Each year, my goal is to learn/do something new. The goal for 2016: to learn how to code. Here’s why I decided to launch Women Digital Nomads.

Have you ever seen pictures of someone working on a laptop at a beach, with a mojito in hand? That’s the image being portrayed when describing digital nomads, but the truth is, being a digital nomad is less glamorous than it looks. Sure, we’ve “escaped” the 9–5 job in a stuffy office, but most of us actually spend more hours working than sightseeing. That said, I’m glad to be a digital nomad as it gives me the freedom to work from wherever I want — and that includes the many Starbucks cafes that you’ll find me at.

Chances are, if you are a digital nomad or planning to be one, you’ll be doing tons of research on where to move to, where you can work from (sometimes we all need a break from Starbucks or cafes), where to stay, where to find other digital nomads etc. And if you are a woman digital nomad, you would want to know where the shady neighborhoods are, if women necessities can be easily found, what to look out for, etc.

There are existing sites (I love Nomad List) and Facebook groups, but they tend to be more skewed towards male digital nomads. And it makes sense, since a larger percentage of digital nomads are male. TechInAsia even published a post about “The Digital Nomad: lonely, white, male?”. So what about more information on community spaces, events or accommodations for women digital nomads?

And so I decided to build a site that catered for women digital nomads.

Since my goal for 2016 was to learn how to code (I have a personal goal to learn/do something new each year), I thought it would be fun to practice my new skills by building the site myself. It has taken me a while to complete it (I am in the midst of pivoting another startup), but the MVP for Women Digital Nomads is now live. I have plans on making the site even bigger, especially after receiving all the love from the Digital Nomads FB group.

If you are a woman digital nomad or want to learn more about being one, check out www.womendigitalnomads.com or find me on Twitter @thisis_chrys.