Traveling from place to place is a dream. 

One day you’re sipping your morning cafe doppio in the heart of Naples, then the next weekend you’re partying it up at one of Ibiza’s infamous summer festivals. 

But after traveling around for years, I’ve seen most people who give nomad life a try end up back home within the first year. 

Maybe their bank accounts dried up and they didn’t get their financial shit together in time. 

Maybe it’s the soul-crushing homesickness you feel from having a video call with your family while they’re getting together for Christmas.

Or maybe it’s realizing there’s “no place like home.”  

Either way, the cold hard truth is…most new digital nomads won’t last long. 

They’ll go back to their home country and become bitter about everything. I’ve even seen the more jaded ones go on Reddit ranting and bitching that digital nomadism is a scam. 

Your life doesn’t need to end up like this, though.

If you want to succeed as a digital nomad, knowing what not to do is a good start. 

Here are six mistakes I’ve seen most (myself included!) make and how you can defy the odds and make this lifestyle work for you. 

Mistake #1: Not Having A Rainy Day Fund

When I bought my one-way ticket to Thailand back in May 2018, I thought a thousand bucks and a one-month Airbnb rental was enough while I figured everything out. 

As it turns out, $1000 is nothing. The countless $1 Changs, daily trips to the market, and a random two-week trip to Bali was all it took to drain what took me months to save up.  

By July, I was broke.

Going broke in a foreign country…not my smartest move.

If I hadn’t landed an online teaching gig with Cambly the week before, I would’ve had to take out an emergency loan from the US embassy just to get back home.

Looking back, a few extra grand would’ve saved me a lot of unnecessary stress. Always have  at least three months’ worth of savings before you go. Websites like Numbeo, Citizen Remote, or Nomadlist give you a rough idea of how much it would take for someone to get by.  

Once you check these sites, multiply the cost of living by 3 if you have an online job or at least some income coming in every month. If you’re still in the bootstrapping stages or still looking for work, make that 6. 

This way, you’ll at least have a few months to enjoy your new home while getting yourself going. 

One last pro tip: always have a separate emergency fund from your savings and don’t touch it. You never know what can happen on the road. A broken computer or random hospital visit can leave your bank account in the red if you’re not careful. 

Reason 2: Not Having A Remote Skills Before Traveling 

Whoever says you can make six-figures in a month is probably: 

1. A “guru” trying to sell you their bullshit masterclass
2. Already rich as fuck 
3. Both

Sure, it happens, but don’t bank on it. You’ll probably need to pick up some valuable online skills and bust your ass off for at least a few months before getting there. 

Learning a skill and growing an online business takes time and there’s no magic pill that replaces hard work. You might need to take on a few low paid or free gigs before you start raking in some real dough. 

Set everything up before leaving instead of once you’re already halfway across the world. I know you want to get out there and start globetrotting ASAP. But as someone who just winged it for years, that type of attitude could leave you broke or being forced to do whatever pops up just to get by. 

Build your career and earn some money online before making the plunge. 

Reason 3: Playing Tourist Too Much

The first time I lived in Vietnam, I stayed in Saigon’s infamous Bui Vien street for a month. Every night, it pulsed with bright light from every nightclub, Vinahouse would be blasting, and hordes of food stall vendors were cooking up some Vietnamese classics I couldn’t turn down. 

Starry-eyed and smiling from ear to ear, I thought to myself, “This is it. This is my life now.” 

Those small moments of total bliss I’ve had throughout the years make digital nomading so worth it. 

But bills and travel expenses aren’t going to pay for themselves. Travel-work balance is a skill you have to learn fast to avoid going broke. Make a schedule that lets you get your job done, and don’t forget to leave a few days each week to enjoy the city you’re in. If you love exploring during the day, work at night or vice versa. 

Finding that sweet spot helps you get your shit done while making the most out of wherever you’re visiting. 

Reason 4: Not Making Friends 

95% of my digital nomad journey has been solo. 

While I can sit here and go through all the perks of traveling alone, doing it for months on end gets lonely. A lot of digital nomads I’ve met said this was one of the main reasons why they stopped or only do it part of the year instead. They couldn’t find close friends, they missed home, and they got to the point where they couldn’t do it anymore. 

Sure, going to a bunch of different cities is a high in itself. 

But who you meet along the way brings these places to life. I’ve even stayed in some cities for much longer just because I made some awesome connections there who made my experience 10x better than if I’d 

Don’t be shy. Find a Meetup or Facebook group you like, see what’s out there, and connect!

Reason 5: Overworking

All work and no play makes for a pretty boring life that eventually leads to burn out.  

You didn’t become a digital nomad to stare at a screen all day. 

I get the hustle, especially if you’re just starting out. You’re worried about finding new clients or selling the new product you spent nights on. To get there, you’re holed up in your hotel room or Airbnb, hoping that one day, you’ll get to touch grass whenever you want.  

Just because you’re trying to meet your goals doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy the journey. 

Get yourself out there and explore, even if it’s walking around the city for a few hours on your lunch breaks. These experiences will remind you why you’re doing all of this in the first place. 

Reason 6: Thinking It’s Easy

Being a digital nomad has its perks. 

What you see in all those travel vlogs really does happen. Some days feel like a freaking fairy tale.

But what you don’t see are the bootstrappers pulling all-nighters in coworking spaces, the 2am conference calls, or the hours you spend trying to make it all a reality. In other words, you won’t see the ugly, non-sexy parts that make digital nomadism possible. 

And to me, this is the biggest reason why so many new nomads fail.

They’ll fall in love with the idea of digital nomadism, not the effort, planning, and reality-checking it takes to make it work. The minute it gets hard, they give up, run back home, and claim how it’s bullshit. 

Don’t be one of those people. Know what you’re getting into from day one and plan accordingly. 

If you’re willing to put in the work, there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t make your dream of becoming a digital nomad and seeing the world a reality.