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Welcome to Money Diaries, where we're tackling what might be the last taboo facing modern working women: money. We're asking a cross-section of women how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period – and we're tracking every last penny.
This week we're with a 31-year-old digital nomad who doesn't have a base but travels all over the world, working wherever she chooses from her laptop.
"I’ve been without an actual home for just over a year now. I left the UK two and a half years ago as I really needed to change up my life and honestly haven’t looked back since. I probably won’t be a 'nomad' forever but for now it suits me down to the ground. It can be really hard for people to understand that I live out of my backpack and even harder for them to comprehend when I tell them I prefer it this way. My life is boxed up at my parents' place as I had my own place before I left the UK. It's also where I store all my clothes. The downside of this is that going to see them is super stressful as I need to think ahead to what I need to take with me and where I'm going to be. And I'm not very good at planning that, I still have no idea where I'm going to be for any of December.
I’ve been in my current role for about six months and with the company for two years. My position is definitely a stretch role for me and I know that I work too much but I really love it. One of the key benefits of my living situation is that it gives me control of my work and social life balance. If I’m in a different place and I need to get things done, there are no external pressures preventing me from doing that. The second benefit is that it plays quite nicely on my purse strings but it can be a struggle not to burn the candle at both ends when I’m in London. I’ve managed to save a crazy amount of money as a result of this way of living and I feel much more optimistic about my financial future now."
Industry: SaaS
Age: 31
Location: Depends on how I feel, what’s going on and what the needs of the business are. It’s one of our busiest times of year, so I’m spending this month with the team in London. This is the longest I’ve spent in one place in over a year. Since January, I've been on 40 planes; visited four continents; and worked from 18 different cities from Melbourne to Copenhagen to San Francisco to Mexico City.
Salary: £49,200 + bonus (approx £2.5k a year, monthly variable payment).
Paycheque amount: £4,214 – currently self-employed so tax & NI need to be deducted.
Number of housemates: Depends where I am. This week my boyfriend and a colleague were with me. My boyfriend did start off as a digital nomad with me but has been back home for a year now due to personal circumstances. We see each other about once a month.
Age: 31
Location: Depends on how I feel, what’s going on and what the needs of the business are. It’s one of our busiest times of year, so I’m spending this month with the team in London. This is the longest I’ve spent in one place in over a year. Since January, I've been on 40 planes; visited four continents; and worked from 18 different cities from Melbourne to Copenhagen to San Francisco to Mexico City.
Salary: £49,200 + bonus (approx £2.5k a year, monthly variable payment).
Paycheque amount: £4,214 – currently self-employed so tax & NI need to be deducted.
Number of housemates: Depends where I am. This week my boyfriend and a colleague were with me. My boyfriend did start off as a digital nomad with me but has been back home for a year now due to personal circumstances. We see each other about once a month.
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: Variable depending on my location but in general this tends to be a minimal outgoing for me. If I’m travelling for work they’ll cover my costs, as is the case this month where they’ve paid £1,720 for a one-bed Airbnb.
Loan payments: £147.60 student loan. I pay my credit card off in full each month.
Utilities: NA
Transportation: No fixed expenses. Being in London this month means I’ll spend more than my average on transport.
Phone bill: £15.70
Savings? £56.9k – this does include the money for my tax bill but I consistently save every month. When I was based in London, I lived hand to mouth so I’ve built this up since leaving.
Other: Netflix (£7.99) and Spotify (£9.99)
Loan payments: £147.60 student loan. I pay my credit card off in full each month.
Utilities: NA
Transportation: No fixed expenses. Being in London this month means I’ll spend more than my average on transport.
Phone bill: £15.70
Savings? £56.9k – this does include the money for my tax bill but I consistently save every month. When I was based in London, I lived hand to mouth so I’ve built this up since leaving.
Other: Netflix (£7.99) and Spotify (£9.99)
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