Digital nomad: 'You really get to immerse yourself in the culture'

Lasse Damsgaard Skaalum's sound and image come through clearly on Teams: ‘Just a moment, I need to switch on my air conditioning - it's really hot!’ he says and briefly disappears from the picture. Lasse is currently in Oman, where he works as a backend developer for the company Trifork. His stay on the Arabian Peninsula marks the end of a long journey where Lasse has lived in different countries while working remotely. He is part of a growing trend where employees are travelling while working online from different destinations. The phenomenon has been referred to as ‘remote work’, ‘digital nomads’ and ‘teleworking.’

Of course, this type of work requires a great deal of planning and self-discipline - both of which Lasse Damsgaard Skaalum was very aware of before he took the plunge into life as a digital nomad:

‘You get a lot of freedom with responsibility when you work remotely. It requires a lot of self-discipline, but perhaps most of all a sense of responsibility. Now that the workplace has given you this huge opportunity, I personally think you have to take that responsibility seriously,’ Lasse explains.

Planted the idea early

Lasse's desire to travel is not new: he has been fascinated by other countries and cultures ever since his gap years. Previously, however, Lasse travelled ‘fairly sparsely,’ as he puts it, so the prospect of actually having the financial means to travel for longer periods of time appealed to him:

‘Being able to combine work and thus a slightly better personal economy with travelling was just super appealing!’ he says.

The idea to work remotely came about while Lasse was living in Copenhagen. After a few years of self-employment, he needed something different and wanted to travel while he still had a lot of freedom and wasn't tied down by children or a mortgage. So when Lasse was looking for work again, he was determined to find a workplace that could offer him the opportunity to work remotely in the long term:

‘I had sent a number of applications and actually had 7 contracts in hand and was free to choose what I wanted. So I approached each of the companies and asked about the possibility of working remotely, and the majority were open to it,’ Lasse explains.

He ended up accepting a job at Trifork as he had previously worked at their department in Aalborg and knew from experience that management was favourably disposed towards remote work. Soon after being hired, Lasse started talking to his manager about the possibility of travelling around as a digital nomad:

‘I repeatedly told my manager that I wanted to go. I had to ask a few times because it kept getting postponed, and suddenly a year had passed. So finally I asked him to give me a concrete time when it would be possible and we agreed that I could go 2-3 months later.’

When the travel plans were finally in place, Lasse started his journey in Athens, where he stayed for a month. He then had shorter stays in Sofia, Belgrade and Montenegro and finally Croatia, where he spent just over a month. However, Lasse had two rules for his trip:

‘Firstly, it was important to me that I could stay in the same time zone as my colleagues back home in Denmark. Secondly, I wanted to travel relatively sustainably. So I took one flight from Denmark to Athens, and then I just had to figure out how to take buses and trains up through Europe,’ he says.

The workplace on the move

Working as a digital nomad does not come without its challenges. Lasse mainly stayed in Airbnb's and hostels during his travels, where it can sometimes be difficult to find a good workstation, he says. So he invested in a travelling setup with a small keyboard and mouse so he could work in a better ergonomic position anywhere. He also quickly realised that it became too chaotic if he had to constantly change base: ‘The best choice was to stay longer in each place. It became too stressful to move around too much,’ Lasse points out.

Company on the journey

Before departure, Lasse tapped his good colleague Mathias on the shoulder and asked if he would join him on the journey. It turned into a month and a half with Mathias as his travelling companion before the two parted ways and Mathias went back to Denmark. Lasse continued into Europe and then met up with his Russian friend Victor, with whom he travelled for a few weeks through Belgrade and Montenegro. Having company while travelling made the experience less lonely and gave him the little breaks from everyday life that naturally occur in an office environment:

‘It was really cool to be able to sit with someone else and work, even if we weren't working at the same time. Just the fact that you had a 5-10 minute break once in a while where you could talk about something other than work, just like you would in the office back home. In addition, you also have someone to hang out with after work - it requires a lot of mental capacity to meet new people,’ says Lasse.

A deeper understanding of the culture

For Lasse, life as a digital nomad has been a great experience that has enriched him both professionally and personally. Working remotely is different from the usual holiday that only lasts a few weeks, and it creates a unique experience, he explains:

‘I have a lot of great stories and experiences to take home with me - it has definitely been an experience of a lifetime and something I will remember and talk about. Even though I've travelled a lot before, this has given me something different. You get to immerse yourself in the culture in a different way than if you just spend a week in another country,’ says Lasse.

Advice for those considering life as a digital nomad

Here are Lasse Damsgaard Skaalum's top tips for working remotely:

Mention your plans early on: Present your desire to work remotely to your manager well in advance and be persistent. Mention it at the interview if possible and target a company where it's an option.

Find a travel buddy: Travelling with someone can make the experience less lonely and create those little breaks in everyday life that you know from the office.

Invest in a good travel setup: A small portable keyboard, mouse and laptop stand can make a big difference if working conditions aren't always optimal.

Travel at a leisurely pace: Stay longer in each destination to get the full benefit of the culture and avoid stress.

Take responsibility seriously: Working remotely is a golden opportunity, but it also means freedom with responsibility. So take your responsibilities seriously, work the agreed hours and explore the city in your free time.