Profs and Pints Online presents: “A Guide to Digital Nomadism,” with Rachael Woldoff, professor of sociology at West Virginia University, and Robert Litchfield, associate professor of business at Washington and Jefferson College.

[This talk will remain available in recorded form at the link given here for tickets and access.]

Digital nomads are people who design their work lives to be mobile, so they can travel and live where they please without maintaining a long-term home. As COVID-19 has legitimized remote work, digital nomadism has quickly shifted from the realm of fantasy to become a realistic possibility for many.

Might digital nomadism be for everyone—or, at least, for you?

Come learn what digital nomads’ lives are really like, and how they make it all work, from Dr. Woldoff and Dr. Litchfield, the co-authors of the new book Digital Nomads: In Search of Freedom, Community, and Meaningful Work in the New Economy.

They’ll take you inside the world of digital nomads to learn about who chooses this lifestyle and why, what makes it doable or a failure for certain people. and what insights digital nomads can offer about the future of work.

Drawing on rich data compiled from their interviews, online networks, and fieldwork on the ground in the digital nomad hub of Bali, Indonesia, the two scholars will bust some common myths about digital nomads, such as the assumption that they are constantly on the move or common perceptions of them as loners, losers, trust-funders, would-be influencers, or tech bros.

We’ll also learn lessons for the post-pandemic world about control over one’s time, well-being, career, and mobility. Today, many people are reluctant to simply follow the orders of leaders to return to “normal” – meaning a return to the old routines of work in the workplace controlled by their employer. Digital nomads provide an example of a new path while simultaneously reminding us that much of the “normal” that we are asked to return to was already obsolete before the pandemic.

This talk will resonate with anyone searching for work reinvention in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Profs & Pints Online: A Guide to Digital Nomadism