Top 10 Spots to Retire Overseas in 2011

Quito, Ecuador

Every year International Living publishes its list of the top ten retirement havens. They’ve just sent out their September issue, and it includes their take on the best spots in the world to retire. I’ve been known to take issue with their findings in the past (for example, in their 2011 Quality of Life list). [...]

7 Ways Hurricane Irene Taught Me Not To Lose My Head as an Expat

traffic

Last week Hurricane Irene roared onto the Outer Banks of North Carolina and made its way up the East Coast of the US. To my surprise, I found myself in the midst of massive evacuation. I was just trying to get from Massachusetts to Florida after delivering my daughter to college, but I got caught [...]

Rent Before You Buy — or Sell

For Rent

Many future expats need to dispose of real estate back home before they can move abroad. We wanted to sell our Florida house before we move to Panama. It would give us a cleaner exit, and also a little cash in our pockets to help with moving and settling-in expenses. Unfortunately, the Central Florida economy [...]

Change = Risk + Ambiguity

hot air balloons over the Serengeti

Any big change involves some risk — but not changing is risky, too! Just ask the company that used to make vinyl records, or the transportation firm that thought those new-fangled horseless carriages were just a fad. Some people have a high risk tolerance. Would you be comfortable packing a few changes of clothes into [...]

What Do Future Expats Want?

A couple of weeks ago, I asked you to give me some input about topics you’d like to see more discussion of here. As promised, I let the poll run for a couple of weeks and now it’s time for the results. The choices were: Health Care Language Learning Personal Stories Portable Careers Reviews of [...]

How to Support Yourself Anywhere in the World

Penang, Malaysia

Guest post by Kathleen Peddicord You know all those millions of jobs lost in 2008, 2009, and 2010? Many of them didn’t disappear. They’re resurfacing today…online. You can find them if you know how to look…and you can fill them anywhere on earth you can get an Internet connection. I know publishing. Starting 26 years [...]

Pacing Your Portable Expat Career

You expect that you’ll need time to readjust and develop new routines when you make a big move. Did you know the same thing happens when you make tiny changes as well? Recently I moved my home office from one room in my house to another. Since then, my productivity has dropped — a lot. [...]

7 Planning Steps Bridget Jones Can Teach Future Expats

Darcy Bridget Daniel

“Earth to Bridget Sodding Jones!” yells Bridget’s boss. As the sequel to Bridget Jones’s Diary opens, lucky Bridget has been chosen to try skydiving — on camera — to see if it’s great fun or a terrifying risk. After being forced out of the plane, forgetting to pull the ripcord (prompting the above exclamation from [...]

Are You Meeting Your Expat Goals?

Future Expats, what can I do to help you move closer to your expat goals during the coming year? Please choose up to three topics below to let me know what you’d find most helpful. I’ll let this poll run for a couple of weeks, then share the responses with you. You can also contact [...]

Finally! A Real Roadmap for Moving Overseas

A real map for expats

I’ve found it! Earlier this year, I wrote about my disappointment in a product that promised to be a roadmap for expats. Instead, it was a bunch of fluff — mostly recycled fluff, at that. I haven’t given up the search, though, because we future expats need something that will take us, step by step, [...]