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Date: March 28, 2022
Episode: WeNomad Episode 9
Title: Josh Koerpel on Learning By Doing, Making Big Life Choices & Digital Nomading
If you’re looking to create a life of freedom and fulfillment, make sure to listen to this episode of the WeNomad podcast.
Table of Contents
About Josh Koerpel
Josh Koerpel is a digital nomad who’s been traveling and working remotely for several years. He started his journey by volunteering on a 200-foot wooden sailing ship and eventually worked his way up to captain.
After that, he switched gears and rode a motorcycle to Tibet from New Delhi and then went back to school to get a master’s degree in mechanical engineering. For a time, he worked in the entertainment industry and developed mobile apps, and then he got into online marketing and sales and bought a boat to live on and work from. He’s been living this lifestyle ever since, traveling and working as he pleases.
In This Episode…
Josh shares his insights on how to learn effectively, solo travel, making big life decisions, and managing a team. He also gives tips for people who want to live in Key West, Florida.
Key Takeaways
- To learn effectively, be willing to “do the work” and constantly adjust based on real-world experience. Don’t just rely on the limited amount of knowledge you get from books. Learn by doing. You’ll excel in anything if you have this type of mindset.
- In making big life decisions, listen to your gut and what you truly feel is right, regardless of circumstance. This will help you build a custom-designed life instead of one that’s expected from the masses.
- Only listen to the advice of those who’ve done what you want to do, rather than listening to everyone’s opinion. This will help you filter out the noise and focus on what you need to know.
- Solo travel can be a great experience, but it can also get lonely. Building a tribe of like-minded people can help combat that loneliness and make the experience more enjoyable. Josh has found that community-based pursuits are more fulfilling than going solo.
- Some challenges come with transitioning from a “doing” role to a management role. Managing people requires a different set of skills than working with tools, and this can be a challenge for people who are used to doing everything by themselves. One way to overcome this challenge is to communicate with your team regularly, using a questionnaire such as the one John Jonas suggests. This will help you stay up-to-date on what everyone’s doing and whether they’re running into any problems. It also allows you to give them the support they need to be successful.
- If you have a non-internet-based skillset, you may find that the things you’re doing now are easier to do online than you’ve realized. Check out some Facebook groups, or even Clubhouse, to find people that may have a use for what you have to offer. If you can prove yourself as reliable and good at what you do, then work will continue to come your way without you having to search for it too much.
- Rejection is part of life, but it’s how you meet great people.
- Josh talks about his experience living on a boat in Key West and gives some tips for people who are considering doing the same. He recommends Airbnb and VRBO as good resources for finding housing and advises against using Craigslist.
Resources & Notable Mentions:
