This article is the second part of the story on why I changed my life to kitesurf around the world while working online. If you haven’t read the first part yet, check it out here.

// Finding answers to the month-long quest

In the end, the questions and the solution were very easy:
  • What is it that makes me the happiest? – Kitesurfing.
  • Do I really hate my job as a graphic designer? – No.
  • Would it be an option to go live close to a kite spot and look for a new job there? – No, I haven’t found a spot I could imagine living on yet, I would need to check out a lot of spots before doing that.
  • Would it be an option to change the spots every month or so and keep working as a graphic designer from the road? – HELL YEAH!!!!
  • Is there something I could possibly make money off at some point in the future that I love to do even more than being a graphic designer? – Oh yes, sharing my passion which is kitesurfing: providing information about the sport, the spots, and travel possibilities, helping them to advance and maybe even inspiring them in a way.

// The decision was accompanied by a lot of fears…

I came back from the DNX event after the weekend and I was totally energized. Despite a significant lack of sleep – out of excitement – I finally had a clear goal. No matter how much I liked the people I was working with and the atmosphere at the agency, the desire to try living the unconventional lifestyle was stronger. Stronger than comfort, luxury, my dear friends and family at home, even stronger than the fear I had at that moment.

It was no easy decision and a lot of people told me it was so courageous of me to take it, they would be way too afraid to go for it. But to tell you the truth, the fear was there, it was there the whole time, even though I knew exactly what I wanted: fear of looking like an idiot, fear of breaking out of society, fear of never finding such a good job and work atmosphere again, fear of having to return back home after a few months because I didn’t make enough money, fear of traveling alone through South America, fear of making a big mistake, fear of not liking kitesurfing anymore if I do it every day. The list was endless.

Panorama image of a lonely kitespot which is an island in Sri Lanka

// What was it then, that made me overcome the fear?

I think fear will always be there and it is a good thing. I see it a bit as a balance between two poles. On the one side is fear, the old life we know and love, a comfortable life. On the other side is freedom, the life you dreamed of, a big goal you want to achieve. As soon as the „other side“ gets strong enough, heavier and heavier as you put your focus on it and find ways to put your dreams into action, it gets heavier and stronger than fear. It’s always a balance, you just have to make sure your visions and actions overweigh your fears.

// In the blink of an eye

Since I had a goal, all the things fell into place. I quit my job on the monday after the DNX event. Since I had a very good relationship with my boss, I told him 6 months in advance that I wanted to quit my job end of October, so that he could finde someone else to replace me. And this was the perfect time frame to make at least some savings before I left. But I needed to do it that day, to scream it out into the world, I just wanted to take the very first step of my journey, to make a tiny bit of my dream real. I couldn’t have waited one more day keeping it to myself. In the next 6 months I was taking steps veeeery slow. I was still very committed to my job so my plans really didn’t progress much.

// Preparations to leave

In October and November, I was visiting a lot of friends and family, just to spend a bit of time with them and being able to say goodbye with a good feeling. I sold quite a lot of my stuff, digitalized my documents and prepared everything to get ready. At the same time I was taking all the steps to become a freelance graphic designer. On November 27th, 2015 it was time to say goodbye and head off to Brazil.

Me working on a laptop with palm trees in the beack during my kitesurf-around-the-world-trip

// Where I am today

So here I am now. Sitting on the patio of a Brazilian pousada (guesthouse), palm trees and sandy roads in front of me. I’m working on my laptop and waiting for the wind to pick up. Actually, palm trees are rustling now which means the wind is picking up, so I’m about to head out to the beach. It’s funny, writing this article now, I can’t even grasp how much has happened in the last year. It’s January 15th of 2016, so exactly one year ago I had no clue what to do and I struggled so much. It all makes sense now but it was a long, rocky, foggy road to come here. Although, once I managed to take baby step by baby step I finally made it here.

// This is just the beginning of a different journey

I’m still right at the start. I managed to pull through with all the changes and now head off into a new life full of kiting, location-independent work and windy adventures. My goal is to progress step by step and by January 2017 I hope to look back at a year full of learning, failure, success, adventure and tons of kitesurf sessions. This is the plan. As you know, the only constant in life is change, so let’s see what works out and what it will take me to make this lifestyle a longterm and sustainable one!


More Articles for Digital Nomads and Location Independent Remote Workers

Favorite locations to kitesurf and work online

Join the Facebook Group Kitesurf Digital Nomads

kitesurf digital nomads facebook group

Join the facebook group for Kitesurf Nomads which I created for (digital) nomads who kitesurf around the world – to network, exchange infos and maybe even meet up at spots.