So…What’s Remote Year?

The most complicated questions I get asked these days are usually the most basic- “What do you do for a living?” and “Where do you live?”

These questions are usually not asked in order to garner a very lengthy and detailed description; they are supposed to be almost as brief and informal as, “what’s your name?” Yet here I am, making people uncomfortable, launching into a five minute awkward explanation of this thing called Remote Year and how I’m freelancing (kind of, not really), etc. 

A little over a year ago I found myself feeling completely defeated post- grad. Most people had warned me that jumping into the working world after university would be very difficult, and they had become depressed or felt isolated. I was overly confident that I would be fine.

I’ve worked full time almost throughout my entire undergraduate career and figured if anything, it would just open more space and time for me to do the things I loved.

There had to be another way of doing my life, despite the “welcome to the real world,” “this is what becoming an adult is,” responses I got from everyone around me. I refused to subscribe to this.

I definitely was not prepared for what followed- exhaustion, loneliness, and this overwhelming feeling of my life being meaningless now that I wasn’t working toward some big concrete goal like a degree. I also realized how much I thrived and depended on the inspiration and excitement that learning new things and new subjects provided me. 

Yes, I no longer had homework after a full day but I felt more exhausted and less interested than ever. I’ve never been one to follow a set path and the anxiety that came with feeling like I was trapped into an 8-6 job with no way out and no energy to do anything else seized me with anxiety.

I had so much traveling I wanted to do, so many things I wanted to write, and people I wanted to meet. There had to be another way of doing my life, despite the “welcome to the real world,” “this is what becoming an adult is,” responses I got from everyone around me. I refused to subscribe to this. 

You might have seen those inspirational, trendy little Remote Year ads pop up on your instagram or Facebook- beautiful shots of scenery in between images of people working on their lap tops in perfectly curated spaces or on top of mountains. I did, and thought, I wish I could do something like that, but that’s completely unrealistic/ not possible.

Spoiler- I am doing this and it’s definitely real, I promise, though I am pinching myself daily.

One night, feeling particularly low with no way out, I simply clicked on that ad, filled out the five basic questions of interest and gave my email. Things moved very quickly. 

Suddenly I was skyping a beautiful, very real girl from her apartment in I think Croatia, nonchalantly confirming that yup, I could do this, she did it, people do it, it’s a thing. You won’t regret it. 

It’s funny though because the minute they said yes to me, and it came to me saying yes to them and through them an entire unknown world of travel, discovery, possibility that I had been dreaming of- all my reasons for saying no appeared and took over. 

I think the beauty of doing a program like this is that it doesn’t simply open doors and possibilities- it forces them on you. 

It took me 9 months to commit to a start date. At least two months to even commit to saying yes to the program, forking over a tiny bit of the deposit and still thinking- I can just bail, it won’t really happen, who are you to be taking off and traveling like this.

I’ve been in Portugal for four days now. I’ve been traveling for three weeks already. I saw six cities and two other countries before I even began the official Remote Year journey on September 30th.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, I’ll back up. Below are the answers to the most common questions I get when I try to explain what it is I am doing with my life currently. 

What is Remote Year?

Remote Year is a company that provides an experience (vague? You’re welcome). You apply, they accept, you pick one of their itineraries and then you just show up.

Each group consists of either 12 countries, 12 months, or 4 countries, 4 months. I went for the full experience- 12 months circling the globe.

Our group is comprised of 36 individuals who either bring their jobs along, or are self-employed. Everyone is working, traveling and living together.

How does it work?

You pay a monthly rent, like you would back home. Your rent consists of your apartment, your transportation too and from countries, and your co-working space. It also includes one week called “TRACKS” where they provide the option to participate in 3 or 4 inclusive activities. These activities allow you to really immerse yourself in the culture of the city, meeting locals, seeing secret spots, etc. Everything else is on you.

Why are you doing this? 

Why not?! If the very long intro didn’t satisfy, I am doing this to really dive into the travel journalism field and hopefully finish my novel. For the field I’m interested in, traveling and experiencing new things, cultures and people, is essential. The networking and connections you meet on the journey are another huge bonus. So here we are.

What are you going to do after Remote Year?

Ok let me just say- please do not ask me this. For some reason this has been the first follow up question from most people I tell about this. I don’t even know what I’m doing tomorrow. I have no idea what will happen to me everyday, or in each country, or who I’ll meet or stumble upon. So far, I just fall madly in love with each place and I’ve only been traveling for three weeks.

I think the beauty of doing a program like this is that it doesn’t simply open doors and possibilities- it forces them on you. For most of the people I’ve talked to on this program, we all agree that we have no clue where we will be come next October- but whatever it is I’m sure it will be just what I need at that time.