I loved being a digital nomad, but I had to stay put to grow my business. Here's what I've learned about juggling remote work and traveling.

• Andrea Valeria lived as a digital nomad for four years, working remotely while traveling the world.
• She settled down in Mexico City in 2019 to grow her own business as a remote work consultant.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Andrea Valeria, a 34-year-old remote work consultant who spent four years traveling as a "digital nomad" before settling down in Mexico City. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Traveling all the time is exciting, but for me it wasn't sustainable.

I had to stop being a digital nomad, at least temporarily, to grow my business. Now, I'm an independent remote work specialist, and I've helped more than 700 clients get remote jobs.

I'm originally from Panama, but in 2015 I was living and working in Hawaii. I had a full-time corporate job with no work-life balance.

I took on my first remote role in 2015 after negotiating with my company. My remote job was in HR, and I was working around 40 to 50 hours a week.

I wanted to take advantage of my new flexibility and freedom straight away. Back then, there weren't many resources telling you how to become a digital nomad, so I ended up learning a lot through trial and error.

I booked a flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina and began my life as a digital nomad. I'd never been there before, and I have no idea why I picked it — I was just desperate to start traveling. I started working remotely full-time in June. By October, I was in Argentina.

Over the next four years, I lived and worked in 10 cities in Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Panama. Sometimes I'd stay as long as six months. Sometimes I'd only stay a couple of weeks.

I had to stay still to focus on my work

While traveling and working remotely, I also dabbled in various side hustles.

The end goal was to build my own business, but I knew I couldn't jump straight in. If I'd quit my full-time remote job too soon, I'd have been too stressed about money to focus on my work.

I worked as a virtual assistant, I did some freelance translation, and I managed websites and blogs for companies. In 2018, I also published my first book — a guide to vlogging — which gave me a fresh source of passive income.

Working as digital nomad, I had no routine. It all depended on where I was, and I was exhausted by constantly juggling travel, sightseeing, and full-time work.

I set up a remote job directory in June 2019, and it's now the most popular page on my website. I also started offering résumé services in August 2019, and began developing an online course. My professional skillset as a HR consultant and my experience as a digital nomad meant I felt well-qualified to build a business helping others find remote work.

I finally quit my own remote job in December 2019. Now that I was fully self-employed, I realized: If I really want to take this business to the next level, I need to stay put for a second. I picked my favorite place from my travels: Mexico City.

I needed to slow down to focus on my work. You can't really do that if you're always on the road.

I finally launched my online course, titled "Land Your First Remote Job", in May 2020.

So far, I've helped 306 clients build résumés specially adapted to remote work opportunities — a service for which I charge $349. I've also taught 440 students on my online course. Prices vary, but it's generally around $600.

All of my income comes from this business, as well as occasional freelance work, and I've even been able to hire a team of seven freelancers to help me out.

I saved a lot of money, as well as time, when I stopped traveling constantly, and I put all of that cash back into my business.

I've built a sustainable routine

Now that I'm not always moving, I can focus more on growth — both for my business and for myself. I've developed a workout program and learned how to manage my money better. I even bought my own apartment in Mexico City.

I still love traveling, and I'd like to do more of it in the future, once my business is better-established. I'm aiming to automate some processes and hire more people, so that I can start reincorporating longer trips into my lifestyle.

Remote work is different for everyone. I've tried working while traveling slowly and working while traveling fast. Now I'm excited about working from my own office in my own home.