As we move forward, we have our fourth installation of day in the life of a remote worker interview series and with that in mind, we have a remarkable couple who live and breathe all things digital nomad and remote work. Introducing both Matilde Leitão & Miguel Costa, they are Instagram influencers, travel bloggers and the co-founders of Travel B4 Settle.
Matilde Leitão & Miguel Costa are a couple who have managed to make money online whilst working remotely and they have travelled half way across the globe!
Tell me about yourself and what it is that you do?
We are Miguel & Matilde, a Portuguese millennial couple who wanted to travel more and saw an opportunity on remote work. We are two easy going people who like to live life at its full potential. We are big dreamers, so we knew we needed to do something different in our lives in order to be happier. So we became digital nomads and started our own online business.
When did you start working remotely as a digital nomad and how did that come about?
Three years ago, after finishing our academic courses, we bought a one-way ticket to India, left everything and started our journey through digital nomadism. For 8 months, we traveled Asia on a budget, while learning everything we could about digital marketing and online businesses and developing our personal brand, TravelB4Settle (www.travelb4settle.com). Fast forward 2,5 years, our mission with TravelB4Settle now is helping others achieving the laptop lifestyle. We have just launched our first online course ”12 ways to work online”, for now we just have the Portuguese version (https://www.travelb4settle.co
Also, as freelancers, we help companies achieving an online presence through digital marketing.
What would go down as the biggest achievement so far and what makes you so proud of this?
Definitely our online course. It sold out even before was launched and now we are helping this first class (51 students) through the whole process of becoming remote workers/digital nomads. We know how remote work can change lives, everyone has an opportunity in this world, people with physical disabilities, people who are financially unstable, people who don’t have a degree or skills, people that aren’t happy with their jobs… The most important thing is, working online allows people to achieve a freedom everyone dreams about. People can finally be location independent and be where they want, when they want. Whether to spend more time with their families or to travel the world, we want to continue to help people to change their lives by starting to work online.
Do you have any favourite cafes, places or coworking spaces that you like to work remotely from when not at home and why are these your favourite?
Yes we aren’t big fans of working from home, so we always try to find a cafe or a coworking space wherever we are. Or, when traveling, the perfect option is to stay at a coliving, because we have it all in one place: a community and a prepared place to work.
How do you want to improve yourself in the next year?
That’s a good (and important) question. We are big believers that we can just improve our work & lives by improving ourselves from the inside. Next year we want to invest more & more on our education, not only work related, but self development too. Also, we plan to have more time to invest on volunteering in social projects around the world and continue to travel, as that bring us so much.
What does a typical workday look like for you and how do you manage your time and schedule effectively?
While traveling, we split our time between working and exploring (of course), we would work for 4-6 hours and spend the rest of the day exploring, being with friends, exercising, learning, etc. When we are at our home base, we can work endless hours without even noticing, specially now in quarantine and developing a course. We are a bit workaholics, but we love our freedom and flexibility, so we kinda go with the flow. Even though we need some things to keep our mind & body healthy like starting the day with a good morning routine (yoga, meditation and a big bowl/cup of fruits/veggies).
Do you have any recommendations for software or tools which are invaluable to you as a digital nomad and how do they help you to stay productive?
Yes! We start our day with headspace app, which guide us through a 10 min meditation time, helping us stay focused on the present and training our mind to be okay with the constant thoughts throughout the day.
As soon as we start working there is also at least 2 essential tools for us: Asana & Toggl. We use Asana to organize, track and manage our work and Toggl to track our work time and management.
If you could give one bit of advice to anybody out there that is dreaming about working remotely what would that be?
It is possible! For anyone! As long as you are willing to put in the work, time, dedication and, sometimes, money you can achieve whatever you want. Also, invest time and money in self education, education is the most powerful tool!
Well there we have it, as we close this interview, just wanted to say a massive thanks to Matilde Leitão & Miguel Costa for spending the time to work with us and help other remote workers out there. For anyone that wants to watch their movements and follow them, head on over to their website Travel B4 Settle.
If you found encouragement and the remote work experience of Matilde Leitao and Miguel Costa inspirational as you pursue remote work or a business idea, take a look at some of the articles in the Search Remotely Series: A Day in the Life of a Remote Worker. See below.
A day in the life of a remote worker
- Szabi Kisded
- Richard Jann Escobido
- Gisella Casolaro
- Alexandra Heikke
- Jordan Carroll
- Martin Steph Wanless
- Joshua Biggers
- Matilde Leitao Miguel Costa
- Anna Sherchand
- Johnny FD
- Jacob Cass
- Automattic
- Invision
