(Excerpt: October 03, 2019) In the 14 years since she walked across McDaniel’s Commencement stage, Jessica Watson has redefined the concept of working remotely.
Sure, Watson has taken her marketing firm, PointsNorth Studio, on the road and worked from 35 states and 10 countries. But the 2005 Communication grad actually lives and works not as a tourist but as a local in a real neighborhood wherever her inner compass directs her.
“McDaniel College taught me that anything is possible and you don’t have to be or do just one thing,” says Watson, just back from a six-month, six-country adventure taking her work abroad. “My liberal arts education gave me the freedom to explore in-depth topics that I was curious about, and that’s a habit I still practice regularly today.”
The work-travel venture began in 2013 when she packed her Hyundai sedan with her iPhone, MacBook Pro, design inspiration books, paper samples, color guides, a teddy bear for security, a pair of dumbbells for exercise and her bike rack for the bike she planned to purchase along the way.
That way was a year-long cross country adventure that would take her to 10 cities. Plotting a route that kept her ahead of winter weather, she spent a month living, working and making people connections in each city — Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, Austin, Boulder, Long Beach, Portland, Seattle, Chicago and Memphis.
Jess Watson is the CEO & Creative Director of Points North Studio. She's the co-organizer of Baltimore Womxn in Tech, a big believer in Baltimore city, and a pioneer of working remotely while traveling the globe.
