Absolute freedom that comes from doing what you want, where you want, on your own schedule, is sold as the ultimate dream. However, for the unprepared, this type of freedom actually manifests as anxiety.
The Paralysis That Comes With Infinite Choice
The most dangerous misconception about freedom is that more options equals more happiness. In reality, this often manifests as option overload and paralysis. As a digital nomad with an online business that allowed me to visit nearly 20 countries the past year alone, I learned that when you can be everywhere, you often end up establishing roots nowhere and end up being less productive and satisfied as a result.
When every day is a blank slate full of possibility, and every upcoming month is a potential new destination, you end up burning precious energy just deciding what to do, where to go, and when to work. Without the external pressure of a boss or real work deadlines, you’re left with the heavy burden of infinite possibility.
As a result, instead of liberation, you end up with decision fatigue, where the maintenance of your lifestyle and the seeking for more and better takes away focus and the fulfillment from actually enjoying your present moment.
Creating Structure By Getting In Touch With Yourself
To escape the paralysis that comes from a world of options, you must stop looking for freedom from structure and start to build freedom within a structure.
The first step to doing this is by going deep with yourself and what you truly want from your life and business. Learn to look past the consumerist travel mindset that is driven by dopamine seeking or social validation, and ask yourself where you would go and what you’d do if you couldn’t post anything on social media.
This filter alone will help you on the right path for creating a sustainable foundation in the form of grounding, which should be the ultimate goal for even the most flexible digital nomad.
Once you start to design your life around your core needs, you will realize that true autonomy doesn’t come from having no rules, but from strictly enforcing the ones that keep you grounded and aligned.
Grounded Expansion
Real freedom is not bouncing around with no direction like a bottle in the ocean. Like a ship with the ability to steer and manage speed, true freedom comes with having a solid structure acting as your keel and rudder.
Grounded expansion means accepting that you cannot build anything of lasting value without a set of operational constants.
Keeping a fixed baseline that honors yourself and your needs beyond the stimulation and freedom of the ability to travel will give you the stability required to actually compound your efforts.
Once you establish and adhere to this base, you’ll find that you can plant your seed of intention in the soil of a true freedom foundation.
Over time, this will grow to support the life and future that you’ve always dreamed of, and all of the other options that seemed so appealing at first will suddenly fade into the background, giving you a taste of the state of being that is far superior to freedom: inner peace.
