The travel bug bit me early on in life. I was 10 years old when my mother sent my brother and I to Mombasa, Kenya. She's Kenyan and wanted us to experience our culture and meet family, but she couldn't travel with us because of work, so my brother and I traveled from Milwaukee as unaccompanied minors.
I was just old enough to be amazed by the experience of airports, passenger jets and landing in a country where English wasn't the primary language. Meet industry creators, contributors and emerging thought leaders that have paired with CNET’s award-winning editorial team to provide you with unique content from different perspectives. Fast forward to 2013, when I had my first big work trip as an adult.
I'm a consultant who owns a software company, and a corporation in Sydney hired me to come to its offices and train its team. The author in Sydney in 2013. Flying to Sydney was a surreal experience.
The client paid for Premium Economy seats on Virgin Atlantic, and my hotel overlooked Sydney Harbour and the Sydney Opera House. It was on this trip that I realized how much I loved working abroad. The digital nomad lifestyle -- working remotely from different parts of the country or world -- called to me.
But I couldn't be a digital nomad just yet Three young children waited for me stateside, where I had a home, cars and everything else that comes with a "normal" life. I continued to travel for my business, but they were shorter trips, which was enough to scratch the travel itch in .
