“Unretirement” as a Nomad

Nomad Profile

Feb 09, 2026

A 50-year-old white woman with brown hair and freckles is looking at the camera and smiling. She is on a sailboat, surrounded by blue water.

I knew of Jo before I met Jo. I had been following her on social media and was a fan of her guide “How to Become a Digital Nomad in Your 50s & Beyond!”

I finally met Jo just a few months ago when she interviewed me for The 50+ Nomad Club Podcast. We had so much fun during my “Don’t be scared, be prepared with Erin Michelson” episode—covering all sorts of topics, from travel safety to ethical adventures, along with a deep discussion around my goal of helping more women see the world.

Now, I subscribe to Jo’s Substack, The 50+ Nomad Club, and have become a part of her latest business cohort. Be sure and check out Jo’s latest product: Scratch-Off Travel Activity Cards, 50 Adventure Prompts & Dares for Fun-Loving Travelers. I bought a set for my mom and me to enjoy on our next trip together.

9 Fun Facts

First Name: Jo
Age Range: 50s
Nationality: British
Nomadic Stance: Full-time
Last Corporate Job: Venue Manager
Current Job: Digital Nomad - Ecommerce Biz & Content Creator
Favorite Country: Impossible to answer! - Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand & more recently Morocco jump straight to mind!
Next Stop: Rio, to enjoy Carnival
What do you like best about the nomadic life? Freedom

👀 Take a peek at the nomad life

2 Questions

1) Your writing focuses on sharing ways nomads can fund a traveling life. What is the hesitancy for many would-be nomads?

The real hesitation for most aspiring nomads isn’t the travel. It’s the five decades of messaging that told us freedom is reckless and security is everything.

We grew up in a world that praised steady jobs, predictable routines, and doing things “the right way.” So even when the spark for travel and freedom is burning away inside us, the old script dampens the flames. The one that says you should have a perfect plan, a perfect pot of savings, and the perfect online business before you even think about leaving home.

But life doesn’t work like that, and travelling absolutely doesn’t. You learn as you go.

When you strip it all back, the hesitation usually comes down to a few very human worries — losing security, running out of money, or making a big change at a stage of life when the world expects you to be winding down, not gearing up.

What I see every single week, though, is that once someone takes even the smallest first step, whether a month abroad, a tiny starter side hustle, or a bit of portable income, the whole picture changes. They realise the scary part was never the travel. It was releasing the old conditioning that made freedom feel irresponsible.

You don’t need a flawless plan to get started. Just a little bit of confidence, ideally a like-minded community, and some small steps that prove it’s possible.

👉 Subscribe for free here

2) What is driving the 50+ nomad community these days?

What’s really driving the 50+ nomad community right now is the whole idea of unretirement. We’re the first generation to reach our 50s and 60s fully aware that we could have another thirty to forty years ahead of us, and we’re in no mood to shrink our lives to fit some outdated version of what “slowing down” is supposed to look like.

We’re healthier for longer, younger in our outlook, and far more curious than our parents ever had the space to be. And with people living well into their 80s and 90s, the old pension model just doesn’t stretch the way it used to. A fixed income built for a short retirement doesn’t match the kind of life many of us still want to live.

So the old script of a fixed income, fixed routine, & fixed location, feels completely out of sync with who we are. At the same time, hardly anyone I meet wants to jump back into full-time work in the way we once knew it. This is why portable income has become such a powerful path for so many.

Small, flexible streams of work that keep us sharp, keep us funded, and keep our lives feeling spacious and adventurous. For most of us, it’s not just about travelling more. We want to:

• Stay mentally and physically younger by staying engaged

• Rediscover purpose after decades spent looking after everyone else

• Create a lifestyle that feels exciting and expansive

• Earn in a way that supports our freedom, not restricts it

• Refuse to disappear into the background just because of our age

It’s unretirement in its purest form. Living as if you’re retired, but with the health, energy, and income to enjoy the next chapter fully.

And we’re just getting started!

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