{"id":1830,"date":"2019-09-18T14:50:30","date_gmt":"2019-09-18T18:50:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog3.canny.io\/wordpress\/?p=1830"},"modified":"2024-10-29T19:29:21","modified_gmt":"2024-10-29T23:29:21","slug":"end-digital-nomad-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canny.io\/blog\/end-digital-nomad-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"The end of our digital nomad journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Andrew tweeted a few months ago that we are slowing down traveling. It’s true. After two years living the digital nomad life, we are settling down for a while.<\/p>\n

The city we chose is Toronto, my hometown. I don’t think it’s really hit me yet, but I think now’s a good time to reflect. I can definitely feel reality creeping in.<\/p>\n

Andrew and I met and worked full-time in San Francisco. We called it \u201chome\u201d for several years. Leaving the Bay Area to travel was mostly my idea. I enjoy seeing the world and I would continue to do so if it was just me.<\/p>\n\"Our<\/a>\n

That said, it’s not just me.<\/p>\n

Andrew has made compromises for the last two years so I think it’s fair that I make some now. I completely understand the tradeoffs he’s had to make and the reasons he wants to settle down.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re in Seattle now for our last leg of \u201ctravel\u201d. In a month, we\u2019ll fly back to Toronto and settle in more permanent housing. Insane!<\/p>\n

I can see us being happy there. My family is there, we have friends there. Toronto is a really cool city. The whole thing feels kind of bitter-sweet because I really enjoyed traveling. Either way, it’s a new phase and something to be excited about.<\/p>\n

A quick summary<\/h2>\n

During these last two years, we\u2019ve lived and worked from 27 cities in 16 countries:<\/p>\n

London, Lyon, Budapest, Berlin, Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, Seville, Las Palmas, Lisbon, Dubrovnik, Split, SF, NY, Seattle, Vegas, Denver, Toronto, Vancouver, Hong Kong, Saigon, Bangkok, Malapascua, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Fukuoka, and Seoul.<\/p>\n

\"Cities
My travel map on RemoteHub<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We usually stayed in each city for about a month. The most memorable were Valencia, Lisbon, Split, and Seoul.<\/p>\n

We worked on Canny full-time the entire time. We also started growing our team. We grew from just me and Andrew to a fully remote team of five. In Lisbon and Split, we held our first two team retreats.<\/p>\n

\"Canny
Team Canny in Lisbon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The lifestyle is definitely not for everyone. There’s a lot of planning ahead, moving around, and adjusting to unfamiliar places. It’s exhausting for a lot of people.<\/p>\n

I, however, love that stuff. Seeing how locals live, walking around new neighborhoods, discovering hidden gems. All while not having to pay rent at home. Of course, there are challenges, but nothing great comes easy.<\/p>\n

Not everybody can do what we did or has the means to do it. Although our time is ending, I am so grateful for the opportunity to travel for these last two years.<\/p>\n

Choosing Toronto<\/h2>\n

We made a short list of cities we were interested in living in: New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and Toronto. Then, we scored each with things we cared about: people, weather, activities, and cost of living.<\/p>\n

We eliminated New York for its high cost of living and bad weather. But also, neither of us could really see ourselves living there.<\/p>\n

We eliminated San Francisco for its high cost of living but also, we already lived there for years. The only reason we\u2019d live in San Francisco again would be for our friends there.<\/p>\n

Seattle came really close. Andrew’s family’s there and we have some friends there. Plus, Seattle winters are way<\/em> nicer than Toronto winters.<\/p>\n\"Toronto\n

In the end, Toronto won even though the weather there is probably the worst out of the list. My family is there and we have friends there. Toronto feels<\/em> right.<\/p>\n

It’s up and coming for tech but not overwhelmingly so. The Canadian dollar means an instant 25% discount. Being in eastern time is ideal for keeping in touch with our team and customers.<\/p>\n

We can see ourselves being happy there.<\/p>\n

Remote work continues<\/h2>\n

Our lives as digital nomads and remote workers have been one and the same these last two years. We felt the pros and cons both as individuals and as a team.<\/p>\n

Remote work is a pretty hot topic these days. Buffer<\/a>, Invision<\/a>, and Zapier<\/a> are all big advocates for remote work. The remote workforce is continuing to grow.<\/p>\n

Of course, remote work also comes with its issues. Ryan Hoover wrote a post on the challenges of remote work<\/a>. There are countless guides on building a remote team<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Our team is fully remote and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Without it, we wouldn’t have the stellar team that we have now.<\/p>\n

\"Canny
Meeting Pippa in one of our biweekly Canny Cuddles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Being remote-first meant that we were mindful of the challenges from the beginning. We are still continuing to iterate on our team meetings. We will continue to have team retreats. All we’re changing is adding a personal home base.<\/p>\n

While we’re transitioning out of our digital nomad life, we’re still working remotely. With that, we’re leaving some of the struggles of nomad life behind.<\/p>\n

Here are some of the struggles that stood out:<\/p>\n

Lack of comrades<\/h2>\n
\n

\ud83d\udc6f\u200d\u2642\ufe0f The thing I miss the most is camaraderie. When you’re constantly on the move, it’s really difficult to make lasting friendships. Especially for an introvert like me. \/3<\/p>\n

\u2014 Andrew Rasmussen (@a13n) May 31, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n