Currently writing this from a rooftop bar in Chiang Mai, Thailand
There is live music in the background
A slight breeze in the air
Wispy clouds jetting out of the tree-covered mountains to my left
This is living
I’m wearing a tank top while it’s 9 degrees ‘back home’
A home I haven’t lived at in over 5 years
It’s Friday at 6:30, I don’t have any super pressing work to do
I’m fighting the urge to start drinking a couple cocktails and give into the moment
Give into the buzz of the atmosphere
I have a profitable business that I’ve been running for nearly 7 years now
I was asked earlier this week how I run a business while traveling the world, and I’m realizing on this rooftop how I do it
Because I’m able to discipline myself in the midst of boundless fun
For many people, travel is a time when you let go
- You don’t worry about what you’re eating
- How much you’re exercising
- How much you’re spending
- How much you’re meditating / praying / in introspection
Travel is a time to get a break from the chains of routine
If you want to run a business while traveling the world, you’ll need to let go of this
4 Tips for self-discipline – video taken in Franschhoek, just outside of Cape Town, South Africa
Burnout from overwork is well-documented
But there is another type of burnout
A burnout from overdrinking
From overpartying
From having the same shallow conversations with a new face every couple of days
From struggling to learn a new language, and struggling to connect
From feeling like no one really understands you
And the people who do are gone in a couple of days or weeks
Burnout from saying goodbye
From spending your day chasing the next sightseeing spot
The next beautiful beach
The next dopamine hit
That is gone way too fast
Leaving you eventually hopeless
But you were told that this was it
That traveling the world was the dream
That life in an office was a cage
That travel was your ability to fly free
Now you have no cage
You have no chains
You have nothing holding you back
And you’re miserable
There’s no one else to blame, and there’s no one else to look to to expect that they’ll pick up the slack.
Kai Greene – Bodybuilder
This is your game….
The average person existing on the plane of average thinking
We can look to any number of things
‘ohh I would’ve done that, but you know I have this responsibility’
‘Man if it weren’t for ___’
…What happens when those things step out of the way?…
The spotlight is on you
‘You mean I can’t blame you for being in my way?’
And a human who has overcome incredible odds
Kai Greene, pictured on the left
There is a price for freedom, and it’s instability
If you don’t have the discipline to deal with the increased instability, you will burn out
Sure, the burnout is more fun than burning out in an office
No one will feel sorry for you, because you’re living the dream
But it’s burnout nonetheless
How I Do It
I tell people all the time
I’m rarely fully on vacation and rarely fully in work mode
I have found a way to build a regime, to build discipline that I can manage year-round
While I still have periods of sprinting at work, it’s seldom
While I still have periods of completely checking out of work and lounging around, drinking cocktails on the beach, it’s seldom
I’ve found a life that I enjoy
A lifestyle that I don’t need a vacation from
A lifestyle that I can sustain well into my 60’s
Even with this, my business has increased in revenue pretty consistently every year since it started
For anyone trying to travel the world and run a business, finding this balance is the key
You won’t be able to scale businesses as quickly as your friends who are planted in one place
You also won’t be a carefree tourist in the city you live in, either
Video from my recent time in El Nido Palawan. Check out my guide here – might’ve went a bit too deep in the partying and vacation time here 🤣
I’m seldom travelling somewhere
I’m usually living somewhere
Building a routine that is quite similar to the routines I have in other places in the world
Thanks to my girlfriend Gisele, I am forced out of that routine though – which is important
I have absolutely created prisons of my own making in the past
So, ensuring I’m sticking to a routine while also being open to (or forced to) try new things really works for me
I can continue on about the individual tactics that I use
But if you can not figure out that balance for you, then you’ll never make it
In 2026 you don’t have to choose between”Follow your dreams, travel the world” or “grind to be a millionaire” you can do both
BUT you will never be “following your dreams” as much as the 20-something backpacker
And you may not be reaching millionaire status as quickly as your other friends
And maybe that’s the secret
Maybe that makes it something you can do for a lifetime, and not burn out on either lifestyle.
Additional resources
- Reducing Risk While Nomadding
- Digital Nomad Burnout: 15 Red Flags and Prevention Strategies for 2025
- Digital Nomad Budget Guide
- How to find digital nomad accomodation
- Daily Journalling & Goal Setting For Nomads
- Productivity Tips While Working Remote
- How To Get Fast Wifi Anywhere In The World
Gonna order another cocktail…