3:00 PM, at the quaintest little gem in New York City. Tucked away, RESOBOX was my go-to spot for delicious Japanese-inspired drinks. Usually places with a) quiet and b) natural light are brimming with fellow laptop warriors. But RESOBOX was pretty undiscovered — the kind of place New Yorkers dream of finding.
I sipped on a matcha azuki bean ice cream float while waiting for my lunch date. We were going to continue a conversation on work-life balance. She’d been having these beautiful thoughts about the drudgery of corporate NYC (she held a pretty nice post-graduate post in finance)… how she wanted to stop delaying travel, start learning new arts, take more risks — all exciting stuff!
She arrived, and we swapped stories and smiles and laughs. Talked about stashed money, familial concerns, and the pace of Manhattan. The jazz of the cafe matched the mood of our conversation; there’s nothing more human than listening to a friend speak their heart.
As we strolled over the Queensboro bridge, swathed in the sunset and white noise of cars, I spoke about my upcoming travel plans: a prolonged trip through Europe, supporting myself with only my websites that I had built up over the past year. I was nervous about it all… my first grand solo foray.
By the end of our time together, I got a request that I’d received dozens of times in the past couple months: ‘you should start a blog!’ I usually bemoan travel blogs, because who actually reads them? So I thought: ‘How can I create a site that both shares and imparts?’ I decided I want to talk about places and things that my loved ones can look back on and say: this is why the old fart was how he was.
In 2014 I began learning internet stuff, and have since made it my (albeit young) career. Each month, I support myself from websites and consulting. Telling data stories. With travel, I maintain an on-and-off digital nomad lifestyle. I want this to be a place to share the steps that have afforded me journeys so far. I created two sister projects: Nate.Life is the travel half, and Authority.Site is the professional half. You can read my thoughts on digital audience growth over there.
I also want to create some accountability — in establishing a routine and some authority, I’ll owe critical thought and reflection to myself. Journaling is healthy!
And lastly, I hope to share the sheer beauty of the places I’m lucky enough to see.
So:
1) a valuable reason
2) a selfish reason
3) and an experiential reason.
Usually the mantra is that success comes in many forms, and some find success in vastly different things than others. I measure greater success in experience, and immediate success in opportunity. Risk is just the likelihood of an irreversible negative.
I haven’t yet arrived, but I’m on my way somewhere.
