Many people dream of being free from having to go into work day in and day out, only being allotted a few weeks of vacation time each week. Travelling or even living abroad for a long period of time – longer than the two weeks or so that most people can afford to sacrifice – is something that many desire. Thankfully because of the internet and other technological advances people are able to start businesses that literally can be run wherever they have internet access.
Today I’m going to share with you three types of businesses that can be run from anywhere in the world, as long as you can log in to the internet. Whether you chose to join the ranks of global nomads (people who travel and work all over the world) or if you decide to just stay at home and travel when it’s convenient for the rest of your family or friends, these are businesses to consider if this sort of lifestyle sounds attractive to you.
1) Content Websites
Content websites, which would include blogs like this one, are one of the easiest businesses to start (I tell you how to set one up in five easy steps here). Running a content website can be difficult at first; it can take months before you make a dime, let alone getting enough revenue to hire on staff writers to generate content. Overall, though, content sites have the potential to provide regular monthly income and can be run from anywhere you can find an internet connection. I wrote an article a while back about how people make money online that may be a good starting point for researching online income.
I love the story of Graham Hill, the founder of Treehugger.com. While running Treehugger, Hill ran his website while living abroad. Hill eventually sold his site for $10 Million. While few sites will ever sell for this relatively large sum of money, the fact is that there is the potential to sell your site down the road.
2) Product Sales
When I say product sales, I am talking about something very specific: a product or products that you manufacture and sell yourself. If you haven’t read The Four Hour Workweek, you should (as a friend said to me before I read it) buy it and read it this weekend. This is the best book I’ve read about selling a product online and living abroad with the income.
In The Four Hour Workweek, the Timothy Ferriss calls these businesses a “muse.” A muse can be any product that you have manufactured and sold. Ferriss’ product was a supplement; another example would be the Square36 two-person yoga mat. Other people have done well selling these hot products that you may have seen commercials for. Essentially what a muse should consist of is a fully automated system from manufacturing to distribution to sales.
Setting up a system like this requires a lot of upfront work, but if you can get from the idea stage to the automated process stage, you could potentially have a “four hour” work week that allows you to spend your time abroad learning new languages or pursuing other things. This of course is a very high-level explanation of Ferriss’ program, but if you are interested check out The Four Hour Workweek for yourself.
3) Services that can fulfilled/completed online
There are many people who have service businesses that work from home full-time. Whether it’s freelance writing, web design, or spreadsheet/database consulting, there are an increasing number of people that are setting up shop from their laptop. This obviously requires you to have a skill that is in-demand, as well as finding people willing to contract work for you. It’s important to not over-think this. Some spreadsheet-related jobs I’ve received seem easy to me, but in reality it has come with experience.
If you are not able to find work you have to ask yourself: how many people have I contacted asking if they could use my services? Sending a tweet that says “does anyone need help with web design or graphic design?” is not going to cut it. Personally emailing, calling, and networking with businesses is really the only way to get off the ground at the beginning.
The only drawback of service businesses is that it oftentimes requires a lot of time from the owner (you) and can be a lot more difficult to outsource compared to a physical product that is being manufactured and sold. With that being said, I would argue that service businesses are easier to start because they require less start up capital. You don’t have to find a manufacturer, create and test prototypes, or deal with shipping.
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If you are sick and tired of going to work day-after-day and want to work from anywhere in the world, I would highly recommend looking into your options. The fact is that there are ways to make money with nothing more than a laptop and an internet connection. People have done it in the past and people are doing it today. If you want to travel or live abroad and are willing to take the risk of small business ownership, there really is no reason you wouldn’t be able to do it.
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Photo by Luca Sbardella
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I had no idea about Treehugger.com – that is an insane amount of money for a website!
MonsterPiggyBank Yep you can make a lot of money if you can create a website that brings in massive traffic.
Like Glen, I have never heard of Treehugger.com. That is a crazy amount of money to sell a site for – especially for one that one man just started. These are some great ideas and ones that we have thought of ourselves. The internet really makes this much more possible than in time past.
FrugalRules I have a very hard time imagining a world without the internet, though I still remember our family’s first computer (it had Windows 95 on it…I still have fond memories of that OS haha).
One of the reasons I love freelance writing is that it can be done from anywhere. I’m definitely trying to market myself more, but it’s very tough to balance it with a full time job. I’m looking forward to getting some time off this summer so I can really rock it out!
BudgetBlonde It seems like you are finding a lot of success with the freelance writing, and I’m impressed you do it all on top of having a full-time job. I’m just hoping your rates haven’t increased…. : P
DC @ Young Adult Money BudgetBlonde Haha, not for you, my friend. I’ll stand by my original quote whenever you’re ready. ;)
BudgetBlonde Awesome! I appreciate it, and I even told someone a couple days ago “there is this awesome writer that I really, really want, but I have to make sure the dollars add up.” I really haven’t considered anyone else at this point. With that being said, it could be a while.
DC @ Young Adult Money BudgetBlonde That’s the nicest thing I’ve heard all day! Thanks, David! :) — FYI I’m happy to guest post again anytime, esp. if you’re busy or if you find yourself in a content crunch. :D
BudgetBlonde Thanks I appreciate the offer and will almost certainly take you up on it sometime : )
One of the best things about working online is that you can do it from anywhere. That is one of the main reasons that we love blogging and freelancing. Of course, one of the worst parts of the job is that you can do it from anywhere…
GregatClubThrifty Haha I do worry if I was ever a full-time blogger or freelancer that I would literally work all day and night.
Great post! I love having a blog and doing everything else that I do online and completely tasks anywhere. It’s nice!
SenseofCents It’s definitely one of the reasons all my side “hustles” are usually web-based.
Nice one DC. There are a few businesses that you can do from anywhere as long as you have an internet connection. They can be hard to run, especially if you are on the move, but it does give you the freedom to go anywhere.
DebtRoundUp It certainly isn’t easy, I will agree with that. If you are determined enough, though, you can make it work.
These are great ideas. I would love to be able to work from anywhere with an internet connection. It would give you so much more freedom. I will definitely keep these in mind for the future!
CommonCentsWealth Thanks!
I’d love the idea of being able to move anywhere you want and still make the same living! I see that for myself in the future with blogging (who knows!) and it’s moving closer and closer to that with video editing, although I’m still dealing with hard drives that would have to be shipped. Once data can all be put “in the cloud,” that’s going to open up a LOT of possibilities!
Beachbudget I was trying to figure out the best way to get the public works person a DVD of our sewer drain-out, but gave up after about 10 minutes. In the future I’m hoping things like that are easier where you can just drop files (even very large files) and have someone access it from any computer with an internet connection.
The option to work from anywhere is great and is becoming more and more popular. I follow a lot of travel bloggers (including RV travelers) that are having a wonderful time travelling around the world while earning money through their blog and other freelance services such as photography and such.
TacklingOurDebt Very nice! I actually don’t follow any travel bloggers, but it’s a niche that I’ve considered looking into. First step would be to start reading the ones that are out there.
Luckily my job lets me work anywhere I want in the world should I
choose to. It’s just a question of choosing WHERE to work that becomes
the problem.
mochiandmacarons That’s a good problem to have ;)
It’s really liberating when you think about all the opportunities a laptop offers. I think the ability to work freelance (on many of things you outlined) is one reason I see more people wanting to retire early. They can still make money but without the 9-5 grind, so to speak. It’s incredibly enticing, especially when I can easily imagine myself sitting on the beach in your post working with the best view imaginable!
TheHeavyPurse Haha absolutely! That’s a great point, really, about the early retirement. At minimum I would love to use my side income to pay off student loans and our mortgage as a defense against the eb and flow of the economy/work force. It’s also a great thing to think about how when you “retire” you can continue to make income but do it on your own terms.
Great list! While I don’t blog so I can travel the world and retire from the 9-5, it is nice to know that I can take a vacation and still have my blog working for me.
ayoungpro Ditto.
I would add stock trading/investing as another online business. But most people do not look at investing as business.
MartZee Great point! You can certainly trade from pretty much anywhere you can get an internet connection.
I am probably not smart enough to sustain myself with one of those ideas, but if I can get enough rental income down the road, I can be a landlord from anywhere!
Eyesonthedollar The optometrist who owns her own optometry business, renovated and rented out a property, and somehow finds time to run an entire website isn’t smart enough for something?!? ;)
I think it’d be fun to be location independent but I’d basically have to have no pets, no kids and a spouse with no job or a location independent one. Even if I was location independent I’m more of a person who’d probably stay in one place for at least a year at a time.
Money Life and More Ferriss has already anticipated your concerns about the spouse and children and addreses it in his book ;) He also advocates staying places for at least 6 months to fully feel invested in the culture, so 1 year would work. But it sounds like you are pretty set on NOT going this route.
DC @ Young Adult Money Money Life and More Not right now. Maybe later in life though. If I didn’t grow up in a military family maybe I’d be more excited about it but right now it just seems like a lot of work :)
Money Life and More Totally makes sense now, did not know you grew up in a military family. My family never traveled outside the US (though we did have two awesome road trips to Florida and back) so that may be one reason I’m very interested in travel and the possibility of living abroad some day. My wife is also big on travel.
If you want to live anywhere, you have to be flexible and mobile, while keeping your costs down. Affiliate programs are great in that you don’t have to buy anything, you just get a share of a sale of someone else’s product. If I had a product to sell however, it would be a software or an app, to keep everything online and have no stock anywhere.
RFIndependence I suppose having everything online would be ideal, can’t argue with you there. I also have to agree with you about affiliate programs. If you can make them work, it’s really the ideal income.
That is the dream. I already know exactly where I would live – Charleston, SC and travel from there. I’ve always felt when I’ve worked from someone else that I’m a slave to a timecard. My dream has been exactly what you are talking about – living according to my own terms – where I live, doing what I want!
Great post!
J.P. Cents
The internet has certainly changed how we do business. Two decades ago it would have been impossible for some people to live their dreams. now though it’s much easier, though still difficult.
Great article DC. I’ve thought of this a lot and like to read travel bloggers who travel and write. Someday I might take the plunge, especially if I have a unique skill to offer on the road.
Great post – there definitely needs to be more discussion and advice for the average person on how to get started with making moves and money online, as if you can pull it off… it’s a hell of a lot easier…
It is a matter of time before the pendulum fully swings in the direction of self-sufficient money-making… everyday people are more and more learning how to make basic side-income from things like freelance writing, online promotion of other companies, testimonials and contextual advertising…
Starting an online business often takes very little money and time. It often then takes A LOT of time and dedication to actually make the business viable, and make money, but initially – there’s basically no risk, compared to an offline endeavor which will nearly always set you back a few grand at the very least.
Online is definitely the way to go in terms of experimenting with new ideas right now and I do think that with the exception of a few industries which need physical infrastructure – almost all business is better online as it’s quicker, worldwide, more efficient, more cost-effective and more convenient for everybody involved.