Digital nomads: living in the moment

When Sherilyn Tam graduated with a master’s degree in curating contemporary design from Kingston University, London in 2019, her original plan was to go back to China to find a job. Growing up in Shenzhen, the 28-year-old had always wanted a free life that would allow her to see the world and work remotely. But she envisioned that life for well after she could be well-established in a career and with better social resources and connections.

Truth is, she became a digital nomad not long after graduation, working online jobs for more than two years in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Sherilyn Tam enjoys ćevapi and coffee at a restaurant near a flea market in Sarajevo in this file photo. Courtesy of Tam

The development of information and communication technologies and globalization has opened the possibility of new flexible working arrangements. In today’s world, it is common to work remotely using digital technologies. Worker-travelers have existed for a long time, whereas the global COVID pandemic certainly has accelerated this practice within the working population.

A global survey, according to statista.com, reveals that digital nomads were primarily self-employed as of 2022, of whom more than half were business owners and around 35% were freelancers or gig workers.

Living among strangers

Hao Hao, co-founder of Community of Associated Living, Creation, Utilization and Socialization (CACTUS), a digital nomad community by the sea in east Shenzhen, observed that many digital nomads in China graduated in 2018 and 2019. “The pandemic made it difficult to find a job, and some decided to take whatever online gigs they could. While many female digital nomads work in marketing and creative jobs, males are predominantly software developers like myself,” he said.

For Tam, she had a practical concern when choosing to work remotely. Her then boyfriend, a Briton, couldn’t get a visa to enter China during the pandemic, and the two wanted to stay together. “After some research, we found that Bosnia and Herzegovina was the optimal choice for us, where we both could get a visa and the life expenses are affordable.”

The cost of living, a fast, accessible internet connection, and safety are top factors when digital nomads choose their destinations. As many combine living with traveling, the scenery and climate are also things to consider. Popular international destinations include Bali, Chiang Mai, Mexico City and a few cities in Europe, while in China, Yunnan’s Dali and Zhejiang’s Anji have the most attraction.

“Sarajevo is a slow-rhythm comfortable city whose residents, after years of bitter war in the 1990s, have come to terms with life and readily enjoy living. People are friendly and the climate is pleasant with distinctive seasons,” Tam said.

With a background in art and design, she found gigs online. She has also experimented with a YouTube channel offering videos of her graphics accompanied by music. “The incomes were not always stable, but I could live comfortably, except when emergencies popped up.” For instance, when she rescued two stray cats, their inoculations and physical exams cost extra money.

She also spent some time in the northern city of Banja Luka in a free apartment she found available online in exchange for keeping the rooms tidy. 

Returning to Shenzhen earlier this year, Tam plans to find a full-time job to accumulate some credentials that would finally land her a remote job with some big-name company. “With some savings from a full-time job, and the experience needed for a better-paying remote job, I would certainly continue this life of digital nomads,” Tam said.

A seaside community

With a master’s degree in computer science from Sun Yat-sen University, Hao Hao worked years for Shenzhen-based tech giant Tencent before quitting to become a digital nomad. “I’ve been to Dali, Anji, Wenchang (Hainan Province) and Chiang Mai, where I met many other digital nomads,” he said. “Community and networking are crucial for these people away from their family and the friends they made while growing up.”

Along with his friends Liu Beibei and Wang Xiaochuan, Hao started the CACTUS project on Dapeng Peninsula, turning a seaside homestay into a community for digital nomads in Shenzhen. “We aim this to be a temporary home for likeminded people, where we have seminars on topics of AI, Web 3.0 and others. While many of us take online gigs, some also have the ambition to start up and explore technological breakthroughs,” he said.

Digital nomads who intend to spend time at the base named Mizhiyuan (meaning “Courtyard of Enlightenment”) need to apply before they can enjoy a preferable price, compared with regular guests, to stay for various durations. “Shenzhen is a high-tech hub close to Hong Kong and a young migrant city, and Dapeng in its east suburbs provides the perfect location that combines good infrastructure, a refreshing environment and a close vicinity to industries and supply chains,” he said.

Digital nomads during a tea party at CACTUS in Dapeng in June. Courtesy of CACTUS

In China, digital nomads normally share information via WeChat groups of between 200-300 members, and Hao estimates the Chinese digital nomad population at several thousand.

A Statista survey concludes that globally, digital nomads normally stay in one place for a duration between one week to three months. Since its trial operation in June, CACTUS has hosted some 40 nomads, the majority of whom were attracted by seminars advertised in several WeChat groups.

Co-founder Liu Beibei said she feels these people, despite their various backgrounds, share a lot in common. “They are never afraid of the future and uncertainty; they are always curious about technology, art, other people and cultures; they never stop learning,” she said, adding that such self-identifications draw them together and make it possible to build an online-offline community.

Digital nomads have fun with a frisby by the sea on Dapeng Peninsula. Courtesy of CACTUS

Given Shenzhen’s positioning as a first-tier city, the living costs even in suburban Dapeng are not quite competitive compared with Dali, and Liu acknowledged that the project is unlikely to turn profits in the foreseeable future.

Still, she thinks it a worthy cause, creating a haven for young aspiring entrepreneurs and free souls on the road. “Digital Nomad Anji (DNA) in Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province has thrived since its initiation at the end of 2021, thanks to preferential governmental policies and deep-pocketed investors,” she said. For CACTUS, the co-founders said they will keep the project in operation as long as it can break even.