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Four ways to be an efficient Digital Nomad

Not my actual desk. Not my hands either.

Definition. Digital nomads use wireless internet, smartphones, Voice over IP, and cloud-based applications to work remotely wherever they live or travel. Digital nomads also often use coworking spaces, cafes, house sitting agreements, and shared offices in major cities around the world.

In today’s day and age, the Digital is everywhere. And, if you are fortunate enough to be employed within this industry, you’ll quickly learn that remote working is an essential part of the Job. With the immediacy of information provided by the Internet, it’s important that the content you put out is first one out there. That said, this is hard to do when most of your job is spent away from the Desk. The added pressure often results in your work being completed inefficiently, poorly researched and riddled with grammatical errors.

In today’s article, I’ll talk you through a few things I picked up in my time working in the Digital Industry (4 years and 1 month, If you’re wondering!) that will set you on your way to being an efficient and hopefully stress-free Digital Nomad.

  • Apps – They’re your best friends!

When travelling or on the road, portability and mobility is a must. So if possible try to find the App versions of all your SEO optimization, Post scheduling and Communication apps i.e., any software you may find yourself using while at the office. While, they may not pack the same punch or functionality as their full size desktop counterparts, they will save you a lot of headache.

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Especially if they sync your files and messages with their desktop versions! 

In case you are wondering, my own App arsenal features :

  • Mobile versions of Google Docs and Microsoft Office for productivity.
  • Slack and GMail app for in-office communications.
  • Tweetdeck and Facebook Pages Manager for Social Media.

This way, no matter where I am, as long as the place has internet – I am never off-duty or out of the loop for too long!

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Even if I’m on a remote volcanic island in the middle of nowhere.
  • Get Online!

Speaking of the internet, make sure you always have a way of staying connected to the internet. Be it through the use of a portable Mi-Fi (with a subscription) or by downloading a free Wi-Fi locator App. I personally like to make use of my phone provider’s Data plan to get online, as it allows for me to use it as a Hotspot no matter where I am in the world.

Instructions on how you can do this can be found in the video below. [Be Warned – Always Check with your Provider first to see if you have a suitable Data plan. Otherwise you run the risk of an expensive phone bill!]

However, if you’re after something a little more professional and heavy duty when the Free Wi-Fi apps and phone hotspots just wont do, I recommend investing a portable Mi-Fi. Tips for how to find the one that works best for you can be found here.

  • Ditch the External Hard drive for Cloud Storage

As established earlier, mobility is priority for any Digital Nomad. This increasingly seems to be the case with most of our work being typed, designed or coded in the Digital Space miles away from our Office Desk. However much like a physical folders and paperwork requires real-estate (or a large messenger bag in this case), our digital files also require a little extra storage from time to time. Now, normally this means plugging in the odd Hard Disk drive here or there at your office workspace.

Photo Credit: Ian Lamont on Flickr (Used Under Creative Commons)

However, when you’re a Digital Nomad this means having to carry extra weight around everywhere you go! The solution? Cloud storage. Aside from providing you with limitless amounts of storage that’s accessible anywhere on the planet, it also provides you with an incredibly useful backup strategy with technical support provided by the likes of Cloud storage hosts like Google, Microsoft or Dropbox.

  • Schedule & Plan everything!

Planning is Priority

No matter what content it is you plan to post, boost or highlight on your website, you will have days where you are stuck in an Internet “Dead-zone”. Either due to poor connectivity or because your schedule stopped you from getting online. Eventually this translates to a missed day of work or a missed viral oppurtunity that you were unable to exploit due to being offline!

Now fret not, because if there is anything worthy of sharing I have learned in my time working remotely, it’s this- The best way to tackle this is to utilize scheduling and auto-posting apps or programs. Not only does this take the headache out of missing posts, but if managed well it could allow you to schedule an entire week/month’s worth of posts ahead of time. That way you can leave work where it truly belongs, at home!

Below I’ll be listing a few of my personal favourites which I use on the job daily –

  1. Instagram – Use Gramblr
  2. Twitter – Use Tweetdeck 
  3. Facebook – Use Pages Manager (Win, iOs & Android)
  4. Your Blogs and Websites – Use ones provided by your service provider/hoster.etc. (Avoid Third-party ones, unless you want to get yourself infected with a nasty virus!)

Congratulations! You are now an efficient Digital Nomad & Remote worker! 

Digital Nomad
Ben working from our Berlin offices for a change! 

Related: Enterprise Sales Director? Want to work for us Remotely? Click here

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