I first discovered Eva Gutierrez while aimlessly scrolling through travel accounts on Instagram. Hers is called The random life of Eva and it’s the digital nomad’s playbook. Her photographs are a vibrant record of her wanderlust life. It’s what made me want to dive deeper into her personality as well.
As a content writer myself (and a travel junkie), I was interested to ask her all about her experience in the industry, how she combines work with globetrotting, and much more you will be able to read about below.
Without further ado, here’s what a creative life on-the-go looks like through the eyes of Eva Guitierrez.
“You can’t have a million-dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic”. You shared this quote a while ago. Why do you think work ethic plays such a key role in achieving your career goals? How do you approach work ethic as a freelance writer?
As I’ve accrued more success in my career, I see one difference between the people who live their dream life and the ones who continue to wish for it, their commitment. Are you willing to take an interview at 4am because you’re across the world from your prospective client? Are you okay with accepting a lower-paying job just so you can add it to your portfolio? A huge part of my work ethic is to answer my client’s messages as quickly as possible and to provide fast turnaround times. The content world is hungry and the freelancers with the work ethic to feed it will find success.
What tools do you use for content writing when it comes to documenting your experiences and still enjoy them to the fullest?
I write regularly on Quora and Medium as a timestamp of my progress. I also journal and take loads of pictures to remember my travels and all of the people that I’ve met.
As a Millennial yourself, what do you think our biggest career struggles are and what’s one step we can take to overcome them?
The largest career struggle for Millennials is ensuring you’re going to college for a job or working at a job that will exist in five or ten years. Our generation has to be extremely aware of the rise in technology. We can’t rely on jobs to be there in the future, we have to use our own foresight to ensure we’re in a career that isn’t going to be replaced by AI.
What are the biggest advantages and disadvantages of being a digital nomad and creating content on the go?
The biggest advantage is self-growth. I recently wrote, “becoming a digital nomad is like taking the high-speed ferry to enlightenment.” If you want to grow intellectually and emotionally, becoming a digital nomad will skyrocket your development. With that said, the disadvantage is that this development comes through facing challenges. As a digital nomad, you have two full times jobs, the one that makes you money and traveling. The idea of being a digital nomad is extremely romantic, but it loses its appeal when you’ve lost your internet connection for the fifth time that day and your deadline is looming.
How do you manage your time and what’s your time management advice for travel writers out there?
I do my best to work Monday through Friday, but this is just part of having a strong work ethic. As a digital nomad, you can work whenever you want. For me, my clients work Monday through Friday so it makes the most sense for me to be available then. I use Google Calendar so I can visually see what my week looks like and what projects need to be completed by a certain day. Then, I ensure that I take two days off per week because if I don’t, I burn out really badly. My advice to other digital nomads is to find your balance. How much work can you do and still remain passionate and purposeful? At what point do you burn out? How do you spend your downtime so that you’re still progressing, but you’re taking time out of work (Ex. Travel, working out, reading, industry events, etc.)?
What’s one tip you would give writers to make their copy better?
Write articles as if you are having coffee with a friend. When you’re with a friend, you don’t use words or phrases like “therefore”, “in regards to”, “pertaining to”. You speak casually and give them value in a peer to peer conversational tone. Bring that tone to your articles.
What’s one misconception about travel bloggers that you want people to know about?
I think it’s important for people to understand that the lifestyle isn’t for everyone. You have to hustle, you have to be okay with consistent failure, and you have to be willing to sacrifice your comfort indefinitely. Digital nomads speak a special language that only we can understand because we’re the only ones that really know how much effort it takes to sustain this lifestyle.
Seeing that you are a Tim Ferriss fan and you read ‘Tools of Titans’, I’d love to know which ones were the most important lessons that you learned from the book?
A key takeaway for me is that everybody’s success story is different. I wish there was a template for success, but in my industry, there isn’t. Instead of looking at how people became successful, I’ve started to look at what qualities made them so. For example, I’ve noticed that a full commitment to the dream is a quality of everyone who has made it.
Where are you planning to travel to next? Is there a destination on your list that for some reason you still haven’t visited yet?
In 2019, I want to travel less. I spent the last two years traveling from continent to continent and now, just living in one place is an absolute luxury. I intend to make Los Angeles my home base and then travel to Hawaii, Nashville, Rhode Island (for my sister’s wedding), and Asia at the end of the year.
What’s something that you always bring in your travel backpack that most people would find surprising?
I don’t have anything necessarily surprising but here are my must-haves: Big, reusable water bottle, a small carabiner, and a waterproof case for my laptop (which is also inside a waterproof backpack). You never know when you’ll get stuck in a rainstorm somewhere around the world.
How do you stay fit while traveling?
Staying fit while traveling is a mindset. It’s a decision to see opportunity in every location and to be okay with changing your workout routine to fit that opportunity. That means that if I’m in Bali and there is a backyard at my hostel, I’ll do body-weight exercises and HIIT workouts. If I’m home in Rhode Island, I’ll go to a yoga studio. If I’m in Croatia, I’ll run along the beach. Wherever I am, I capitalize on whatever opportunity for working out is available to me.
We’ve covered the topic of self-doubt when it comes to writing. Have you ever experienced it and how do you deal with the low-confidence moments?
I’m not sure that I’ll ever overcome imposter syndrome, especially as my career continues to elevate. At each level, I question myself and then, have to remind myself that I am capable and skilled to be successful. I deal with low-confidence moments by recognizing my emotion towards it and asking myself, “Why do I feel this way?”. Then, I’ll reverse engineer my way back to the root of the self-doubt and change my internal dialogue. Self-awareness will change your life.
That last sentence really struck a chord with me big time. Eva’s life is what essentially many freelancers dream about. It’s the ultimate freedom of a workplace and a fixed schedule. It’s the dream. But her down-to-earthiness and honest words remind us that as much as it is a dreamy lifestyle, it’s just as much about balance as staying under the same sky is.
We’d love to thank Eva for taking time off her busy routine to talk to us so openly about her life and work. It was a pleasure to connect to her and we are looking forward to introducing you to many more interesting digital creators like her. So, stay tuned!
