Are you a traveljunkie?  Do you daydream of travel?  Here's the story of how I broke free and started exploring the world . . . 

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## Travel On The Brain

Since I was roughly 5 years-old, **all I ever wanted to do was travel**.  I was one of those kids that hoarded National Geographic magazines and had world maps on her walls.  Whenever extra money and/or extra time was coming my way, I always thought of travel.  I had the good fortune of traveling to exotic and fun places with family while I was growing up - *that only fueled the desire for MORE travel*.

In college (while working as a travel agent, of course), I initially thought it would be cool to find a job where I had to travel for work, but after speaking with people who had to do it routinely, I changed my mind fast.  They did not paint a pretty picture about that aspect of their job.  It was common not to have much of a choice of destinations (*if at all*), most of the time was taken up by a meeting (*not sightseeing*), and bringing family or friends along was not an option.  Worst of all, when vacation time came; the last thing they wanted to do was travel!  Based on these discussions, I decided that I would wait until I could travel on my own terms.

## . . . I Was Tired Of Waiting  . . . 

After college, I hopped around from corporate job to corporate job - trying to find the 'sweet spot' of a good paycheck and ample vacation time.  Unfortunately, over-demanding jobs made it uncomfortable to be out of the office for too long, so small weekend trips became the norm.

I quickly became unhappy
I felt like my dreams of long-term travel (past 7 days) were NEVER going to happen.

In 2007, I "snapped" . . . quit my job, sold all of my belongings (except what I could carry in my suitcase) and I set out on a road-trip.  Didn't really have a destination in mind (*or a plan*), I just decided to live off of my savings and spend some time visiting friends/family in other cities.  *This was the beginning of my nomadic lifestyle*, but it wasn't sustainable on my savings alone.

It dawned on me that *for centuries* people have moved to new places for a better harvest, better paying jobs, better education, etc - I could do the same.  My road-trip ended in San Francisco where I stayed with a friend until I found a job and an apartment to rent. **My perspective on 'home' shifted.**  My plan was to stay temporarily until I had enough money saved to enable me to move to a new place (when I was ready).  In 2010, I was plotting my "escape" to New York City when I decided to do something EPIC for my 40th birthday.  *I decided to take a trip around-the-world*!

## Finally On The Road!

Shortly after my decision to take an around-the-world trip, I also decided to blog about my adventures.  The blog was where I documented my research, explained how I was saving money for the trip, and how I got friends & family (and other travelers) interested in my journey.  Setting-up and maintaining the blog was a crash-course in the digital marketing field - I seriously had NO IDEA what I was doing.  But, I *loved learning* about website building, search engine optimization, content marketing, social media engagement, and paid/affiliate ads.

When I returned from my travels, I knew that I wanted a job - No, a career - working in digital marketing.  Not only would I use the new skills I developed over the course of 2.5 years, but it was easier to find work that could be done remotely . . . **thus, helping me stay nomadic.**

While there are many resources out there sharing work-at-home jobs, I found my current position through <a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/">FlexJobs.com</a>.  There are SO many scams aimed at those looking to work from home and I was overjoyed to find a service with LEGITIMATE jobs, with *real* companies.  Instead of being a freelancer and/or having my own company, I opted for a full-time employee position since it's a guaranteed paycheck and provided much needed stability (*being 'on the road' is unstable enough*).


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### Stay Tuned . . . 
In upcoming posts, I will share details on the reality of being a digital nomad, my favorite travel gear & services, and ultimately why I decided to become an expat.  

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