Sebastian Kühn

worked in sales & marketing and studied international business when he finally realised in his late twenties that he won’t find happiness in a traditional corporate environment. He got self-employed in 2012, moved to China and combined work & travel ever since. Today, he’s making a living maintaining the website Wireless Life where he writes for and consults people who want to start an online business. He’s also the co-founder of the online community Citizen Circle for location-independent entrepreneurs.

When and why did you decide you wanted to live a wireless life? What were the most important aspects to you?

Two factors really motivated me to take risks: first, I wanted to be more flexible with my time and location instead of being tied to a desk and schedule. Second (and more importantly), I wanted to do something meaningful with my time. Something that is fulfilling to me and creates value to others at the same time.

Now of course it’s one thing to live this lifestyle and quite another to make a living from it. When and why did you decide to create your website Wireless Life?

Three years into my entrepreneurial journey I owned a translation agency, building small niche websites and experimenting with e-commerce on the side. I was so amazed by all these opportunities to work on my own terms that not many people knew about, I just had to start sharing my experiences. I started my website in the beginning of 2014 which was a perfect time to co-create a small movement in Germany.

Where and how do you usually work? What does a regular work day look like for you?

My ideal day is a mix of home office (wherever home may be at this moment) and a public space like a café or coworking space. I like the mix of silence and noise, input and output. Depending on how much focus I need for a certain task, I will choose the right work environment that inspires or motivates me.

As travel is pretty much part of your daily life – what was your favorite travel destination so far?

Tough question … Tibet was definitely very special to me because of the nature, history and kind people. For a long term stay with good quality of life, I’m a big fan of northern Thailand.

And which place in the world would you love to go to and why?

I would love to go to these small islands in the South Pacific (Fiji, New Caledonia, Samoa, …) by cargo ship. Some of these islands seem so remote since they don’t have airports which is why I imagine that they are really untouched and authentic.

What are the things you always have in your hand luggage when traveling?

My laptop for sure, my Kindle and at least one paperback book. All my possessions are reduced to hand luggage size which is why I’m not really attached to any material things.

What’s your craziest travel story?

If I leave aside the ones where police and drugs are involved there is one silly story that I will always remember: we were flying from Shanghai to Los Angeles and booked our AirBnB for the day after. We had an overnight flight, arrived at the AirBnB but no one would open at the agreed time. It took us a while to realise that we crossed the date line and basically arrived one day early. That was a costly mistake to make in LA.

Thank you so much for talking to us today and for sharing your experience with us, Sebastian! We wish you pleasant travels in the future!