The NuNomad with Psychologist Dr. Carmen Bolanos

Carmen Bolanos in her office in Provence last summer

JA: Dr. Carmen, you were such a wonderful life coaching mentor for
me when I attended Mentor Coach. I am excited to learn about your
NuNomad Company. Can you tell us a bit about what the NuNomad is?

DCB: Sure, Jeanine (and let me add it was a pleasure having you as a
student and now a pleasure to see how far you’ve come in your
coaching business!). I co-founded NuNomad Ventures in 2006 with
my business partner, Richard Hamel. It is a web community serving
professional nomads and those who would like to become one. We see
NuNomads as a new breed of professional who has discovered they can
make their career mobile by using technology so they can travel the world
indefinitely while maintaining their income.

 

JA: What got you interested in the NuNomad?

DCB: One of the reasons I became a coach in the first place was my
attraction to its mobility. My husband’s family has a house on the beach in Connecticut. When I was a psychologist in private practice I became very
frustrated with the fact that I had a beach house available for our use but I
was limited to only a week at most because I could not afford to lose any
more income by virtue of going on vacation. When I learned that coaching
could be done by phone, my mind quickly put the scenario together. Coach
by phone – coach from Connecticut – stay as long as we want! After doing
this a couple of times, I ventured to other destinations and longer stays. I
realized I was living a lifestyle that many people envied or wanted to learn
how to do themselves. And so, the idea of the NuNomad was born. It’s an
opportunity to share information with others on how to make the transition
to this traveling lifestyle.

 

JA: Can you tell us about a NuNomad “success” story that stands out to you?

DCB: Honestly, I have met so many amazing people living nomadic lifestyles
through my work it is hard to choose one story. I admire my partner Richard
because he has lived as a nomad for almost 20 years now and has seen around
40 different countries. I also admire the Atkins family who have renovated a
bus and are traveling with their four children while homeschooling. Another
story that caught my attention was of Seth and Tyler, two friends who
converted a Japanese fire truck to use biofuel and drove from Alaska to
Argentina using only discarded food waste along the way while they kayaked
and taught about biofuel. There are so many. I would encourage anyone who
wants to know more stories to visit the “Meet the Nomads” (http://www.nunomad.com/blog/)
category of my blog to see the interviews.

 

JA: What are the implications that the NuNomad has on Green living or a
move towards simplicity for people who join the NuNomad?

DCB: I’m so glad you asked this because it is one of our passions. I think we
impact in two ways. First, we present a lifestyle alternative that is based on
measuring your life through experiences and actions, not through the
accumulation of material goods. In order to be nomadic you really must
reduce the number of your belongings. I mean, it’s just practical as well as
economical. Secondly, we acknowledge that the act of travel can be
demanding of the environment because of the carbon output associated with
cars, planes, etc. However, when a person makes their profession truly mobile,
they free themselves from time. What I mean by this is there is no rush to “see everything” because you have to return home soon. A Nunomad can take their
time in each destination. They may choose to stay in a particular destination
for a year or more and so the traveling may not be as intensive as it appears on
the surface. In addition, many nomads choose to live in countries where daily
life is much simpler than in the U.S., thus eliminating the need to own a car,
use air conditioning, etc. All these things are in line with Green Living. Finally, Terrapass is a wonderful service available to offset your carbon output. We promote this as an additional way to give back to the planet. I invite you to read what we have to say on the environmental impact of nomading and
Terrapass http://bluesuitnomads.typepad.com/blue_suit_nomads/2008/02/
the-environment.html

 

JA: How have advances in technology aided the NuNomad? Are there are any
recent technological advances that are particularly helpful?

DCB: You know, technology is advancing faster than I can keep up with it and
the ability to communicate easily worldwide is high on the list of areas of
advancement. Anything that aids in world communication is going to be
helpful to a nomad. Skype, of course, is a favorite of many nomads. One of
the Skype services I find particularly useful is having a U.S. Skype number that
my clients can use while I travel. I can be anywhere and they are still calling a
U.S. number. Tri-band and quad-band unlocked phones are essential when
moving from country to country. Lighter weight laptops of course are always
great when you’re having to carry your office on your back! They seem to
make them lighter all the time. Another area of advancement has been with
services that allow you to share files online with co-workers. One such is
Nomadesk (www.nomadesk.com). Related, are new office spaces in cities
worldwide just for nomads. You might check out theBusinessclass.net (www.thebusinessclass.net) where you can rent a desk/fax/printer/meeting
space etc. in cities like Berlin, New York, or Bangalore.

 

JA: Is there anything else that you would like to share about The NuNomad?

DCB: You’ll find a lot of sites up now that are also promoting a nomadic
lifestyle. Many of them will tell you that you must bring in your income
by the internet in order to be nomadic. Some will even sell their method for
how to build a web empire so that you can support yourself while you travel
the world. If this is within your range of interest that may be a good way to go. However, if you’re not a techie, don’t be discouraged. There are many many professions that can become mobile. You are really only limited by your own
creativity and determination to see the world.

 

JA: How can we get started with The NuNomad?

DCB:Become an active part of our community! We are easy to find. You can
visit our website, http://www.nunomad.com, join our group on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/inbox/?drop&ref=mb#/group.php?gid=5801688242
&ref=ts, or follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/nunomad. There’s a
ton of free information waiting for anyone who wants it. In addition, if you
really want to make this lifestyle happen for yourself you might consider
purchasing our book “Quit Dreaming and Go!” for a step-by-step guide on
how to do it! You can find it advertised on the homepage of NuNomad.

 

JA: Thank you so much for your time Dr. Carmen. I know this interview
will touch many lives.

DCB: Thank you for the opportunity!

The NuNomad

Carmen Bolanos, Ph.D., is the co-founder of NuNomad Ventures and
owner of Dr. Coach Business Development . A professional certified coach,
Carmen maintains her practice while traveling the world with her 3 daughters
from their home base in Austin, Texas. The NuNomad web community is a
place to get information and share ideas on how to make this mobile lifestyle
happen. Her next destination will be Brazil for six months this year. Contact
Carmen at carmen@nunomad.com.

~SDS~