--- title: Traveling and working? 5 tips from digital nomad Yana description: Your first job doesn't have to mean the end of your fun life! Yana is a freelance copywriter and lives as a digital nomad in different locations image: https://blog.upliving.be/hubfs/IMG_9220.jpeg --- Discover our availabilities [here](https://upliving.be/en/rent-upliving) ![](https://blog.upliving.be/hubfs/IMG_9220.jpeg) # Traveling and working? 5 tips from digital nomad Yana Published by [Marie](https://blog.upliving.be/en/author/marie) on Jul 26, 2021 3:35:02 PM Are **twenty days** of paid annual **vacation in Belgium**  too little for you? Then why not combine travel and work **full-time**! This is how **digital nomad** Yana Pannecoucke discovered Scotland, the Vosges Mountains and other European gems on her **to-visit list**. Sharing the same dream? With these five tips, it will soon become a reality...     **East West, abroad best** "I have always loved to **travel**," says Yana Pannecoucke, **freelance copywriter and communications** & **project manager**. "During my Journalism studies, I traveled with my backpack to Jordan and Thailand. My thesis was about **sustainable travel**. During a traineeship in Kenya, I then came to the realization: living abroad is blissful."   **"This is it!"** "Back home I worked as a **journalist** for a while, but I dreamed of a job where I would get more pleasure out of it. On **Facebook** I first read about digital nomads and thought: this is it! How can I become this? I looked for more info online and applied as a **freelancer** at a Swiss start-up around sustainable travel. Because I worked remotely, I could travel around Europe in the meantime. A year and a half later, I'm still working **location-independently**. In the meantime, I sometimes work from my camper. Wonderful!"     ## Yana's 5 tips for a life as a digital nomad    **#1 Reflect on your safe space** “Als **digital nomad** ontmoet je vaak nieuwe mensen en kom je telkens terecht in een andere omgeving. Je hebt dus minder structuur en routines die comfortabel en vertrouwd aanvoelen. Ben je daar gevoelig aan? Dan denk je best op voorhand eens na over de dingen die je goed doen voelen of tot rust doen komen.”  ![IMG_9220](https://blog.upliving.be/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_9220.jpeg?width=538&name=IMG_9220.jpeg)     **#2 Consider a co-living project** "Are you traveling alone and in need of social contact? Then **co-livings **are nice. You can find them in a lot of **big cities** like Lisbon, Valencia, the Canary Islands, Asia.... A **co-living** is a house or location where digital nomads live and work together for short periods. Events and workshops are organized to get to know each other and exchange knowledge. I went to such a co-living community twice so far and it felt like coming home. It was proof for me: this life is normal and **the idea works**. By the way, there are no students living there, but **mostly thirty-somethings** with a good income. Partly because medium-length stays in Europe don't come cheap."    **#3 Or opt for nature and an RV** "In an off-grid camper, my boyfriend and I traveled through Scotland for three months. The nice part of having a **campervan** is that you just have your **safe space** with you, which is important for many people anyway. With **solar panels**, a router and a wifi amplifier, we were able to continue working part time. Are you going to travel for a long time? Then choose an **RV** with a shower and toilet. We also went to a campsite one night a week for comfort."   ![unnamed](https://blog.upliving.be/hs-fs/hubfs/unnamed.jpg?width=512&name=unnamed.jpg)     **#4 Live Consciously ** "I live a **conscious** life. When I was **self-employed**, I sometimes thought: oops, this assignment will stop in five months, after this I'll fall into a black hole... But on the other hand, that assignment also gave me sufficient income and above all satisfaction. If you choose to be an entrepreneur, as I did, then you also take on board the financial uncertainty."     **#5 Take the test** "Not quite sure if there's a **digital nomad** in you? **Test it** out for one or two weeks and build up. If need be, go straight to a **co-living place**. There the wifi is guaranteed to work and you fall back into a **community**. You'll see, even **digital nomads** take life seriously and are just as ambitious." ![unnamed (1)](https://blog.upliving.be/hs-fs/hubfs/unnamed%20(1).jpg?width=512&name=unnamed%20(1).jpg) **Back to normal?** "In a normal office job I can't find myself anymore. So I continue to look for the possibilities that this life offers me. For example, one day I hope to discover Asia or South America as a **digital nomad**. Where I will go to the office does not concern me much. The question is more: **do I want to have roots or a place of my own in Belgium?** Or elsewhere? And do I need that? I haven't figured it out yet." [Claire also broke with the dogma of a full-time office job. Read her story in Working 4/5 as a young professional](https://blog.upliving.be/en/4/5e-werken-als-young-professional-claire-ging-ervoor?hsLang=en)   Looking for a next-level rental apartment in Belgium with a flexible lease from 6 months to 1 year?                                                 [![Discover Upliving ](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/19928326/991afd69-9d3c-4ce2-89bb-5a5ad9f27b6d.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/19928326/991afd69-9d3c-4ce2-89bb-5a5ad9f27b6d)   Tags: [Digital Nomad](https://blog.upliving.be/en/tag/digital-nomad), [co living](https://blog.upliving.be/en/tag/co-living), [short stay](https://blog.upliving.be/en/tag/short-stay) [Back to Blog](https://blog.upliving.be/en) ## Related Articles ## [Working 4/5 as a young professional? Claire went for it!](https://blog.upliving.be/en/4/5e-werken-als-young-professional-claire-ging-ervoor?hsLang=en) Your first job really doesn't mean the end of your fun life as you know it. Working part time... [Read More ](https://blog.upliving.be/en/4/5e-werken-als-young-professional-claire-ging-ervoor?hsLang=en) ## [Dreaming of your first job? This is how you determine and negotiate a realistic starting wage.](https://blog.upliving.be/en/droom-je-van-je-eerste-loon-zo-bepaal-en-onderhandel-je-een-realistisch-startersloon?hsLang=en) [Read More ](https://blog.upliving.be/en/droom-je-van-je-eerste-loon-zo-bepaal-en-onderhandel-je-een-realistisch-startersloon?hsLang=en) ## [Not in the mood for a full-time office job? Discover these 3 alternatives...](https://blog.upliving.be/en/geen-zin-in-een-fulltime-kantoorjob-ontdek-deze-3-alternatieven?hsLang=en) [Read More ](https://blog.upliving.be/en/geen-zin-in-een-fulltime-kantoorjob-ontdek-deze-3-alternatieven?hsLang=en)