You’ve made it to Day 3. It’s time to find a supportive freelance community worldwide for support and inspiration. By this point, ideally, you’ve optimised your spending, identified what service you want to offer, and you’re ready to start making connections with other freelancers and business owners!
There are two types of community, online and in-person of course. It’s important to start online while you’re still at home dreaming up your nomadic lifestyle, and then have support once you’ve landed. This guide will give you the information you need to create community at home and provide resources to make connections once traveling. We will go in-depth showing you how to find a supportive freelance community worldwide!
Where to start, and why?
You may be thinking it’s too soon for you to make connections, perhaps you’re still skeptical about becoming a digital nomad. Or maybe you’re already doing a bit of freelancing or are starting your own business. Either way, finding a community is essential for success and it’s not too early.
I can’t stress enough how important it is to find expanders aka other people that are doing what you want to do to show your subconscious that you too, can have that life. I could go on about the psychology behind this, but to keep it short and sweet: seeing is believing.
Once I decided that I wanted to live a location independent lifestyle, I sought out inspiration and gained motivation from females like me, that left their day job to pursue a work-travel lifestyle.
Make connections with others who are doing things that sound interesting to you, and use them as a resource. It’s amazing how open and generous this community is with sharing knowledge and tips, and it’s infinitely helped my success by hearing other people’s journeys.
I am going to highlight exactly the places I found the most helpful information, made meaningful connections, and built a community that helped me get the confidence to make a nomadic lifestyle possible!
1. Facebook Groups
This is where the niche communities are at, that I’ve found the most value in. There are so many groups tailored to freelancing, female digital nomads, online coaching, instagram and more. Find a group that resonates with you, and start reading about others’ adventures and questions that they ask. Read the comments as you’ll gain so much value from that alone.
Don’t be afraid to make a post, introduce yourself and ask for advice. That’s what they’re made for!
Best group for travel inspiration + advice: Girls Love Travel
This group was the first that I joined when I started planning my upcoming travels. It’s ideal for travel inspiration, getting location-specific info about anywhere, really, and meeting up with like-minded females who are traveling through the same places you are!
For my first solo trip, I actually met two ladies online to road trip around Ireland with from this group. You can read more about that experience here. This is a great place to meet others during your trips for a coffee date, or someone to explore a new place with. Who knows, you might find a new destination that you didn’t even know existed before, and a new friend!
Best group for all things freelancing related + finding jobs: Freelancing Females
This is the best group for networking, finding clients, asking questions about the ins and outs of business, and accounting/tax advice. Any time I have a pricing related inquiry, need help with a client, or need to hire an extra set of hands, I turn to this group. It’s highly active and it’s an amazing resource for all things freelancing related, and owning a business as a female entrepreneur.
Make sure you are offering value by answering questions and helping others when you can. But when you’re just getting started, read through and absorb as much as you can. I encourage saving posts that are helpful to reference in the future or taking notes that you can index and search for later. You are sure to find a freelance community worldwide here.
Best group for women in digital marketing / social media: Females In Social Media & Digital Marketing
Another great group specifically for females in digital marketing and social media, as the name suggests! This is great for more industry-specific resources. If you’re offering a service in the social media sphere (ie, Instagram marketing, Linked-In marketing, Facebook ads, ect) this is the group for you to learn about the industry.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions and understand the ins and outs of your service that you’ll be offering! There are so many opportunities for free knowledge and to develop your skill through the experiences of others.
2. Coworking Spaces IRL
Scout out a co-working space in your new destination before landing, and consider making that your part or full-time office space. A co-working space is basically an office for digital nomads, remote workers, entrepreneurs and startups; a mix of people that don’t have access to traditional office spaces and want a bit more work-focused environment than say, a coffee shop.
In addition to all the basic office type stuff like printers, fast wifi, and couches, you’ll also find community (and sometimes beer on tap ;)). This is where you’ll make connections with other people who are doing similar things! Additionally, co-working spaces usually have frequent events and speakers from around the world to support your entrepreneurial journey. These events are great for networking and learning new skill sets that will support your professional growth.
To browse co-working spaces by destination, check out Coworker to search worldwide spaces and browse pricing options.
Make the first move
The key to growing a network is harnessing the power of an introduction. Start getting practice by telling your story of what you’re doing and why. Leverage the power of LinkedIn and their direct messaging feature. Find people who are in the industry you are curious about and don’t be afraid to shoot them a message asking for advice. Usually, people are willing to point you in the right direction.
This also goes for in-person situations, of course. It’s easy to be shy and stand in the corner around the food table pretending your hyper-focused on your cheese selection (not me) to avoid social interaction. But you never know what opportunity can be harnessed behind a simple hello! I’ve made valuable connections this way, and it’s good practice to get into introducing yourself. “I am” statements are powerful, even if you’re not all the way there yet. Mindset is the key to success.
People ask me what I do all the time. The answer I give depends on who I’m talking to because I honestly “do” a lot of different things for income. It’s fun to switch back in forth between “I am a photographer” and “I am a real estate agent”. Know your audience, folks.
Conclusion
To wrap things up, you should now know how to find a supportive freelance community worldwide. The internet is your oyster, but it’s essential to combine the power of technology with real-world connections. Find a friend to work with that you can bounce ideas off of.
Comment below and let us know, what is your favorite way to make connections with other digital nomads and freelancers?!
Next up is Day 4, where we will learn how to build systems and strategies around freelancing to set you up for success!
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Christine is a twenty-something coffee-obsessed solo traveler from a small town on the east coast of the US. She sold everything 4 years ago to follow her curiosity around the world.
As a passionate creative entrepreneur & digital nomad, she has explored it all! Her mission is to help others create and live their dream lifestyles aligned with their values and ultimately, create more sundays in their everyday.
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