Becoming a digital nomad pt.2: 8 important hard skills and potential job titles

Please keep in mind that this list is not exhaustive, but it will give you a clear picture of how you can make a decent amount of money to keep your digital nomad dreams alive and well. With the right skill set and knowledge, all else you need is a proper WiFi connection to create a steady income flow.

1. Blogging

To become a blogger that can actually make a living off it, there’s more you need than just a bit of talent for writing. It requires a lot of work, patience, and persistence to finally be able to generate a sufficient income. You need to understand what interests your readers, but you also need to be able to do proper research, analyze, and sometimes even know how to focus on search engine optimization (SEO). Many digital nomads earn an honest wage by doing travel blogs, but the competition is stiff. Make sure you find a topic that stands out from the crowd.

2. Coaching and Consulting

Coaching and consulting can be quite a business if you know how to advise or teach people on a subject you’re an expert at. You can basically become anything from a career coach to a nutrition consultant, as long as you know what you’re talking about. The best part about these functions is that you can do your work from basically anywhere in this day and age since a lot of coaching and consulting happens online.

3. Computer Programming

If you know your way around a computer and know a thing or two about coding, you certainly don’t have to restrict yourself to working from your dark office in the basement. In today’s digital era, the demand for good programmers is ever still on the rise, with more and more businesses willing to have their tech geeks work from remote places in different time zones. If you’re talented enough, you can get the biggest paychecks while working from the smallest of islands on earth.

4. Creative Designing

Are you the creative type, and especially a pro at designing anything from a simple logo to an entire website? This means you too can monetize your work by becoming a freelancer, and offer your services on a wide variety of websites such as Fiver or Upwork. Whether you’re an illustrator or a web designer, you’ll always be in demand, and the best thing is that you can deliver from wherever you please.

5. Digital Marketing Skills

Most organizations are always in need of digital marketing experts since we live in a time where nearly everything is revolved around the internet and social media. If you are the type who’s always up to speed when it comes to the latest developments, then you definitely possess a skill that’s well sought after, wherever you wish to reside.

6. Tutoring

The market for online tutors is booming, and there’s not much you need to become a tutor yourself. All you need is a computer and a steady connection, and you can teach by using a platform as simple as Skype. All you need to decide is what field or subject you’re an expert at and if you’re able to transfer your knowledge to others. If that’s the case, you’re good to go. You can always find people anywhere across the globe who want to learn basic English skills, which makes it a very accessible way to sustain yourself.

7. Graphic Design

The luxury of being a graphic designer entails working autonomously, meaning it’s the perfect job for digital nomads. You do your job online and are not bound to a fixed residence, and it’s also a hard skill that you can learn yourself through courses. Another plus is that you need a lot of creativity as a designer, and what more inspiration can you get from traveling the globe?

8. Content Writing

It doesn’t matter what you write about, as long as you write engaging content. You can be a content writer in a wide variety of niches, and there’s probably a market out there anywhere on the web. The ability to create content will prove to be a very useful tool along your way. Whether you’re a copywriter, academic writer, or possess certain technical expertise you love to write about: there are plenty of opportunities out there.

Change your career through upskilling

The list we provide here serves as a reference point and is mostly written to inspire you to follow your dream of experience the digital nomad lifestyle. If you’re having second thoughts, just remember that a lot of these skills are teachable, so you could consider upskilling to make it happen. We recommend having a look at CareerAnalytics, where you get a crystal-clear view of all your current skills, and get actionable insights on how to improve your skillset. If you check out the Demand Insights page, you can look at job titles that appeal to you and check out what skills are needed for that job. No need to panic if you discover that you don’t possess the full package (yet!). After finding out where there’s room for improvement, you can simply apply for a wide variety of courses on the Courses page to get you closer to cater to your need to explore. Dimitris, one of our users, describes the life of a digital nomad as ‘being free to go wherever you want, even if you feel like not going anywhere for the moment’.

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