To be everywhere is to be nowhere (Digital Nomadism's dark side)
1% better every day at 11:11am - newsletter #048
Reading a few pages of "Letters from a Stoic" by Seneca this morning, I came across the following quote: “People who spend their whole life travelling abroad end up having plenty of places where they can find hospitality but no real friendships.”
And he continues with: “To be everywhere is to be nowhere”. Clearly, Seneca wasn't into digital Nomadism….
This reading echoed the discussion I had last night at a dinner, where my friend explained to me her difference with her brother: he, very conservative, absolutely wanting to be "owner", and she, free as a bird, not wanting to "put down roots" anywhere. I found myself in this sister-brother opposition. My sister's about to own property in London, I don't know where I'm going to live next week.
Digital Nomadism can be "amazing" on paper, can be the "dream" of many of us. But it's not so simple in reality. I'm not talking about the obvious subject, related to the difficulty of maintaining a source of income online, I'm talking about the idea of constantly juggling between a feeling of freedom and a feeling of "being nowhere".
As I write this, I'm in a very nice Airbnb in central London. This is the 40th "At home" I've had this year. And it's only August 5th. Every new city means a new blank page. Creating new relationships, creating a new "home", creating new routines, creating new feelings, ...
I leave myself the end of the year to discover Asia (probably Bali, Thailand, Singapore, ...) and then I will try to settle in 2 or 3 cities maximum. The ideal pattern would be: 8 months in Sydney (during the summer, from October to May for example), 3 months in Europe (from June to August) and 1 month of "holidays" to discover the world. The idea is to do a loop every year, to avoid starting from scratch each time, while enjoying the best the world has to offer!
ONE QUOTE TO SHARE
“Sister, there are people who went to sleep all over the world last night, poor and rich and white and black, but they will never wake again. Sister, those who expected to rise did not, their beds became their cooling boards, and their blankets became their winding sheets. And those dead folks would give anything, anything at all for just five minutes of this... So you watch yourself about complaining, Sister. What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.
Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now - Maya Angelou
ONE ARTICLE TO READ
At the end of last week, it seemed that TikTok’s days in the U.S. were numbered. “As far as TikTok is concerned, we’re banning them from the United States,” President Trump said on Friday of the hugely popular social network, which his administration considers a national security risk because of its Chinese ownership.
But behind the scenes, Microsoft was exploring a takeover bid for TikTok’s American operations, which gained traction thanks to lobbying from some of the president’s top advisers and Republican lawmakers.
ONE ACCOUNT TO FOLLOW
If you are not yet aware of this instagram account with +10 million subscribers, it's not too late! @humansofny is a concept as simple as it is original. Every day, the account offers the story of a "human" through a portrait photo and a long description.
ONE QUESTION TO ASK YOURSELF
What do you want people to say at your funeral?
ONE WORKOUT TO DO
35min at home workout with Betina Gozo
Perform your workout at home with Nike Master Trainer, Betina Gozo, in a strength and HIIT class. No equipment required.
I hope you're in good shape, because you're going to sweat a lot !
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