7 Things You Should Do Immediately After Deciding To Quit Your Job To Travel

Just over a year ago, I was stuck in a job that made me want to stick pins in my eyes, and I spent the majority of my time praying for the weekend.

I fantasized about walking out of it to travel the world but, sadly, I had zero savings. In addition, the thought of just swanning off around the globe only to return and go back to the job hunt wasn't appealing.

Fast forward to the present day and I'm on a beach in Thailand. This, my friends, is my office for the day. Next on my hit list is Bali, followed by India before heading to Sri Lanka.

No, I'm not a trust fund baby, nor a lottery winner. Instead, I launched a hugely successful online business, a business that allowed me to quit my job within six months and enabled me to work from wherever I choose.

Want to know how it's done? Here are the steps to help you achieve the same.

1. Set yourself a deadline for quitting your job.

If you don't give yourself a specific time frame to quit your job, you will coast along. Before you know it, 20 years will have passed and you will still be in the same place (perhaps slightly up that career ladder).

Set yourself a deadline and aim to have everything in place financially to quit by this point. This means having a strict savings plan in place so that you have money to fall back on once you quit.

2. Pick a business model that is location independent.

Being able to travel the world while taking your work with you is one of the biggest gifts we can give ourselves. In order for things to work, you need to make sure that your intended business gives you the flexibility to work from anywhere.

The best business model for remote work is either online consulting (coaching, teaching, training or advising people on a particular subject one-to-one) or creating online digital programs.

While consulting is a good place to start out, the market for digital programs is huge -- and it is here where there is real money to be made. It's an industry worth billions of dollars, but the real beauty of creating online courses lies in the fact that it is largely passive income. Once you've created the course, it is just a case of marketing it and you are no longer having to exchange your time for money, leaving you free to explore the world at your leisure.

3. Pick an industry that you love.

A successful online business doesn't happen overnight. A lot of work is needed in order to build your audience, develop your brand and build authority within your niche.

For this reason, it's best to chose a subject that you enjoy talking about and are willing to throw yourself into entirely.

If it's not a subject you are interested in, chances are you won't be able to find the willpower to stick with it in order to see it through.

Don't be fooled into thinking your industry is too obscure or too niche to make a profitable business out of it. A woman named Lain Ehmann makes multiple six figures teaching scrapbooking. Point made?

What you need to realize is that if there are people who want to learn about your subject matter, chances are they are willing to pay to access that information quickly and easily from an expert. This is where your knowledge and experience comes in -- either consulting or via the creation of an online program.

4. Blog like a boss

You are going to need to up your game when it comes to content creation.

Creating content that is valuable, informative and highlights you as an expert will give you credibility and will make people view you as someone they would invest in.

You can never be too generous with your advice. The more advice I seem to give, the more people choose to invest in me.

If writing and keeping up with a blog isn't your jam, don't panic. There are other ways you could deliver your content, through video or a podcast for example. The important thing is that you build a relationship with your audience and they grow to trust you enough to invest in you.

5. Collaborate with other entrepreneurs.

One of the things that has made the most impact on my business has been collaborating with others within my niche.

Rather than viewing them as the competition, think of them as a potential ally. Great ways to collaborate are to guest blog on each other sites, promote each others content and share tips and advice.

You are the product of those who you spend the most time with, so it's a good idea to make relationships with others that have the same aspirations as you.

6. Get social media savvy.

If your current idea of being "social media savvy" is browsing through images of dogs wearing clothes on Instagram, you are going to need to up your game.

Social media is huge for any online businesses and will be a crucial part to your success.

You need to start building up your audience as soon as possible, as it will be these people that will eventually hire you or buy your online courses.

You don't want any old followers, however. It's not the quantity you are after here, but the quality. You want to make sure the relationships you build on social media are with people who are your target market.

In order to attract your target market, you need to be specific about the content you post. Rather than trying to post about everything and everything, try and stick to your particular niche. It's better to be known for one particular thing and build up your expertise within that industry, rather than spreading yourself too think across too many subject areas.

7. Be in it for the long game

The last thing I advise is to be in it for the long game.

As much as there will be success stories about people who have made millions in the online business world, for most, this hasn't happened overnight. It has been the result of months of hard work, dedication and perseverance.

Many online businesses take a while to build up a steady income and you have to be willing to see through these periods and not give up too soon.

If you are willing to put the work in, the result is that you can create something that will allow you to live life entirely on your terms, traveling the world and getting paid as you go.

All you need is a passport, WiFi and a dream.