I like the book Freakonomics and the blog of the same name which relates everyday stuff into economic and marketing principles. On the same topic, I’ve read couple of good posts recently which apply marketing principles to everyday life. The best two of these posts focus on fairground workers (Carnies) and little girls selling lemonade. They make so much sense because they give good advice, and relate this advice so it is easy to follow.

What the Carnies Can Teach You About Freelancing

9 Marketing Tips from a Six-Year Old’s Lemonade Stand

Have a read and let me know what you think. I hope they are of use.

Hello and welcome to the third and final instalment in the series entitles “Blogs Itinerant Lifestyle Follows”. So far we’ve identified eight of the blogs followed here at Itinerant Lifestyle, and below are the final four selections.

We’ve seen posts on topics as diverse as moving to Mexico for six months, 101 ways to get more freelance work and generate new client leads and international real estate for under US$50,000.

In case you missed the earlier parts of the series, here are the links

Blogs Itinerant Lifestyle Follows…Part One
Blogs Itinerant Lifestyle Follows…Part Two

To kick things off, here is the first selection in the third and final chapter:

Name – The Art of Non-Conformity

Site Tagline/Description – Unconventional Strategies for Life, Work & Travel by Chris Guillebeau

Why I Read – Chris is trying to travel to every country in the world by 2013, and makes regular updates from everywhere, even the Cook Islands (where he went for free!). At last count I think it was up to somewhere like 111/197, so he is on course. The site is full of quality stories on the subjects of travel and life, and contains excellent resources for any budding entrepreneurs, such as the beautifully designed ebook, 279 Days to Overnight Success.

Favourite Post – Unconventional Ideas

Latest Post – Video Update: What Criteria Do You Use When Visiting Countries?

Name – ThrillingHeroics

Site Tagline/Description – Lifestyle Design, Location-Independent Business & Travel Hackin’ It

Why I Read – Bangkok based Cody has been blogging professionally since June 2006, entirely self-employed since September 2007 and location-independent since November 2008. His blog is aimed at twentysomethings who are looking to break free from the traditional work routine. The writing is good, clear and concise, and covers topics such as personal development, travel, web entrepreneurship and lifestyle design.

Favourite Post – Are You Creating Fun in Your Daily Routine?

Latest Post – Learn How to Overcome Fear and Live a More Adventurous Life with me and Cath Duncan on July 9

Name – Zen Habits

Site Tagline/Description – Simple Productivity

Why I Read – Declutter your life, Spend less time at work, Make huge savings in your budget. All titles of blog posts on Zen Habits. All relevant, well written and concise. All contain stuff that is easy to implement. In short – All Helpful. And of course Zen Habits is the inspiration behind the design of this very site!

Favourite Post – The Art of Artlessness: On Living Simply and Naturally

Latest Post – Love Life, Not Stuff

OK, I know this is out of alphabetical order, but I only discovered this site recently, and I have to include it here.

Name – Entrepreneurs Journey

Site Tagline/Description – Down-to-Earth Advice and Tips for Bloggers and Internet Marketers

Why I Read – Above all other sites I read, this one puts everything about business into perspective. Excellent ebooks, sound advice, and clear progressions to building blogs from nothing. As I said before I haven’t read all of the articles on the site (there are a LOT) but my favourite so far is…

Favourite Post – What Motivates A Purchase?

Latest Post – How To Make Money Teaching People How To Make Money

So there we have it, all 12 blogs listed. I hope the list is useful to you, and who knows maybe in the future, Itinerant Lifestyle will be featured in a post similar to this on one of your sites!

Thanks again, and let me know your thoughts on the selections in the series, and if I should have chosen any different ones.

Reading an article on Location Independent this morning, it occurred to me that with the proposed firewall in China, the Green Dam Youth Escort, your site and all your hard work could be barred from the next Super Power State, preventing access to a potential audience of over a billion people.

Although the Chinese Government has temporarily postponed the implementation of GDYE, an unnamed official is quoted as saying

“The government will definitely carry on the directive on Green Dam. It’s just a matter of time,”

I tested roylloydjones.com and this site, and both showed that they are available and accessible in China. Which is good news.

If you want to know if your site is blocked in China, take the test here:

Is your site accessible in China? Post your results in the comments section!

Before setting up Itinerant Lifestyle, I read a lot of blogs on the whole ‘digital nomad’ topic. I still read them. I subscribe via RSS and check every morning for new updates. They are my morning dose of motivation, giving me focus on my goal of changing my lifestyle.

Time for Part Two in the Series of Blogs that I follow here at Itinerant Lifestyle.

If you missed it, Part One can be found here.

Name – JetSetCitizen

Site Tagline/Description – Lifestyle Design at the Intersection of Work, Play & Travel

Why I Read – I first found this blog only a couple a couple of weeks ago, however the first article I read contained something I myself have thought a lot about. It contained a list of houses that are for sale around the world for under US$50,000. Interesting read and brings it home that cost of living need not be expensive at all.

Favourite Post – Real Estate for $50,000 around the world

Latest Post – Best Lifestyle Design and Travel Articles

Name – Live Uncomfortably

Site Tagline/Description – Self-Improvement Lies Beyond Comfort-Zones

Why I Read – Stories are entertaining and described in a way which says “I can’t believe this is happening, but I’m gonna go with the flow and see where it takes me”. Winging it has always been a favourite pastime of mine, so to read about someone winging it makes me laugh.

Favourite Post – Near Death Experience At Angel Falls, Bass Lake

Latest Post – So You’re Going To Cali, Colombia

Name – Location Independent

Site Tagline/Description – Live & work anywhere you choose

Why I Read – Probably the fastest growing site on the subject of living and choosing wherever you wish, the site is helpful and the related stuff such as the Business Course (A step-by-step course that helps you create, improve, streamline and grow a Location Independent business) is said to be very good value and gets rave reviews.

Favourite Post (Its actually a series of posts) – Building Your Location Independent Online Business: Getting Traffic To Your Site

Latest Post – The Ultimate Mobile Office Set Up For The Location Independent Professional

Name – Nerdy Nomad

Site Tagline/Description – I’ve been travelling since January 2008 living off earnings from the web. Follow me as I bum around Asia and beyond, getting up to mischief and working online as I go.

Why I Read – I started reading at the time the blog updates were coming from a farm on Isla Ometepe in Nicaragua, a place I visited back in early 2006. I began reading the other post and I like the honesty of the site. In a time when many people try to fake the results, this site shows actual earnings figures and the thoughts behind how things are done.

Favourite Post – Enjoying My Time on a Farm in Nicaragua

Latest Post – Update on My London 2012 Website

Before setting up Itinerant Lifestyle, I read a lot of blogs on the whole ‘digital nomad’ topic. I still read them. I subscribe via RSS and check every morning for new updates. They are my morning dose of motivation, giving me focus on my goal of changing my lifestyle.

I’ve compiled a list of my favourite twelve sites and I’ll be posting the names and details of four of my selections each week for the next three weeks.

So as not to waste your time, I won’t go into too much detail, I’ll only include a brief description of what they’re about (direct from the horse’s mouth), why I read the blog, together with links to my favourite article and the latest post from the site (so you can read at your own leisure).

I have them arranged in alphabetical order in my bookmarks section, so I’ll present the list in that order.

Therefore, without further ado I present thee, my selections:

Name – Almost Fearless

Site Tagline/Description – A blog that follows one woman’s journey from corporate manager to full time traveler, writer and lay about.

Why I Read – Travel and freelancing are the main topics on this blog, and it just happens the author is spending some time in Central America, a place I know very well.

Favourite Post – Isla Omotepe & Monkey Island

Latest Post – Twittering Dissent Around The World

Name – Free Pursuits

Site Tagline/Description – Design and Live Your Ultimate Lifestyle

Why I Read – The author is currently in Mexico taking some time off from his usual life, trying to start a new career in location independent living. Well written, with good articles that connect with my own ambitions, the topics are diverse, yet relevant.

Favourite Post – How I Moved to Mexico For Six Months

Latest Post – 64 Ways Location Independent People Earn a Living

Name – FreelanceSwtich

Site Tagline/Description – FreelanceSwitch is a site for freelancers. Whether you’ve been freelancing for years, have just started or are considering making the switch, this is the place to get all the information and support you need.

Why I Read – The site contains practical advice about a wide range of freelancing topics for the beginner, such as the importance of web design, advice on finding clients, advice on keeping clients and time management tactics.

Favourite Post – 101 Ideas to Get More Freelance Work and Generate New Client Leads

Latest Post – 3 Steps For Freelance Due Diligence

Name – IttyBiz

Site Tagline/Description/Description – IttyBiz is a place to get tips, advice, motivation, and support for your very small business. If you’re working from home or just thinking about it, come and hang out here for some great ideas and bad jokes.

Why I Read – Not everything is black and white. A lot of issues relating to small business are not obvious. That’s where IttyBiz comes in. They seem to be able to explain things in a manner even a child could not just understand, but follow too.

Favourite Post – Entrepreneurship: What To Do When You’re Scared Sh*tless

Latest Post – Introducing The Incredible Business Building Bullshit Detector

The first step towards my itinerant lifestyle is de-cluttering. Getting rid of the things I’ve accumulated over the years. The majority of it is a hindrance.

When did we become so obsessed with owning things? The amount of stuff we each accumulate over the year’s borders on the ridiculous. We spend half our lives at work, bemoaning our fortune at having to be there, then as soon as the weekend arrives we go out and buy some of those things we don’t really need, or drink ourselves into a stupor in a vain attempt to forget how bored we are, thereby forcing the requirement to return to work to pay for the unnecessary things we bought or money we pissed up the wall.

It’s a vicious circle that doesn’t allow the majority of us to escape from its tangled web until we have reached a good old age, bought all the things we assume will let us live comfortably, and decided that 40 years of working for The Man is enough. Only then does society say

“Ok, you’ve paid your dues, done your time, now you can go enjoy yourself.”

But by then it’s too late. Our responsibilities won’t allow us to just up and leave. We’re stuck. We have our things. We’ve got the house, the car, the furniture, the clothes, maybe even the fancy boat that we use for three weekends during the summer.

What then? Do we really enjoy them? Are our lives really made better by the Audi in the driveway, or the 42” LCD flat screen television in the living room? Or is all just clutter?

This project is fundamentally based around the belief that life should be enjoyed. I am positive that in years to come I will look back upon moments, places, times and people as the fondest memories I have. While I may look back and think about a possession I liked, I highly doubt I’ll ever reminisce about a pair of shoes I bought, or a particular car I owned.

I’ve had some of my favourite experiences while travelling. I worked for a few years after university in order to pay off my overdraft and credit card debts and save enough to comfortably backpack for a year. It took me over two years to save the money which made my travels possible, so throughout the trip I was cautious about money, but I knew that if I spent my money wisely and didn’t waste it or buy unnecessary things, I could spend a full year seeing new things, learning new skills and growing as a person.

All told, that year cost me about £8,500 – roughly the price of a small car. If someone gave me option of a new car or another year of travelling, I wouldn’t have to think hard about my choice. I’d take travelling every time.

Why?

During that year I visited 14 countries, saw ruins from long-dead civilizations, swam in both Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, climbed volcanoes, felt the heat of molten lava, trekked in rainforests, worked as a Gaucho, white water rafted on a river in the Andes, experienced numerous UNESCO world heritage sites to name but a few. I also learnt Spanish and met a gorgeous girl who is now my fiancé.

Despite all this, I only have a few material mementos of my time in Latin America, and I gave the majority of these away as presents. No matter. I have my memories and the images in my head. That’s the most important thing.

To really make the most of my short time here on earth I need to de-clutter the way I live. I am announcing my intention to de-clutter here on Itinerant Lifestyle to provide impetus and focus to assist me in my quest for freedom from things.

To start planning the de-clutter process, I have discovered a nifty little tool that will help on the Good Housekeeping website.

I have commenced the de-clutter process and I’ll keep you informed of progress.