It’s a popular thought that you need to quit your job and be a content creator, or something of the like, to travel while you work remote. We’ve both traveled with full-time corporate jobs and we’re here to tell you, it’s possible. It’s easier than you think but there are a few important things to keep in mind when determining your accommodations, transportation and timing of trips. This article is intended for people who work remotely (sorry can’t help if you have to go into an office) but is not limited to content creators.
1. Make sure your accommodations have good WiFi (or you have a nearby coffee shop
The most stressful thing while trying to work and travel is not having good WiFi. Co-workers are trying to get ahold of you, you’re trying to submit work, you have meetings to attend. The list goes on and they all boil down to one thing – crappy WiFi.
This can include relying on strong WiFi at hotels or getting a travel plan such as a hotspot. Relying on hotels is cheaper but you’re relying on someone else and they usually don’t care if you’re going to miss a meeting. There are websites to track hotel strength but they vary. Also, if you’re taking an RV or trailer, this option obviously doesn’t work. In which case you’ll need a WiFi hotspot, such as one from Verizon or AT&T. I haven’t used Starlink but I’ve known people to use it and I don’t think it’s worth the price for the quality of service right now.
2. Get a VPN for public wifi networks
Rolling off the last time, you should get a VPN to protect your computer while on public Wifi. A VPN runs on your computer or browser and effectively limits someone’s access to your internet connected device on public wifi. If you’re using a private hotspot this is less of an issue, but you never know when you’ll need to hop onto public wifi. You don’t want to have you work or personal devices hacked while working on the road. We recommend NordVPN as they have desktop, mobile and browser version. Note* you can also use the VPN to watch content from other countries, such as Canada’s Netflix content.
3. Understand your schedule
The type of work you do makes a big difference on what’s important. If you’re in meetings all the time you need strong wifi, a decent background and it needs to be quiet. If there’s two of you and you both have a lot of meetings, you’ll need a place with two rooms (to reduce noise). If your schedule doesn’t require meetings (at least on camera) then you are more able to use places like coffee shops.
4. Plan to travel on the weekends (or at night)
It’s easy to work while you’re on a roadtrip, but you need to stay put for the week while you work. If you need to go cross country, stop somewhere for five days while you work then get back on the road Friday night or Saturday. The added bonus is that you get to spend a week in a new location and feel like a local.