Why You Should Quit Your Job and Move to a New Country

The Vagabond

A while back, I’ve stumbled across a piece of interesting research on something called “Existential Migration”. Developed by a psychologist, Greg Madison, it looks into a certain demographic of people that feel the urge for constant migration from one place to the other.

Unlike the typical push-or-pull migration we’re familiar with, these folks are not motivated by economic reasons, unstable situation in their home country, or a simple desire for travel. Rather, it’s a way of fulfilling deeper desires and the attempt to answer deeper “existential” questions about themselves — “who am I, what am I meant to be doing and where do I belong?”

On a blog where this research was recently discussed, a reader made an interesting comment that put the concept together: “I think there is an itch of dissatisfaction in many of our lives. Perhaps it is an intrinsic part of the human condition. Certainly in Britain, I think many people of my generation (I’m 31) are slightly lost. No longer religious, and dissatisfied with consumer culture, finding meaning in the daily grind is difficult…”

Madison provided a few interesting case studies of people he researched that embraced this lifestyle. One is a case of Alan, a successful banking executive from Maryland currently working in London. After leaving Maryland, he spent a year in New York, two years in Netherlands, currently on his third year in London — and yet again, he’s getting ready to pick up and move, this time to Lisbon.

People like Alan can often find familiarity suffocating or dull. What turns their switch and makes them feel alive is the feelings and processes associated with being a foreigner in a new land.

What’s fascinating is that Alan, without taking travel into consideration, made a number of life decisions — such as picking a career, education, etc. — that would increase his likelyhood of such lifestyle. In fact, for him, it can be even strange that most of the people around him have no desire to leave home, but are rather quite happy to plan their lives around friends and family and the familiar streets where they had grown up.

Unfortunately, this lifestyle comes with its share of downfalls. It looks like the thrill of moving wears off after a while — which is quite evident in Alan’s case, as he’s getting ready to move to a 4th country within 8 years.

Nick, the reader from the news site who was quoted earlier, added — “If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past 10 years, it’s that upping and leaving for pastures new is in some ways a stop-gap. It may temporarily scratch that itch of dissatisfaction, but it doesn’t kill it….”

Having the Cake and Eating it Too

As I continued to think about the concept of existential migration, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was some sort of a middle ground. If there is a way to get that thrill of moving and experience of exploring a whole new land, without abandoning everything you’ve built up until that point. On a personal level, I feel quite happy with the life and opportunities that the U.S. has to offer, but often earn for the rich and satisfying experiences that living in a new place can offer.

Perhaps the key is with like everything else in life — do it in small doses.

Is it possible to consciously build a life style that would allow to pick up and move to a new country for about 4–6 months every 3 years or so? I think there are two pieces that would have to come together for this to work:

- Ability to leave work behind for an extended period of time or the ability to work remotely — both of these options are quite possible in today’s world. With the former, it’s almost expected that people will be switching their jobs every 2–3 years, so why not use the time in between to enrich your life with other experiences.

If you are a freelancer or own your own business, you have the ability to construct your business, lifestyle and schedules in such a way that would allow you to do this. And, if you can work from anywhere, even better! There is hi-speed internet and good coffee in every part of the world these days.

- Ability to do something productive wherever you move. Your experience in a new country will be richer by an order of magnitude if you tie yourself into the fabric of everyday life and get to interact with the local population through work. It doesn’t even necessarily need to be paid (if you can afford to skip a salary) — volunteering does a similar job.

Having a routine, bonding and growing closer with a group of colleagues, and actually making a contribution to the place where you live will give you a much richer experience altogether.

Naturally, as people read this, the first natural reaction for many is — “This could work for somebody else, but not for for me. My situation is just too complex. If I take half a year break after leaving a job, I’ll never find another one. There is no way that I could do my current job remotely. It’s just too much risk. I have no skills to bring elsewhere. Maybe when I retire…”

Some people may be right.

However, for most, this is just an automatic reaction against the possibility of dramatic, life-adjusting change. If you’re the type of person to be reading this blog, chances are that you can find a way to make this work. It just has to be approached creatively and you would like need to consciously make some very specific choices and sacrifices. If you want this, of course — not everyone does.

Why Do It?

There are a few things that I think you can get out of experiences like this:

New Language — if you’ve ever wanted to learn a new language but never had the time to actually do it, this is a damn good way to start. Six months in the actual country would accelerate the learning pace significantly — as opposed to simply taking language courses back at home. And just imagine that within a course of the next 10–12 years, you can gain conversational knowledge of 3 more languages (if you can find a way to practice them when you return)!

Inexpensive — cost of living becomes much lower in most of parts of the world if you settle there to live (as opposed to simply visiting as a tourist for a few weeks). For example, you can live very comfortably in most parts of the world for about $600–1,000/mo. Air travel is expensive, but if you have flexibility on dates and move there for at least a few months, it’s not that much in the grand of scheme. So, if you look at the maximum cost and say that you need a total of $6,000 for 6 months of living abroad and $1,000 for roundtrip airfare and do it every 3 years — you just need to save about $6/day to make it happen.

Travel Within Travel — one of the best parts about living in a different region of the world is that you have the opportunity to explore all of the nearby countries on the cheap. Take Asia, for example. Many of their low-cost air carriers offer flights to and from virtually every country in the region starting at just $20–40 one-way (quick search shows that a typical flight from Bangkok, Thailand to Phnom Penh, Cambodia is just $43.41 — taxes included). Within just a few months, you can end up visiting half a dozen countries or more.

Creative Rebirth — with an established routine back at home, it’s easy to find yourself caught up in the everyday busyness of things. Whether your job depends on creativity or if you just want to take a “time out” to re-evaluate where you are and set the direction for the next few years, putting yourself in a brand new context can have a dramatic impact. It goes beyond the impact you could get from a regular vacation. It’s not simply about giving your body a rest, but rather having the opportunity to be exposed to a new set of ideas, perspectives and people.

New Friends Around The World — last, but certainly not least, when you’re living somewhere for an extended period of time, you actually have an opportunity to make friends all over the world. There is a reason why many Peace Corps volunteers, who often spend 2 years on their placement, often say that the friendships they make out there become life long. You may not get to see them on a daily basis when you return back home, but you will always have a friendly face happy to see you in all corners of the world.

“… “The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land… ”
— G. K. Chesterton

Originally published at www.wegoingup.com on August 8, 2010.