Every thought of writing a book? Karen van der Zee has 34 published books now with more on the way. She has a gift for telling great stories, which most bloggers, including myself can learn a lot from. Karen talks about how the publishing industry has changed over the years, living around the world and gives some writing advice in this fantastic interview.

Please tell us about yourself?

Hello dear readers, I am Miss Footloose, aka Karen van der Zee. I hail from the Netherlands, land of wooden shoes, dikes, bikes, windmills, and cheese, aka Holland. I never owned a pair of wooden shoes, but I did possess a bike or two and I ate and eat plenty of cheese. I am a writer and my husband is an agricultural development economist and works on foreign aid projects in developing countries. Right now we live in Moldova, Eastern Europe.

Please tell us about your travel background?

My first expat experience was as a foreign exchange student to the US where I lived with a family for a year and was introduced to life as a teenager in an American high school. Talk about culture shock. Later I met my American husband-to-be in Amsterdam, a very romantic place! A year later I followed him to exotic Kenya where he was a Peace Corps volunteer. We were married there in a bizarre wedding ceremony. You can read about it here: How (Not) to Get Married in Kenya. Fortunately it stuck, and I’m still the first and only wife.

That was the beginning of our travels. After Kenya, my husband’s work has taken us to Ghana, twice, for a total of almost 8 years, Indonesia for 2 years, Palestine for 1.5 years, Armenia for 6 years, and now we are in Moldova. In between we’ve lived in the US, which for much of that time was an expat location for me. Now I have dual citizenship so it is home.

What is it that you like or dislike about living as an expat in Moldova?

Moldova is a former Soviet Union Republic in Eastern Europe and not the most exotic of locations, but it’s generally considered an easy and safe country for expats. It’s a fertile country with a low hilly landscape and the vineyards produce some really nice wines. I live in the capital Chisinau and the people are friendly and helpful. There are good supermarkets and good restaurants. The center of town, where I live, is a very walkable place, and in the summer streets and parks are green and pleasant. In the winter the ugly Soviet-style apartment blocks are more obvious and the place looks less cheery.

I can’t think of anything that I particularly “dislike.” Moldova is a poor country and you see on occasion old men and women begging in the streets, which is hard to take, especially in the winter when it’s cold. Chisinau is not a large metropolis and some call it a rather sleepy place. The expat community is small and not very diversified.

How expensive is it there?

The cost of living in Moldova really depends on your lifestyle. It can be much lower than the US if you live and eat “on the local economy,” but not many expats here do, since most of them are employed by embassies, international companies and so forth, and have a “foreign” income.

As in many capital cities, there are at least two housing markets here, and the one for expats is very pricy. Rents for expat housing are high by American standards (and again, that depends on location). A three bedroom house in the suburbs can cost you US$ 3,000 or much more a month.

Housing can be much, much lower on the local market, but kitchens are basic and by American and Western European standards, furniture is often of what we might call the great-grandma variety or over the top “fake fancy.” If you’re interested in reading about my own expat housing saga in Moldova, read my tale How to Bond With Your Bidet.

Food: Again, the cost depends on how you live. You can live perfectly fine on the local diet, but it is not France, Spain or Italy here. However, buying imported foods can run up the grocery bills. I’m a bit of a foodie and love – for instance – French, Italian and Dutch cheeses, and I am lucky to be able to get them here, but they’re expensive. There is plenty of decent local cheese, so you don’t have to do without if you don’t want to buy the imported varieties.

Public transportation in Chisinau, the capital, is excellent and cheap, and although a car is nice, it is not essential.

The restaurants come in varying price levels and decent meals are available at prices much lower than in the US and Western Europe. Meals in upscale restaurants here are still lower than comparable ones in the US and Western Europe.

How many books have you written so far?

I’ve written 34 romance novels published by Harlequin Books. I’ve also written non-fiction tales about my (mis)adventures living abroad and some of my articles have been published in the Washington Post, the travel-humor anthology I Should Have Just Stayed Home, the anthology Female Nomad and Friends by Rita Golden Gelman, and various ezines.

I am presently working on a longer novel and have a finished non-fiction book with lighthearted stories about my (mis)adventures living in foreign countries. I am looking for an agent or publisher for this opus, which is not an easy task and very time-consuming.

How did you get started as an author?

Even as a kid I filled notebooks with stories and drawings. By the time I moved to Kenya I’d had a few small successes in Holland, but once I was married to my American globetrotter I knew I had better shift over into English, which was a second language for me, and needed some work.

A few years later I wrote my first romance novel in Ghana, West Africa, inspired by reading a romance novel I found at a friend’s house. I had no idea what I was doing and boldly sent the manuscript to the London address I found inside the book: Mills & Boon Ltd (now Harlequin Mills & Boon). It took a year before I even got an answer. My manuscript had been discovered in the slush pile and deemed worthy of publication. I was off and running and kept writing more novels, which they kept publishing, so I had my portable career.

The world of publishing has changed enormously, and I was very lucky to get started when I did, which was at the beginning of the “romance novel explosion.”

How many hours a day do you spend writing?

When our children were young I would start after they were off to school and I stopped when they came home. It was the perfect job for raising a family. I was quite disciplined, which you have to be as a writer because you are your own boss, but it still gives me flexibility in terms of vacation and holidays. I still spend most of my days behind the computer.

Is writing fiction more lucrative than non-fiction?

It all depends on how you get published, what is in your contract, what kind of deal you manage to get, how famous you are (not) and in the final analysis how many readers will actually pay money to buy your work. There is no simple answer.

How has blogging and social media affected your writing over the years?

I stopped writing romance novels a few years ago to work on a longer women’s fiction book, and to write my non-fiction opus about my life abroad (which is now finished). I do not enjoy marketing myself, working the social media, and self promotion. I’m terrible at it and wish I could simply spend my time writing and not mess with it. I do enjoy the blogging because it is writing my stories, and perhaps eventually this might help in promoting my books. I am on Facebook (Karen van der Zee) and Twitter (@missfootloose) and the challenge there is to not let these media take over your life.

Having a large blogging audience doesn’t hurt, but when you start talking about building an “author’s platform” it takes much more than that, such as acquiring speaking engagements that deal with your topic, having articles published in magazines or papers, and getting interviewed on radio or TV. It’s more and more clear that writing talent alone is not enough; you have to be a business person with marketing savvy. I have to admit that I have not gone very far down that business road yet.

Do you see yourself shifting from traditional publishing to blogging?

My blog is not meant to be or become an income generating affair and to take the place of traditional publishing. I prefer traditional publishing over self-publishing; it is what I’ve been used to. Self-publishing itself is easy. Finding readers to buy the book is not. It’s an enormous amount of work, and if you’re not famous already, or have 250,000 fans, it’s not likely to make you a living wage. At least that’s what the word is on the street. Besides, I’d rather be writing than marketing. Unfortunately, even when you get published the traditional way, publishers now also expect writers to do a lot of self-promotion.

You are a great story teller, can you give some writing advice for novice writers or bloggers? Most travel bloggers write about facts, not compelling stories. Can you please offer some advice?

Writing as Miss Footloose, I started my blog LIFE IN THE EXPAT LANE as an additional outlet for my non-fiction stories, and to connect with other expat writers and people who enjoy reading expat stories.

When I write about my own (mis)adventures, I use my fiction writing techniques. I never intended to write “reports” about places or events as seen from an objective journalistic viewpoint. I write about events and places as I experience them, as these affect me, subjectively. I see them as stories, not reports.

Advice for novice writers or bloggers? First of all, read the sort of writing that you like and study and analyze how the writer has handled the material. Secondly, since my own experience tells me that my fiction writing knowledge is invaluable in writing my non-fiction, I suggest new writers and bloggers learn about fiction techniques (unless they’re writing straight academic material). There are many online articles and materials and even courses that are free. You have to love the writing itself to want to learn how to do it better. And it is a never ending process. I’m still learning.

For support and advice, join a writers group and/or critique group. Writing can be a lonely business.

What is the best way for an aspiring author to break into book publishing?

How I wish I had the magic answer! I’d be rich! I started writing before the Internet and e-book era and the publishing scene has changed drastically. It’s a jungle out there in the publishing world. There is much talk about the need to have an “author’s platform” before an agent or a publisher will even look at your work, which is totally depressing because creating a platform is an entire job in itself. The Internet is awash with books, articles and blog posts about how to get into book publishing and how to build the dreaded platform. As an example, check out this article by Arielle Ford on the Huffington Post blog about platform building.

In short, there is no easy answer, no “best way,” and no magic trick. My advice is to do your research, study the subject and have patience. And if the gods are with you, you’ll be successful!

Links
Life in the Expat Lane – Karen van der Zee’s blog – (Great storytelling and writing style here!)
Karen van der Zee on Facebook
Follow Karen on Twitter (@missfootloose)

We are coming upon two years since we sold our business, house and got rid of almost all our possessions.  Do we have any regrets or did we make any huge mistakes? You will have to read to find out.

We are in Thailand

At the beginning of January we have come back to Asia for a few months. We started off in Japan and are now in Thailand. We will be here for a couple of months before going to Australia and then Japan again. I need to get some dental work done, and Thailand is a great, inexpensive country for dentists.

Home Base

We have been based out of my home city of Calgary, on and off for the last couple of years. We stay in Calgary because we have family there and an inexpensive place to stay.

As much as we love being abroad, we don’t like to travel so much. Constantly moving to new locations take a lot of time and effort. By being based in Calgary, we have been able to forge some great new friendships, organize a conference and monthly meet-up groups, volunteer, go to the gym regularly, meet old friends, enjoy familiar cafes, cycle a lot and do many more activities that demand some stability.

At the same time, I was born and raised in Calgary, so I am keen to live in and experience other cities around the world. Calgary is convenient for us, but I don’t think we will ever put down roots there.

How We Have Become Rich

Our old business in Japan provided us a great standard of living. We had enough money to do or buy anything we wanted with almost three months of vacation time per year. The only problem was that it was no longer challenging us. Everything became so routine that we were mentally stagnating.

We did what most consumers do, we bought new and expensive things to bring excitement to our lives. However, the novelty of anything you can buy soon fades. Expensive restaurants, travel, alcohol, furniture and electronics might make you feel better about yourself temporarily, but they only mask the root cause of an unfulfilled life.

We now live on less than 20% of the monthly expenses of our old lifestyle, however we feel much, much richer. If you don’t own a big house, you don’t need to buy furniture, do yard maintenance, pay expensive mortgages and bills.

If you don’t own cars, you don’t need to pay for insurance, gas, parking, maintenance, repairs and monthly payments. I calculated the total monthly costs of the last car we owned in Japan to be close to $800 per month, after factoring in the purchase and final selling price. It is not only the cost, cycling and walking everywhere helps us to stay in shape and enjoy the commute much more. We won’t own a car again anytime in the near future.

Not spending much money is obviously good for the bank balance, but the real value has been the freed up mental energy. When you are not thinking about buying things, maintaining things, cleaning things, moving things and protecting things, you have a lot more mental space for friends, hobbies, personal projects and career goals.

How we Earn Income

In Calgary, I did some part-time freelance marketing work that paid well and more than covered our living expenses last year. However, there are not many businesses that I truly believe in. Life is too short to work for uninspiring companies.

We still don’t have a decent online business, but I haven’t really been trying to monetize the work I have been doing. We have enough savings to fund our simple lifestyle for the foreseeable future, so we are not in a huge rush to find a stable income.

I am still searching for something meaningful to contribute to the world. Selling expensive ebooks, affiliate programs, membership sites, or consumer goods just doesn’t cut it for me. I am very interested in the non-profit sector but I haven’t figured out how to best contribute.

I am making a few hundred dollars per month on some of my websites through Adsense and selling advertisements. I have only recently started actively developing some old websites I have been sitting on thanks to the advice of James Clark of NomadicNotes.com. This site is a great vehicle to connect with and meet other like minded people around the world, so I don’t want to cheapen those relationships by hawking expensive ebooks and affiliate programs.

My teaching English abroad website has been getting some good traffic so that will be our immediate focus.

Do We Have Regrets?

We definitely made some mistakes getting to this point, but I can’t say we have any major regrets. Buying a house in Japan was foolish. If we didn’t buy that house, we would easily have another $100,000 or more in the bank now. I don’t have a very good track record in the stock market either. It is much better to invest in my own business projects. Live and learn I guess.

Other than that, giving up everything to live life on our own terms has been fantastic. We have learned just how little money and possessions we need to have a quality life. All the previous stresses of our past life are completely gone. It has been so liberating.

I haven’t focused very well on all the projects I have been working on, but that is changing. I hate spending more than I am earning, and that will need to end soon. It shouldn’t be too hard to get to a break even level because our expenses are relatively low. I will let you know how everything is going in the near future.

Will takes in the views over the Spanish countryside

The top problem for most aspiring long-term travellers is how to earn enough income on the road. Travelling off of savings is great way to start, but what happens when you run out of money. If your travel bug is going to turn into a location independent lifestyle, you will need to start working on the road.

More often than not, that means doing some type of freelancing work. Many also try their hand at travel writing, for their own blogs or other sites. Will Peach does all of the above. In this interview, Will shares his experiences working for sites like Gap Daemon and Vagabundo Magazine, as well as SEO article writing and consulting. He shows that you don’t need to earn much money on abroad if you can keep your costs low.

Please tell us about your travel background?

Hi guys! First off let me envelop you all in a nice warm “Will Peach” hug and wish you all the best for the year ahead. Right, now that the sexual tension is out the way, let’s continue onward.

I started travelling as a wee nipper making my first trip abroad a few short years after having sprung from the womb. Growing up under the heavy influence of my travel-curious dad, I had the fortune of going on vacation to quite a few destinations during my childhood. Stand out trips include a month long tour of Australia at the age of 12, holidaying in Kenya at 14 and a tour of California in my awkward teenage years. I hardly saw much of my native England!
Needless to say this taste of travel spilled over into my adulthood. At university I was lucky enough to do a year abroad at the University of Miami and after graduating I upped sticks and went to live in Vietnam for a year and a half. I’m still not done yet!

Where are you now?

The past few months I’ve been living in a little city called Cáceres in Extremadura, Spain (quite close to the Portuguese border). I came to live in Spain primarily because I had the crazy ambition of becoming the first person in my family to become fluent in a language other than English (and, if I choose to believe my grandmother, Irish). Since moving here however I’ve found that Spain really floats my boat. Right now I’m back in London for the holidays but, depending on when you read this, I’ll be back out in Spain in a new location working on my goal. If you’re interested in reading about my experiences and checking out my progress check out my site My Spanish Adventure.

Will enjoying Caceres' old quarter

What are you living expenses in Spain?

A lot cheaper than when I was living in London! In Cáceres I was paying just 100 Euros a month in rent (for a room in a shared apartment). For food I was probably paying around another 180 Euros a month (eating out maybe a couple of times a week) and for entertainment (which there wasn’t a great deal of maybe 200 Euros). I spent most of my “entertainment” money on travelling around the area getting to see cool places like Seville and Mérida.

How do you earn an income now?

Ah this is the bit where I give away all my secrets isn’t it? Well the bulk of my money I earn from my role as an editor at Gap Daemon (that accounts for maybe 50% of my monthly income). Then I work with a few different clients in the SEO world and provide writing for them on a freelance basis. My earnings per month vary wildly (depending on how much freelance stuff gets sent my way) but have always been enough to cover my outgoings.
Recently I’ve been working on other projects designed to bring in some income further down the line. I’m trying to push my SEO writing work more into consultancy (willpeach.com is my base for this) and also running a few different travel sites in the hope of monetisation in the coming months. I’ve also taken an editorial role at Vagabundo Magazine, which I hope will help prop me up too.

My earnings are still very much a work in progress and I’ll be the first to admit I’m no expert in this area. Still I love being the master of my own fate and this way of living is certainly the one for me.

Please tell us more about Gap Daemon and Vagabundo

Gap Daemon is a gap year website for backpackers and young travellers that provides people with a network to help record and prepare their travels as well as meet other people while out on the road. I actually got involved with them over a year ago when I worked in a full time capacity as a site editor in their London offices. Deciding to go travelling myself I was fortunate enough to have them support me. Right now I’m helping to add to their ever-increasing information resource by writing articles and recording podcasts with travellers around the world. It’s pretty cool work!

Vagabundo Magazine is an online travel magazine run by Brendan Van Son, a pretty well known Canadian photographer and travel writer. I got involved with them after writing a few articles for the digital magazine and asking Brendan if there was anything more I could help out with. Right now Brendan and I are working together to bring Vagabundo Magazine to the masses by expanding our activity on social media (particularly Twitter) and continuing to provide great travel stories and inside destination guides from around the world. Be sure to check it out!

How did you find those job opportunities?

I found the opportunity at Gap Daemon after working in the trade press here in London for a while (I had a big portfolio of travel writing and blogs from my time in Vietnam to help support my application). Back then they were just starting out so I had the good fortune of joining them after only a few months of operation.

Vagabundo Magazine came off the back of me writing for it and contacting Brendan. If I had to give any advice to people looking for similar opportunities I’d say networking with bloggers or writers in the field (simply by shooting them emails and telling them you’re fans of their work) is definitely the way to go.

In one of the frustrating moments of learning Spanish abroad!

Is this work 100% remote?

The work is 100% remote with the only stipulation that I check-in via emails regularly and take the occasional Skype call.

Are there good opportunities for travel writers at companies like Gap Daemon and Vagabundo?

Both these publications have great opportunities for travel writers looking to make a break in the field. Unlike other sites of a similar nature, Vagabundo Magazine and Gap Daemon both pay for good content from decent travel writers. Granted you won’t make anything near as much as you would writing for national papers or magazines but it’s still a great way to start.
If you’re interested in writing for the Gap Daemon blog I’d suggest thinking carefully about what you can offer and then pitching to chief editor Nadia. You can get in contact with her via Twitter.

The process is similar with Vagabundo. Check out the site, familiarise yourself with the content then have a read of the contributors guidelines.

Why do you work for other companies rather than focusing on your own sites?

That’s a really good question but one that’s easily answered by saying that I’m still very much a beginner and new to this world. Working with people like Gap Daemon and Vagabundo gives me a very solid start (not to mention great contacts) and also two solid online brands behind that of my own name.
Working with these sites also reinforces just how great it is to be part of a team. That’s a feeling I often miss running my own independent project!

Please tell us about your search engine optimization services

SEO is new to me but something that I’m growing increasingly passionate about. I learned a lot from my time at Gap Daemon but have explored it more over the past few months, thanks largely to communities like Sean Ogle’s Location Rebel.

Right now I work primarily as a SEO writer, freelancing with SEO companies who outsource this type of work. For these firms I generally write on a whole host of topics, which can range from anything like telecommunications, to business agents to real estate dealings. Finding work in this field can be tricky (given the competition) but there are plenty of opportunities for people on sites like Elance.

I find most of my work based on referrals from previous clients or networking. More recently I’ve expressed an interest in moving away from the writing and more into consultancy.

SEO writing: Will's usual expression

Are there good opportunities to do SEO work for small businesses?

I’d say there’s a healthy amount. It’s all about taking action, contacting the types of business you want to work with and telling them what you can do for them. Chances are, if you’ve studied the subject, you’ll know more than most small business owners. The next thing you need to do is to convince them to pay you for it, even if that means doing some unpaid work first!

Can you give some advice for travellers looking to do SEO freelance work?

The first thing you want to do is find other people who are doing it and ask them about it – unfortunately I can’t relay all the details in an interview or it would go on forever! Ask those people if they wouldn’t mind Skyping or something and then take it from there.

I’d suggest starting out by simply reading about the subject and getting a feel for what it’s all about (the learning curve isn’t all that big!). From there I’d find SEO companies, web design firms or small businesses that you like the look or sound of and just start pitching to them.

It needn’t be too hard!

Do you have any advice for aspiring long-term travellers?

The only advice I’d feel qualified to give is make sure it’s your dream and don’t let anything hold you back. You don’t need massive savings, you don’t need specific skills and you don’t need to be that well prepared. All you need to be is a capable person and willing to take a few risks.
Oh and remember to give back by doing interviews such as these!

About Will Peach

Will is one of the site editors over at Gap Daemon, the gap year travel website for backpackers and young travellers. He also works as a freelance SEO writer as well as tackling the subject of what to see in Spain over on his travel site My Spanish Adventure. Follow will on Twitter.

I have said it many times before, teaching English abroad is a great away to see the world. Having a secure income and an employer that helps you get set up in a foreign country takes away most of the risk and expense of moving abroad. Samuel Jeffery of NomadicSamuel.com has used teaching English in Korea as a spring board to live abroad for 6 years and travel the world. In this interview, he talks about what it is like to teach English in Korea and provides some insight into his travels, website and future plans.

Please tell us about your travels.

I’ve now been abroad for six consecutive years alternating between teaching English in Korea and backpacking around Asia and the Americas.  I decided to go abroad for the first time after I became an ESL tutor on campus as a university student.  I became close friends with my students and the seeds of teaching and travelling abroad were firmly planted around this time.

Where are you now?

I’m currently in a transitional phase visiting family at home in Fredericton, Canada. I’m considering teaching English in a country other than South Korea and I’m also considering backpacking for half or a full year. I will have more clarity on the issue sometime in the New Year.

What are your most and least favourite countries and why?

My two favourite countries that I’ve visited are India and Argentina. India is just an incredible country that has no rivals in terms of diversity. I’ve never felt more stimulated travelling than I have while exploring India. Argentina is an amazing country with wonderful food, scenery and diverse landscape. The two countries I didn’t enjoy quite as much as others were Ecuador and Brunei. In Ecuador, I witnessed some violent events and security issues at the time. While in Brunei, I found it expensive and somewhat under-stimulating compared to other nearby countries in SE Asia.

Have you had any major problems on your travels?

I’ve been quite lucky in that I’ve never had anything debilitating happen to me on the road. My worst experience was an infection I developed while travelling in Malaysia that landed me in the hospital for several days. I’ve had my iPod stolen and a few other minor things. I’ve been lucky enough to never have any big ticket items (such as my camera or netbook) stolen.

What do you estimate your expenses are when you travel?

I’ve generally been able to travel on roughly $1000 a month. When I’m backpacking in Asia my budget is typically between $800 to $1000 a month and in South America I’ve expanded it slightly to $1000 to $1200. Certain countries stand out for one reason or another. When I was backpacking in India I only spent $600 a month whereas when I was in Argentina my budget stretched to $1500. I think generally speaking a frugal backpacker can enjoy travelling in developing countries for $1000 a month. I’ve only done limited travel in North America and I’ve never set foot in Europe. I know $1000 a month would not cut it in those regions.

How long do you plan on continuing this lifestyle?

I see myself continuing on with my nomadic ways for the indefinite future.  I haven’t even come close to scratching the itch I have to explore most of the world.  I feel my life overseas is now more of a lifestyle than a temporary phase.  I’m excited about what’s around the corner.

How was teaching English in Korea?

When I was tutoring English in University the majority of my students were from South Korea.  They encouraged me to consider trying teaching English after I finished my degree and the idea really grew on me over time.  In hindsight, it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life.  I’ve had really good experiences in Korea and I now consider it my home away from home.  I’ve found over time that my skills as a teacher have improved and I’ve always found the students to be a joy to teach.  Korea has a lot to offer in terms of culture, food and interesting destinations to explore.

What is the quality of life of an English teacher in Korea?

The quality of a life for an English teacher is generally very high provided they’ve secured a reputable job.  A typical contract includes return airfare, a free apartment, severance bonuses and low tax rate.  A teacher is typically left with a lot of disposable income after payday.  If a teacher is frugal and lives like a local, there is a potential to save between 50-75% of their salary each month.  Overall, in larger cities there is a vibrant expat community with plenty of opportunities to enjoy a variety of different activities.  One of the true highlights of living in Korea is the diverse cuisine.  Some of my favourite dishes are as spicy as any I’ve tried in Asia.

What are the typical salaries for English teachers in Korea in US dollars?

The average salary for a starting teacher would be anywhere between $1700 to $2200 per month with a free apartment, depending on experience, qualifications and the level which one is teaching (private, public, university). For more experienced teachers the average salary would be between $2100 to $2500. Finally, for those who are working at a prestigious university, large company or doing research or development the sky is the limit. I’ve heard of individuals pulling in between $5000 to 10,000 but this is very rare and only for those who have advanced qualifications such as a Masters degree and lots of experience teaching in Korea.

Would you teach English again?

I would definitely teach English overseas again.  I think it’s a wonderful opportunity to experience a new culture, travel and save money.  Unlike backpacking, it offers one the opportunity to feel as though they are part of the local community.  The one tip I would suggest is to carefully research your potential school before signing any contract.  Although there are excellent schools, the ESL industry is also rife with dodgy operators who have little concern for the welfare of their teachers or students.

Please tell us about your blog.

I launched Nomadic Samuel on July 1, 2011.  Although my website is relatively new, I’ve been fervently taking photos and videos for several years.  My blog is largely based on travel photos and videos, although I do write about quirky travel stories, destinations, ESL tips and photography tips.  In 2012, I will have completed all of my youtube projects which will allow me to spend a lot more time writing.  Eventually I would like to earn a full-time income from my travel blog and travel related projects.  It’s a work in progress and something that I’ll be pursuing with a lot of intensity over the next few years until it becomes a reality.

NomadicSamuel.com is quite popular for only starting in July, can you share how you have attracted so much interest in such a short time?

I’m very flattered and humbled by how well my website and other travel related projects have done in a short period of time. I think a few factors have helped contribute to the success of my website. Firstly, I’ve been overseas for six consecutive years and I’ve accumulated a wealth of different experiences over that period of time. Secondly, I’ve become quite an avid photographer over the last several years. One of the advantages of not having a blog (until recently) was that I was out taking a lot of photos just about every single day I was backpacking. Finally, I’ve been putting in a lot of effort into my materials (posting frequently on my site and my youtube channel) along with taking an advantage of opportunities to do interviews or guest posts on other sites.

What are some goals you have with your website?

Over the next couple of years I’d like to finish up projects I have on my youtube channel as well as continue to blog regularly on Nomadic Samuel. I have two new websites that I plan to eventually launch in the New Year related to travel photography and teaching English overseas (Travel Photography Tips & Teach English Travel Overseas). Eventually, I’d like to be on the road as a full-time digital nomad. I’m in the process of transitioning from teaching to a location independent lifestyle.

Links

Samuel Jeffery is the wizard behind the curtain pulling the strings of NomadicSamuel.com, a travel blog that is miles away from ordinary…dripping with sarcasm. As a long term vagabond (6 consecutive years on the road) Samuel is sharing his photos, videos & quirky travel stories along with photography tips, interviews, ESL tips, reviews and general travel advice as a way to vicariously experience what it is like to backpack or to plan your own journey of a lifetime.  Additionally, Samuel runs Travel Photography Tips and Teach English Travel Overseas.  Get in touch with Samuel by following him on his Facebook Fan Page , Twitter , StumbleUpon , Youtube & Google + .

What does it really take to make a location independent travel lifestyle work? Many people assume that it is okay for single people in their early twenties to take a gap year to travel the world, but what if you are getting older and need to focus on a career? What if you are travelling as a couple? How do you make a living? Simon Fairbairn and Erin McNeaney of NeverEndingVoyage.com share their experiences transitioning to a life of long-term travel in this interview.

Please tell us about yourselves.

We are a British couple who’ve been together since we were 18 (we’re now 30). Our first backpacking trip together was around Europe when we were 19 and we’ve continued to travel ever since. Simon has worked his way through varied careers as a musician (the highlight was playing at the Glastonbury Festival), legal caseworker to help asylum seekers stay in the UK, and web designer. I worked for a community arts organisation working with refugees to organise arts projects and events including an annual multi-cultural festival attended by 10,000 people.

How did you decide to embark on a nomadic lifestyle of long term travel?

Although we had taken one month backpacking trips around Europe and I spent three months volunteering in Sri Lanka after university, I always knew that I wanted to do a year-long round the world trip and after working for a few years I was keen to head off. It took a bit of effort to convince Simon but as soon as we set off at the end of 2007 he was hooked. We spent an amazing year travelling around Asia, Australia, the South Pacific and the US and had more incredible experiences that year than we had in the previous ten.

Returning to the UK was hard and we struggled to fit back into the dull routine of working 9-5. We had been back a few months when I discovered the world of digital nomads – people who could work and live anywhere in the world. This seemed perfect for us, especially as Simon was developing his web design career at the time (after designing websites for fun for 10 years) – an ideal location independent job. It was a natural step for us and wasn’t really a difficult decision to make. We decided to save as much as we could in nine months (as we were already experienced at saving for our previous trip we managed to save 75% of our income, sell everything we own and then hit the road. We left England with a one way flight to Rio de Janeiro on 1st March 2010.

What countries have you visited so far?

On our first trip we visited Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, the Cook Islands and the US.

This time we spent our first year travelling mostly overland in South America: Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru and Colombia; then Panama and Costa Rica. From there we moved on to the US, Canada, England, Hong Kong, Japan and now Thailand.

What are your most and least favourite countries so far?

Our favourite country is India. It’s a country of extremes, vibrant, colourful, challenging but never boring. We also loved the food and as vegetarians it’s one of the few places in the world where we can eat local food without worrying that it contains meat.

Our least favourite is New Zealand, which is a bit controversial as most people love it. For us it was too much like England and it didn’t help that we were there during the winter and it rained constantly, so we couldn’t do a lot of the outdoor activities that it’s famous for. That said, least favourite is relative and we still enjoyed snowboarding and heli-hiking on a glacier.

Can you give us a rough break down of monthly living expenses?

Our living expenses vary widely – when we are house sitting and have free accommodation we spend very little, but then other months can be expensive when we are travelling around places like Japan and have to buy international flights. During our first year in South America we averaged £1500 a month for the two of us. Our second year so far is working out at £2000 a month on average as we have travelled to more expensive places like the US, Canada and Japan, and we’ve spent a lot on international flights. As we don’t plan our travels very far in advance we buy one way tickets and these often aren’t much cheaper than returns so flights have been a big expense this year.

We have shared detailed breakdowns on our blog of our travel expenses in Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay; Bolivia and Peru; and Japan.

These days we don’t travel that frugally, although we are flashpackers rather than luxury travellers. We always stay in private en-suite rooms, and as we spend a lot of time working in them we can be quite fussy. We also spend quite a lot of money on food, but we don’t drink very much. After a few months travelling we often need a break from moving around to get some work done so we rent apartments for a few months. We usually end up choosing quite luxurious places as we want somewhere comfortable to work. These cost anywhere from $650 a month in Thailand, $800 in Argentina up to $1200 in Colombia.

Can you please tell us some administrative details about your banking, health insurance, credit cards, etc.?

As UK citizens we don’t need health insurance but we do have travel insurance which covers medical emergencies while we are travelling. We manage all our finances through online banking and access our money by withdrawing cash using debit cards at ATMs. We also have a few credit cards for emergencies. It’s important to have a number of different cards in case one gets stolen (which has happened to us). We also carry a few hundred US dollars just in case.

Although we don’t have a home base it’s impossible to manage without an address so we use a relative’s address where our banking and tax related mail gets sent.

Do you return to the UK often?

We’ve been back to the UK once in 20 months for a friend’s wedding and to visit family. We don’t know when we’ll next go back, it’ll depend if a visit works out with our travel plans. While we were there we stayed with various family members.

We sold almost everything we owned before we left and don’t have anything in storage. We keep two small boxes at Simon’s mum’s house with some documents and photo albums.

Do you still own a house there?

Unfortunately we do still own a house in the UK, which we are desperately trying to get rid of. The market is awful at the moment so we haven’t been able to sell it, so we’ve just put it on the rental market. We don’t like having the tie, and there’s always the worry that something will go wrong with the house (ours is over 100 years old) and it’ll cost us a lot to fix it. Dealing with the house from abroad is a bit of a pain, and we are lucky to have a friend and relative nearby who have helped us out a lot. If we find a tenant then we’ll have the estate agent manage it for us. Ideally we’ll rent it out for six months and try selling it again next year.

Do you travel with a lot of possessions?

We travel with a carry-on size backpack each plus a travel guitar. We love travelling with just carry on luggage – we save time at airports and always have our bags with us on planes and buses. It’s also much easier not having to lug a big backpack around when looking for accommodation. You can see exactly what we travel with on our packing list post. People are fascinated by that and it has been our most popular post for the 20 months we’ve been running the blog.

What are the essential items you must travel with?

Really the only essential item for us is a laptop, which we need to work on. Simon has a Macbook Pro and I have an Asus EeePC netbook (although I have my eye on a Macbook Air). I also love my Kindle – being able to travel with hundreds of books on a device smaller than a paperback is amazing.

Have you had any serious travel problems?

Not really. Simon got pick-pocketed in Costa Rica but he only lost $30 and one of our debit cards (which we had a backup for). We tend not to keep too much in the wallet we use daily just in case it gets stolen. On travel days our passport, cards and money are in money belts and our backpacks are lockable so it prevents anyone being able to get to the laptops easily.

How do you earn an income now?

Our main source of income is Line-In the WordPress web design and development business that Simon runs. We only started monetising the Never Ending Voyage blog three months ago and now have some income from that and another travel website I run, from selling links, advertising and affiliate products. I’ve been surprised at how lucrative it can be and although those sites are making about £900 a month at the moment, I have no idea how long it will last.

We aren’t currently making quite enough to cover our expenses (we saved up before we left to give ourselves a cushion) but to be honest we haven’t tried that hard, and have often been distracted by travel. We aren’t particularly good business people, and Simon loves what he does so much that he tends to over deliver way more than clients have paid him for. It turns out being a perfectionist isn’t so good for business!

Ultimately client work isn’t scalable so we are currently settled in Chiang Mai, Thailand for three months to develop some products to sell including Premium WordPress Themes. We aim to have income coming in from multiple sources.

What are some of the downsides of a location independent lifestyle?

Sometimes we get tired of moving around and we miss home comforts like a couch, a comfy bed and having a kitchen. That never makes us want to return to the UK though, instead we just rent an apartment for a few months or look for a house sitting opportunity. After a few months of comfort we get itchy feet and are ready to hit the road again.

Our biggest challenge has been building a business as we don’t have any experience with that.

Is it difficult to travel as a couple?

We don’t find it difficult at all and argue less on the road than we did at home when we were stressed with work and commuting. We rarely have any time apart, and that’s not a problem for us, although it is nice to have an apartment with two rooms so that I can sleep if Simon’s working late!

Do you plan on settling down in one country as a home base?

We have no plans to settle down permanently. There isn’t one place in the world that we want to commit to, although we’d be quite happy to spend a few months each year in San Francisco. The world’s a big place and there are still too many places we want to visit. Even if we begin to travel more slowly we are still addicted to the freedom of this lifestyle.

Do you have any advice for people considering long term traveling?

Do it! Get control of your finances, cut down your unnecessary spending and start saving now. It’s important to set a start date for your trip, even if it’s two or three years from now. It gives you something to work towards and helps keep you motivated while you save.

Links
Neverendingvoyage.com
Follow @nevendingvoyage on Twitter
Follow on  Facebook

Most people are surprised at how inexpensive a travel lifestyle can be. With a modest and consistent online income, a life abroad is probably a lot easier than you think. This interview with Matthew Karsten, of ExpertVagabond.com, is a great case study on what is possible.

Please tell us about your travels.

I first began traveling long-term in November 2010. Before I left for good, I took a “practice” trip in Mexico for 5 weeks to see if I’d like it, and to learn about any logistical problems that might pop up (mail, banking, internet, etc.). After that I flew into Guatemala and have been working my way South through Central America for the last 10 months.

What made you decide to begin a nomadic life?

There really wasn’t a single big reason, more like a combination of many. I was bored with my life. I moved around a lot, and it was something I actually looked forward to doing. I guess I just couldn’t stay in one place for too long before I started wondering what it would be like living somewhere else. I think I was just born with a nomadic gene.

Did you have a lot of savings when you started?

I dramatically cut down on unnecessary expenses to save for the trip, but I didn’t spend years saving up like some people do. I maybe saved for a year or so. The difference is I also spent 3 years building up a business in my spare time that could support me while I was traveling. I was aiming for a certain monthly income, not a certain savings amount.

You were living and working in Hawaii before, why did you leave?

I left Hawaii for the same reasons I left the beautiful mountains of Montana, and the amazing nightlife in Miami. I got sick of those places. I needed something new. It’s my nomadic gene working, I can’t control it. It’s one of the reasons I love constant travel so much. Every day is completely new and different.

Please tell us about your website?

My travel blog was created about 6 months prior to the start of my trip. I knew I wanted to record the many travel experiences I’d have for friends & family. I was hoping that others might find it interesting too, because I always loved reading other travel blogs. Eventually I’d like to turn my travel blog into another solid source of income, but my main goal with the site is to effectively share my experiences with others in the hopes that they’ll be inspired to take some risks and explore the world on their own.

Your videos are very high quality, do you think video is more effective than text on a blog?

At the moment I use 3 different cameras to record my adventures, and all of them record HD video. I wouldn’t consider them pro cameras, but all combined they aren’t cheap. Right now it’s about $5000 worth of camera gear. All the short films on the site are edited by me, but I have no formal training. I slowly taught myself (and still have a lot more to learn). I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary to have video on a travel blog, but it certainly helps add a different dimension. My videos tend to focus on the visual experiences, I don’t talk much in them. Shooting & editing video is a TON of work, and if you don’t really enjoy it, it can be a nightmare. Luckily I enjoy it very much.

What did you do to build such a large online following?

At the moment I have over 13,000 followers on Twitter, and over 1400 fans on Facebook. One of my techniques for gathering new followers is to make it very easy for people to follow me. At the end of every blog post, I just ask people to follow if they enjoyed the story or photos. The process has to be easy & quick.

Do you make much money from your website?

I don’t make a ton of money from my travel blog yet. Maybe $300-$400 a month with some affiliate links & advertising. While I’d obviously like that to increase, I also don’t want my blog to become an ugly billboard that’s unpleasant to visit. I turn down advertisers all the time if I think their ads will degrade the experience for my readers.

How do you earn an income now?

The quick explanation is that I create membership websites. Customers pay for information or access to online courses about particular topics. The topics vary widely. I plan on writing a detailed blog post about this in the future. It’s taken me years to earn an income this way.

What are your approximate monthly living expenses?

I spend about $800-$1000 a month on living expenses while traveling. About 30% is for food, 30% for accommodation, 20% transportation, and 20% for entertainment. The breakdown can change depending where I am and what I’m doing though.

What do you dislike about always being on the road?

Generating meaningful friendships & relationships can be hard to when you’re always on the road. I plan on taking long breaks for a few months in one location every so often to help remedy that, but I’m not sure if it will work yet. I possibly see myself getting sick of the nomadic lifestyle sometime in the future. But for now, the benefits outweigh the costs.

Are you afraid of not being in the workforce for a long time?

I’m not a “career” kind of guy. I can always learn something new if I’m forced to, I think everyone can.

Have you had any serious problems on your travels?

Plenty of minor annoyances, like missed flights & buses, delayed baggage, broken cameras, cuts & sprains, etc. But so far no robberies, major accidents, illnesses, animal attacks, or things like that. I’ve had food poisoning only once in 10 months, and I drink local tap water most of the time.

How do you deal with administrative issues like banking, bills and health care?

I do my banking with Charles Schwab, a great bank for travel. They refund all your ATM fees no matter where you are. I have a catastrophic health insurance plan with Blue Cross Blue Shield in the United States that only covers major problems, and I use local doctors for other things. I also subscribe to a virtual mail-forwarding service called Earth Class Mail for cashing the occasional physical check and managing my mail.

Do you have any advice for people considering long-term traveling?

It may seem like there are too many obligations & obstacles stopping you from long-term travel, but I’ve learned that nothing is impossible. The only thing stopping you, is you. If you really want to travel, there’s always a way to make it happen. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy though.

To help conquer fears, I’d also like to recommend the following piece of advice from the philosopher Seneca:

“Set aside a certain number of days, during which you shall be content with the scantiest and cheapest fare, with course and rough dress, saying to yourself the while: Is this the condition that I feared?”

Links

ExpertVagabond.com
Follow Matthew  on Twitter
Matthew on Facebook

It is hard for most people to imagine what it is like to constantly travel. Most imagine that great riches are required, but from my own experiences and those I have interviewed, a travel lifestyle is probably much easier than you imagine. Digital nomad, James Clark of NomadicNotes shares his story of creating a life of constant travel in this interview. By keeping his expenses low, he is able to fund his travels through various advertising driven travel related websites.

Please tell us about your travels.

My first trip abroad was a brief holiday to Hawaii which activated the travel bug. I took some annual leave holidays after that, but I found that even saving up 2 months of leave from work wasn’t enough time to explore in a time frame I wanted. My long term travels began in 1999 when I moved to London on a 2 year working holiday visa, where I used London as a home base for travels around Europe. So far my travels have taken me to over 40 countries across North America, Europe and Asia. I still have much of the world to see, but I am not in a hurry to tick off a list of countries.

What made you decide to begin a nomadic life?

I wouldn’t say that my nomadic lifestyle was a decision, rather it has been something that has evolved over time. My original goal was to become self employed doing a job I enjoy which I could do anywhere. At first I would travel for shorter trips, then the trips extended to the point where now I am traveling full time.

Do you have a home base somewhere that you return to?

At the moment I have no home base. When I first started out working for myself in 2003, I had a home base in Melbourne. I averaged around 6 months away and six months at home, while keeping the place I lived at. In 2010 I moved out of that house so I am now without a fixed address.

If you had to choose one country to live, what would it be?

Tough question! I think I will always call Australia home but lately I have been gravitating towards SE Asia whenever I want to stay put for a while. So out of that region I will nominate Thailand for its food, lifestyle, cost of living and good internet service.

How do you earn an income now?

I run a number of commercial travel websites which earn income from the following sources:

• Affiliate sales
• Google Adsense
• Direct Advertising

I have done web design and search engine optimization in the past for other sites, but currently I am working exclusively on my own sites.

Do you make much money from your website?

Without going into details, I make more money working for myself than when I was working for someone else, which is a satisfying feeling. I have had periods though where I wasn’t making much money at all. This is all part of the life of being self employed, a stress which is not for most people.

What is your approximate travel budget for a year?

I don’t really keep a travel budget as it is more of a living budget now. I am aware of my outgoings and I keep my expenses down by not paying for internet or staying in expensive accommodation. I recently kept track of my cost of living for a month for when I was living in Mexico as an example of how you can live well on a small budget. I spent $850 in one month while living in Playa del Carmen. This was a living budget, and not a travel budget, which has different considerations such as transportation and short term accommodation costs.

Are you getting tired of traveling?

I’m not tired of the traveling lifestyle, though I manage this by breaking up my travels with breaks in one place. As much as I love travel, I also love the work that I do as well, which is a good incentive to stay at a home base for a while rather than continuing on to the next destination.

Have you had any serious problems on your travels?

I have been denied entry to two countries in Europe for not having a visa (oops), been in a hotel fire and have had numerous flight delays and cancellations (I’m looking at you Eyjafjallajökull!) but nothing too serious (touch wood).

How do you deal with administrative issues like banking, bills and health care?

This is something that has evolved over time as well. Most of my banking is online now. I have opted out of paper statements and get e-statements instead. I have the occasional payment with cheques (yes some companies still use cheques!) so I have them sent to my parents who manage my banking as well as my quarterly business tax statements. I still maintain health care in Australia, and for travel insurance I am currently using World Nomads.

Do you have any advice for people considering long term traveling

Whether you are travelling as a working nomad or just taking a year off work to explore the world it is a good idea to start simplifying your life before you go. Get out of debt if possible and wind down any monthly standing payments like TV subscriptions. Get rid of unnecessary mail subscriptions and get anything that can be done online set up.

As for making a travel plan, I find you don’t really need one. Once you are on the road you will get into adventures that may take you destinations that weren’t on your original itinerary.

Links
Nomadic Notes - James Clark’s Blog
Follow James on Twitter
Nomadic Notes on Facebook

It has been about 16 months since my wife and I left Japan and almost two and a half years since we made our commitment to change countries and careers. Here is an update on how our life has changed since we decided to give up our old way of life.

Visiting Canada

We are back in Canada now until the end of summer. My wife’s six month visa expires in September so we have to go somewhere before then. We still haven’t decided where or for how long.

Overall life is good.  We really have few complaints. I am doing some part-time marketing consulting work with a few companies which more than pays for our living expenses. We have time to regularly exercise, read a lot, meet new people and generally do anything we want. With the exception of my terrible marathon performance last month, I would even say that life is perfect.

We are Homeless

Our house in Japan was up for sale for a long time but we finally sold it a few of months ago.  Getting rid of the house will save us a lot of money every month so we are happy to lose that expense, but it also makes it difficult to return to Japan. Japan is still our home base for bank accounts, taxes, credit cards, etc. so we will return, however that will probably wait until the nuclear crisis is resolved.

In a previous post, I wrote about the idea of creating a Digital Nomad Network of accommodations to share with other location independents but only a handful of people were interested. I have a few possible locations arranged, but I think it will have to be a more closed group with close friends and family.

The Case Against Location Independence

My wife and I have been based out of Calgary, Canada for the last 5 months and it has been great to be able to build some connections and friendships. The Internet is great to connect with like-minded people, but nothing beats real world meet ups. It is a lot of work, but I have been trying to meet with several new people every week. This has been a fantastic source of ideas, new connections and even work opportunities.

If you are thinking of doing freelance work while traveling, I highly recommend building strong local connections in your home city. You can earn a lot more money selling your services to people who trust you, than to compete anonymously with the thousands of others offering the same services online.

Life is Good

Overall, life is fantastic. I can easily earn enough money to cover all of our expenses in a couple of hours per day. We are eating lots of healthy, home cooked meals, spending time with friends and family, cycling a lot, exercising everyday, and generally living a completely stress free life.

How our Lives have Changed

We no longer have the new car, big house, latest electronics and endless useless household gadgets, but that is a good thing. We also have no pressure to work. We are no longer spending our time shopping, maintaining the goods we have, or worrying about what to buy next. Less stuff really does mean more life.

Owning a house meant working in the yard, shopping for furniture and other household items, cleaning, taxes and a general mental focus geared towards possessions. Now all of those obligations and pressures are gone.

Not having a car means much less monthly expenses, not getting stressed out in traffic, more opportunities to walk and cycle. Even taking public transportation has become enjoyable. It is great to listen to an audio book while taking the bus and not have to worry about driving.

We are not sure what the future will bring, but we are not anxious to alter our current lifestyle either. Life is good.

Here is a fantastic opportunity to help out with a great cause, enter a raffle to win some amazing personal and business development resources and get 17 author interviews just for promoting the cause on Twitter or Facebook. Before you continue reading, please take a moment to visit this Kidney Raffle Page and help spread the news.

This interview is with a friend I originally connected with online and then had the the opportunity to meet in my home city of Calgary, Canada. Cath Duncan and her husband are South African natives who have decided to call Calgary home after some work re-locations around the world. Cath has generously given hundreds of hours of her time to raise money for Kidney research. She tells her story and offers some great personal development advice in this interview.

Please tell us a little about your yourself.

I grew up in Cape Town, South Africa. Since 2002, my husband Andy and I have moved between London UK, Philadelphia USA, Cape Town SA and Calgary Canada since 2002. We’ve moved a lot because we both love change and variety, and living in different parts of the world is a great way to travel because you can continue working and building your career while you travel, and you’re a part of a the community rather than just experiencing the obvious tourist attractions.

My husband is a software development consultant so it’s been fairly easy for him to get contractual work in the UK, South Africa and Canada, and he now works for a very progressive global consultancy that keeps him stimulated with dynamic projects. I started out in Child Protection Social Work and moved into self-employment in a variety of different training, coaching and counseling roles in 2005. At the end of 2008, I took my business online and since then I’ve focused on creating online personal development resources to help people take action on the best ideas in the best personal development books (at www.bottomlinebookclub.com) and offering life and career coaching consults via Skype (at www.agileliving.net).

What is South Africa like?

It’s often only through visiting other places that you’re able to see what makes the place you were born in unique. South Africa’s uniqueness is in it’s rich diversity and multi-dimensionality. It’s a bridge between developed countries and undeveloped countries because South Africa is such a wonderful mix of first and third world.

Of course, if you’re living and working in South Africa, this creates incredibly complex and interesting problems to solve, because we have both the worst of the developed world’s problems (like lifestyle diseases such as obesity, heart disease, kidney disease, and extreme opulence, selfishness and greed) and also the worst of the undeveloped world’s problems (like lack of housing and sanitation, unemployment, illiteracy, HIV/AIDS and so on). When you consider this, together with the 50 years of Apartheid and separate development that took place in our recent history, it’s easy to see how racism and crime has thrived in some pockets of South Africa.

But this diversity and multi-dimensionality also makes for incredibly interesting solutions, inventions, art and design, music, storytelling, community development projects and unexpected surprises. You can go to a remote, rural place like Bulungula, on the East coast of South Africa, and find pristine, beautiful beaches (in spite of the high population and poverty rates in the area) and great 3G internet connection (in spite of the fact that 70% of the people living there are unemployed, literacy rates are high and there’s very little income). They’re doing amazing things to bring together the best of first and third world at Bulungula. Beyond the eco-friendly lodge, they’ve helped the community start a number of 100% community-owned and run businesses including agricultural ventures, horse riding, canoeing, fishing, guiding, baking, sewing, cooking, wood-carving, environmental protection projects, massage services and a restaurant. My favourite was the bicycle powered blender at the lodge, where you can have a morning cycle and make your breakfast smoothie at the same time! They’ve helped the community to form a non-profit called the Bulungula Incubator, which has rehabilitated a local primary school, built and run our world class Early Learning Centre, embarked on a number of ambitious agricultural projects, implemented various clean drinking water initiatives and lots, lots more.

You’ll also find party experiences in South Africa that you just wouldn’t find anywhere else – like Mzoli’s butchery. Yes, in Cape Town, one of the most popular party spots is a butchery in the middle of a large shanty town called Gugulethu. They only sell meat and samp (a porridge-like substance made of corn). You buy your meat raw and they cook it for you over an open fire – if you want to be fancy and have salads, utensils, drinks and so on, then you bring your own! The place rocks all day – great party music, people come dressed in everything from their dirty overalls to their suit and shiniest bling, and we party together out on a dusty street sidewalk. You’ll mix with students, politicians, high-powered entrepreneurs, artists, tourists, unemployed drunks and more. I don’t think I’ve ever been anywhere that’s so “come-as-you-are” with so much mixing across different personal income statuses, skin colors, religions, ages, sexual preferences and so on.

So there are the pockets of high crime and awful racism in South Africa, but there are also these examples of diversity, love of difference, ground-breaking platforms for speaking of the truth, homegrown creativity, humor, technological innovation, new music genres and a willingness to innovate and just “get the job done” rather than faffing with bureaucratic rules and restrictions.

How did you end up in Calgary?

Our moves have usually been determined by 2 questions: is there stimulating work for us? And would we be exposed to different experiences? Andy got the opportunity to work for a great company and, being from South Africa, snow is a novelty to us, so we thought, “Hey, let’s go live in a very snowy place for a while…”

Was it easy for your husband to get the visa to work here?

When we came over to Canada in Feb 2010, there were specialist IT work permits that were easy to get, and he already had the job offer, which made it easier. In October last year Canadian immigration dropped this specialist IT work permit, so it’s now more difficult to get a work permit. South Africans generally have a tougher time getting permission to live and work in other countries than Canadians, Americans and Europeans do, but governments open and close their borders in reaction to economic changes so the visa opportunities change every few years. If you’re not self-employed, your best chance of being able to work in other countries rests on being a young degreed professional in a growing industry.

What do you think of Calgary?

For us the most important factor in determining whether we feel “at home” in a new city is the friendships we form. In Calgary we fairly quickly and easily found a few really excellent folks and formed strong friendships with them. We’re very proactive about seeking out and nurturing new friendships, but we also liked that many Calgarians seem to be quick to invite you into their homes for dinner (as opposed to meeting in pubs and restaurants like folks tend to do in London). I think this helps develop the intimacy and sense of community more quickly.

We also love the Rockies and often head out into the mountains. We’ve enjoyed the snow – it still amazes me how beautiful it is, and we’ve been enjoying snow-shoeing, snow-boarding, curling, and Andy’s joined a hockey team.

I do miss the diversity, multi-dimensionality and dynamism of South Africa and London though. In comparison, Calgary is fairly one-dimensional in terms of art, culture, work, design, architecture, lifestyle and food choices. I’ve also been surprised (and frustrated!) by the endless bureaucracy that has to be negotiated whenever we want to do anything in Canada. Getting anything done is slow because of the 6 to 12 month bureaucratic run-up that has to take place before you have the necessary permissions to test out new experiences. And chatting with a lot of our friends here who are new to Calgary, it seems difficult to first break into the Calgarian job market – Calgarian employers seem to strongly prefer people with Calgarian experience.

What is the Kidney Raffle that you are working on?

We’re running an online raffle from 7 till 9 June. Seth Godin, Martha Beck, Pam Slim, Danielle LaPorte, Adam Baker and 40 other top authors, coaches and teachers (including you – thanks, John!) have donated an array of personal and business development prizes totalling over $12K for raffle participants to stand a chance to win. It’s a “donate-what-you-wish-when-you-enter” raffle because we wanted to open it to anyone anywhere in the world, with any budget. We’ve set a goal to raise $45K for kidney research through the raffle.

Can you please tell us about your baby and personal health problems that lead up to the Kidney Raffle?

I have an hereditary kidney condition and last year while I was pregnant my kidney health deteriorated significantly, placing both my life and our daughter’s life at risk. We endured a lot of really difficult conversations with doctors who urged us to consider whether it was wise to continue the pregnancy, considering the risks. We were already in love with and totally changed by our daughter, so ending her life was just not an option for us. When we discovered these concerns for her and my well-being, the “Juggernaut” nickname we’d given her stuck, as we and all our friends and family hoped that she’d prove to be “an unstoppable force.”

But at around 5 months gestation, we discovered that her heart was no longer beating. I’ve written about the day we delivered, met and said goodbye to Juggernaut – both the best and worst day of our lives. Juggernaut was our first child and because of the risks involved in another pregnancy, we won’t try to get pregnant again, so it’s been a tough series of losses to deal with altogether – my health, our precious daughter, the chance to ever birth a child naturally.

How has all this changed you and your husband?

We’ve been changed in so many ways by the weird mix of the miracle of becoming parents and the trauma of being faced with our own mortality and the reality and mystery of death. I’ve actually had a personality change reflected in my Myers-Briggs profile. I used to be an INTJ and now I’m an INFJ, so I’ve shifted from making sense of the world and making decisions by way of rationality to relying more on emotional intelligence instead. That makes sense – I think both birth and death are so mysterious that it’s impossible to fully understand them and the experiences we had last year were impossible to manage or control with rationalism, so we were forced to learn to make decisions with our hearts.

Also, loving and losing Juggernaut opened up emotional worlds I had never experienced before and I seem to have a more intense emotional reaction to life these days. I’ve been surprised to find that, although I still sometimes experience deeper sadness than I ever though possible, I also often feel more peace, awe at simple things in life, and a greater capacity for compassion and love than I ever thought possible.

I think being faced with death and the heart-opening experience of growing and loving a child has made us realize the preciousness of life in a way that we didn’t feel before. And because of that, we’re much clearer about what’s important to us and much less willing to compromise on our values or be something that other people want us to be. Health, emotional wellness, community and contribution are our clear top priorities and we’re doing a much better job of living those priorities these days. The Kidney Raffle project has affirmed these priorities – the sense of community and contribution has been incredibly healing for me and I’m hearing from many folks who’ve been involved that it’s been really healing and helpful for them too.

Are traumatic events like this necessary to get people to focus on what is important in their lives?

Good question. There is a prevailing view in the personal development world that all traumatic events are actually “gifts” sent to you to help you be more of the person you’re meant to be. That perspective jars with me. As a Social Worker, and as a South African, I’ve lived and worked with many people who experienced trauma that did not make their lives better or help them to be more of the person they wanted to be – it broke them and made them mentally ill or awfully cruel instead.

I think what trauma does is it completely breaks our prevailing belief system – that’s part of what makes it so painful and shocking. At that point, there’s enormous potential as we begin to adapt and learn a new belief system, and we’re really at a fork in the road where we can let the breaking down of our old selves open our hearts more in love, or close our hearts more in fear. Through a lot of hard work and soul-searching, we can turn the trauma into treasure and learn a new belief system that’s much healthier and supports much more authentic future choices. But I don’t think that’s automatic.

The trauma itself is not the gift. The gifts are the resilience of the human spirit to be able to create treasure out of the bits of trauma, and the community that surrounds that person and supports them to do so.

As a life coach, what do you see as the biggest barriers holding people back from pursuing their dreams?

I’m a big fan of Brene Brown’s research and model for living a meaningful life. She says that the biggest thing that gets in the way of us pursuing our dreams and being the person we want to be is shame. I used to think it was just generally fear that got in the way, but I think she’s right in that all our fears essentially stem from two major fears: fear or failure and fear of rejection. And perhaps it’s really just one fear – the fear of rejection, because we fear failure only because we believe failure will mean we’re not good enough and we’ll be rejected by others.

Shame is both a social and individual dynamic – we shame each other and we shame ourselves, and the pain of feeling that shame demotivates us and disconnects us from our resourcefulness, creativity and confidence, and then we don’t pursue our dreams or be the person we want to be.

We’re held back by shame and to become more of the people we want to be and pursue our dreams, we need to develop what Brene calls “shame resilience,” where we build a lifestyle and daily habits that make us more able to protect ourselves from being shamed by ourselves and others. Building compassionate communities around us is a big part of building shame resilience – you can’t build shame resilience in isolation, because shame is partly a social dynamic.

What can readers do to support the Kidney Raffle?

Thanks for asking, John! There are 2 ways you can be a part of Kidney Raffle and make your contribution to the community:

1. 1. Join us from 7 to 9 June at Kidney Raffle and make a donation when you enter the raffle to stand a chance to win one of the awesome prize bundles.
2. 2. Help us spread the word about Kidney Raffle so that more people will contribute and we can reach our goal of $45K for kidney research. You can do that by joining our Facebook page and if you help to share about Kidney Raffle on Facebook or Twitter, we’d like to thank you with a gift of 17 inspiring and info-packed author interviews from my Bottom-line Book Club.

Links
Kidney Raffle – Make a donation to win some fantastic prizes.
Kidney Raffle Facebook page
BottomLineBookClub.com – Fantastic author interviews with Cath Duncan’s coaching tips and summaries.
Agileliving.net – Cath’s private coaching blog.
Cath Duncan on Twitter

Don’t forget to make a donation at the Kidney Raffle now.

Is it possible to make a living doing what you love AND travel the world at the same time? Mark Shea of Overlander.TV is proving that it is indeed possible to follow your passion and have a location independent lifestyle. He shares his experiences as a traveling videographer and offers some great advice in this interview.

Please tell us about Overlander.tv.

I got involved in video in the mid 90′s when the advent of mini DV cameras opened up broadcast quality TV production to everyone….supposedly. I bought my copy of ‘Rebel without a Crew’ and set out to learn how to do everything from script to screen. I cut my teeth filming weddings on the weekends.

In my 20′s, I traveled a lot and wanted to find a way to continue doing this. From the time I was a young boy I had this desire to see the world, to understand it. I always had my head in the encyclopedia reading about some far off tribe.

I watched a lot of travel programming and found it dull. It was just like ads for resorts. Another beautiful presenter in a bikini, once again telling the viewer, ‘This is my favorite beach!’

I thought I could do better and decided the way to do this would be to tell the stories of local people. So I set up the ‘Meet a Local’ series with the hope of getting a television deal. TV wasn’t and still isn’t open to the idea that one person can do it all.

Not long after I finished my first ‘Meet a Local’ program, Lonely Planet produced a show of the same theme. I realized then, if I was going to make this work, I had to become my own TV station, raising my own advertising and sponsorship funds.

Before Youtube, in 2001, I envisaged the internet as the next great broadcast medium and set up an online travel video channel. I was lucky to get in early and get a head start, but even now, I am still fine tuning the various revenue streams, and it has only really been since the advent of Youtube, that the profile of my work has grown.

Video seems to be the way of the future, have you discovered that video is more popular than blog articles?

After music, I think the audio visual medium is the most powerful storytelling tool to get across emotion. Look at some of the videos coming out of the Middle East, the Egyptian Uprising, from the people, by the people, such powerful narrative.

This is what I love about video on the internet, the truth can prevail. People outside powerful media organizations, can have a voice.

In the travel industry, I think video is still largely an untapped resource. There are so many people writing travel blogs but very few really nailing it with video.

I think the problem is people just copy what they see others doing. They see someone running a blog, selling an ebook and do the same, not really thinking outside the box.

The way I make money from travel videos is not the only way, and maybe not even the best way. I think the main thing is to follow your passion and build on that.

I’m seeing more and more clever tourism operators include video in their online marketing campaigns. In the same way most tourism businesses now have web sites, I see a time when all business will have videos on those sites.

Your videos are very high quality, do you lug around lots of expensive gear?

It is now possible for one to carry a broadcast quality kit, in their carry on luggage. I made a video recently of my current kit.

I’m always trying to lighten my load and next plan to buy and even smaller broadcast quality camera (1kg) which I am quite excited about as it will mean I will be able to film in more places, without attracting too much attention

How do you earn an income now?

Video production is my main source of income. When I am in Australia I do commercial video production, business profiles, videos for tourism regions, etc. I also make online ad revenue from my videos, and sell DVD’s and video downloads on Overlander.tv.

Recently I filmed in New Zealand.  On this trip I wanted to test whether I could get paid to travel with my camera. It was a great success. I had money coming in from my monthly Youtube ad revenue payments, and did a number of tourism business profiles.

I made a majority of my money doing the profile videos. I usually find clients by approaching them and telling them the benefit of online video. I always try and deal with innovative businesses as it makes it easier for me to tell their story.

I think there is a lot of smoke and mirrors on the internet, a lot of people writing their own copy, making out they are better than they are. In business, face to face is most important in closing a deal. And with online video, it doesn’t matter how fancy the production, if it doesn’t get seen, the campaign is a failure. My online social network (Youtube, Facebook, Twitter) ensures any video I produce gets views. This is an important selling point to business.

Youtube ad revenue has picked up quite a bit in the last 6 months, but only provides me a part-time income. There are Youtube partners making six figure incomes. I can’t reveal the exact amount I make from Youtube but currently I get about 600,000 views a month just on Youtube, and also have a revenue deal with another site Blinkx. I have tried all the major video sites and can tell you there are a lot of cowboys out there. Some, despite 1,000s of views have never paid a red cent. Youtube is the current king, but you need a lot of views to make any coin.

So with my model of production, it is a matter of balancing several streams of income, both passive and active.

What are your plans for the future?

I am currently planning a round the world trip to really test the ‘get paid to travel the world with your video camera’ idea. It will be interesting, as some countries are more open to video than others.

I was interested to see the success of ‘Eat Pray Love’ and my next series will explore travel for personal growth. My most honest and popular film was my Camino de Santiago pilgrimage.

So I want to get back to that really raw portrayal of travel, the good and the bad.

I have been researching how to legally work in foreign countries, and have found some amazing information, particularly with regard to how corporations do it, all these schemes like the double Irish and Dutch sandwiches. The five flags theory also may be of interest to your readers.

I’m also looking at ways to cut travel expenses, secure sponsorship and deal with foreign languages. Many of these issues I will probably end up video blogging about.

Do you have any advice for aspiring travel videographers?

The main thing is follow your passion. As I mentioned before, my way of doing things is but one of many. There are numerous ways people can make money and travel with a video camera.

Stock Footage:
There are a lot of sites set up to distribute stock footage. With the right equipment and a good eye, one could film beautiful locations around the world and sell the footage, earning a nice passive income.

DVD Production:
If you have a passion, whether it be permaculture or pristine wilderness, with the right marketing, you can find an online audience. Don’t narrow your distribution options, by just listing on your blog, get it into bookshops and amazon etc.

Get a broadcast deal:
Don’t want to do it all yourself, wise move! I can think of two individuals, Community Channel and Graham David Hughes, who have got broadcast deals on the strength of their ideas and Youtube profiles.

Set up a website highlighting all the best travel videos on the internet.
This one seems like a no brainer, but I’m amazed only one site is doing it: MatadorNetwork.

Given that Youtube embeds, run ads for their producers, most would be happy having their work displayed on another site. And the owner of that site can collect any additional ad revenue from ads on their pages.

So always be willing to look outside the square. Take from what successful operators are doing, and build on it, the space is always changing ( remember myspace!)

Try and find your own voice, feed on your passions and when you do start getting noticed, read contracts carefully and try and not get locked in to exclusive deals unless the rewards are enormous. You don’t want to be paid yesterday’s prices for a growing market.

Marrying commerce and art is never easy so try and stay true to what people like about your work. Branded content doesn’t have to dull and obvious.

Finally, if you want to get paid to travel the world, become a flight attendant, video is only but one means.

Links
OverlanderTV
Follow OverlanderTV on Twitter

Related Links
Make a Living with YouTube Videos on JetSetCitizen