THE ROAD LESS TETHERED

Ditching the nine-to-five, dodging dodgy Wi-Fi, and living life on their own terms... Meet the South Africans working from everywhere.

- Eleanor le Riche

IF you've ever sat at your desk at 3.47 pm on a Wednesday and thought, 'There has to be more to life than Teams meetings and stale coffee,' you may already be a digital nomad in the making.

Samantha Wolhuter certainly was. In 2016, she was stuck in a corporate job and craving change. 'I didn't even know what a digital nomad was at the time,' she says. 'But once I learnt about the lifestyle, it was like, “This is what I've been looking for all along.”'

Now, Samantha runs the Cape Town Digital Nomads Facebook group (which has nearly 19000 members), and she has travelled to 40 countries. She's the posterwoman for a lifestyle that's rapidly gaining traction around the world and, increasingly, among South Africans.

What is a digital nomad?

'At its core,' Samantha says, 'it's about taking control of your working life and designing a lifestyle that suits you.' Yes, there's travel, often to places with good Wi-Fi and even better weather, but it's more about freedom than fantasy.

Some people move quickly; others, like Samantha, have leaned into 'slowmad' life, staying longer in one place to truly connect. In 2020, that meant local travel with three rescue dogs in tow. 'Everyone did something wild in 2020,' she says, laughing. 'Mine was adopting dogs.'

She's quick to point out that you don't have to leave the country to live this way. 'It's a mindset. You can be a digital nomad right here in South Africa. This country is ridiculously beautiful.'

Perks and pitfalls

The upsides? Deep personal growth, a flexible schedule, and working from places that spark joy. 'Your life becomes your own,' Samantha says. 'No more dragging yourself to a desk by 8 am just to sit under bad lighting and dream of mountains.'