If, like me, you have a presence on social media, the technology of our modern day will constantly fetch you newscasts and entertainment in response to your previous consumption. In recent days my news feed has been wholly saturated with presentations of self-made digital nomads (usually boasting youth, vigour and unblemished beauty) who are accomplished in their chosen fields. The image of freedom and independence is shared by a montage of curated shots, depicting frolicsome scenes on the beach, in the woods, or at night markets. Through photos or video footage, the first-person view is given of travel aboard boats and buses, nocturnal adventures in brightly lit town centres, and social gatherings around dinner tables. To many who aspire to travel and encounter exotic cultures, message is distinct and irresistible: the memories of a lifetime await those who care to make them, and balancing affordable fun with flexible employment is key to realising the dream.

Of course, the byline is that you too (whatever your situation) are able to enjoy a style of living so special and free that is the envy of the less happier lands or those enforced to a routinely structured existence. Simply sign onto this course or join our academy to take charge of your life! It is not difficult to be swayed by such marketing especially when it identifies the common plight of being stifled in a 9-5 employment cycle, describing how escape from mundanity is possible. Numberless gawkers flock to these Instagram pages, playing out the scenes of liberation in their own minds: of scenic tranquillity offered by fine sandy shores, swaying cotton palms and azure waters lapping at the keels of wooden boats. The impression given of these scenes is one of leisurely work enclosed by carefree travel, offering endless stimulation. And what young dreamer wouldn’t reach for it?

Consequently we have seen a cottage industry emerge over the past decade catering to this demand of simply getting people onto the journey of digital nomadism. What they are selling is the lifestyle of holidaying interspersed with steady sessions of “work” by pointing to the joy of the experience. The work being undertaken (that is, whatever value is generated by the application of skill and energy) is a tertiary consideration, provided it brings in money to support the lifestyle. Less prominent is the pursuit of meaningful work when the vision being promoted is to spend time in leisure, adventure and cheap entertainment. You can do anything so long as you’re travelling whilst doing it, eating exotic foods and meeting interesting people. Perhaps it is an answer in combating the necessary evil of having to sustain a living, however reluctant the endeavour.

For a time I too was taken with the notion of flying my present circumstances, striving above all else for a change of pace and scenery. I cannot pretend that the idea does not still occupy my mind. But when contemplating a lifestyle change, it is needful to weigh up the foreseeable costs and advantages. Travel is often a form of escapism for the problems facing us in nearest proximity. If the problems we seek to flee reside in our own person, no distance travelled can ensure safety. As to the futility of escaping these problems by travelling, Seneca memorably said:

the trip doesn’t exist that can set you beyond the reach of cravings, fits of temper, or fears. If it did, the human race would be off there in a body. So long as you carry the sources of your troubles about with you, those troubles will continue to harass and plague you wherever you wander on land or on sea. Does it surprise you that running away doesn’t do you any good? The things you’re running away from are with you all the time.

Letters from a Stoic, by Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Exchanging one setting of earth and sky for another offers no means to addressing the issues deep within; they can but serve as distractions for a while. Moreover, the traveller may be at greater disadvantage for needing to survive within a foreign land in addition to contending with these problems. Consider the example of a lack of self-confidence. Is the likelihood of a man being able to master himself before others greater in a place where he cannot even speak the language, or less? While the argument may be made that venturing further outside one’s comfort zone can precipitate faster growth, in the case of a diffident person they might as easily retreat into solitude. The point is that mere escapism is not a viable solution.

For any of you, dear readers, who are pondering the question of a change in lifestyle, consider the cost and benefit of the choice and decide upon the weightier between them. This to avoid rushing into a situation which not only fails to solve existing problems but compounds them in exchanging the normative behaviour of mainstream society (working a 9-5 job, living for the weekends and holidays) for the orthodoxy of digital nomadism. For myself, the matter will be thought through as plans for the upcoming months are laid; I expect it will serve for a later post.