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Expat Rule #1: Don’t Trust Anyone
Your trust must be earned, not given away.
Preparing to board a plane on his way to Venice, Walter Donovan waved down Professor Henry Jones with one last bit of advice. “Now be very careful. Don’t trust anyone.”
Wise words given to Indiana Jones. Unfortunately, for disregarding the advice, Indy found himself captured, tied to a chair in the midst of a burning building, all after fornicating with a nazi his father had also previously diddled.
The globetrotting archeologist was never one to play by the rules, but instead made things up as he went. And while the world of moving abroad and living as an expat, digital nomad, or emigrant is ripe with seat-of-your-pant decision making, one bit of advice should always ring true.
Don’t trust anyone.
At least not at first. Aside from your time, your trust is one of your most valuable commodities. It’s not something you should give away for free. It’s something that needs to be earned. Because the thing is, whether you’re moving to Thailand or Tanzania, Argentina or Albania, people will try to get the better of you.
And while that is true, to an extent, in the United States, you generally have some kind of recourse at your disposal. There’s a government protection agency at your disposal, or…
