Prior to Covid-19, not much was known about digital nomads who work while traveling or travel as they work. Back then, just 5% or 11 days of the American workdays (average 220) were days worked from home (Frydman, Standford University, Working Paper No. 22-31, “Work and Pleasure: Investigating the Rise of Digital Nomads in Mexico”).
Digital Nomadism is a Growth Market Waiting to Be Tapped
Researchers Makimoto and Manners defined digital nomads as workers who are location independent professionals who work from anywhere as they travel the world (1997). How many Americans call themselves digital nomads? Approximately 16.9 million.
While working, digital nomads can immerse themselves in bountiful forestry and cultures full of rich history and cultural experiences. Often unlike their own. As they enjoy the nomadic experience, digital nomads are spending money. They may spend a huge portion of their salary partaking in culturally rich experiences. There is a motivation to do so. Right?
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The traditional digital nomad is often pictured as a white-collar professional, IT consultant, creative entrepreneur, or online business owner who travels to exotic places as they work. Recognizing the incoming sales tax or VAT revenue generated by this sort of traveler and the positive economic impact on local towns and communities 46 countries such as Mexico, Portugal and Costa Rica offer incentives to attract highly paid professionals.
Digital Nomads and Work from Anywhere is an Economic Boost to 5 Distinct Sectors
Digital nomadism, or work while traveling (WWT) is a cottage industry on a growth track. Travel while working is beneficial to:
- The digital nomad valuing their wandering lifestyle more so than financial riches and corporate promotions;
- The employer offering a relatively lower salary to top talent in exchange offering the work from anywhere employee benefit;
- The country, town or municipal government gaining another source of revenue (from VAT and sales taxes) to offset the need to raise taxes from its citizenry;
- The citizens, business people, owners of service providing companies, local employees of the hospitality industry, and others obtaining additional sources of sales and revenue streams; and
- The global society in general distributing economic wealth from mature first world countries to emerging and developing nations regardless of the valleys and troughs of seasonality of tourism.
But get this. First world countries with mature economies are wanting to tap into growth trends too. The demand for unplugging and unchaining from a location dependent desk can be capitalized by many. Digital nomadism can benefit industrialized countries also. How so?
Simone Usborne of the Financial Times wrote about “a new breed of hip, off-grid cabin” living is emerging (May 6-7, 2023). Individuals working from home (WFH) are finding that they don’t need to travel outside of their country’s borders to experience rich forestry, deep cultural experiences, or meet people with a diversity of cultures unlike their own. They can drive, fly or hike to the mountains, beaches, lakes, and caverns to lesser traveled locations and experience the awe of the earth’s beauty. Often, just a short drive from the comfort of their own home.
Off Grid Cabin Living, Preppers, Homesteaders and Digital Nomads What is the Difference ?
This brings us to off-grid, cabin living. What is off-grid living? How is it different from other independent lifestyles? ConsumerFiles provides brief definitions of the types of off-grid, cabin living.
- Off-grid living. Individuals attracted to the off-grid life strive to live with complete energy independence.
- Preppers. Survivalists prepping for an inevitable emergency by stockpiling and hoarding food, water and supplies.
- Homesteaders. Individuals and families professed to prefer a minimalistic lifestyle. They try to minimize their carbon footprint by growing and raising their own food, recycling and reusing items and handcrafting products from raw materials.
Advocates for off-grid living hope to achieve the ultimate goal of leading the good life without relying on public utilities. They prefer less involvement and reliance upon the government. Proponents find alternative sources for food (plant gardens, raise chickens), generate electricity (solar panels), water (rain collection), and waste management (composting toilets and systemic burning).
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Digital nomads believe in the conscious detachment from the traditional work location. But, they’re not interested in complete detachment. Employees and contractors working from anywhere (which could be from locations close to home) still need the amenities of internet and electricity to maintain their connections to their employer and/or clients.
How to Temporarily Embrace Off Grid Digital Nomad Lifestyle In Country Stateside
Even so, digital nomads can mimic off-grid lifestyle. How so? By traveling to remote in-country locales where first world internet connections and services are dependable and reliable. Without the promise of an exotic destination, inland, in-country workers as citizens of first world countries can reap the benefits by traveling to less densely populated than their home residence.
In the US, states less densely populated are Alaska, Montana, Texas and Nevada. These states offer many rural areas and towns from which to find pleasure in nature and the outdoors while working from anywhere.
I am personally familiar with Hot Tub Heaven, located in the Blue Ridge mountains of Front Royal, Northern Virginia. Front Royal is located in Warren County with about 15, 000 inhabitants. Far less that the estimated 700,000 residents living in the nation’s capital, Washington, DC.
Front Royal is a short drive from the suburbs of northern Virginia. It’s about 1.5 hours trip by car from Washington, DC Metropolitan area. When travelers arrive, they may feel stuck in time, as if time traveling. It’s a remote rural Appalachian mountain town, far, far away in the middle of vast and unpopulated countryside.
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Hot Tub Heaven is family owned and feature less than 10 pet friendly cabins. Each wooden cabin is retrofitted with its namesake, a jacuzzi. Even though nomads are attracted to off-grid living, to keep it real, each cabin is equipped with free internet Wi-Fi.
Which brings us to another point. The desire of workers to embrace the digital nomad lifestyle while living near one’s principal residence can present opportunities for businesses.
Of the many millions of remote workers now working from home, there is a subsegment who would like to temporarily work from anywhere. To unplug. Recharge. Or, to simply experience a change of scenery.
Digital Nomads, Remote Workers, Hybrid Workers Detox: Cabin Living in Nature
One way for remote workers and hybrid workers can to detox from excessive 5G waves, social media scrolling and distractions is to get back to nature. The Mayo Clinic has found that spending time outdoors can refresh your mind. Take a look at these examples:
- Short period of about 5 minute exposure to nature can regulate the sympathetic nervous system,
- Extended time exposure to the outdoors environment in nature and nature-based therapy programscan PTSD.
- Regular and repeated immersion to nature can help support the major cognitive functions such as memory, attention, creativityand sleep quality.
In today’s chaotic environment of presidential candidate assignations, polarization, and 24/7 negative media messaging, getting back to nature is a worthy goal.
Usborne, writing for the Financial Time gave an overview of the benefits of cabin living. Not for living the fulltime off-grid lifestyle of the homesteader or prepper. Rather, for temporary excursions to break away from the monotony of the hustle and bustle of metropolitan living. Remote workers, hybrid staff and others living the lifestyle of the distributed workforce can take note.
5 Companies who Have Taken Advantage of Need to Detox from Corporate and Traditional In Office Settings
Innovative upstarts, venture funds and entrepreneurs hope to catch the wave of opportunities presented. Usborne featured these companies situated across the globe:
- Unyoked, an Australian company develops partnerships with local farmers and landowners, providing cabins which are then placed on property owned by the landowners. The company plans to grow from 100 cabins to 1,000 by 2028.
- OOD Hotels, an Estonian company offers the chance for landowners and investors to buy cabins, sublease them out and share the revenue generated with the OOD.
- Unplugged, founded in the UK operates 17 minimalistically designed cubes with large windows (cabins) in its inventory. Its cabins are within two hours drive of London or Manchester.
- Raus, located in Germany has 34 cabins situated across Germany.
- Getaway, an American company offers travel packages of classic cabin style abodes for travelers to escape work and enjoy nature.
The conclusion? When you are feeling overwhelmed by the complexities of life in general or your life specifically, consider reconnecting with nature. If you are an entrepreneur, consider the global, political, economic complications of life present opportunities for you to earn money when you can offer products, services and solutions help the individual mitigate them.
