About us
What if life does not go as planned…
But becomes better because of it.
We are David & Thessa, two people who each, in our own way, got stuck in the life we were “supposed” to live.
Until we decided to do things differently. Not because we knew all the answers, but because we knew this was not it.
Now we are spending a year together in Asia, searching for what freedom really means. Discovering what is possible when you break away from the norm. When you do not live for the security of a steady job but for the freedom to work where and when you want. And we are taking you with us. Raw and unfiltered. Not just the pretty pictures, but also the doubts, the struggles and everything in between.
About Thessa
Hi there, I’m Thessa. Born in ’92, officially based in Zwolle (NL) but right now, I’m chasing everything beautiful beyond the Dutch borders.
Let’s rewind for a second: after six years of pre-university education and half a degree in Pedagogy, I ended up in retail. I completed my degrees in Pharmacy Retail and Retail Management, which opened the door to becoming a store manager at Kruidvat.
Almost ten years (!) later, I closed that chapter. It was time for change. I switched to an office job as a team lead of a contact and planning department. I worked hard, learned a ton, and discovered what I didn’t want in a job (or in an employer).
After a short break to catch my breath, I started working at Quality Contacts in September 2019, and wow… I felt right at home. Amazing colleagues, great clients, and still room to travel every year. I thought: “This is it.” And honestly? For a while, it was.
But then it started again. That nagging feeling. That it wasn’t enough. That I wasn’t enough.
Right at that moment, an opportunity popped up: project manager. I was already doing part of the work anyway, so it seemed like a natural step up. New energy, new motivation, new sense of purpose. But in the end, it was just a quick fix. A band-aid over something much deeper.
Slowly, something dark started to take over. Negativity, heaviness, hopelessness. I lost my grip on myself. I fell into a deep depression. Everything felt meaningless. I was convinced it would never get better. I didn’t want to go on.
This was my rock bottom. My black period
But here’s what I had forgotten: I had a partner who loved me unconditionally. The most amazing group of friends who were always there for me. My family, my colleagues. Two sweet cats who curled up on my lap without judgment. So many good things to be grateful for. Good things to be proud of.
And thankfully, with the right help (therapy, medication, and a lot of falling and getting back up again), I slowly started to climb back out. I discovered that for years, I had been living according to a picture of how life was “supposed” to look. A picture I never actually chose.
It wasn’t realistic, it wasn’t achievable and it wasn’t even mine.
So, I started over. I reinvented myself.
It was hard. Brutally hard.
And now I’m going to say something strange: it’s one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.
Because now I’m a different Thessa. A freer Thessa. Someone who knows what she wants. Someone who lives by her own beliefs. Someone who says: “F*ck it, let’s do it!”
From now on it's on my terms
Travel had always been my thing, but now I want more. I want to know what it’s like to live and work abroad.
My online business, Tasking Thessa, was born from a dream to work location-independently. To build something that is 100% mine. To do something I’m good at and love doing.
To live and work on my own terms.
In my own way.
About David
Born in 1985, raised mostly in a small village, and for years my life revolved around being there for others.
My working life began in hospitality and stayed there for a long time. For fifteen years everything was about serving others. Bars, restaurants, hotels. Long days, short nights. Always on. I loved the energy, the people, the chaos… until one day I had had enough.
I longed for more calm, for structure, for free weekends and less stress. So I made the switch to customer service. First as an employee on the phone. Then as a team leader and eventually as a manager. On paper it looked perfect: career, security, structure. But inside I felt emptier and emptier. Waking up every morning with a weight on my chest. Every day the same routine. Endless meetings that solved nothing. Targets that meant nothing to me.
“I was'nt living. I was surviving.”
Travel had always been my escape. Over the years I visited Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Canada, Mexico and half of Europe. Places where I actually felt alive. But even there it started to hurt. Even in the most beautiful places I felt the unease of having to return to a life that drained me. The day began with stress. My work would not let me go. And honestly, neither would I.
In 2024, during a trip to Mexico, I sat on a beach with my feet in the sand and my head full of worries. I looked at Thessa and said:
“I can’t do this anymore. This endless nine to five grind is soul crushing. I have to get out, and I have to get out of The Netherlands.”
That moment changed everything. We started planning and arranging right away and in June 2025 I quit my job. Not because I knew what would come next, but because I knew I could not keep going like this.
Now I am traveling through Asia for a year with Thessa. Not to run away, but to rediscover. Searching for freedom, space, peace. Searching for a life that truly fits.
The Way We Roam is where I share that. Not a perfect story. Just the honest journey of letting go and choosing again.
Go for the ultimate TheWayWeRoam experience!
👉 Check more of our travel stories at our Polarsteps.