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Comment by orthoganol | Hacker News Reader

As someone who has backpacked while coding, this is terrifying:

> Backpack Consulting connects skilled travellers who want to discover the world with companies who are looking for specialized help. In return for volunteering help, companies offer the opportunity to add relevant work experience to your CV while you travel, plus free accommodation.

Travelers who can code can still make a killing working remotely. There are tons of resources today to connect you with companies that are willing to do remote, and it's not hard to pick up $40-60/hr work on Freelancer or Elance if you are an English speaking Westerner (reverse discrimination is big on those sites).

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Agreed, this is scaremongering: I spent 7 years outside of the western workforce and don't feel it impacted my career in the slightest. Meanwhile, I spent four years working remotely all over the world making good money. This post really is a scam.

Yes, for us coders it is simpler. But think about marketing, design, customer relations, project management... There are a lot of jobs that are much harder to do remotely, especially when a lot of consulting is necessary. And for people who just got their degree, this might indeed be a great way to get their hands dirty on some real projects while seeing the world.

Of course, nobody should, IMHO, agree to work 40h/week for accommodation only (my rule of thumb for choosing accommodations is: 1h of work should pay for the night).

Last but not least: People who do this will have much easier access to locals (after all you share an office) and therefore a much more intense travel experience.

Translation: if you have no skills yet or have zero ability to market them and win clients, then this is for you.

> Last but not least: People who do this will have much easier access to locals (after all you share an office) and therefore a much more intense travel experience.

Not to be rude, but you don't sound like someone who has traveled and worked as a lifestyle... What do you think people who travel as digital nomads do?

> Translation: if you have no skills yet or have zero ability to market them and win clients, then this is for you.

Using a tool to make something easier does not disqualify people for me. Actually, I'd rather hire someone who uses a hammer to put a nail in the wall over someone who uses his hand "because he can".

> Not to be rude, but you don't sound like someone who has traveled and worked as a lifestyle... What do you think people who travel as digital nomads do?

Most of them work remotely for companies in yet another country and are thus able to happily hack away on their laptops without much interaction with locals. The ones who really worked with locals where doing unskilled jobs (old school work & travel). This is at least the pattern I have observed in 3 years in Africa, Caribbean and South America.

All who've I met are trying to assemble regular social groups, many dating locals... spend some time on r/digitalnomad if you're interested.

Don't think that is true anymore ... there are lots of qualified Malaysians, Indonesians, Indians and Pakistanis who will work for $10 an hour and be happy about it.

That can do a good job? No they are not in abundance.

Speaking from experience, there are a lot of people looking for Westerners with a $40-60/ hour budget, which is too cheap for Westerners and too expensive for South Asians. It doesn't have to do with qualification, it has to do with reverse discrimination. Their ideal is to get Westerners at a discount, because whether right or wrong these people perceive trust, communication, and quality to be greater working with a Westerner even, if that Westerner is working out of hostels and coffee shops.

> There are tons of resources today to connect you with companies that are willing to do remote

Could you please enumerate some of these resources?

He did.

Freelancer and Elance

elance.com, freelancer.com, upwork.com for highly competitive "off-shoring" style (but not all work there is terrible)

WeWorkRemotely.com

Quick pairing-style gigs: HackHands.com, AirPair.com, CodeMentor.com

Email lists that aggregate freelance and remote work opportunities like LetsWorkshop.com

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