For digital nomad Emma Calleja, summer breaks are all about returning to your roots

We can all agree that the COVID-19 pandemic brought about loads of hassle and stress to the corporate world. Having said that, there’s no denying that this unfortunate phenomenon has also been one of the main reasons companies all over the globe have completely revolutionised themselves and their operations in the past couple of years.

A prime example of this would be the remote working trend.

Whilst its foundations precede the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote working shot up in popularity in recent years, so much so that a hybrid style of employment (at the very least) has become a necessary benefit for jobseekers far and wide.

Switzerland-based creative agency Von Peach has taken this trend in its stride and adopted it as part of its core personality. Testament to Von Peach’s belief in the effectiveness of fully-remote working is Co-Founder Emma Maria Calleja – a self-professed digital nomad.

Whilst most people spend a week (maybe two) every year seeing the world, travelling is an innate part of Emma’s day-to-day life, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. But as enjoyable, refreshing, and downright mind-opening as this way-of-life is, it also changes you in ways you wouldn’t suspect.

For Emma, a holiday is no longer synonymous with sightseeing, flights, and foreign cultures, rather, it marks a return to her roots, away from the hectic lifestyle of a digital nomad.

For the latest entry of this year’s MaltaCEOs.mt summer interview series, we caught up with Emma to find out what she plans on getting up to throughout the next couple of months.

1. Are you a summer or winter person? Why

Life can get too hot and too cold for me depending on my mood. So, let’s say I am a seasonal person who’s always looking forward for the next season to come around. 

2. What’s your favourite summer activity? Why?

Self-driven boats in Lake Lugano, anchoring in between Switzerland and Italy. The colour of the water is unparalleled. Natural sounds, no people, just beauty. That, and Prosecco. 

3. What’s your dream summer getaway? Why?

Anywhere I can wear fabulous dresses and shoes I don’t get to use as much due to my jet-set lifestyle. I guess these are the Sophia Loren moments in me that gush out. When the setting is right, I do feel I’m on a movie set sometimes – it’s strangely gratifying and a lot of fun. 

4. Will you be going abroad this summer? If yes, where to and why?

I’ll be boarding more than 10 flights this summer and taking at least another couple of trains across borders… for workation and vacation. I got some European countries lined up and then the United States’ West Coast. Ending the Summer in Prague for a global event Von Peach is running and Crete with the team. 

General advice to digital nomads – invest in a portable monitor. It is a life changer. 

5. What’s your best holiday experience?

When you cross borders at least 20 to 30 times a year, I’d say my best holidays are the ones where I get to stay put, at home in Malta or Switzerland, with a view of either the sea or the mountains, cooking, listening to Lucio Battisti’s classics while I take a moment to really recognise what’s been learnt, what’s been achieved and recharge for what is coming next. Conversations get quite philosophical when people are around in these days… it’s a rare glimpse of my introversion in a life that is fully on the extroverted side. 

6. What’s your worst holiday experience?

Being forced to parties at midnight. I’m the 6am type of gal which means I am ready to call it a night by 10pm… on good days.