3 Ways to Maintain Your Income While You Travel the World

When I was a young college student, empowered the vast possibilities of the world, I was determined to find a way to spend my life traveling. I wasn’t satisfied by the thought of vacationing a few times a year, what I wanted was to lead a full blown nomadic life. Settling down to build a career, get married, and have kids was not the path I saw myself taking.

At the time, my parents discouraged my passion for nomadism, questioning how I’d pay off my college loans or build savings for retirement. Determined to prove my family wrong, I began researching ways to have a full-time job and be a full-time traveler. My findings were encouraging and have helped me successfully achieve many of my life goals. The following is a list of three sources of income I, and others like me, have used to maintain a successful and enriching life abroad.

Humanitarian Organizations

Volunteering for a humanitarian organization abroad is a great first step for those who are just getting started on their journey. There is a plethora of great grassroots organizations that are always looking for skilled professionals to get involved. Whether you’re a software engineer, counsellor, human resources specialist, writer, therapist or otherwise, there is undoubtedly a position and organization perfect for your needs. I started out this way, working in an orphanage in Thailand for Not For Sale, a non-profit organization working to end human trafficking.

Organizations like Not For Sale offer room and board for its volunteers and often provides them with the option of participating in fun extracurricular activities that help in getting comfortable in your new home. While you will be making little to no money when volunteering, you are able to save tons of money you’d otherwise be spending on food and a place to stay. Some non-profits, such as the Peace Corps, may offer to relieve the debt of some of your college loans.

Internet Jobs 

While volunteering is a great way to get started, eventually you will want to move to your next endeavor. A great means of support no matter where you are traveling is finding a job you can do online. This could be anything from blogging to mobile application development to search engine optimization and beyond.

Don’t get me wrong, it takes a lot of work to find a job in any of these fields but believe me the results are well worth the efforts put forth. It is helpful to develop your presence in the online community before you embark on your journey. Research jobs that you can do from home and begin to network with individuals in a field that catches your interest. Contacting business owners and asking them questions is a great first step in learning about the job and making a good first impression.

Teaching

There are a million opportunities for you to teach abroad, especially if you’d enjoy teaching children how to speak English. There are many internationally recognized programs that certify you to teach English in many different countries. Don’t think you have to speak the native language to teach the children, in fact most programs require teachers to speak in only the language they are teaching.

Teaching is a great option because it enables you to get a work-visa, allowing you to stay in a country longer than a visa for travel. Since this position is in high demand all over the world, you should have no trouble finding a job when you’re ready to experience a new culture.

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