Let’s admit it. Until very recently, the job-for-life recipe was a ‘one size fits all’ deal. Go to a good university, graduate, find a solid and stable job and preferably, excel and retire. This formula was seen as the acceptable and sensible thing to do. It made families proud and created a safe and stable environment in society. This ‘success curve’ came attached with attractive luxuries: possibly a house, a car, a few overseas vacations each year and of course, some beautiful handbags. Was there a problem with this? No, not really. However, the new generation - also referred to as millennials - is rapidly retreating from this idealized comfort zone. The new priorities and lifestyles are established with a different mindset and a strong emphasis on personal freedom, facilitated by remote work.
Imagining a more experience-focused lifestyle
There is a tremendous increase in the number of people who have no tolerance for the 8-5 work schedule and who despise their daily commutes to the office. Personally, I was one of them. I spent a total of four hours everyday commuting to and from work, and I used most of that time imagining how I would break out of my shell to create a freer life that I could fill with experiences and adventures. I guess I can say I succeeded, but that’s another story!
The new workforce prefers to see the Northern Lights with their Casio over a luxurious gold Rolex they can buy when they retire. The expectations and happiness criteria is going through a radical shift, and in fact, research shows that this flexibility and freedom increases happiness and productivity significantly. An interesting finding was that those who worked remotely and alone, rated the ‘feeling valued’ question 7.75 out of 10, which was higher than the 6.69 general average.
No office borders
As of 2016, those who are self-employed make up 14% of the workforce in Europe, and it is recognised as the fastest growing field. In United States, there’s currently 53 million freelancers who make up 10% of the workforce and it is predicted that by 2020, 50% of the population will be spending some of their time working in freelance jobs. The digital revolution is mobilizing us, destroying traditional office borders and in fact, making our lives easier. Isn’t it appealing to be able to work from a beachside cafe in the Gili Islands as you sip on your young coconut juice, or from a coworking space in Berlin, as you network with people from all over the world? I can see you nodding! :)
1 billion digital nomads by 2035
To sum up, there’s a number of new initiatives and platforms for digital nomads, and I expect that they will only increase in the near future. The founder of Nomadlist, Pieter Levels, made a speech at the world’s first Digital Nomad Conference (DNX) in 2015, where he presented his predictions: The number of digital nomads will increase to 1 billion by 2035 and will reshape our lives and the economy in a radical way. This is very big news and as a 100% remote company, we are thrilled to experience this shift and be a key influencer in this transformation.
What do you think about remote work? Let us know in the comments down below.
If you think remote work is a good fit for you, make sure to check out our open positions too! We always seek to grow our international team!
