This post originally started off as a bit of an annual review of sorts.
But as I was creating the travel part of it, I realized that in true digital nomad style, I shot at least one YouTube video in just about every single destination I visited.
I truly think that is one of the most unique things about this brand, we teach you things, but try and do them from as many different locations as possible.
Digital Nomad Videos: Location Rebel on Location
Travel has always been in the DNA of this brand. One of the biggest reasons I left my day job and moved to Thailand was so that I could have more experiences and see more of the world.
It’s shocking to me that 10 years later, every year I’ve been able to continue to do that. It’s a testament to the benefits this lifestyle can afford you – and it’s one of the reasons I’m so proud of everything we’ve built with the Academy and the people we’ve helped grow their own businesses of this sort.
So, while over half the videos I created this year were shot at my home in Portland, it was pretty cool to look back and see just how well we were able to blend our travels with the educational aspect of LR.
Without further ado, here is my complete list of travels (in roughly chronological order) as well as the videos and blog posts that went along with them.
Bandon Dunes, Oregon
Bandon Dunes has quickly become a mecca of golf. It was one of the original items on my bucket list, and I’ve now been there about half a dozen times.
This one was special though, as my friend Patrick completed the most epic road trip of all time. He quit his job, bought an RV, and played 405 unique golf courses in 365 days.
I went down to Bandon to join him for the last rounds, and shot this little documentary-esque video about it.
Cannon Beach, Oregon
My buddy Nick Ramil is one of the smartest entrepreneurs I know. And each year it seems we end up in some weirdly romantic situation, somewhere around the world. One year it was Yangshuo, China. Another, Hong Kong, This year it was the Oregon Coast.
Our video about starting a business in China was one of the most watched I had all year. Here’s the full blog post.
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Vail, Colorado
Every year for the last 6 I’ve headed to Vail to hang with my dad while he works on the US Open of Snowboarding. The last few years I’ve convinced some of my favorite people to come join me.
This year they helped me celebrate hitting 10,000 YouTube subscribers.
Bermuda
No, it’s not Aruba. Or the Bahamas. It’s 600 miles from anything out in the middle of the ocean, and it’s awesome.
I host a golf event out there every year for the Eighty Club.
This year I was also able to shoot three videos there, including this one about the importance of a “Bridge Business”“.
Bend, Oregon
Ok, we’re a little Oregon heavy with this top half, but it’s beautiful, so I don’t see anything wrong with this.
For Spring Break this year I went over there with Tate’s family, and found some time to head down to the Deschutes River and shoot a video all about 8 different types of location independent videos that I think are worth starting this year.
Paris, France
My sister and I in Paris after surprising her for her birthday.
This is one of those situations where I realized just how fortunate I am to have this lifestyle. My sister Courtney was celebrating her 31st birthday by taking her first trip to Europe with my brother-in-law to meet some friends.
So naturally Tate and I decided to pop over and join. Except she had no idea we were coming.
Watch the surprise and 6 of my most important lessons from being a digital nomad.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
After a week in Paris, we headed to Amsterdam for a few days to drive boats, (weirdly) eat the best BBQ I had all year, and talk about imposter syndrome.
London, England
London is one of my all time, favorite cities in the world. Although every time I’m there it’s a whirlwind of cocktail bars as we work to cross off as many top 100 bars as we can.
This year alone we hit over 20 bars that have been on the top 100 list at some point in the last 3 years.
But the biggest milestone was the fact that I while I was in London we celebrated the 10th anniversary of this website.
What?
Crazy how time flies.
It felt only natural to share some of the lessons I learned along the way, so here are 33 things I’ve learned in 10 years as a digital nomad.
Silvies Ranch, Oregon
It took a 6 hour drive to get there, but it was worth it for sunsets like these at Silvies Ranch.
Silvies Ranch is about 3 hours east of Bend. Basically you hit the middle of nowhere, keep driving another hour, and you’re at Silvies.
It’s a golf resort unlike any other I’ve been to and was one of the most enjoyable few days I had all year.
While I was there I hiked out to a scenic spot (it wasn’t hard to find), and shot a video about one thing that has helped me stay happy as a human, even when I’m cooped up working by myself so much.
Vancouver, BC
I was hanging out with Tate earlier this year, and I said “if you could go to any concert, alive or dead, who would you go see.”
She said The Beatles.
Well after a quick Google search, we found out that Paul McCartney was not only on tour, but he’d be playing a show in Vancouver less than 6 hours away from us.
So we commenced a quick birthday trip up to Vancouver, to see the show and explore a city I’d never been to.
We used some hotel points to stay at a bougie hotel (here’s the run down of my best travel hacks), and shot this video all about the pros and cons of the digital nomad lifestyle.
New York, New York
I spent the better part of 2 weeks in NYC this year across two different trips. It’s one of my favorite cities anywhere, and something about it feels like home whenever I’m there – despite having, well, never lived there.
Since I took two trips, I figured I’d share two videos.
The first is all about figuring out when the time is right to quit your job:
This post all about the 13 best approaches to quitting your job might also be helpful if this is something you’re considering this upcoming year.
The second trip as just a couple months ago with Tate to see some friends and knock off a few cocktail bars along the way. We stayed near Central Park this time, so I hopped over to shoot a quick video about job security and the safer more secure alternative to relying on a paycheck:
Boston, Massachusetts
I hadn’t been to Boston since my first trip there way back in 2011. So when I was asked to speak at TravelCon this year, I jumped at the chance.
I ended up hosting an Eighty Club event there, then had a week to kill, so I went to NYC, and then came back to Boston for the conference.
Let’s just say golf clubs and trains don’t go well together.
But my room at the Yotel the first night of the trip made for the perfect backdrop to shoot some videos.
This one about why you should start a blog I thought turned out pretty well:
Need more incentive to start? Here are 56 more reasons to start a blog.
California Redwoods
This family trip down to Crescent City, California ended up being a great weekend getaway. We had a beautiful AirBnb on the ocean with some spectacular views.
It was the perfect backdrop to talk about one really important way to monetize your blog.
Hint, it’s all about having this page.
Prince Edward Island, Canada
Chef Michael Smith’s Fireworks Feast on Prince Edward Island was one of the very best meals of my life.
Of all the places I expected not to visit this year, PEI probably would have been up there.
But when I got invited on a sweet golf media trip, I couldn’t turn it down!
It ended up being one of the most enjoyable trips I took this year, and also included one of the very best meals I had as well.
I show you a bit about that meal, but I also filmed what I think is one of my most important lessons I shared all year.
This is the closest thing I’ve got to a magic bullet for success online:
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Ok, if the PEI trip came out of left field, then the Dominican Republic trip came from outside of the stadium. I got invited on this trip with barely a week’s notice – but to spend 3 days at the Secrets Cap Cana? Totally worth dropping everything to head over.
I got a chance to spend a whole afternoon shooting video, but it was this one all about how I doubled my traffic on Location Rebel that I thought turned out the best.
Wichita, Kansas
PEI, Dominican Republic, Kansas?!
Yeah had some random destinations during the last part of the year, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I took a trip to Kansas to visit one of the best golf courses in the world – Prairie Dunes.
And while I was there my first night staying at the very exclusive, Airport Hampton Inn – I shot a video about how much money I make on YouTube.
The numbers might surprise you:
Pebble Beach, California
And finally, my last trip of the year was once again to visit Pebble Beach for the Lexus Champions of Charity golf event. This is one of my favorite events of the year, and for some reason that I have yet to figure out, Lexus invited me back for the 2nd year in a row.
I played some great golf, hung out with great people, and even got a (really) great car for the day to have some fun in.
But this video was basically to finish out the year and share a little bit about where things are going next:
What’s to Come in 2020?
I got hit with waves of nostalgia and gratefulness as I wrote this post and revisited so many videos throughout the year.
I hope they’ve been entertaining and useful as you work to build your own lifestyle business. I’ve devoted my life to helping others be able to live a life they are more excited about and nothing about that will change in 2020.
I’m going to continue publishing new content, updating and being active in Location Rebel Academy, and traveling the world in an attempt to make the most of the opportunities I’ve been given.
Over the next couple months I have trips to some old favorites lined up: Bend, Florida, Vail, Florida (again), and Bermuda – so there should be plenty more videos shot on location.
If you made it this far, let me know which of these videos or blog posts was the most helpful to you, and I can’t wait to see you from some place new over the coming 12 months.
Sean Ogle
Sean Ogle is the Founder of Location Rebel where he has spent the last 12+ years teaching people how to build online businesses that give them the freedom to do more of the things they like to do in life. When he's not in the coffee shops of Portland, or the beaches of Bali, he's probably sneaking into some other high-class establishment where he most certainly doesn't belong.Join over 40,000 people who have taken our 6 part freelance writing course. Sign up below and let’s do this together.
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