freelancing became mainstream.
So naturally, every person has to learn how to sell with persuasive writing and digital marketing, among other things.
What most people and creators don’t realize is that there is another way. I like to call that way The Nomad Script.
This is the way of balance, decentralization where it’s needed, and a constant attitude of exploration, learning, unlearning, and, most importantly, listening to oneself.
The Rat Race didn’t die, and it transferred into your mind:
In my opinion, the Rat Race attitude didn’t die; it just transferred over.
Since there is no gatekeeping to the lifestyle and information of being an entrepreneur, it spilled over big time.
The noises from people who don’t leave the attitude behind become so loud that it feels like theirs are the only voices out there.
Their definition of success is the only way out.
You can see it especially rampant and having a great impact in today’s teenagers and newcomers to the industry.
If I was a teenager today with social media and everything else that most people get their information, I would be a clinically depressed teenager.
The constant parkour between what the definition of success shoul look like, every faceless account giving you “tips and tricks” to “make it”, “that’s how you win”, and other blanket statements that solve nothing.
Information for the sake of account growth, not self-growth.
Social media can be the best tool possible for marketing, because of how minds react to persuasion, and the worst tool for someone going through a mental health crisis.
When someone is going through a crisis, they tend to close themselves down, hear what they want to hear, close down all other thoughts.
That’s why when you’re going through something, the first apps you delete are social media apps.
The Nomad Script of Success
Remember when content used to mean satisfaction and happiness with self?
Now it’s everything else but that ancient notion of self.
There are two kinds of stress: eustress and distress.
You can’t villainize stress – since without it, you wouldn’t be alive or human in the first place.
Money is a byproduct of helping someone achieve a job they need to do. It doesn’t need to be anymore complicated.
For years, I tried to figure out how to be a value creator, and travel constantly.
Social media gives you an extremist view of success, and it’s designed to be so.
You can’t segment your traffic or talk to everyone all at once. Accounts with the highest engagement give that fleeting extremist definition that success can look like:
- A better body
- A happier you
- A bigger bank account
I like to view success as a byproduct of helping others achieve a particular goal in their vision.
That vision doesn’t need to come from an external source, but rather can be found under wraps of your personality.
How do you know you’re thinking right?
Energy and clarity through your own lens
Too much hustle, and you’re grinding and doing things that go against everything you stand for.
→ You’re more anxious, more prone to things that put you at health risks, and hate your days in general.
News flash: Humans aren’t designed to run on cortisol.
→ Too much kindness and procrastination becomes your fuel.
Each day bleeds into the next where you wake up without any meaning or purpose to the new day.
You’re living in guilt each and every second, and “enjoying” the lazy comforts.
The Nomad Script vs The Modern Way:
Throughout my career so far, I’ve taken part in traditional full time IT roles.
I’ve indulged in being a freelancer and a generalist.
The worldview of someone stuck in a cubicle is very narrow, and that of someone exposed to the world of entrepreneurship is too wide.
I’ve been into photography for 15+ years now and have always had a love for telephoto zoom lenses, which I didn’t realize until now.
A telephoto zoom lens allowed me to see, explore, and get a hold of things way out of my reach.
Freelancing and being a creative entrepreneur is the zoom lens of my personality.
I’ve been obsessed with movies like “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” and “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” (translation: “You won’t get this life again”).
I wish my life was as romantic as the movie industry made it out to be. But it’s not.
Everyone has a different value system that relies on their:
→ Culture of upbringing
→ Immediate environment
→ Parental support and attitude
→ Self-beliefs and life experiences
→ Financial beliefs and their worldview
But as a human adult, people only focus on expanding the very last point above.
Once you grow up, sustenance and the monthly cycle start that keeps your head down without questioning how to get by the month.
I would be lying if I said I hadn’t done the same.
But I’ve always had one thing going on for me – parental support and the belief that I can do better.
One of the hardest quotes that made me a bit too emotional this year was while watching a movie:
“Has a paycheck ever made you cry?”
I’m guessing your first paycheck might have – because it was a life experience.
After that, a paycheck might be a point of extreme desperation or the carrot at the end of the month for grinding away at your job.