Expat tips?

Jane_c wrote:

So for all the expats with experiences what advices can you share for someone considering living the expat life. What are the pros and cons?

Jane. Louis Armstrong was once asked "What is jazz?" He replied, "If you have to ask, you'll never be able to understand what it is." It's the same kind of answer your questions warrant. Just go!

I totally agree with you Gordon, you can ask about cost of living, safety level  and such things to be prepared no one wants to run out of money while he/she in a foreign lands, other than this just explore and enjoy being lost in a new places lol observe how those people think and live. personally i like to live with common people see the true face of that country , I guarantee you that with each and every new place you visit you will never be the same person again , you will grow to become more wise and see things and solve them from different angels based on the experiences you collected over the years and confidence you gain through having to cope with strange and various obstacles.
In general its like a journey to explore yourself and your potentials.
I wish you all the best
you will never regret it

If you spend too much time asking and worrying about it then you will arrive with negative feelings which will not help you at all.   

You have to be sure of yourself  and your abilities.
Just make an effort to learn a little of the language and about the do's and dont's and GO GO GO.

I did it over 45+ years ago and have enjoyed it, both good and bad.

I would say first go to the country you are thinking of, not in a tourist resort, and spend a month or so seeing if it "fits" . Most of the Expats that fail here do so because they only came once on a vacation and fell in love with the place. Tourist and living here are two vastly different things.
Second when you settle on a place start learning the language.
Then go for it.

Bob K

It makes life more interesting.

Whereever you are planning to go learn local language if possible....get some idea of the place and situation of that country from internet but untill unless you will will not go there you will not get that experience...so go there...all the best..

Take it as an adventure: go for it and if it doesn't work out make sure you have the ability to go back.
Don't see it as failure but as a great experiment and experience.

Most people have not the guts to leave their comfort zone but can only dream about it.

none if it turned out the way I expected, so I don't think there's any pre-training I really could have done. Most of the meticulous planning I did before I left the country was wasted in the end.

oh, except getting the criminal record paperwork before departing. I needed that for my visa and it was much easier to have gotten it while I was still in the States.

@ primadona: Yup that is the only thing I'm worrying, that if somewhere along the line things doesn't work out I'll be having to start over from square one. But like you and everyone said it'll be just an adventure. I just hope that they won't be an endless ones. thank you all for great responses.

@ Gordon Barlow: We never know until we ask. Good point thanks.

HaileyinHongKong wrote:

If I knew then what I know now, I would have brought a better umbrella.

Lol

Jane_c wrote:

At one point some of us would want to move some place else where we have a little bit of knowledge of. Either for work, school, etc. So for all the expats with experiences what advices can you share for someone considering living the expat life. What are the pros and cons? What are the things you wished you knew prior to deciding the move?
Anything you can share would be very helpful for a lot us including me who is considering to move elsewhere.

Hi Jane,
Expatship for work, school or retirement are juvenile endeavors. 

How about you think about sailing in your private yacht? Or moving to a new country because of the wonderful investment opportunities opening over there? 

What questions would you ask yourself? What thoughts would cross your mind? 

Primadonna wrote:

Take it as an adventure: go for it and if it doesn't work out make sure you have the ability to go back.
Don't see it as failure but as a great experiment and experience.

Most people have not the guts to leave their comfort zone but can only dream about it.

They are the baby people who not only have no guts, but also no money.  Their destiny is to get into the car to drive it but then the gas tank is always empty ...
Mind you, that's their comfort zone ...