Hi all,
I’m an American living in Brazil. I work in AI at a Brazilian firm on a Brazilian contract.
So here’s the thing: Before I accepted this current work contract it was a real struggle for me. I was thinking to myself, “Hey, wouldn’t it be great if I was earning in US Dollars down here, that would surely give me an advantage.” I tried applying for US jobs but there simply not a lot of firms that want to hire an employee living in Brazil. I tried following a bunch of digital nomads on Instagram and they keep talking about how easy it is to make passive income digital marketing or on PInterest, or some other site, I just can’t understand how I could get involved with something like that. I tried freelancing on Upwork in my area and couldn’t find many opportunities. I tried looking on remoteok and other digital nomad sites where programmers could get hired. There were barely any postings that went to AI. And most of them went to very senior front end developers with LOTS of years if experience. Finally I applied to local jobs down here and got an offer.
Which brings me to my question, how exactly do you guys make money as digital nomads? It seems like everyone but me has a get rich quick scheme going on or some digitial marketing thing and I just can’t get it. Are people lying and just getting some money on the side from their parents or something?
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If you can speak english, you can do phone sales. Selling to people in the USA. Get paid in USD. A lot of these gigs can be freelance, independent contractor. BUT, it is hard work, definitely not a “get rich quick” scheme.
Lucked out during COVID…
My US-based company went fully remote, and I started traveling LATAM. Never really looked back.
Get a remote job, don’t tell employer
going to school for nursing. after I have some experience under my belt the plan is to work 6-9 months a year as a travel nurse then spend my time off exploring different countries with my camera.
It’s hard.
Most successful digital nomads I know ($150k+) are US-based and in software or corporate accounting/finance. I’ve seen quite a few marketers, freelancers etc., but they always seem preoccupied with cost whereas the SWE/finance guys will casually drop $100 on a meal and not think twice about it while hostel hopping.
There are two factions here, the “be honest, there are plenty of jobs for honest people” crowd, and the “lie and actually get a job” crowd. It’s time you joined us in the later group :)
Teaching English online and also keeping expenses low by doing work exchanges (world packers and workaday are two examples)!
I make my money as a writer/blogger, so I write and self publish books and my site earns money via ads. I also own a little real estate and have some passive income investments (stocks).
But here’s the more useful thing for you - I did some deep research into digital nomads a while ago, and along the way I collected data on professions for those who make a living on the road with what they do. As you’d guess, the software side of tech (web dev, software dev) and marketing (seo, agency work, consulting) jobs dominated the list. I can’t remember exactly how much but about 1/3 to 1/2 were tech or marketing.
But the remainder completely ran the spectrum. Doctors, lawyers, multiple architects, virtual game show hosts, university professors, PR, etc. The tying theme was they were all very senior management and specialists and had either virtualized a portion of their work and grew that portion or monetized their knowledge. I remember the architect simply met clients online and delivered the same way. A doctor wrote for medical journals and practiced telemedicine. A lawyer specialized in contract law and was somehow able to do that at a distance. It blew my mind because it seemed like pretty much any profession can be rolled into a virtual approach if you have enough expertise and experience and if you get creative with and focus on the aspects that can be delivered virtually.
I don’t have the exact percentages on how much, but I remember a handful of these people actually found their current remote clients through old employers or colleagues, so that is a worthwhile note.
The list of jobs that every reported is here if you’re interested:
the passive income get rich quick influencers are liars. don’t get advice on social media. If the algorithm is being driven by engagement, it is not being driven by truth.