It’s common knowledge to say that times have changed over the past few years. Then, success was reached when you acquired an easily attainable, reliable job and a decent sized house with probably a few acres or so in a “nice” neighborhood.
More recently, though, millennials and even others have decided to, quite literally, live outside the box and choose something more minimalistic and simpler. Instead, they’re opting for less permanent living situations so they have more freedom to do what they want with their life.
What’s causing these lifestyle changes is still undecided. Some believe it’s because we’re afraid of commitment, some blame the vague understanding of the economy most of us have, and others point their finger at the fact that change is inevitable and recurring.
Either way, this new method of living is called the nomadic lifestyle, where the nomads live and work in an area for a short period of time before moving on to the next destination. Though most of these nomads consist of tech-savvy freelancers and entrepreneurs, they also consist of kids who inherited ridiculous amounts of trust fund money or even a few Generation X and Baby Boomers.
Earlier, I used the term “we.” I say that because I, too, am a millennial. I’m quite proud to be one, though most tend to have a bad taste in their mouth about us. Though I haven’t made the switch to the nomadic way of life, I see what people find appealing about it or why it seems to sort of fall into their hands.
Career Jumping
There’s nothing negative about it, but it’s so unlike Baby Boomers, who would rather stay with the same company for the majority of their career. What’s the point of “settling down” if you don’t plan to stay with that company for longer than what it takes to pay off a house? We’re always looking for another opportunity, even if we’re happy where we’re at.
Work Travel Balance
What better way to achieve this than freelancing? Freelancing allows a digitally-savvy nomad to receive work and get paid without being employed by one company. Websites like Upwork make it easy to find work based on one’s skill set and preferences, no matter where this person is in the world. Freelance work just so happens to be coming into the spotlight at the perfect time, seeing as the job market has become harder and harder crack. Millennials have been forced to get creative with ways to find jobs, which is also why there are so many entrepreneurs coming from this generation. No one will hire us, so we hire ourselves.
And speaking of that house payment, they tend to be pretty hefty. That’s why Millennial Nomads prefer to live in tiny homes, RVs or in co-living environments (roommates). But tiny homes can be paid off quickly or even mortgage-free, and an RV purchase significantly reduces one’s monthly expenses. It also doesn’t cost much at all to setup RVs or tiny homes. (You’d know this if you watched HGTV like the rest of us millennials.)
Easier to Afford
Most of these nomads are freelancing, which is a perfectly respectable way to earn a living, but just like any other job, there are downsides. It really offers consistency, benefits or regular income. It goes without saying that millennials make less than what baby boomers did at their age, so they have to make every single dollar they earn count. Living nomadically allows freelancers to travel wherever the cost of living is the cheapest.
Technology
Nowadays, it’s so easy to work remotely and staying in contact with close friends and family from wherever you are is painless. Most forms of banking can be done on the internet, so no need to repeatedly visit your bank to cash checks. The accessibility of lightning fast internet allows nomads to upload pictures in a matter of seconds, talk to friends back home with no connection issues at all and you can back up any kind of work on a device with ease.
So, what about you? Do you think you could make the swap and adjust to the nomadic lifestyle? It’s no decision one can make overnight, and it takes lots of planning, saving and cutting down on certain luxuries in life. There have been studies conducted that show most Americans still want to own or live in a traditional home one day. They simply want to experience the world in a tiny home or RV first. And don’t think, “I’m not a millennial, so there’s no way this lifestyle could work for me.” Lots of boomers are doing it too.
There are a few cons to this appealing lifestyle, though it’s a short list. You’ll have to really like a roommate in order to live with them, certain smells are amplified in tiny homes or RVs and you’ll always have to deal with the fact that this way of life simply isn’t all it’s cracked up to be on Instagram.
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Have you already made the nomadic lifestyle transition? Let us know down in the comments!
