Live Uncomfortably

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It seems as though everyone, including my closest friends are a little bit confused about my journey. Am I backpacking? Am I working? Am I doing both?

The answer is I have been doing both, but separately.

What Am I Doing?

Right now I am traveling SLOWLY. If I like a place I stay. If I don’t get great vibes, then I experience what I can, and pass through. I’m not a huge fan of rapid-fire 10 countries in 1 month type of travel so this works perfectly for me.

Backpacking
Although I began my trip mostly working, the majority has been spent traveling. I’ve stayed in a lot of hostels, I go out and do touristy things during the day, then I join my hostel mates for drinks at night.

The only difference between me and the other backpackers I meet is that I’ll end up staying places for a little bit longer than them before moving on. And occasionally I’ll get an apartment and work.

Working
The first 2 months of my trip were spent working and experimenting with weight-training in Panama. After Panama, I’ve spent intermittent days working on certain projects or ideas as I come across them.

The business and work I’m doing is called affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing is perfect for travelers and those without a lot time because a) it can be done with only an internet connection and b) after the initial work is completed, it’s fairly passive.

Here’s affiliate marketing in a nutshell.

1. Set up a website or blog on a particular topic (niche).
2. Find a product that you think people in your niche would like.
3. Recommend them the product and provide a link to it.
4. If they purchase through your link, you get a commission.

(I’ll describe affiliate marketing in more detail later)

Like anything in life, if you devote a lot of time to something, it will pay off. So far I haven’t put a ton of energy into it, thus I haven’t really made a lot of money. But that’s not the point. The goal is to set up something that doesn’t need my constant attention so I can focus on other goals. Plus, $1000 a month in Colombia is about the equivalent of $4000 a month in the states.

(Disclaimer: I’m not saying I make that much)

Where & When

Here’s a run down of my trip. Skip this part if you don’t know me, or don’t really care.

• Started in Panama City in mid-August. Left pretty much immediately.
• Went to Boquete, Panama ~ 7 hrs from Panama City. I lived there for 2 months working and experimenting.
• Took a vacation to Bocas del Toro for a week.
• Went back to Panama City and completed my first 5 day fast.
• Flew to Cartagena, Colombia. Did a little bit of work, but mostly enjoyed Miss Colombia for a week and a half.
• Went to Parque Tayrona and went on the Lost City 5 day trek.
• Stayed in Taganga for a couple nights.
• Went to Medellin, Colombia and fell in love within 1 hour. Stayed in Blacksheep Hostel for 2 weeks, then got an apartment with my travel buddy Clay, and new friend Nico. Rented an apartment for 1 month. Did some OK work during the day, then had fun at night.
• After Christmas Clay and flew to Buenos Aires. We stayed with his parents in a posh apartment for 1 week, then Clay flew to Ushuaia, Argentina - the most southern tip of South America while I stayed in BA and waited for my friend Tait to arrive.
• After Tait left I went to the wine country - Mendoza, Argentina. Spent a week there.
• Went to Cordoba, Argentina. I’ve been here a week and just moved into an apartment to start working a little bit.

Why Am I Doing This?

There are several reasons for my trip.

1. Really getting to know other cultures is higher education.
2. I want to develop multiple streams of income. Starting online businesses is a great way to set-up different streams of income that can last for years and years.
3. Staying in apartments is better than hostels because you’re forced to meet the locals, not just other travelers.
4. This is my first experiment with the nomadic lifestyle.

How Can I Do This?

Eventually, I will build up a monthly income that can support my travels ($1000 per month is more than enough). Until that time, I’m dipping into my savings. But this doesn’t bother me. I don’t plan on retiring. To me there is no such thing as retirement. My word for retirement is emergency fund or worse case scenario. I will build up a large emergency fund so that if I can’t work when I’m old, I’ll still be able to survive.

I wrote about how I saved for this trip here.

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Still have questions? Post ‘em below.