Remote work and Overlanding might seem like a new trend, but in fact, it has been around for at least a decade or so.
Only recently we have seen an increased interest from people who want to do remote work while also enjoying traveling around the world, regardless of whether they are spending 1-2 months per year roaming from place to place or living out of their vehicle full time.
Working remotely when overlanding and traveling involves a reliable internet connection, a safe inside space away from the weather, a power supply, quality headphones, a good planner, and a strong mindset.
Let’s take a closer look at how to successfully work remotely while enjoying the exciting world of overlanding. We’ll dive into getting a reliable internet connection and other gear that can make your life easier while working remotely.
The Rise of Remote Work
From the beginning, remote work was most popular among freelancers who are self-employed and have their own business with a customer base that doesn’t require them to be at a specific location.
These days more and more employees are working remotely for large international company HQs located in different regions of the world, including Europe, North America, Asia, etc. So working remotely has become an essential skill every serious digital nomad must possess in this day and age.
But let’s face it – not all of us were born entrepreneurs or self-starters. For most of us, this whole remote work thing is still very new, and we need to learn more about it before we can understand how to do it properly.
Get a Reliable Internet Connection
So we agree that we don’t want our internet connection to fail or constantly drop during presentations or Skype calls, etc., right? This means we need a consistently fast connection everywhere in the world. And let’s face it – there are places where you can never get reliable internet access, especially if you decide to do Overlanding.
Public WiFi
Fortunately, there is public wifi everywhere in the world in this day and age, even in the most remote areas! However, many of these free wifi’s are not secure, so when using them outside at coffee shops or when connecting to your personal hotspot on your smartphone while driving through the countryside.
It would be wise to use a VPN service that encrypts all your data through unsafe public networks. You can also download Hotspot Shield, which gives you 500MB free per day, but it doesn’t have any bandwidth limit, so I am sure you will never use up all 500MB in a day.
Coffee Shop WiFi
If there is no public wifi available or you would prefer to get more work done, many coffee shops have their free wifi hotspot for customers. The great thing about these wifi’s is that they are usually very fast and secure!
So when choosing the place where you want to spend your working hours think about it – if it has its internet connection, perhaps through fiber optic cable (which means super-fast internet), then why wouldn’t you choose this particular place?
The only downside may be that some big cities like Bali or Hong Kong don’t have any spare “coffee shop” type places, especially if you want to work on a remote beach.
Hotspot and Cell Phone WiFi
The last option for a reliable internet connection is to connect your computer or laptop through the hotspot of your cell phone either via wired cable or via wifi which some phones can do as well.
This has been my personal favorite for many years since it isn’t too expensive, and I always have my smartphone with me, so this means I can work from pretty much anywhere!
The only downside is that most cell phone plans limit their monthly bandwidth usage without any notifications, making it difficult to estimate how much data you will need in a given month, thus leaving you with unexpected bills at the end of the month.
I have traveled the world on remote work projects before, but this lifestyle came with a few challenges that took me years of trial and error to figure out, especially regarding reliable internet connection.
A decade ago, many places in the world still did not have good access to wifi hotspots – at least not as fast as you would expect from paying $15/day for your hotel room wifi service (in some countries). A year later, coffee shops started offering free public wifi hotspots.
Nowadays, most restaurants, coffee shops, hotels, airports, and gas stations worldwide offer wifi hotspots for their customers.
Sometimes, these public wifi hotspots are not very good because they are overloaded due to high demand by other visitors or hackers stealing bandwidth without anyone knowing.
To avoid slow connection speeds or disconnected sessions, I make sure my device is connected directly to the internet router with a physical cable instead of using the hotspot feature, which usually doesn’t have its dedicated connection to the internet service provider.
And let’s face it – nothing beats having your private internet connection! This convenience is available through mobile data providers, which supply devices that provide more reliable connectivity than even business class fiber optic internet lines at commercial office buildings.
The most popular business modem device in 2021 is the 5G LTE router. And if you’re passing through a particular area and need to stay connected for a day or two, mobile hotspots are available at gas station kiosks all over the world.
Interior Space Made for Remote Work
I know we all want to work from the beach, yet at the same time, we need a place where we can get some work done. And let’s face it – this is pretty hard to do if you don’t have a portable laptop table or any other type of office furniture in your car.
So, for this reason, I suggest you should look for vehicles with unique interior spaces designed for remote working that provide either fixed tables that replace the back seats or simply foldable ones that fit somewhere between your driver and passenger chairs.
This creates more space and comfort when working inside while giving yourself enough legroom during long journeys. At least, this is what I do in my 4×4.
Portable Batteries
Another thing you must have, especially if you are traveling alone, is a portable battery charger that can recharge your electronics on the go!
If, for example, you need to work until late at night and there’s no electricity where you are staying, then this will be super useful. Since it not only gives your gadgets more juice but also means that even if there’s no wall socket nearby, you still have an option of charging your laptop or other devices.
You can also charge your devices with the help of an inverter installed inside the car (if it has one) or simply by plugging the battery into a 110V to 220V converter, which comes included in most portable batteries nowadays. You can also purchase a second battery then charge all your devices at once.
Electricity Options
If you already have a vehicle with an inverter installed inside it as well as a 110V to 220V converter and don’t want/need any extra batteries, then you might consider purchasing a few of those plug-in power sockets that fit on the cigarette lighter or what they call “lighter” socket in some countries.
Just make sure they are not too powerful since this could be dangerous for your laptop. While we’re on the topic of power sockets, I would also suggest getting a multi-socket extension cord which can be handy if there’s no electricity near the place where you will stay overnight and still want to work from somewhere outside.
Other Gear
High-Quality Headphones
When it comes to choosing headphones, I am not too picky. Any will do as long as they are comfortable, lightweight, and good enough for making calls over Skype or similar software if you need them to.
Of course, these days, you can get a pair of wireless earphones which work on Bluetooth that have a built-in microphone, so you don’t have to worry about cables getting in the way when working from your car.
But let’s face it, these things aren’t cheap, and what’s more, batteries tend to run out pretty fast. This means you will also need some external battery pack to recharge your earbuds since there won’t be any jack port nearby to do this.
A Good Planner
Last but not least, you will need a good planner or notebook where you can write down your working hours, travel hours, and anything else that comes up throughout the day. Many good planners are on the market these days, so pick affordable yet practical for your needs.
Final Thoughts
Many successful remote workers choose to travel around the world with an Overlanding vehicle like Toyota Land Cruiser, Jeep Wrangler JK, Suzuki Samurai, etc., instead of leasing one for shorter periods (like 3-6 months) or purchasing brand new ones that will depreciate significantly after only two years.
As this trend gains momentum, more and more Overlanding vehicle manufacturers are offering the same level of connectivity and comfort as modern passenger cars.
For example, Toyota Land Cruiser 200 Series 2018 model includes a USB port, LED lamp controlled by a smartphone, etc., similar features to other higher-priced vehicles are currently available on the market.
Preparation is the Key
After all this rambling about how to work remotely in an overland vehicle, I hope you see now why it may not be as easy as simply taking your laptop with you on a journey around the world. It would be best to prepare for it thoroughly. Otherwise, things might end up being more complicated than they should.
Keep in mind that working while traveling doesn’t necessarily mean your business will suffer, but if you feel like you are struggling with organizing yourself time-wise, then it’s probably better to go back to an office at home for a couple of weeks once in a while to work out the bugs in your plan.
After all, life is not about work only! Have fun, make money, and live happily!
