In part one of this series we talked about the importance of getting ahead financially to have a freer life. We touched on some ways to make that happen and the importance of making that happen so you can be free to "Live Travel Pro!"
In this part we'll go into further detail about how you can get your money working for you and alternatives to having an income straight from a large lump sum investment. We'll cover how much money you really need to live Travel Pro. We'll talk about what it means to be a digital nomad and what it means to be a Travel Pro! We'll talk about how to make it happen for you!
What are some other ways to get your money working for you safely?
This really depends on where you are and what your country of residence has to offer. I'll first explain an entire huge asset class that you can't rely on. Any investment where you only make money if "it" goes up or down. You need a steady, reliable income if you're going to Live Travel Pro!
So with this in mind stocks, bonds, random currencies, bit-coin, cryptos, exchange traded funds (ETFs); even if you are 100% certain they are going to go up in value the reality is that you nor anyone has a crystal ball. So I would consider all these speculative investments that can be played with; just not to solidify a secure Travel Pro Life. These are the investments that very well could make you a millionaire, but they could also make you broke.
The best and most secure investment I can think of is lost in time in the 1970's in the United States. That would be a simple insured savings account. Interest rates were around 8% for most of that decade. So if you put 100,000 dollar in the bank, every year (12 month cycle) you would earn about 10,000 dollars insured on that money and that's in 1970s money!
Why am I saying this when it no longer exists? Well it actually does exist in certain countries around the world. Ecuador being one of them. This is where I have a nice chunk of money earning me more than 9% insured. But there are some strings attached if you are not Ecuadorian, there is a visa and residency process to get involved with. They use the USD dollar in this country so there is no risk of holding another currency which is often more volatile. So this is one option for those willing to do so.
Other than that for most citizens of western countries you really have no safe and insured place to get a good secure return on investment. Since interest rates are around zero offering no return on your money, it's forced almost everyone into the stock markets around the world, which is a speculative and highly risky place to be at these valuations. If you got in back in 2009-2014 I'd surely be taking profits here.
Unfortunately we no longer have 1970's insured interest rates in the western world and the reality is there is no safe place to get a safe ROI on your investment now. So I really don't have the answer. What I'd probably do if you can't just commit to living in Ecuador for a while nor want to, is go to rental income. That is probably your best bet at this point. For secure and steady income.
However that can come with a bunch of headaches and risks too. Everything from poor management, to lousy tenants to your building burning down or just needing some serious repairs! One thing is for sure, if you want to live Travel Pro you have to get a solid income through investment without eating into your savings. Once you start eating away at your savings, you'll find yourself back at square one before you even know it.
How much income do you need to Live Travel Pro?
Well, again this depends on how well you are at the other aspects of Living Travel Pro that we will discuss later. As a general rule, I'd say you'd want no less than 750 dollars a month income. Obviously the more the better, but I've Lived Travel Pro on as little as 500, even less when I had to. However the less money you have, the less fun you'll have, the less travel options you'll have, and quite frankly the less you'll even really want to live Travel Pro.
Do I need to have investment income? What about another source of income?
Absolutely you can live Travel Pro from another source of Income. If you can make money from your computer you can basically Live Travel Pro! But, you'll be much more like a Digital Nomad rather than a Travel Pro. Quite frankly for the past few months, this is what I've become. The more time I spend on Steemit blogging the less Travel Pro I feel. I feel much more like a guy that just goes to different places stays there for weeks at a time and spends all day working on his computer. It's actually very Un-Travel Pro and very digital nomad. A title that I never ever liked or thought of myself as.
Living Travel Pro is all about having free time to do what you want and seeing the world. But if you are busy computer programming, blogging, consulting, teaching English or whatever it is you do from your computer 40 hours a week then you mine as well just stay in one location and not even travel.
Now that being said. Getting this 1,000 dollar a month steady income from investment is often easier said than done. I don't get a full guaranteed 1,000 a month from investments. I get about 75% of that. I make up the rest from teaching English through skype for about 3 hours a week, and now through my efforts on steemit I'm earning much more. Earning money through your own talents builds self esteem and the feeling of productivity but if it turns into a full time job; then that is exactly what you have and are no longer living Travel Pro.
This is totally my current problem. I started on steemit maybe putting two hours a day into it as a hobby. If I didn't go on for a day it was a non issue. It was just for fun. I wasn't making any money anyway. However in the past few months my followers have tripled, the currency price has gone up hundreds of percent, and I'm suddenly making more money than I dreamed of from blogging about my life. Two hours a day has now turned into, often ten hours a day! I'm no longer very Travel Pro! I'm somewhat frustrated about this while simultaneously I couldn't be happier about my success here.
So my plan is to work really hard and backlog a bunch of blog posts, then get back to my Travel Pro Life. Which I'm successfully doing. Then find a good balance of blogging and living how I enjoy. One thing is for sure I can't be Steemit's World Travel Pro if I'm just sitting in a hotel all day writing. So we'll end this article now so I can soon get back to being a Travel Pro! Until next time. "-Dan World Travel Pro!"
With over 11 years of travel experience I answer travel and international lifestyle questions. Leave a question in the comments and I may make a Steemit post just for you!
