As a digital nomad, you know that the best thing about this lifestyle is that is enables the highest of all human virtues: freedom!
But there may be times when to maintain your freedom, you need to supplement your income in between projects and gigs. Or, you may simply want to boost your savings, so that you can equip yourself with new and better digital nomad gear (laptop, smartphone, wearables, etc.).
Obviously, to make extra cash you don’t want to pause your digital-nomad life and head back to the corporate wasteland — because who knows? They might capture and convert you, and before long you’ll be fighting with colleagues over parking spaces.
And so, to protect you from that cruel fate, here are five ways to make extra money to fund your glorious, enviable, and liberated digital lifestyle:
1. Participate in Market-Research Studies.
Market-research firms are always looking out for focus group and interview participants (in-person, via the web, and over the phone). You may even get to explore some cool new products before anyone else, which is a nice bonus.
2. Get a Car Wrap.
A growing number of businesses are using vehicle wraps for advertising, except they have a problem: they don’t have enough cars. That’s where you come in! Businesses — or sometimes marketing agencies on behalf of business clients — will pay you to simply drive around. You don’t have to sell anything, or even talk to anyone.
3. Become a Rideshare Driver.
If you like (or at least, don’t mind) driving around for a few hours a day, then becoming a rideshare driver could be ideal. Uber and Lyft are the two best-known rideshare companies, but there are many others in your area that offer a better deal.
4. Clean up Search Engines.
As you’ve experienced more times than you can remember, there’s a lot of bad information floating around on search engines. The problem that Google and Bing have is that, despite spending billions and billions of dollars on algorithms and bots, they simply don’t have enough resources to maintain quality assurance. The solution? Search-engine companies will pay you to help them clean things up by evaluating results for quality, relevance, and usefulness. To get started with this, just Google “search engine evaluator.”
5. Sell your Expertise.
According to a new report from Global Workplace Analytics and FlexJobs, the number of telecommuting workers has increased 115% in the last decade. The problem, however, is that there is also a disconnect: many businesses don’t know how to equip their workers to be productive and effective outside the office, and many workers don’t have the right mindset and habits. As a digital nomad, you’re a proven specialist when it comes to being successful outside of a traditional work environment. That means you have valuable telecommunicating knowledge and insights that businesses need — and are willing to pay you for.
The Bottom Line
In a world where restrictions and limitations abound — and we’re often more aware of what we can’t do than what we can — the digital-nomad lifestyle promises a level of freedom that folks who work in cubicle jungles can only dream of. The above suggestions will help you make extra money, and keep your dream alive!