Location Freedom Formula: 10 Years of Making Digital Nomad Life Real with Writer, Suzanne Wentley | EP 12

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Curious about how to actually make money while exploring the world's most beautiful places?

Ryan is joined by Suzanne Wentley, a former journalist who escaped 14-hour workdays to build a thriving remote career that lets her live anywhere - from mountain villages to tropical islands.

Learn practical strategies for transitioning to the digital nomad lifestyle without sacrificing financial security. Suzanne shares her decade-long journey of building multiple income streams while traveling the world.

Chapters:
15:10 - Mental health essential before becoming digital nomad
23:32 - Healing power of 10-day silent meditation
37:52 - Choose creating over consuming 
41:00 - Finding work-life balance as digital nomad
54:17 - Underrated digital nomad paradise

She reveals the mental and emotional preparations that can make or break your success abroad. Breaking down how letting go of traditional success metrics opened doors she never imagined possible.

You'll discover why adapting to change matters more than having the perfect plan, and how to prepare yourself for the realities of working from anywhere - even if that means recording audiobooks from a soundproof booth in the Canary Islands.

Listen to Suzanne's surprising perspective on what really matters when building a location-independent life - it's not what most "experts" are telling you.

Connect with Suzanne: https://thelovelightproject.com/

MORE FROM RYAN MELLON

Follow Ryan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedigitalnomadcoach/

Learn how to be a Digital Nomad: https://www.thedigitalnomadcoach.com/

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DISCLAIMER:
Listening to stories of beachside zoom calls, mountainside work views, and island-hopping entrepreneurs may cause severe wanderlust and an irresistible urge to turn your laptop into a passport to freedom. Side effects include daydreaming about tropical coworking spaces, working with Ryan to learn how you can start working and traveling and buying a one-way ticket to Bali. Get ready to start living your dream life today!

Chapters

• 0:00 Do you need a home base?
• 6:26 Vietnam’s beaches
• 15:04 Advice for aspiring digital nomads
• 20:23 Staying healthy while traveling full time
• 51:42 Choosing underrated nomad destinations

Transcript

[00:00:00] Ryan Mellon: Ever feel trapped working 14 hours a day? Dreaming of a different life, but not sure how to make it happen? Today, I sit down with Suzanne Wentley, a digital nomad who's transformed her life from working a high stress journalism job to building a location independent career as a writer, Yoga instructor and coach since 2015.

[00:00:20] Ryan Mellon: She's been traveling the world and today She is joining us from a sailboat in the islands of the South Pacific We explore how Suzanne built multiple income streams while traveling her practical approach to mental health on the road And why she believes minimalism goes far beyond just packing light ~whether you're burning~ Whether you're burnt out at your corporate job or you're just Or just curious about the digital nomad lifestyle, you'll learn actionable steps to begin your journey.

[00:00:45] Ryan Mellon: Stay until the end where Suzanne reveals the surprising truth about adapting to nomad life.

[00:01:00] 

[00:01:55] Ryan Mellon: Today, I have Suzanne Wentley. Welcome, Suzanne. ~Suzanne?~

[00:01:58] Suzanne Wentley: Hello, Ryan. ~Hello, digital nomads.~

[00:01:59] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah, ~how [00:02:00] are you today?

[00:02:00] Suzanne Wentley: I'm great. I'm a little hot. I'm here in the Solomon islands. ~It is, ~it is the depth of summer right now ~in, uh, ~in January. So ~it's, ~It's hot, but

[00:02:10] Ryan Mellon: How hot, how hot is it? ~Yeah,~

[00:02:12] Suzanne Wentley: muggy hot. ~Um, I would, I mean, I don't know. It's probably, ~I would say maybe 90 degrees Fahrenheit. ~Um, don't make me, ~don't make me say Celsius. ~It's~ 

[00:02:18] Ryan Mellon: yeah. 

[00:02:18] Suzanne Wentley: 30s. Someone do the math for me.

[00:02:21] Ryan Mellon: It's all good. ~Uh, ~Fahrenheit's definitely,~ uh,~ most of our listeners ~are, ~are listening from the States. So all good. So, so why are you in the Solomon Islands? And it looks like you're on a boat.

[00:02:32] Suzanne Wentley: Indeed, I am currently boat sitting and cat sitting for a friend of a friend. ~So, um, ~we'll talk about my digital nomad origins, but I have experience on boats and I have experience with lots of cats. ~So I'm, uh, ~I was the winning combination ~to, ~to care for this woman's boat in Nauru and In the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, and I can report I am definitely [00:03:00] the only digital nomad.

[00:03:02] Suzanne Wentley: here in the Solomon Islands. I'm also the only solo female traveler, I would say, in the Solomon Islands, too.

[00:03:08] Ryan Mellon: ~Wow, very cool. ~So are you at Anchor or are you in Arena?

[00:03:11] Suzanne Wentley: Yes, I'm at anchor. ~Um, ~they don't have a lot of,~ uh, ~tourist amenities here in the Solomon Islands yet. ~So, yes, it's, it is, I'm at anchor, and I, ~I'm not far from shore. I kayak. To shore. And then I take a dusty couple mile walk to market downtown and get all my veggies. But sometimes a man will deliver my vegetables in a leaky wooden canoe.

[00:03:34] Suzanne Wentley: ~So it's a, ~it's an authentic experience that I've got going on right now.

[00:03:37] Ryan Mellon: ~That's awesome. ~It sounds like you got door dash coming right to the boat, huh?

[00:03:41] Suzanne Wentley: ~Right. ~But it's not pizza. I cannot expect a pizza.

[00:03:44] Ryan Mellon: ~I, ~as long as you get some fresh veggies and some food where you can, uh, make some good meals yourself, that's great. That's very convenient. And he makes a little bit of money too. So that's awesome. ~So ~how did this come about that you were able to,~ um, ~how,~ uh, ~[00:04:00] boats it?

[00:04:00] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah. Networking. ~Um, ~I have been traveling for a decade now, and so I'm, I'm, I'm Was sailing originally and so when I was on the sailboat in the Dominican Republic, I met a family of cruisers ~who, uh, ~while I went one direction, they went the other and met this woman in the South Pacific ~and, um,~ the family knew that I was just ~sort of ~traveling ~and ~enjoying my life ~and, you know, ~working from anywhere and, and, and free.

[00:04:31] Suzanne Wentley: ~I guess we could say. And, uh, so ~they just sort of put my name in the hat for this position. ~Um, and ~it was a part of the world I've never been. Like, this ~is a ~little corner, the South Pacific. I didn't really know much about it. I had, ~have ~traveled extensively throughout New Zealand. And, Australia, but I never made it over to these, ~this ~islands, ~you know, ~like Tonga ~and ~Vanuatu ~and ~Papua New Guinea and all of these islands.

[00:04:53] Suzanne Wentley: I didn't really know anything about. So I, that's exactly why I was interested in, in coming.

[00:04:59] Ryan Mellon: That's [00:05:00] awesome. ~And so ~how long is it that you'll be there for?

[00:05:02] Suzanne Wentley: ~Yeah. ~I've been here since the beginning of November. ~So it's about, I think ~it's a little over two months, maybe two and a half months. I still have another couple weeks here,~ um, ~before ~the, ~the boat owner returns ~and, ~and I'm on my way.

[00:05:15] Ryan Mellon: Okay. Well, that's pretty cool. So that works out for you and the boat owner because,~ um, I guess ~I imagine the boat owner went back to their home country or had something that they needed to attend to. So ~you, ~you were able to help out like that. Yeah. ~Yeah, ~that's awesome. Well, it's always good to network and meet with other cruisers ~and cruisers are folks that are sailing on their boat full time, usually around the world.~

[00:05:32] Ryan Mellon: And once you get into that community, there are definitely a lot of opportunities. ~Uh, so ~very cool. I love that. You're on the sailboat. So what's next after the sailboat? Do you have any ideas?

[00:05:43] Suzanne Wentley: Yes. I have my ticket and my e visa and my Airbnb all prepared for myself in Da Nang, Vietnam. I lived there. ~Gosh, now ~maybe five years ago or so, and I'm excited to go back. It's a really lovely [00:06:00] little city right on the beach in Vietnam. I'm excited to return.

[00:06:03] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah, ~Danang is a cool place. ~Uh, ~I was there probably four or five years ago, but I've heard it's changed quite a bit. I've heard ~it's, ~it's kind ~of a, a, a bit ~of a digital nomad hotspot now. So I'd be curious to see,~ uh, what, ~what the vibes are like now after,~ uh, ~it's been a couple of years.

[00:06:18] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, ~you know, ~it's interesting. There are these places throughout the globe ~that are ~on, I call the digital nomad map, ~right? ~Like you're in Bali. That's definitely on the digital nomad map. Da Nang, a hundred percent. ~I, ~I love it. Spent earlier this year. ~I was ~in Bansko, Bulgaria. That's on the digital nomad map.

[00:06:34] Suzanne Wentley: I was in the Canary Islands. ~I would say ~Las Palmas also qualifies for a spot. ~You know, ~lived in Medellin ~like this. ~These places are easy living. Have all the amenities you need. Good Wi Fi. affordable and with a nice expat community. ~Uh, ~there's something to be said for,~ uh, ~people around you that speak the same language as you.

[00:06:56] Suzanne Wentley: I'm not a polyglot yet, so [00:07:00] I really appreciate these places on the digital nomad map to check out. But ~that being said, ~I also really enjoy being, ~like I said, the only. ~The only solo female traveler ~I get ~you should see these looks that I get ~from ~from people being like, what are you doing here? And I'm like, I'm not really sure ~I'm, you know, ~I'm enjoying the boat life.

[00:07:17] Suzanne Wentley: ~Right? So I, you know, some ~I'm sure it's changed when I was there. ~How many years ago? ~There was a lot of construction, but I think there's still a lot of construction.

[00:07:22] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah, ~yeah, I can imagine. ~It's a, ~it's a cool spot and, uh, being there on the beach, you know, there's not a ton of ~like ~great beach spots in Vietnam and Da Nang is definitely one of the top ones. So, yeah, I'm curious to see how your, uh, travels go. I think there is,~ um, ~actually a Nomad Festival happening there.

[00:07:41] Ryan Mellon: Are you planning to go to that?

[00:07:43] Suzanne Wentley: ~I am not. I did see that. ~There are so many nomad festivals. Isn't that interesting, Ryan? That's a new phenomenon.

[00:07:49] Ryan Mellon: ~It is new. ~I've never even been to one yet.

[00:07:51] Ryan Mellon: But I haven't interviewed a lot of people that have.

[00:07:54] Suzanne Wentley: ~yeah, I was, ~I was lucky when I arrived in Bansko this last summer. I went ~there ~[00:08:00] for,~ um, ~a pet sitting gig ~as well, ~which Went sideways, ~by the way, we can talk about that, ~but I ~just ~happened to be in town for the nomad festival ~and ~I think it was one of the originals, ~you know, um, inspiring.~

[00:08:10] Suzanne Wentley: Actually, I thought it was very inspiring. I learned, I took a lot of notes,~ uh, ~networked. ~I ~met ~a lot of ~lovely people from all over the world and ~I ~I enjoyed it. Now, would I want to spend hundreds of dollars to go from. ~Um, you know, ~country to country ~to ~doing this type of thing? Not really. ~I got the feeling that it's sort of, ~they all seem a little similar to me, but ~that being said, I, I had a, ~I had a lovely experience.

[00:08:32] Suzanne Wentley: Am I gonna go next summer? Probably not, but ~I, ~I enjoyed it. I mean, I think ~it was, ~it was good ~for ~to do at least once.

[00:08:38] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, I feel like it'd be the same way. ~I think ~you probably get a lot of the same folks that go to, they do make, do make the rounds and if you have groups of friends in the, in those rounds, ~like ~it's good to meet ~me ~back up with people, ~but yeah, um, ~I'd be ~interesting, ~interested to check one out. ~And ~because I am in Bali, I might go to Denong or I think there's one in Chiang Mai too, ~but, um, Just~

[00:08:59] Suzanne Wentley: That's also on [00:09:00] the map.

[00:09:00] Ryan Mellon: ~Definitely on the map. Top on the map.~

[00:09:00] Suzanne Wentley: And Chiang Mai ~is the, ~is the, like, the capital, I 

[00:09:03] Ryan Mellon: uh,~ for sure, for~

[00:09:04] Ryan Mellon: ~sure. For sure. ~Absolutely. We've had lots of people on this show already from Chiang Mai. ~And, uh, ~It's about to be burning season there. So a lot of people were about to migrate down to Bali for a month or two. Oh, well, all that air quality situation,~ uh, ~gets bad there for a little while. So, so take me back to the time, or, if you have a specific time or place that you knew, ~like.~

[00:09:25] Ryan Mellon: Being a digital nomad was right for you. ~Is, ~is there ~a, like ~a starting point or a place that you were or a point in time that you ~just really kind of ~felt like, all right, I want to be a digital nomad. This is the life.

[00:09:37] Suzanne Wentley: ~Yeah, ~I started becoming a digital nomad before there was a term for digital nomads. I,~ uh, ~started traveling in 2015. I was living in Florida at the time. I moved there after graduating New York university. I had studied journalism and politics, so I had a number of. ~Uh, I would say ~high stress [00:10:00] jobs actually out of college.

[00:10:01] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~working at daily newspaper. I was,~ um, ~doing some marketing and communications work for some nonprofits. Then I was working for a government agency,~ uh, ~passing a referendum for children and family programs. ~And ~I was starting to get a little burnt out with my community. ~It was, you know, I was kind of in this place where ~I knew that I needed to do something different.

[00:10:22] Suzanne Wentley: I needed to move. I didn't know what that looked like. ~And ~I happened to meet a man who had a sailboat and said, Hey, let's go sailing. ~Like, let's go. ~And I said, Yes, because I don't think that you say no to those types of opportunities in life. Now, I've subsequently met some people that have said no, and it's interesting to think what would have happened with my life had I said no, but I didn't even think that that was an option at the time.

[00:10:48] Suzanne Wentley: ~So, yeah. ~This was 2014 and ~I began, you know, I, ~I had a, you know, a house I was renting with a garden, you know, and roommates ~and ~a car and an office job with a [00:11:00] pension and all of this, you know, very rooted lifestyle. And, you know, I just went about divesting ~and ~I quit my job and I thought, you know, as a journalist, you know, with this background in writing, I could do some magazine articles to sustain myself.

[00:11:18] Suzanne Wentley: So I started doing that ~and ~I pitched a bunch of ~sailing in particular ~sailing magazines and, you know, got some assignments and slowly started to work ~Uh, ~create a freelance career for myself,~ uh, ~starting as a copywriter, then I got into Some marketing consultation. ~Uh, ~I also am a yoga teacher. I got my yoga teacher training.

[00:11:40] Suzanne Wentley: This was part of my transition ~was ~to create some,~ um, ~geographically independent,~ um, ~funding streams. ~Like ~what could I do? With myself that ~could, you know, and maybe I ~could make money somewhere, somehow, this was what I was thinking. ~So, you know, ~it really happened organically. I was on the boat for two years,~ um, ~sailing ~and I ended up in, you know, you know, we sailed ~throughout the [00:12:00] Caribbean.

[00:12:00] Suzanne Wentley: ~So, um, ~when I,~ uh, ~disembarked the boat and the relationship. You know, then it was just, at this point, I was, little did I even realize, a digital nomad. So, I, you know, at that point had gotten myself down to a backpack, and You know, sort of decided where did I want to go, what, you know, what the world's a big, beautiful place and let's start exploring.

[00:12:22] Suzanne Wentley: ~And so, um, ~I didn't meet my first fellow digital nomad for years after that. I mean, I was in Malaysia, in Penang, which I would also say is on the digital nomad, another lovely, another lovely place to visit. And that's when I met my first digital nomad. Digital Nomad. And after that, I ended up in Chiang Mai.

[00:12:42] Suzanne Wentley: And then I realized I was late to the party ~that, you know, there were lots, ~there were lots of people like us. ~So it wasn't, there wasn't like a time or a place where it made sense for me. ~It just sort of happened organically. ~Um, ~and, you know, my life flowed ~as it, as it, ~as it has.

[00:12:50] Ryan Mellon: ~I love that. Yeah. So yeah, ~I started as well before digital nomad was even a term. ~So it's, ~it's really be gotten, become a lot more popular and,~ um, ~now people are more intentionally making that [00:13:00] jump from ~like ~corporate life ~and, and stuff like that. Um, so ~if you were to give advice to someone who's thinking about doing the digital nomad life for the first time, and maybe they are in, ~you Like ~a corporate nine to five, what advice would you have?

[00:13:12] Ryan Mellon: ~Do you have any advice for them?~

[00:13:12] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, of course. ~Um, ~and I talk about this with clients. I also do transitional coaching. So this is a really common conversation,~ uh, ~about setting. yourself up for success. I call this doing your future self a favor, right? ~Like ~envisioning what you want for your life five years from now, ~like ~how you imagine your life looking, and then reverse engineer that so that you are making these daily habits,~ uh, ~that will create your future self, right?

[00:13:44] Suzanne Wentley: Because ~we are, um, ~we can be empowered to do whatever we want to do. And I know that it is totally overwhelming, this idea of like, let's just change up my entire life, like, right? Like it's, it feels like such a major pivot. But I think if you sort of chunk it out, it's [00:14:00] a lot easier. ~Um, you know, so, uh, I would say, like I, like I mentioned, you know, ~I got my yoga teacher training and ~I, um, ~I had been practicing some energy work before that I became a Reiki master.

[00:14:06] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, so ~I,~ um, ~Started to create some more skills, ~right? Like get some more skills in my, you know, ~tools in the toolbox, ~as they say, right, to, to, ~to set myself up for financial success. I've also, ~you know, ~made sure I didn't have any debt. That was also really important. ~So ~financially, like get yourself solid.

[00:14:21] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, you know, I. ~As a writer, I needed to have a portfolio. I needed to have an online portfolio, ~right? ~So that involved, ~you know, ~creating ~some, you know, ~a website and creating my portfolio. So that I, you know, one click and check me out, ~right? So ~that involved a lot of like digitizing and organizing, ~right?~

[00:14:37] Suzanne Wentley: So financially, get yourself ~in, in, ~in a good situation so that, ~you know, ~You're not going to stress out over money. That's the last thing you want to do if you don't have that, ~you know, um, ~support system nearby where you can't just turn to your, ~you know, ~girlfriend and go out for a drink and ~like, kind of, you know, ~hash it out.

[00:14:52] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~that being said, I think ~also ~Getting your mental health,~ um, ~sorted is also really important. Understand why you want to [00:15:00] live this type of lifestyle. ~Uh, ~a lot of people, ~you know, they ~say ~that, right? Like, ~go find yourself. ~Oh, ~I'm gonna go find myself, ~right? And this type of thing, right, ~where are you running away from something or are you running towards something, right?

[00:15:10] Suzanne Wentley: Thinking about what you really want to do. Because if you're running away from a problem, ~you're ~address that problem first, ~right? ~This might mean working with a coach. This might be working with a therapist. This might be, I don't know, like what, getting in shape finally, like this kind of thing, like what is going, you know, whatever's going on with you.

[00:15:30] Suzanne Wentley: Get yourself sorted, like be ready for the next big thing, right? This is setting your future self up for success, right? Like you, right? So if you're feeling good about yourself mentally and you're feeling good about yourself,~ uh, ~financially, physically is another thing, right? Like this is important. ~To ~be healthy, ~okay?~

[00:15:48] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, ~I'm in the middle of the Solomon Islands. I have to care for my own body. I mean, there's, there's no, there's no hospital in Nauru. Like, there is this clinic, and like, they [00:16:00] may or may not have, Drugs for me, ~you know, like ~I have to be,~ uh, ~careful about my physical health, ~right? So ~I am a very healthy person and I take that as a priority in my life, ~right?~

[00:16:11] Suzanne Wentley: ~So all of these things, right, like ~setting yourself up, doing it now, like, don't just wait and say, Oh, well, when I moved to Europe, I'll be walking more and then I'll be healthier. ~Like, ~that's not, ~I think ~the best way of going about it. I mean, it's true. Like this is going to happen, right? But taking care of yourself to get yourself.

[00:16:26] Suzanne Wentley: Ready for the next big thing, ~I think is, you know, ~there's so much,~ uh, ~that goes into ~like ~daily healthy habits that I think ~can, ~can really benefit you as a digital nomad

[00:16:35] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, exactly. So, and you said something about like, you know, having, um, what's life looked like in five years. And I think one of the, the quotes that I've seen that on just like social media that I think is super helpful is like decide what you're going to do, who you're going to be. And say no to everything that isn't that, ~you know?~

[00:16:58] Ryan Mellon: ~So ~once you figure out, like, I'm [00:17:00] going to this place, and three years I'm going to be living there, I'm going to be a digital nomad. Every new opportunity that comes should be looked through the lens of, is this going to help me get to? This, you know, and if it's not, it's a no. ~Um, so I think that's, that's something ~that makes it ~just ~so much easier and ~so much ~more focused to get where you want to go.

[00:17:20] Ryan Mellon: And then you also mentioned, ~you know, ~staying healthy on the road. So tell us about that. ~Like, ~what does that look like for you? Do you have any routines or ~like, uh, ~special ways of just ~like, ~you know, ~are you. ~eating healthy ~or like ~it is a little bit more difficult, right? Because you're on a boat and there's not a 24 hour gym right there, is there?

[00:17:38] Ryan Mellon: Yeah. Yeah,

[00:17:46] Suzanne Wentley: and, and prioritize it. Um, so I. Really create my day based on my health. I have been a vegetarian for my entire life. So [00:18:00] I care about the type of food I eat. I tend to eat whole fresh fruits and vegetables, right? I mean, this is, that's really been my, my life for a long time.

[00:18:11] Suzanne Wentley: I'm not into, ~you know, ~processed food or junk ~really ~of any kind. ~Um, I, um, You know, I get, I think I mentioned, I get, ~I get my fruits and vegetables delivered,~ um, ~by ~an, ~a man in a wooden leaky canoe that comes to,~ um,~ the boat. And so I'm actually have an abundance of, of fresh fruits and vegetables here. So that's not a problem.

[00:18:31] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~it can be though, like I'm on my way to Vietnam, which I think. It's the best food in the world as far as I'm concerned, especially for a vegetarian. It's so easy because of the Buddhist culture to eat vegan there. ~Um, and it's, I mean, ~bowls of noodles are delicious. ~Um, ~so that being said, I do often fast.

[00:18:52] Suzanne Wentley: ~I, ~I follow a number of different types of fasting protocols, because it can be easy for me to eat lots of delicious [00:19:00] food. Culinary experiences, I think, are part of the fun of being a digital nomad and going to different places. So, I want to have that as an opportunity for myself. I want to eat as much sweets as I want to, ~whatever.~

[00:19:11] Suzanne Wentley: But then I also have to balance that out. ~Um, ~nutritionally. So fasting is something that I follow. ~And then I do. ~I move my body every day, ~right? So no, ~there's no 24 hour gym, but I am on the sea and I do have a kayak. So I often will kayak somewhere. There's a really lovely snorkel spot nearby. I was snorkeling the other day and saw,~ um, ~an,~ uh, ~eagle spotted ray, which was super special, ~you know, so, and, you know, so, um, ~Seeing different things that I wouldn't normally see, right?

[00:19:39] Suzanne Wentley: So if I don't have a kayak and I'm not on the sea, ~well, ~what else would I do when I was living in Bansko in Bulgaria? I hiked up the ski road every day to the river and I cold plunged. for 10 minutes,~ um, ~in what ~this ~was 10 degrees Celsius. So again, you do the [00:20:00] math ~and all is that like in the forties, ~maybe like fifties, it's cold.

[00:20:01] Suzanne Wentley: It was cold on the cold river, you know? So, ~you know, ~this was a daily habit that I did. I'm also a yoga teacher. ~So, um, ~If I'm in a place long enough, I will get some classes going and do yoga a few times a week. I also teach remotely. ~So, um, ~I work with private clients. ~So I get to do that as a, ~which is just absolutely wonderful.

[00:20:19] Suzanne Wentley: So I'm moving my body a lot. ~Um, ~but then, you know, there's so much more to health, right? So I also have a very consistent meditation practice. ~Uh, that involves at least 20 minutes of sitting every day that really helps with my mental health. Um, I have gone, um, through some therapy times. Like, usually I kind of do like chunks of therapy, like six months of, of working with a therapist or with a coach, right?~

[00:20:29] Suzanne Wentley: ~To just sort of have somebody there. Uh, ~another thing that I do to help my health is stay connected intentionally. ~With, um, ~with loved ones in my life. ~I have, ~I'm really blessed to have friends all over the globe. ~And so I can kind of set up, you know, phone dates, uh, in different time zones to, to stay connected with people that really,~ I think is important,~ um, ~especially when you don't always have that built in community in ~these, um, You know, ~these digital nomad hotspots, you can go out and meet new people.

[00:20:48] Suzanne Wentley: And that's a lot of fun. But if you don't have that, you still, I think it's important ~to, um, ~to stay connected. And ~then ~the last thing I'd say,~ um, ~for my health is [00:21:00] sobriety. ~I've, ~I've been off of alcohol now for ~almost, um, I think ~almost four years ~now. And ~it's. ~Uh, ~kind of a superpower. ~I, ~I kind of wish that I did it earlier, but ~it, it's, you know, ~that's ~the ~life.

[00:21:08] Suzanne Wentley: It takes time. It's really easy, I think, to go out and ~like, ~go to the bar! Like this kind of thing, and then you, then you feel like crap at the end of the day, ~and, ~and certainly in the morning. So, you know, I'm trying to just get rid of all the junk, ~get a, you know, don't, you know, ~I listen to only a minimal amount of news, like BBC,~ uh, you know, ~New York Times kind of thing.

[00:21:24] Suzanne Wentley: But I try to just limit the amount of junk coming in, and that keeps me more positive and helpful, ~you know, ~going out.

[00:21:31] Ryan Mellon: ~yeah. All those things you mentioned, I love. ~What type of meditation do you practice?

[00:21:34] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~well, I have ~Uh, ~completed a Vipassana, a 10 day silent meditation, ~so ~I do Vipassana,~ um, ~but also I think it's sort of overlapping, I feel like, as a Zazen, Buddhist,~ uh, ~meditation as well, so, you know, that's just sitting,~ um, ~and meditating. Just tapping into your body and just breathing and being and that in itself most people don't do and [00:22:00] it's so powerful.

[00:22:01] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah, 100%. ~I tried to do it every day.~ Uh, ~that I can as well. Um, I also have done a 10 day retreat and it was definitely one of the hardest things I've ever done. I don't know if you had, ~you know, Um, ~as much trouble with it as I did, but like day eight, I was losing my shit. ~I mean, like ~I was just ~like ~ready to ~just like, I don't know, like ~destroy my little cabin because I was ~just ~so full of ~just so much ~emotions.

[00:22:23] Ryan Mellon: ~And like, it's just, it's such a, you're, you know, ~you're putting yourself into such a very different environment very quickly and it changes so fastly. So I'm curious, like, ~uh, ~how you're. Experience was with that.

[00:22:34] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah. So I, ~I, um, ~completed my Vipassana in Suffolk in the United Kingdom. And,~ um, so ~it was a really beautiful,~ um, ~country cottage, you know, like this type of,~ uh, ~idyllic,~ um, ~environment. But you're totally right, the internal environment, oh my goodness, was ~so, um, ~all over the place, right? So I feel you on this, it was not easy,~ uh, ~it was, [00:23:00] Very challenging to sit with yourself and,~ um, and it just ~experience your own sensations.

[00:23:06] Suzanne Wentley: I am a Reiki master and I am a yoga teacher, right? So you'd think ~that ~I would have, ~you know, like ~known my body and I had no idea, ~right? Um, ~by day seven, I figured it out though, Ryan, it being a healing modality. Thank you. I didn't understand that ~that that, you know, ~the mind body connection is so extreme ~like ~I know about the Vegas nerve, the gut mind connection.

[00:23:32] Suzanne Wentley: I know all ~of ~this, ~you know, ~biohacking research. ~Uh, I am, ~I'm 100 percent on board, but I did not recognize the depth of it, how you can actually heal yourself with your mind. that goes back to being a digital nomad and being a self,~ uh, ~sufficient, self reliant individual, right.

[00:23:50] Suzanne Wentley: Being an empowered person means. Knowing that you have the power to control your environment, control your [00:24:00] future, ~you know, ~control your body ~and, um, it's, ~it's extreme because it's so unlike Western medicine, ~right, ~where we think we just take a pill to feel better, but the idea of thinking yourself to feel better is, ~I mean, ~for lack of a better term, ~I'd say ~mind blowing.

[00:24:14] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah. Yeah. ~But it's definitely something that,~ uh, ~is probably the ~most ~fastest way to make changes and also make yourself feel better, ~make yourself feel better. Um, ~I think,~ uh, ~I've used visualization a lot as part of my journey ~and, um, you know, like just, ~let's say you want to become a digital nomad and you've made some goals, I think one of the most powerful things you can do is have a little bit of.

[00:24:32] Ryan Mellon: Five, 10 minutes of meditation every morning, just kind of calm your mind and get in tune with your body, but then start envisioning your new life as a digital nomad, ~like, ~what's that look like in ~very ~great detail? ~Like, ~are you on a beach? ~Are you ~in the mountains? ~Are you ~on a sailboat? ~You know, and ~just ~really, um, ~getting super clear about what the vision is because ~it's, it's, it's.~

[00:24:52] Ryan Mellon: It's getting into your subconscious and those things are going to start to manifest themselves over [00:25:00] time,

[00:25:00] Suzanne Wentley: ~Right. ~Self reflection techniques in general I think are really powerful. Another habit that I do every day is journaling. ~So ~I write in my journal every day. I write ten things that I'm grateful for every day. ~Right? ~Ten's a lot. ~Right? ~It gets to the point where I have to really ~sort of like ~pull it out of me.

[00:25:19] Suzanne Wentley: And what I'm doing, right? I'm creating new neuropathways so that I'm finding ~I'm going to have ~more things to be grateful for. ~Like ~there's something amazing about,~ um, ~these ~sort of, you know, ~reflection, Habits ~to, to, ~to write your own story, ~right? So that's something, right? Uh, ~creativity is also a major part of my life.

[00:25:35] Suzanne Wentley: ~Uh, ~recently published a memoir of my travels of becoming a digital nomad, this really a universal story, right? All the, all ~of ~your guests are telling similar tales and it's really fantastic. All the stuff that we've all kind of gone through, even though it feels like we're the only ones, ~right? So, um, writing, um, is also, you know, ~writing your own story, right?

[00:25:55] Suzanne Wentley: ~So ~even if you're not literally writing, if you're not a writer like [00:26:00] me, right. You don't, you can still craft your story. You can still live the life that you want to live. You can create it. And that's a beautiful thing.

[00:26:09] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah, I love that. So, ~tell us a little bit more about the book, the memoir.

[00:26:13] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, ~I mean, it's, I'm, ~I'm so, ~uh, ~proud of it because it's one of these things where,~ um, ~for years, ~as, you know, ~as a professional writer for my entire career, people say to me, Oh, ~you know, ~as they're hearing about my travels, right? ~Okay, ~I'm on a sailboat. Now I'm in South America. Now I'm hustling throughout New Zealand, ~you know, okay, ~now I'm, teaching yoga at an all inclusive resort.

[00:26:34] Suzanne Wentley: Okay, now I'm pet sitting in Tokyo, and oh, now I'm building out the tiny home on wheels in Australia, and okay, now I'm, ~you know, ~scuba diving in the Galapagos, ~and right, ~all of this ~sort of ~fantastic experience. ~Um, ~they're saying, when are you going to write the book, ~right? ~So, the thing that was interesting about the process, ~first of all, ~is that it really is a creative process to go through and be fair, not only [00:27:00] to myself, but also to everybody in my life that is part of my story, right?

[00:27:06] Suzanne Wentley: So to write that honestly, authentically, and fairly to everybody, and write it in a way that's not like A slide show that your grandparents are showing you after they came back from ~their, you know, ~their boring trip, right? ~And you're right. So it's not like this. It's ~it's more cinematic and ~I, you know, ~I wrote this on purpose ~to ~To make it an adventure to be along for the ride, right?

[00:27:25] Suzanne Wentley: ~It's this idea ~It's called one way ticket, right? Like this is how i'm living ~like ~I buy this one way ticket and I go ~and and you know, ~and what happens right? That's the thing. It's like all of this You Interesting,~ um, ~geographic location and all of these experiences that you can only have in these places are really just a backdrop ~right ~to our lives.

[00:27:42] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, ~we're talking about Vipassana and this inner world. ~Like, ~we all have this inner world of emotions ~and, you know, and really, ~Living the life that you,~ um,~ want, right? To be intentional with your life. What do you want to get out of it? ~And, um, ~I found that this emotional [00:28:00] resilience was a big theme in the book.

[00:28:02] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, ~how I'm doing as a solo female traveler, ~right? Like, ~we all go through this stuff, ~right? Like, ~I had PTSD ~I had ~to deal with because the boat broke. That I was on, caught on fire, ~right? Like I, ~I ~would, you know, ~tried my hand at a couple of long term relationships and ~I ~got my heart broken, ~right? Like, ~what do you do when you're on the road with this?

[00:28:19] Suzanne Wentley: You know, ~like ~when I was in India, I grabbed my boob, you know, that's sexual assault. How do I deal with that? Right? ~Like ~I ~got, you know, ~got my phone stolen in Ecuador. I got my card skimmed in Vietnam. ~You know, like I'm. ~I gained some weight. ~What do you know? ~I feel bad about myself. Like this kind of stuff is really what happens in everybody's life.

[00:28:37] Suzanne Wentley: I mean, this is not just me. There's so many people I'm sure can relate to all of the ups and downs of life and, you know, creating this emotional resilience. Again, this is an example of, ~you know, ~doing your future self a favor, like really, um, caring for yourself and creating that self compassion that can take you anywhere in the world.

[00:28:58] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, so, ~so, ~you know, ~the book [00:29:00] has a lot of fun adventure,~ um, ~but it also has a lot of real life stuff that I think everybody can relate to.

[00:29:07] Ryan Mellon: Yeah. And it's so important to talk about the downsides of digital nomad life, ~but it's also, it's like ~it's regular life. It's just that you're moving about, ~right? It's, it's, ~it's a lot of the same things that people are dealing with in their regular life. It's just, you're in a foreign location when it happens.

[00:29:22] Ryan Mellon: ~So ~sometimes it can feel ~like it's ~more. ~A dramatic drastic or ~dramatic, or, ~and it can be more ~challenging due to ~maybe ~not having that. local,~ um, you know, ~friends and family support group ~really ~close by and easily accessible. So yeah, I think it's really important to talk about,~ um, ~the challenges ~of, ~of this life.

[00:29:38] Ryan Mellon: So your book sounds awesome and I'm definitely gonna have to check it out. ~And ~at the end, ~yeah, we'll, uh, ~We'll ~put, um, let, ~let the viewers ~know where to get it ~or ~the ~listeners know where to get it, and then we'll put a link to it as well. ~So do you, ~I wanted to ask you,~ um, ~do you have a home base? Would you say,

[00:29:51] Suzanne Wentley: No, I don't. It's, I mean, and this is the organic way ~of, uh, ~of my story, ~right? Like, I, ~I, Moved onto a [00:30:00] sailboat, right? And so when I divested, I, you know, one way ticket style, right? Like I wasn't necessarily needing to return to Florida. I grew up originally in Pennsylvania. ~That's ~my parents live in Pennsylvania and,~ uh, ~I left Pennsylvania.

[00:30:16] Suzanne Wentley: You know, as soon as I could, it's cold there. I'm not really like, it's too cold. So I left as soon as I could. So I don't really consider, you know, my parents home, my home base. ~And then ~I was living in New York city ~and ~then I was living in Florida. I have lots of friends in all of these places, but ~I don't, ~I didn't really feel like that was home.

[00:30:38] Suzanne Wentley: And I'm not really sure that, ~you know, ~the definition of home is a, you know, ~that's a, ~that's an interesting philosophical conversation to have Ryan. ~But, um, ~I sold all my stuff. I do not have a storage unit that I'm paying rent on, which by the way, I encourage for everybody. I think there's very few things that you really need to hang on to.

[00:30:57] Suzanne Wentley: I have a few boxes of, [00:31:00] you know, sort of heirloom stuff,~ uh, ~you know, just out of friends. house, but otherwise I, I don't, I have right now,~ um, uh, ~65 liter, 20 kilogram backpack and a carry on, and I am living out of that now during COVID, I actually ~Um, ~with divine timing happened to have purchased an RV. ~Uh, ~like literally two weeks before lockdown.

[00:31:30] Suzanne Wentley: So, so for three years, I did have a home base because I had an RV. ~Um, ~but I was ~again, ~traveling around North America. I was. I went all the way around the United States and went down the Baja to Cabo and back again. And so, you know, traveling around in this way. So, so in that way, I would say, yeah, of course I had, I, I had a home base during that time, but I sold it, ~you know?~

[00:31:51] Suzanne Wentley: ~So when I went, ~when I moved to Europe,~ um, ~I was back in the United States because I was getting my Italian citizenship through the heritage [00:32:00] of,~ um, ~my mother. ~So. I, ~it was just coincidence that my consulate visit was, ~you know, ~scheduled four days before the lockdown. So I was really fortunate,~ uh, ~with that timing.

[00:32:12] Suzanne Wentley: But then, you know, ~once it, ~once I got my passport, I sold my RV and moved to Europe. And then I was living in Europe ~for, ~for two years before I came here. ~So, um, ~not having a home base is good and bad. ~You know, it's, it. ~It's nice to be able to go wherever I want to go and just pack up. And there's some really lovely sensation about having all my stuff with me, like next to me.

[00:32:32] Suzanne Wentley: Like, it feels really nice ~to feel really, you know, ~to own everything that I need and nothing I don't. That's the goal with the pack is, you know, it's really easy to overdo it. ~And, and I feel like I, you know, ~with 20 kilograms, I have to check it. There are digital nomads, God bless them, that just have carry ons.

[00:32:47] Suzanne Wentley: They're amazing, these people, I am not one of them,~ um, ~but I have everything I need, ~and, ~and really nothing I don't, I can probably get rid of some things, to be honest with you, but, 

[00:32:58] Ryan Mellon: it sounds like you're embracing [00:33:00] the minimalistic lifestyle for sure.

[00:33:02] Suzanne Wentley: yeah, you know, not just, right, so not just things, minimalism, right, but also,~ um, ~you know, the junk that I'm talking about, like, so minimal, minimalizing, like, my social media,~ um, You know, like, you know, ~the stuff ~that ~I don't need, ~you know, like, um, ~it's nice, I, you know, can, I take lots of photos and I upload it to the cloud and then I can organize it this way, you know, but I use that sometimes with my journalism, you know, if I'm doing a travel piece, so, you know, it, there's, there's reasons to keep ~this kind of stuff, you know, the ~digital files, ~but that's just something I did ~this year was I got my inbox down to zero.

[00:33:33] Suzanne Wentley: email inbox was at zero. 

[00:33:35] Ryan Mellon: It feels great. 

[00:33:37] Suzanne Wentley: Oh, ~I was, I was, it was, ~it was a moment in time because it's certainly not zero anymore. ~But, um, ~but yeah, you know, being, being minimalist as far as ~also ~what you need and your expectations. ~And ~this is also really, I think, an important way to approach ~Um, ~living as a digital nomad, right?

[00:33:52] Suzanne Wentley: If you keep your expectations low, you're always going to have them exceeded. ~And, uh, ~if you keep your demands [00:34:00] low, you're going to be much happier, ~right? ~There are people that I know that, you know, Americans that get overseas and they're kind of like, where's McDonald's? Right? Or, oh, where's my favorite, ~you know, ~brand of yogurt?

[00:34:11] Suzanne Wentley: ~I can't find it anymore, right? ~The more adaptable you are, ~right? ~The only way that you can be adaptable is if you free yourself from these attachments. And this is, now I'm getting into like yoga teachings, but this is, The way I live my life, right? To, to be an adaptable person means being,~ um, ~fluid with my identity.

[00:34:31] Suzanne Wentley: Like, who do I think I am? ~Like, ~I don't really even know. And that's okay! Like, right?~ Like, right? ~I'm learning about myself with every experience that I have and every place that I go. ~And, ~and I love that, ~right? ~This is making me, I think, ~more You know, ~a richer person in the end.

[00:34:45] Ryan Mellon: Yeah. Yeah, no, you have a lot of great insights and just Minimalizing everything in your life, not just material possessions, but like you said ~like ~news and information ~and all that. It's like It's, ~it's really ~just ~good ~to, ~to think about because we consume [00:35:00] a lot of things that aren't even actually consumables.

[00:35:03] Ryan Mellon: ~Right? So, um, yeah, it's, it's, it's really good. ~It's really good ~to, um, that. ~And then also just being more flexible. ~Um, ~like you said, the local grocery store, right? You're not going to find the same stuff. You are at home. ~Like ~everything's so foreign a lot of times. ~And it's such a, ~I find it to be like very fun to go to the grocery store ~and ~In a new place in a new country because everything is so different ~and like ~you buy some stuff and ~you ~get home and it's not what you thought it was at all, but you just figure it out.

[00:35:29] Ryan Mellon: And then you find some new favorites and ~then you do go home and then ~you're like, man, I wish I could get this ~from. ~But it doesn't exist here, you know, so you do need to be flexible for sure. ~And, um, yeah, ~traveling light ~is, is, ~is the best way to go. Like I am one of the few that does travel with just carry ons ~and.~

[00:35:45] Ryan Mellon: ~It's, I mean, ~I only go to warm countries, so it makes it easy, right? Shorts and t shirts, I've got ~like ~one pair of pants, ~and like ~one long sleeved shirt, and one hoodie. ~But, uh, yeah, it's just, like, ~the airlines never lose my bags, I never have to pay ~for, you know, like, ~For that stuff. ~And like, I just like, ~I have everything with [00:36:00] me, ~like all the time and ~everything I need for work, all my technology.

[00:36:02] Ryan Mellon: ~And so like, ~I'm never worried about that. ~Right. ~So I think ~it's, um, ~it's definitely a plus. To, uh, embrace that, ~embrace that. ~And you definitely never want to be one of those folks ~that are like ~trudging through these cobblestone streets or muddy streets with ~these ~giant suitcases. ~Like ~I see this happen all the time and I'm just like, Oh my goodness.

[00:36:21] Ryan Mellon: ~Like, ~I can only imagine ~like, ~you know, if you're moving around a lot, ~like. ~It's just crazy.

[00:36:26] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, you never need as much stuff as you think you need and you're right about that worry. I think that that was really interesting as I was starting to divest. I realized how everything that we own has a little place in our brain for anxiety, right? And I try to live a very low Anxiety life. I believe that anxiety is a bit of a choice.

[00:36:53] Suzanne Wentley: I think that if you feel anxious, you can decide not to. ~Just to say no to this, right? ~And just kind of train yourself to [00:37:00] not have this anxiety. It's a process, ~I know, ~but you're right, like, things play a major role. Like, if you have a car, ~right, ~there is a part of your brain that is worried, you know, ~that ~Is it getting broken into right now?

[00:37:12] Suzanne Wentley: ~Maybe, you know, in this, in this sort of thing. So, um,~ so good on you for only having a carry on. ~My goodness. That's, ~that's impressive.

[00:37:16] Ryan Mellon: Well, thank you. I think that it's funny that you mentioned having a car. Cause I do have a car and I left it with my mom ~and ~last night, ~like ~in the middle of the night, I'm like, I hope she's driving it ~just like ~once a month, ~you know, ~so it doesn't ~like ~start to get all funky. ~So that's so funny that you had mentioned that, but yeah, ~but yeah, I was just ~like ~thinking about that last night ~though.~

[00:37:31] Suzanne Wentley: It's so true, right? ~So ~all the stuff that we can consume, it's ~a ~consumerism, right? This is the culture nowadays, right? Like this attention economy. ~And ~the reality is that we're either consuming or we're creating, ~right? And so ~I am a big proponent ~of ~Of being a creative person, ~right?~

[00:37:52] Suzanne Wentley: ~So ~not just, ~you know, ~with my creative writing, like I'm working on my next book already,~ um, in, ~and even this last year I was able to, ~you know, ~[00:38:00] create an audio book ~for, ~for one way ticket, right? So these creative projects, you know, and whatever that looks like to you, it can be whatever you want it to be.

[00:38:09] Suzanne Wentley: And that's, what's so amazing about it. ~Like, I believe that. This, you know, ~we're creative beings. We're all doing something different, ~like all of us. And ~this is part of, ~you know, ~the divinity within, right? It's like, how are we going to express our creative juices? ~Like, what's good? Like, ~what are we going to do with ourselves?

[00:38:22] Suzanne Wentley: ~And ~we can't do that If we're just consuming, ~if we're ~worried about, ~you know, ~having the coolest outfit and, ~you know, ~always being in the know about every single thing, ~it's, ~you kind of have to make a choice. ~And, and ~this is the thing about being a digital nomad ~is, you know, ~we're ~sort of ~pioneers in this way, even though, ~you know, ~when you go to Chiang Mai, ~it's like, ~there are so many digital nomads, you feel like you're in the herd.

[00:38:43] Suzanne Wentley: But the reality is, is there's just not a lot ~of us, ~of people that are ~doing it. Like, ~Doing it, like living life fully ~and, um, ~and to do that you have to be creative.

[00:38:52] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah. Yeah. ~Be a producer, not a consumer.

[00:38:54] Suzanne Wentley: Yes.

[00:38:55] Ryan Mellon: Absolutely. So when you're choosing your next destination, ~like ~what [00:39:00] factors into that?

[00:39:01] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, ~you know, ~it's interesting. ~I, ~I was doing so much pet sitting over the years ~at one point I was doing a lot of pet sitting and ~I had a bad experience in Bulgaria with a homeowner who I mean, I mean, I gotta say it. She was mentally unstable. ~Right. And so it was like ~everything went sideways with it.

[00:39:21] Suzanne Wentley: ~Like, I mean, ~I thought I was showing up to a cat and, oh, now there's a dog, ~right? Oh, ~the dog is owned by a man ~who's, ~who was just beaten up by the Bulgarian mafia. ~Like, seriously? He had both of his arms and both of his legs broken in a beat down. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Right? And, and I'm all of a sudden doing this man a favor with this dog.~

[00:39:31] Suzanne Wentley: ~Okay. So this is just the short version of that story, right? ~So, however, what happened then. Was that I got kicked off of the platform ~that ~I was using for pet sitting because they sided with her. It's kind of like, ~um, ~Airbnb. I don't know if you've ever tried to deal with Airbnb's customer service. You quickly learn that there are ~a ~Many more people who want to rent an Airbnb than people who have Airbnbs and in general, the, you know, if you're in the, you know, the, the business [00:40:00] model, right.

[00:40:00] Suzanne Wentley: Is to side with the people that are making your business work. Right. And so if there are a million people looking to rent a, you know, affordable place and wherever, you know, you're going to, you're going to lose. And so I did. ~Um, so, um, ~Often I was, this is kind of how I was doing. I'd open up the, you know, my, my pet sitting app and say, what's good.

[00:40:21] Suzanne Wentley: Like, what's interesting. What's a place that I haven't been. ~Um, and I kind of took my power away. I was Lee, ~I was living not so intentionally, ~right. ~I think ~that ~that's interesting now that I ~sort of ~retrospectively look back on how I was deciding where I was going. I was sort of like, ~you know, ~the bell of the ball.

[00:40:35] Suzanne Wentley: I was ~like, you know, You know, ~sitting pretty on the sidelines, waiting to get the invitation to dance instead of getting on the dance floor and shaking it because I'm a great dancer. Right. And so, ~um, ~now I'm looking, ~you know, ~sometimes I want to have that community experience, right? So ~that's, ~I'll just pop, like I'm popping into Danong because I know I'm going to have this community experience that's important for me, but then sometimes this Out of the [00:41:00] blue Solomon Island experience is going to be interesting for me.

[00:41:03] Suzanne Wentley: I want to always be learning, ~right? So I don't, um, ~I don't really want to go someplace where I know how it works, you know, where I can just start, ~you know, ~doing my thing and everybody is just like me. That's never been my style. ~So, um, ~I like to,~ Um, ~explore different cultures,~ um, so that, you know, that means, uh, ~cool art museums,~ um, that means, you know, I don't know, ~interesting foods,~ um, ~and just ways of living, right?

[00:41:24] Suzanne Wentley: Like, how people are living, just, just seeing the world in this way. So, you know, that's important to me. I also chase summers, ~you know, so there's that. ~I don't particularly like Being very cold. ~Um, ~I did have some cold times in Europe, but then I was like, I got to get out of London and I~ I ~went to the Canary Islands, ~right?~

[00:41:42] Suzanne Wentley: For that exact reason. I said, well, there's a beach and it's warm and ~you know, that's, you know, ~that's going to be good enough. ~Um, ~But ~so ~I'm really open to, ~you know, ~seeing,~ uh, Nat ~nature and culture with my own eyes, ~you know, so ~I'm thinking after Vietnam, I'm considering going to Cambodia. I [00:42:00] haven't been there yet and like Angkor Wat, ~like, ~I want to see that with my own eyes.

[00:42:04] Suzanne Wentley: ~You know, there's, ~I've had so many conversations with people who talk about my travels and they say, Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. I saw that on TV. ~And then it's sort of like, ~then they're done talking about it. It's a really interesting phenomenon because,~ um, they're not, it's, you know, ~they're not so interested in my personal experience about it.

[00:42:22] Suzanne Wentley: They just want to like, check it off the list. And this is not how I like to do. I want to experience it. I want to feel it. I want to know how I relate to it. I want to learn from it. I want to grow, you know? So, ~um, ~I like, ~you know, you know, ~variety, I think maybe is the short answer to your question.

[00:42:39] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, yeah. And it's the spice of life, right? You know, it keeps things moving. ~And yeah, I, ~my plan was to come here in Bali and find a villa and stay in the same place for six months. That's not happened at all. I haven't found the perfect place. I've been moving around. ~I've been like, ~I'm at the beach. Now I'm going ~to go ~to the jungle.

[00:42:58] Ryan Mellon: ~Now I'm going to do this. ~Now I met this [00:43:00] person. ~Oh, well, ~maybe I should stick around here for a while. ~And it's like, you know, even, ~even though I'm staying in the country for the most part for this time, I haven't, I haven't settled down into this one location that I thought was the plan for this This winter.

[00:43:13] Ryan Mellon: So it's just keeping it open ~and, ~and being able to, ~you know, ~move and try something new and go where the wind blows pretty much. So it's great.

[00:43:23] Suzanne Wentley: ~Yeah, you know, um, ~it's,~ um, ~a misconception that,~ um, ~Darwin's lesson, you know, is the survival of the fittest. It's not. It's the survival of the most adaptable. ~Uh. ~And ~that's the, ~that's the key to me ~is, is ~adapting is to like, how's Suzanne going to be on a boat in the South Pacific? How's Suzanne going to be in the mountains of Bulgaria?

[00:43:43] Suzanne Wentley: How's Suzanne, ~you know, ~going to be underwater in, you know,~ in, you know, ~in Bali, ~right? Or wherever? Like, how am I going to do, you know? And it's, and, ~and guess what? I did great. It's fun. I love my life.

[00:43:52] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, ~yeah, and ~those are experiences you're never gonna, ~you're never gonna, uh, ~regret, ~you know, you're never gonna be like, ~at the end of your life, like, oh man, I just wish I just put in more [00:44:00] time to make more money and I didn't go to, you know, Thailand for those two years. I don't think anyone's ever gonna say that, ~so.~

[00:44:08] Ryan Mellon: ~What, ~what is one of your top ~picks? ~Five experiences ~that you've had ~during your travels. Is there anything that sticks out? That's just like a magical moment or a magical time that you've had and had experience,

[00:44:22] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, you know, it's your ~for ~10 years of travel ~and you know, ~and it sort of feels like, ~you know, ~choosing your favorite child, you know, um,

[00:44:30] Ryan Mellon: just one of your favorite, one of your ~many ~favorite jobs.

[00:44:33] Suzanne Wentley: my many children. I have no children, by the way. ~Um, I. ~I have to say, I loved,~ uh,~ traveling around New Zealand. I spent three months, I maxed out my visa. This is how I tend to do. I, I am not a shallow superficial traveler, ~by the way. Um, ~there are lots of people, right? How, how many countries have you visited?

[00:44:53] Suzanne Wentley: Like this kind of, I never play this game. I, I spend as long as I can and get as deep as I can in the [00:45:00] culture and learning and experiencing. ~So ~I. Was so lucky to spend three months in New Zealand and traveling. ~You know, ~throughout the South Island and the North Island, it is one of these places, ~it's, um, ~in the book, ~it's, you know, ~I called it another day, another wow.

[00:45:16] Suzanne Wentley: ~Right? ~This is, ~you know, ~with every corner, it's just spectacular. They have,~ um, ~hikes called Great Walks, ~like, they're great. They're really, they really are great. You know, it's true. Um, ~one of them is called the Tongariro Alpine Crossing and it ranks as my favorite hike in the world. I love nature. I'm often hiking or ~like I mentioned, ~kayaking, this type of thing.

[00:45:35] Suzanne Wentley: ~But, um, ~Hiking the Tongariro Crossing is a really special experience. ~You, um, ~you get dropped off. It's, ~I think, ~26 kilometers one way. ~And so ~you get dropped off at one spot and you're ~kind of ~with the throngs. ~There's lots of people. This is, ~it's absolutely beautiful. So I went by myself, which I recommend because I didn't feel like I was, ~You know, ~making people wait for me or waiting for other people because it is quite a climb.

[00:45:59] Suzanne Wentley: I don't know what [00:46:00] the elevation is, but let's just say it was a climb. And when you get to the top, ~I mean, ~it's like you see these lava flows that are frozen in time. These, ~you know, ~neon green, ~you know, ~neon blue. Lakes, geothermals, ~you know, ~steam coming up that you're, ~you know, ~walking past ~these lands, it is ~Such a vibrant, alive nature.

[00:46:23] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~I loved it, ~right? So ~even like, seeing glow worms. ~Alright, ~when I was a kid they had like, Fisher Price had a toy called the glow worm. ~And ~it was ~like ~a little plastic glow in the dark toy. ~I thought it was a made up, ~I thought it was a made up thing! ~Right? ~And then here I am in New Zealand and, ~Oh, like, Oh, ~there are glow worms and they're fantastic.

[00:46:41] Suzanne Wentley: You know, this bioluminescence I really love. Um, you know, even in, outside of Puerto Rico, I swam in the most bioluminescent Bay in the Caribbean. They're magical, magical, but now I'm getting, now, now I'm picking other children, but,~ um, ~but new, but New Zealand, I would say there was just [00:47:00] so many amazing, I mean, there's like the hot water beach.

[00:47:03] Suzanne Wentley: There's this beach that you take a shovel and. Make your own hot tub ~on the beach because it's ~because of the geothermal activity. So everyone's ~like ~hanging out in hot tubs and ~then ~it's really hot. ~So ~you have to engineer some cold water to flow in. ~And there was like some guy that like. ~We, you know, my friend and I, a friend I met in a hostel, right, that we ended up going and there was some guy that we made sit in between and he, like, acted like the dam to bring, like, cold water into our hot tub when we needed to, right?

[00:47:31] Suzanne Wentley: So ~it's, um, ~it's so much fun, ~like, that, that, um, ~that adventure. ~And, ~and that being said, when I was in New Zealand, I was the only one ~that ~Saw working, right, in these, in these hostile environments. I was the only one that, ~like, ~tucked off and wrote a couple of articles or, like, whatever I was, you know, doing on my phone. On my laptop, ~I was the only one, you know, ~so everyone else was sort of ~like ~backpacking, but there I was being a digital nomad. So it's possible to live these big adventurous lives while also working. But again, you have to adapt and be [00:48:00] creative. ~You know, I, I never had this, you know, ~as a freelancer, I never had this ~like, you know, ~nine to five, and I know some digital nomads that do.

[00:48:05] Suzanne Wentley: ~Right. ~That they have to ~go, they ~go to the coworking space and ~they ~sit down ~and there they go ~and, you know, God bless them. They're making money and that's wonderful because hopefully they're making, you know, us dollar and spending like Vietnamese dong. Like this is a, right. That's the way to do it. And that's a beautiful way ~to, ~to really save money and, ~you know, just ~maximize your quality of life.

[00:48:23] Suzanne Wentley: ~Um, ~but I really enjoyed New Zealand and that's, yeah, really being able to experience, ~you know, ~Different things that are like off the beaten path, ~right? ~So it's not just about checking. ~Like I mentioned ~a couple of, you know, things that people might have gone to, to do as well. But there were a lot of experiences that I had that, you know, I had to ~like, you know, ~figure out by myself and explore, you know, and like go on Google maps and say, Oh, what's that?

[00:48:49] Suzanne Wentley: And like, check it out. Right. And just. Like I said, be adaptable and be curious. I think that's, that's really an important quality in a digital nomad is to be curious.

[00:48:59] Ryan Mellon: [00:49:00] Absolutely. ~Yeah. And ~just listening to you talk about New Zealand's gotten me excited about it because that was the very first country that I I went to, as a digital nomad outside of the U S ~um, and I was traveling, I, ~I was traveling with a family member and then ~I ~went solo and I was working while I was doing New Zealand and I did the glowworm, glowworm caves and saw the volcanoes ~and ~some of the hikes and the Franz Josef glacier ~and all that stuff and ~it's such a magical place and the Kiwis are so friendly.

[00:49:30] Ryan Mellon: And I thought it was ~like ~the coolest thing that it's ~like ~perfectly,~ uh, ~normal and acceptable to walk into the grocery store and bare feet. It was just like, what? You could never do that in the U. S. ~Like that was, that's not okay. ~But ~yeah, like ~it's ~like ~so laid back and chill, man. That's like, I love it.

[00:49:44] Suzanne Wentley: I will say that they do have a, an element of road rage as Kiwis because they're so used to tourists gawking at glaciers and mountains and just seeing, Spectacular nature on the side of the road and they're [00:50:00] driving slowly and swerving and ~I, ~I witnessed a number of Kiwis very annoyed because they're trying to get to their ~like ~doctor's appointment ~and the rest of the, you know, ~and it's all tourists being excited.

[00:50:10] Suzanne Wentley: ~So~

[00:50:10] Ryan Mellon: ~I can imagine. ~I can imagine. And as an American being there, you're driving on the left side of the road. So there's a, quite a bit of, uh, getting used to that whole situation too. ~So~

[00:50:20] Ryan Mellon: it makes for some dangerous encounters sometimes.

[00:50:23] Suzanne Wentley: Yes, ~I, um, you know, ~this is a big chapter in the book. ~Um, ~I mentioned the ~barefoot in, ~bare feet ~in the, ~in the grocery store, ~you're so right on this. Um, but ~I also,~ uh, ~got into,~ uh, ~a car wreck. I, it banged up my rental car,~ um, ~in New Zealand as well. And,~ um, ~I didn't take the car rental insurance.

[00:50:38] Ryan Mellon: Oh

[00:50:38] Suzanne Wentley: would like to recommend that if you're driving on the other side of the road than you're used to, you might want to get the car rental insurance.

[00:50:45] Suzanne Wentley: Might be a good use of your money.

[00:50:47] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, ~yeah, no, ~that's very good advice. It's easier said than done learning this skill, you know, ~like just, ~it takes time and ~like, ~especially when there's no other cars on the road, it's really easy for you to pull in the wrong lane. If you can see [00:51:00] other cars coming, ~you're like, all right, ~you're not going to pull in front of them, but it's so easy to do and yeah, ~that's a good, ~that's very good advice.

[00:51:06] Suzanne Wentley: Yes. And also the driver, like for those who don't know ~too, ~it's like the drivers on the other side of the car as well from the United States. So it, you know, parallel parking is like what is happening. It's very, yes, it is, it is, uh, it is challenging and, and, and also embarrassing when you try to get into your car on the wrong side.

[00:51:27] Ryan Mellon: Yeah, it happens a lot. So, alright, um, we'll do a couple rapid fire questions and then wrap this up.~ Um, so, I wanted to ask you, ~what is Your favorite coworking space that you've discovered and where,

[00:51:38] Suzanne Wentley: I don't know. I don't, let me think if I've ever gone to a co working space. I don't think I actually have. I don't think that it actually benefits me. I'm looking for places to stay that have, good Wi Fi, you know, so if, if I were to be in a space that, uh, didn't have [00:52:00] good Wi Fi, this might be a different story, but as a writer, I kind of just need to like buckle down and focus, and if there are people like milling about, um, it doesn't, that doesn't help me at all.

[00:52:10] Suzanne Wentley: I don't, you know, I do, even, even in my coaching, Work I it's that's not where I would go to network. I don't think that that's really appropriate. Um, to, you know, to find clients at a coworking space. I know that some people do that. Um, I did use a coworking space when I was in the Canary Islands. ~Um, ~I'll give a shout out to FICO in Las Palmas because they,~ um, ~rented me,~ um, ~Rocco rented me his soundproof booth, which I use to record,~ uh, ~the audio book for One Way Ticket.

[00:52:42] Suzanne Wentley: So I did go there for that, but that was ~sort of a, ~a special situation. In general, ~I, ~I don't like to use coworking spots.

[00:52:48] Ryan Mellon: ~okay. ~Yeah. And that's good. Good thing to bring up that a lot of the coworking places ~do ~have like soundproof booths. ~So ~if you have a project where you ~really ~need ~some ~super quiet,~ um, ~like right now I'm in my hotel doing this podcast and it's [00:53:00] okay, ~you know, you might hear a chicken or, you know, Two, that's about it.~

[00:53:00] Ryan Mellon: ~But, um, the ~about two weeks ago, I woke up to absolutely no power and had to rush and figure out a coworking space that did have a booth to do a podcast episode. So it's, it's nice ~to have, ~to have when you need it. What is, tell me one place ~that you would say might be ~that you think is underrated.

[00:53:17] Suzanne Wentley: Underrated, you know? Good question. ~Um, ~because I think every place, I mean, there's some places that have hype, right? Like, so we were talking about, ~like, ~these places ~on the, ~on the Digital Nomad map that I feel like are hyped. You go there and, ~like, ~expect it to be awesome, and it generally is. ~Uh, ~I would say that, ~you know, ~Bansko, Bulgaria, Is on this digital nomad map, right?

[00:53:41] Suzanne Wentley: Like I went to the Nomad Festival there and all of this, but that being said, Bulgaria is not a place that people necessarily go, I think, right? ~Um,~ this Eastern European area, you know, is It is just not, you know, there, it's not [00:54:00] like Rome, like, we're not going to Florence or anything like, you know, this is, right, or London, like these kind of hot spots in Europe, Bulgaria, like Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria, and ~that's not like, ~I never was like, can't wait to go to Sofia, but I will say that, I really enjoyed my summer in Bansko.

[00:54:17] Suzanne Wentley: I loved that it had ~a little, like, ~little cobblestone streets and, ~you know, ~that church ~in the, ~in the middle. ~Um, ~very walkable, like I mentioned. There's, you know, nice hiking, the river that I could cold plunge in every day. ~Um, and, you know, I didn't, ~I learned very minimal Bulgarian, ~right? Like, ~I can't read Bulgarian at all.

[00:54:36] Suzanne Wentley: But, ~you know, ~I was able to make some Really lovely friendships with locals, ~you know, ~using Google Translate. ~Um, ~I, I met a woman,~ uh, ~Vera, so she was, she started as just like my massage therapist. And then I started recommending her to people because she's great. Like, go to Vera if you're in Bonsko and ~you ~need a massage.

[00:54:56] Suzanne Wentley: You know, she was just a healer, like a natural healer. [00:55:00] And And then I was like giving her all this work and she couldn't believe it. And so we got to start, you know, and I was a regular, of course. And so, you know, developing, you know, this relationship, she sort of was like a second mother to me. She was so kind.

[00:55:14] Suzanne Wentley: And I really, you know, appreciate that. You know, the Eastern Europeans are, you know, Kind of known for being a little gruff. Like they're not, you know, I don't know if it's sort of like the PTSD from communism or something. I don't know. You know, they're, they're kind of have a hard shell, but once you crack it, they're really just kind, warm people.

[00:55:33] Suzanne Wentley: And it's cheap. I mean, gosh, Bulgaria is, I was living cheaper than I will be in Vietnam, which blew my mind. It was, you know, so very inexpensive and also,~ um, ~had a lovely market on. ~What, ~Sundays, I think, and,~ um, You know, so I got ~tons of ~fresh, you know, ~fresh local fruits and vegetables to survive on. So I was very healthy, nice mountain air, ~you know, ~so I really like that.

[00:55:57] Suzanne Wentley: I really was pleasantly surprised [00:56:00] with Bansko in Bulgaria.

[00:56:02] Ryan Mellon: I've been hearing that a lot and I think it's one of the newer ones on the digital nomad map. ~Um, ~especially since they had the nomad fest there, but yeah, it's definitely going to be on my list now.

[00:56:12] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, however, they just entered the EU, so now they're part of the Schengen. So you're going to have to figure that out, ~like shuffle around there. I was, ~I'm really blessed because I have dual citizenship with Italy and the United States. ~Yeah. ~So I didn't really have to worry about that. I could stay for six months.

[00:56:27] Suzanne Wentley: It was no big deal, ~but I know that was that's kind of why it was getting hot. Um, you know, ~it's a ski town, so ~there's lots of, uh, there's, ~there's lots of apartments to be had in the summer, ~right? Like, ~because no one's skiing ~and then there's no snow, right? So ~it makes sense for us to come in and, ~you know, ~live, ~you know, ~cheap ~and, ~and well for the summer months.

[00:56:40] Suzanne Wentley: ~It makes a lot of sense. Um, that's what I did. And I, I did enjoy it now. Will I go back? I don't know. Like, it's not like I'm really like, can't wait to go back to Bansko. You know, that, like I said, I'm kind of like, you know, like the book is it's a one way ticket.~

[00:56:40] Ryan Mellon: ~Yeah. There's so many places out there.~

[00:56:40] Suzanne Wentley: ~Yes.~

[00:56:40] Ryan Mellon: ~Alright, one more thing. ~ What is one item that you would never travel without that is not your laptop or your phone?

[00:56:46] Suzanne Wentley: ~Mm hmm. ~My ukulele.

[00:56:47] Ryan Mellon: ~Ooh, ~that's a new one.

[00:56:48] Suzanne Wentley: ~Yes, yeah, I, um, ~so when I was on the sailboat, right, like, so I divested down from, you know, a two bedroom house to a sailboat. Right. So it was sort of like half, you [00:57:00] know, it was nomadic, but it wasn't fully nomadic and I was able to bring my gem bay drum because I was a percussionist. I was playing percussion in a band in Florida and you know, I love, you know, this drum was fun and my partner who I was sailing with played guitar.

[00:57:17] Suzanne Wentley: So it was cool. We could jam and everything, but. When it was time to get myself down to a backpack. ~Like ~I certainly couldn't carry a drum that was like exactly the size of my backpack. It was just ridiculous. ~Right. ~So I had to sell it and ~Oh, ~it was so sad. ~Right. Like ~I was so sad. So I went to,~ um, like ~a little surf ~shop ~shop that I knew and bought myself a ukulele and started to learn how to play ukulele. Now, ~I, ~this is another healthy habit that I do. I play music every day. ~I'm able to ~often, I busk for money. This is another ~like ~money making scheme that I'll do sometimes. ~Um, you know, ~even ~in Bonk. Uh, ~in Bonsco this summer, I ~had, you know, ~had a little gig at a coffee shop. ~Um, and, ~[00:58:00] and that's, ~you know, it's ~really fun.

[00:58:01] Suzanne Wentley: It's a great way to take a break. I really recommend having something to keep yourself occupied that isn't a screen, right? ~That isn't like some sort of, you know, You know, ~because sometimes Wi Fi doesn't exist, right? Like, sometimes you don't have the juice, so what are you going to do with yourself, right?

[00:58:16] Suzanne Wentley: Like, so, you know, I can play my ukulele, I can read my Kindle, I can journal, ~you know, ~sometimes I can do some art, ~you know, if I'm doing a ~I have a ~little, ~little art book with some graphite, I love having that opportunity to just do something different. ~Like I, I mean, ~almost every airport I'm in, there's a point where you're right.

[00:58:35] Suzanne Wentley: You're just staring at the wall waiting for your flight, ~you know, ~and I can just pull out my ukulele and play a little bit ~and it's, you know, ~playing and singing ~and it's, it ~feels so good. So, yeah, I, I, and, and in fact, it's funny, I broke a string. Here in the Solomon Islands, and the man who delivers my vegetables in his leaky canoe, ~he ~fixed it with a fishing line.

[00:58:54] Ryan Mellon: Oh, wow.

[00:58:55] Suzanne Wentley: And I was like, perfect! ~So,~

[00:58:57] Ryan Mellon: one stop shop. ~This guy,~

[00:58:58] Suzanne Wentley: ~yeah, ~he's great.

[00:58:59] Ryan Mellon: that's [00:59:00] amazing. ~That's awesome. ~Well, I really enjoyed hearing your story. It's been really great. ~And so how, ~where can people find you online ~and, um, also.~

[00:59:06] Suzanne Wentley: Yeah, thanks Ryan. ~So, ~my website is thelovelightproject. com. The Love Light Project. project. com. So there, you can find links for, you know, the memoir on, which is on Amazon, of course, but also all of the ways that you can get the audio book. There's all those links available there for purchase. If you want to work one on one with me, you can learn more about ~my, um, ~My coaching methodology ~or you know, ~I also, ~you know, ~do yoga classes and energy work remotely and you'll see all the stuff I got going on.

[00:59:44] Suzanne Wentley: I ~also ~have that website, a list of travel tips. Actually, you can search,~ um, like ~cool restaurants that I like, cool yoga places. free activities. I try to keep that updated with ~like ~neat stuff that I discover,~ uh, ~in the world. So, so [01:00:00] check that out too. ~So it's, yeah, ~that's the best way to get a hold of me.

[01:00:02] Suzanne Wentley: You can also connect with my socials through that website, but the Love Light Project is where to find me.

[01:00:09] Ryan Mellon: Awesome. Well, thank you so much again for taking the time from the islands ~and ~it was a very good conversation. I know the listeners are going to love this one, ~so ~I hope you have an amazing rest of your day.

[01:00:20] Suzanne Wentley: Great. Thanks, Ryan. It was fun.

[01:00:21] Ryan Mellon: Thanks for listening to another episode of Digital Nomad Nation. I hope today's stories have inspired you to take the next step towards location independence. If you've enjoyed the show, please share it with a friend and leave a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app. Your support fuels our mission to inspire the digital nomad lifestyle.

[01:00:44] Ryan Mellon: Before you go, don't forget to grab your free copy of my guide, Seven Ways to Become a Digital Nomad. It's packed with practical tips to kickstart your nomadic journey. You can find the link in the episode description. And remember, the life you've always dreamed of is just one bold [01:01:00] decision away. Until next time, this is the Digital Nomad Coach, Ryan Mellon, signing off.