After leaving my corporate job to re-centre and decide in which direction to take my life, I travelled around for a few months. I had picked up a freelancing gig, and while I was in the Caribbean, working on the balcony of my villa, surrounded by sun, trees and sea, I thought: Why can't I do this all the time?
My office for a few weeks
I remembered a dream I had while backpacking across India in 2023. To travel and work at the same time. At first, the idea seemed ludicrous, but as I met more people doing the same, and saw that most of my work as a software engineer didn’t require in-person interactions, the idea became more feasible.
When I finished that India trip, I went straight into a corporate job. The work was fun, and I learned a lot. I became focused, fell into a routine, and the time started to fly. I was noticing how quickly things were moving, and I met many people who told me they wished they had taken more risks when they were young. Once I left my job, I had full intentions of going back to traditional employment after travelling for a few months. I was preparing for interviews as well as freelancing, so I didn’t have to dip into my savings. But then I had the realisation that I wanted to keep travelling. If I wanted to live the lifestyle I had always dreamed of, now was the time to give it a shot.
So, my perspective shifted. How can I keep this flexibility going? The freelancing was great, but still not as self-directed as I would like. I am striving to find some income that is fully controlled and directed by me, which I am still hunting for at the time of writing. But no matter the situation, I am dedicated to making my dream come true.
More recently, I have still been in London. My rental contract runs out in June, so I still have the better part of a year to make the most of the city. I love art and history, and now that my work is flexible, I have time to visit a gallery for a couple of hours in the day, and work a few extra hours in the early morning or night. I have more time to spend with my family and friends, also. Recently, a friend of mine came to visit from abroad for a few days, and I was able to work around his schedule, which was such a rewarding feeling. I thought: flexibility is the most valuable thing to me.
It is easy to think of flexibility as just the absence of any responsibility, but that is not the case. Being flexible doesn’t mean you have to be broke, either. To me, flexibility is the ability to do the things that matter the most to me, be it investing in myself, mastering my craft, spending time with loved ones or travelling the world. Things in life are rarely free, and to be truly flexible, one must have the means. When the time comes to settle down, I must also have the ability to support myself and my family, too. The middle road does exist. To make money without the rigidity of traditional corporate life, but to still have the means for later in life, is possible.
The world we live in is full of things to see, do and learn, and what drives me the most is to experience as much of it as possible. The road is long, but I am always excited to see where it takes me.