Today, I'm interviewing Bella , a client of mine with an incredible journey. She went from a corporate job earning $140,000 a year to building her own business and creating a life on her terms.

Fast forward just one year after joining the Digital Nomad Life Academy, and she's recording this podcast from Spain, her new home. She's built a thriving business, has clients coming in from multiple channels, and is truly living the life she once dreamed about.

She's running her dream business, she's a full-time entrepreneur, and I'm so excited for her to share her story.

In this episode, Bella shares how she went from where she was—which might be exactly where you, the listener, are right now—to where she is today.

If you've ever dreamed of quitting your 9-to-5, becoming a digital nomad, finding remote work abroad, or moving to Spain, this conversation is packed with lessons on entrepreneurship, resilience, and trusting the path that's calling you.

In This Episode, We Discuss:

• Why Bella quit a corporate career earning $140K per year
• What it was really like getting paid to travel while feeling unfulfilled
• The hidden challenges of remote work and living abroad
• How losing her remote job became the catalyst for entrepreneurship
• The reality of building a business from zero clients
• How she moved to Spain multiple times and eventually secured Spain's Digital Nomad Visa
• Why your life experience may be more valuable than your professional experience
• The mindset shifts required to become a digital nomad entrepreneur
• How to build a business around knowledge you've gained through real-life experience
• What entrepreneurship actually looks like behind the scenes

Connect with Bella:

Instagram: @bella.in.spain
Website: relocaspain.com

Ready to Build Your Own Freedom-Based Business?

If you're wondering whether entrepreneurship could be your path to more freedom, flexibility, location independence, and fulfillment, send me the word APPLY on Instagram @christabellatravels and let's have a conversation about what's possible for you.

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Send us Fan Mail

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

What if you had a step-by-step roadmap to replace your income and build a business that gives you complete freedom?

In this episode, I'm gonna teach you literally the step-by-step things that I would do if you actually hired me to help you replace your income so that you can have the lifestyle of your dreams.

II've been living abroad since 2013, traveling to the countries I want, when I want. I've made anywhere from 3–8x my old salary through my online business, hit the million-dollar mark, and built a business that allows me to work from the beach most days.

But here's the thing: this isn't about me anymore.

After six years of building my business, making the money, and checking off most of the places I dreamed of visiting, I realized what motivates me now is helping other people create lives they genuinely love.

I've heard the statistic over and over again that 80% of people don't like their jobs. So if that's you, first of all, I'm so happy you're here. And second, yo, let's get you out of there.

Because it's actually not that complicated to start a remote business that you can run from anywhere in the world.

And I'm not talking about chasing whatever business model is trending on TikTok right now. I'm talking about building a business that leverages your strengths, your interests, your personality, and your natural abilities so that you're actually excited to wake up and work on it.

Whether your dream is becoming a digital nomad, moving abroad, traveling full-time, or simply creating more freedom and flexibility for your family, this episode gives you the exact roadmap I would use to help you replace your income with an online business.

In This Episode:

• The first step I'd take if I were helping you start a business today
• How to identify the skills you already have that can generate income online
• Why there are infinite ways to create online remote work
• Real examples of people who transformed traditional careers into location-independent businesses
• How to find a business idea that's aligned with your personality
• The framework for creating a business that supports your dream lifestyle
• Why your first business doesn't have to be your forever business
• How to validate your business idea before investing months of effort
• Understanding your ideal client and "I Help" statement
• How to market your business and find paying clients
• Why mentorship can dramatically accelerate your results

Ready to Start?

If you'd like to find out how close you are to building a successful remote business, send me a DM on Instagram @christabellatravels with the keyword RRR and get your Remote Readiness Rating.

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Send us Fan Mail

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

Less than a year ago, Jess was commuting to her healthcare job in Australia, feeling exhausted, overworked, and secretly wondering if there had to be more to life than the traditional path.

Now?

She’s in Bali ( recording with me in a live studio) building her own location-independent business, signing clients online, working from her laptop, and literally on the cusp of fully replacing her income.

The craziest part is that Jess didn’t start out knowing anything about marketing, sales, entrepreneurship, or online business. But she did take the leap and invested in herself to jumpstart her digital nomad life she was dreaming about.

She decided to stop letting her limiting beliefs run the show… everything started changing FAST.

Today we are talking about:

• what it actually feels like to become a digital nomad
• the identity shift that happens when you quit your job and start working for yourself
• why “good jobs” can still feel deeply misaligned
• overcoming fear of failure AND fear of success
• building a business that supports your energy instead of draining it
• how to create a life where you can get paid to travel
• why healthcare workers are often secretly amazing entrepreneurs
• employee mindset vs entrepreneur mindset
• creating freedom without needing to completely burn your life down

Jess also explains:

• How she was feeling emotionally drained from back-to-back client work
• why she never felt like she fully fit into the traditional system
• the moment she realized remote work could actually be HER reality
• what it’s like to finally experience true flexibility and freedom
• how entrepreneurship completely changed the way she thinks

Things We Talk About In This Episode:

• Becoming a digital nomad in healthcare
• Starting a remote business from scratch
• Quitting a traditional career
• Building a location-independent life
• How to get paid to travel
• Entrepreneurship and ADHD
• Burnout from 9-5 work
• Creating freedom through online business
• Limiting beliefs around success
• Why remote work changes your entire life

Connect with Jess:

Follow Jess and her journey here:
@jess_mercieca

👉DM me “RRR” on Instagram @christabellatravels for your free Remote Readiness Rating call.

And if you’re ready to chat about joining the Digital Nomad Life Academy, send me “APPLY.”

Send us Fan Mail

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

There are two main ways to make money online and become a digital nomad: being a freelancer or being a business owner.

Inside the Digital Nomad Life Academy, I help people become business owners, but I’ve been noticing a lot of people are stuck in freelancer energy without realizing it — and honestly, it’s not sustainable. Freelancing can quickly turn into a grind where you’re working for your clients instead of for yourself.

So in this episode, I’m breaking down the difference between freelancing and entrepreneurship, how to shift out of freelancer energy, and how to build a business that actually gives you more freedom, income, and control over your life.

In this episode, we talk about:

• The difference between being a freelancer and a business owner
• Why freelancing can quickly lead to burnout
• How to stop trading your time for money
• The mindset shifts required to start a business online
• Creating scalable offers instead of hourly work
• Why boundaries are essential as a service provider
• The biggest mistakes freelancers make with marketing
• How to build a lifestyle-first business as a digital nomad
• Why predictable income matters when leaving your 9-5
• How to create more freedom while getting paid to travel
• Building a location independent business with long-term sustainability
• The truth about “freedom” entrepreneurship vs. hustle culture

Resources:

• Check out next: Episode 33: How My Career Assessment Process

Want support building your online business?

DM me on Instagram @christabellatravels with the keyword “APPLY” to start the conversation about joining the DNLA and creating your own freedom-focused business.

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Send us Fan Mail

The Digital Nomad Life Academy is offering a ⚡️flash sale⚡️-- anyone who joins before June 15th will get discounted tuition and a FREE Career Assessment with Christa. This is a special 1:1 call where she will analyze your personality and help you come up with a remote business idea that's aligned with who you uniquely are. Check out the sale here: https://dnla.thrivecart.com/dnla-dnbd-2026/

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

Today I want to talk about why you haven’t taken the leap yet into entrepreneurship and to go after your dream of a digital nomad life of freedom.

But here is the thing… you landed on this episode for a reason. A small part of you believes it is possible more than being scared.

On this episode, I’m gonna uncover some of the reasons why you have not yet taken the leap. I want to reassure you that it's not as scary as you might think, and it's actually so much closer to you than you think. But right now, you might think that it's scary or you might think that it's inaccessible, and hopefully by the end of this episode, you will feel more empowered than ever to actually take more inspired action to start changing your life.

We will dive into:

• Why your curiosity about becoming a digital nomad is already a sign you’re ready
• The truth about fear when you want to quit your 9 to 5 (and why it’s not a red flag)
• How corporate conditioning keeps you stuck and what it takes to quit corporate for good
• The personality traits that make you naturally suited for entrepreneurship (hint: you might already have them)
• Why emotional resilience matters more than business skills when building a remote work lifestyle
• The biggest misconception about starting a business (and why you don’t need money, an office, or a “perfect idea”)
• How I built a million dollar business that allows me to get paid to travel and live a life of total freedom

This episode is for you if:

• You’re dreaming about becoming a digital nomad
• You want to quit your 9 to 5 but feel scared to take the leap
• You’re tired of corporate life and ready to quit corporate for something more aligned
• You want a career that allows you to work remotely and get paid to travel
• You feel like you’re meant for more, but don’t fully trust it yet

If you’ve made it this far, this isn’t random.
You didn’t land here by accident.

Your desire for a different life?
This episode your signal.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

👉 DM me “apply” to @christabellatravels on Instagram

Send us Fan Mail

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

If starting a business FEELS hard, it’s because you don’t understand these fundamental mindset concepts.

In today’s episode, I want to go through a series of topics that I tend to talk about with my clients often, where it's like they're thinking about business with a mindset that actually keeps them in scarcity, or it keeps them confused, it keeps them feeling stuck. And then when I share my perspective about business, suddenly—boom—they're unstuck.

Boom, suddenly they have clarity.

Boom, suddenly they have more motivation.

Boom, suddenly they feel more free to actually take the next step in building their business.

So today I want start talking about these aspects of business that you really need to understand if you want to have an easier time building a business.

Building a business is NOT easy, but it also doesn't have to be that complicated.

You don't have to be that smart to build a business.

You don't need to have an amazing idea.

You don't need to have a ton of upfront capital.

You don't need to have really anything specific in order to build a business.

So let's dive into these mindset shifts about business, hopefully then it will be easier for you to build your uncomplicated business.

What You’ll Learn Today

• Why business is about solving problems (not passion)
• The mistake people make when trying to start a business without validation
• How to actually build confidence (you don’t wait for it)
• What it really means to be the CEO + employee of your business
• Why your business should start as a simple “baby” version
• How to create a remote work lifestyle, quit your 9–5, and get paid to travel

💻 DM me “APPLY” on Instagram @christabellatravels if you want help mapping out your online business + freedom lifestyle.

🎧 Listen to NEXT: Episode 99 – How Long It Actually Takes to Build a Business

Send us Fan Mail

The Digital Nomad Life Academy is offering a ⚡️flash sale⚡️-- anyone who joins before June 15th will get discounted tuition and a FREE Career Assessment with Christa. This is a special 1:1 call where she will analyze your personality and help you come up with a remote business idea that's aligned with who you uniquely are. Check out the sale here: https://dnla.thrivecart.com/dnla-dnbd-2026/

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels

Today, I want take you back to where my nomad life all began because I happen to recording this where it all started, Costa Rica.

And to be honest, being there on this trip has surfaced some emotional stuff for me that I wasn't fully expecting to surface and it’s kind of caught me off guard. I want to share the lessons that are coming up, my story and some things I want to come clean about.

I've kind of been a little bit l offended when people ask me this question, which is: what are you running away from? And I have always thought, why do I have to be running away from something?

I'm not running away from anything.

But to be honest, I now understand 10 years later that at the time I was running away from something, that I just wasn't ready to acknowledge. And today I want to talk about that and my story of how I became a digital nomad and now have a life in Bali.

I also think that with everything that I share I just really hope that it falls upon the right ears, that there is someone out there who needs to hear this story and is gonna resonate with it, not just to help you feel less alone, but also to as a conclusion to this whole podcast to give you permission. Give you permission to follow your dream, whether you are running away from something or not.

So let me take you back to when my nomadic life began..

We will dive into:

• The travel story of how my digital nomad life actually began
• Why Costa Rica changed everything for me
• What it felt like taking the first steps toward a remote job lifestyle
• The emotional side of returning to the place where your dream started
• The excitement, uncertainty, and discomfort of building a life as a digital nomad
• Why sometimes our biggest life pivots begin with one spontaneous trip

Curious about becoming a digital nomad?

DM me @christabellatravels the code: APPLY

Send us Fan Mail

The Digital Nomad Life Academy is offering a ⚡️flash sale⚡️-- anyone who joins before June 15th will get discounted tuition and a FREE Career Assessment with Christa. This is a special 1:1 call where she will analyze your personality and help you come up with a remote business idea that's aligned with who you uniquely are. Check out the sale here: https://dnla.thrivecart.com/dnla-dnbd-2026/

🎧 Ready to take action on starting a remote business? Watch Christa’s free business training “5 Steps to Work From Wherever:” digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/biztraining

Support the show

Message me on Instagram:
(tell me you came from the podcast!)
https://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

FREE: How to Get Started as a Digital Nomad Masterclass (2 hr training)
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclass

Digital Nomad Starter Codes:
Discover the best remote career for YOUR personality
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/offers/i5HuJjbk/checkout

Enroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy
https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnla

Watch the Campus Tour:
https://dnla.thrivecart.com/join/

Follow me on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravels