Post: #76

(02-20-2016 12:12 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  It might have been easier for an 18-22 year old to up and go - just like that - but as a 36 year old I have lots of entanglements and roots here. It's this untangling process that takes a lot of time..

As a 34 year old this gives me faith in my decision to make the jump from Australia to Thailand this year. I'm still in the process of lining things up, but it has been 2 years of slowly chipping away at things. I have enough savings and holiday day leave to live in Thailand comfortably for 6 months while I go hard and setup a location independent business. I'm just gonna go for it an if i fail i still have a good paying gig back home if it doesnt work out.

I can't wait to see your results.

Post: #77

(02-23-2016 08:40 PM)pialox Wrote:  

(02-20-2016 12:12 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  It might have been easier for an 18-22 year old to up and go - just like that - but as a 36 year old I have lots of entanglements and roots here. It's this untangling process that takes a lot of time..

As a 34 year old this gives me faith in my decision to make the jump from Australia to Thailand this year. I'm still in the process of lining things up, but it has been 2 years of slowly chipping away at things. I have enough savings and holiday day leave to live in Thailand comfortably for 6 months while I go hard and setup a location independent business. I'm just gonna go for it an if i fail i still have a good paying gig back home if it doesnt work out.

I can't wait to see your results.

Something that might give you a little more faith in your decision -

I'm in my 30s as well, and made the jump from the US to Poland back in July.

I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

Post: #78

(02-24-2016 05:13 AM)262 Wrote:  

(02-23-2016 08:40 PM)pialox Wrote:  

(02-20-2016 12:12 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  It might have been easier for an 18-22 year old to up and go - just like that - but as a 36 year old I have lots of entanglements and roots here. It's this untangling process that takes a lot of time..

As a 34 year old this gives me faith in my decision to make the jump from Australia to Thailand this year. I'm still in the process of lining things up, but it has been 2 years of slowly chipping away at things. I have enough savings and holiday day leave to live in Thailand comfortably for 6 months while I go hard and setup a location independent business. I'm just gonna go for it an if i fail i still have a good paying gig back home if it doesnt work out.

I can't wait to see your results.

Something that might give you a little more faith in your decision -

I'm in my 30s as well, and made the jump from the US to Poland back in July.

I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

Can you do this with about $250,000 TO $350,000 in investments ? I just started a good paying job but of course my dreams are to live aboard and not have to work 12 -14 hours a day for a 6 figure income .

At the moment , I'm putting roughly $1500 to $2000 a month in a direct investing account .

Post: #79

(02-24-2016 05:13 AM)262 Wrote:  I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

What do you tell people/women abroad when they ask what you do? I would imagine stating your an investor or trader would signal you're loaded which wouldn't be particularly desirable.

This was a question I constantly ran into when I was living overseas, I wasn't doing anything particular besides travel, a bit of odd jobs here and there and some writing but without active work or a specific long-term goal I could spin their way it became a difficult question to answer. I did make shit up from time to time, but i'm just curious to hear your perspective with regards to this question and living on investment returns.

Post: #80

(03-01-2016 04:12 AM)malakaix Wrote:  

(02-24-2016 05:13 AM)262 Wrote:  I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

What do you tell people/women abroad when they ask what you do? I would imagine stating your an investor or trader would signal you're loaded which wouldn't be particularly desirable.

This was a question I constantly ran into when I was living overseas, I wasn't doing anything particular besides travel, a bit of odd jobs here and there and some writing but without active work or a specific long-term goal I could spin their way it became a difficult question to answer. I did make shit up from time to time, but i'm just curious to hear your perspective with regards to this question and living on investment returns.

Two words:

"I'm retired"

As in, "I'm long since retired, I do what I want"

Preferably the detail is implied with your dress, your frame, and your game.

Post: #81

(02-29-2016 05:42 PM)NeVerGymLess Wrote:  

(02-24-2016 05:13 AM)262 Wrote:  I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

Can you do this with about $250,000 TO $350,000 in investments ? I just started a good paying job but of course my dreams are to live aboard and not have to work 12 -14 hours a day for a 6 figure income .

At the moment , I'm putting roughly $1500 to $2000 a month in a direct investing account .

It depends on your level of expected expenses. The math is simple if you invest in an S&P 500 index fund (I also invest in the ex-US S&P 500 index equivalent, the MSCI EAFE index). The math is:

Total needed to retire = 25 x Annual expected expenses

Source: The Mr. Money Mustache blog - http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/05/2...etirement/

Rearranging that formula, $250,000 to $350,000 gives you monthly income of $833 to $1,167. Use sites like http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/ and this forum to determine if that's enough for you.

Post: #82

(03-01-2016 04:12 AM)malakaix Wrote:  

(02-24-2016 05:13 AM)262 Wrote:  I managed to save and invest enough over my career not to need a location independent business. But the leap of faith of quitting my cushy job and putting it all on my savings and investment strategy sure seemed big at the time!

What do you tell people/women abroad when they ask what you do? I would imagine stating your an investor or trader would signal you're loaded which wouldn't be particularly desirable.

This was a question I constantly ran into when I was living overseas, I wasn't doing anything particular besides travel, a bit of odd jobs here and there and some writing but without active work or a specific long-term goal I could spin their way it became a difficult question to answer. I did make shit up from time to time, but i'm just curious to hear your perspective with regards to this question and living on investment returns.

I tell women that I work for a private investor. What I don't tell them is that he happens to be me

If they ask for details, I usually spin something I actually do into something that sounds like a job. For example, "I met a few guys in Prague," becomes "I met a few clients in Prague."

I do the above to avoid gold-digging women and scam-artist men, and to avoid questions or skepticism, since most people would not believe I'm retired at my age (early 30s). I only tell people the truth if they earn my trust.

Post: #83

Hey CleanSlate,

Motivating stuff man. I'm jumping on this also.

Just got back from a 7 month stint in BKK and it was the time of my life, had to leave unexpectedly now I'm bored out of my mind in my hometown. Just started the Gary Halbert Challenge and reading the books now, looking to start freelancing as a copywriter as soon as I'm confident with my skills.

If you plan on living in BKK starting off let me know, I've got some tips for you that will make your first few weeks much easier.

Post: #84

Thoughts on Location Independence in the Closing Days of My Thailand Trip

I almost opted not to, but I’m glad I took my laptop with me and did some of my ongoing freelance work during my recent trip to Thailand and Indonesia. So it was essentially a “dry run” at location independence. Even made some money while on the road. It was a great feeling when I saw direct deposit alerts on my banking app while walking down Sukhumvit road in Bangkok on my way to a tinder date.

However, I do feel I need to temper my expectations for when I actually go location independent this summer.

At a couple points during my trip, I had doubts whether I’m cut out for this location independence lifestyle. I think it was this awkward, but temporary, transition phase when you stay in a new city for an extended time; the difficult period that starts after the novelty wears off, but before you really start hitting your stride. That was when I longed to be back home, despite all the faults the West has.

For example, I was spending money at an alarming rate that cannot be sustainable on a starter’s location independent income. I need to learn how to spend like a local around here. Start eating more street food. Avoid tourist traps with restaurants charging first world prices. Learn how to avoid getting ripped off by taxis. Getting a girl to translate and negotiate for me if there’s a language barrier. Get skilled at hunting bargains for hotels and apartments on the ground to complement online searches. Look into 2nd or 3rd tier cities like Chiang Mai to save on rent.

Another major issue is discipline. There are so many distractions here, it’s not even funny. You can easily get lost in this lifestyle. If one’s not careful, he might blow all of his savings before he realizes he can’t afford a plane ticket back home. It is going to take serious discipline to stay on the ball and get shit done when it needs to get done.

Other Updates

The first thing I’m going to do when I get back home is to renew my passport and request extra pages. My current passport only has about four years left on it, and I would like to have as much cushion as possible. Other documents may also need to be renewed.

It’s also time to start looking into getting visas. I’ll start with Philippines and Thailand for now. I haven’t decided which place I will go to, yet. Most likely I will split my time between those two countries, along with scouting trips to other SEA countries whenever I need to make a visa run or something. But for now, it’s time to start getting the right photos for passport and visa applications.

My primary task for my business over the next few months is to acquire more regular clients to expand my base for a more consistent income. I have not been looking for new clients over the past two months because I had enough work I could handle on top of my full time job, and I didn’t want to overwhelm myself during my Thailand trip. But now is the time to start pitching for more clients.

I am still on track to vacate my apartment on June 20, and leave the USA in mid-July. However, I have not heard anything about my annual bonus from my job. I did get a cost of living adjustment to my salary recently, and given my company’s history, the bonus usually follows very soon after. I expect to hear something by the end of April.

I’m going to break the news of my plans to my family next weekend. It will be very interesting to see how they react.

Post: #85

@clenslate Get enough frequent flyer miles for a one way ticket back home and park your miles.

That way you always have a way back. Good luck. Only suggestion is manila is an expensive city for first world comforts, 3rd world in Phil much worse then in Thailand.

If your making Western salary Phil is much better with bgc and the likes otherwise Chang mai sounds like a great place to set up shop

Post: #86

CleanSlate, I've been reading your threads for a quite a while now since I've discovered this forum and I have to salute you - awesome how you're attacking your life goals, certainly inspiring! Keep it going mate, and best of luck.

(03-26-2016 01:22 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  The first thing I’m going to do when I get back home is to renew my passport and request extra pages. My current passport only has about four years left on it, and I would like to have as much cushion as possible. Other documents may also need to be renewed.

Although I'm not American, I've been hanging out at FlyerTalk pretty regularly recently, so I've read some things about US passports - you can't get extra pages anymore, but any US embassy/consulate outside the States will issue you a 52-pages passport - so you might just hang on to your current one until time comes to renew it.

Post: #87

(03-26-2016 02:03 AM)Quaestum Wrote:  CleanSlate, I've been reading your threads for a quite a while now since I've discovered this forum and I have to salute you - awesome how you're attacking your life goals, certainly inspiring! Keep it going mate, and best of luck.

(03-26-2016 01:22 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  The first thing I’m going to do when I get back home is to renew my passport and request extra pages. My current passport only has about four years left on it, and I would like to have as much cushion as possible. Other documents may also need to be renewed.

Although I'm not American, I've been hanging out at FlyerTalk pretty regularly recently, so I've read some things about US passports - you can't get extra pages anymore, but any US embassy/consulate outside the States will issue you a 52-pages passport - so you might just hang on to your current one until time comes to renew it.

Ahhh, thanks for the heads up. Well, if they no longer issue extra pages, then I guess there's really no point in renewing now. That means one less thing to do now

Post: #88

great post keep us updated

Post: #89

Americans usually don't have much trouble renewing passports abroad. British ones are an ordeal and I often hear complaints from Australians as they don't have many consulates.

Also this:

Quote:If your current passport expires in two years or less, you can fill out universal form DS-4085 and continue to use your current passport until it expires. Even after you receive your new passport, you will be able to use your current one (i.e. you will have two passports at the same time).

So you only need to get to a consulate to apply, then return two weeks later to pick it up. In the meantime you can use your current passport to travel.

Post: #90

(03-26-2016 01:22 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  If one’s not careful, he might blow all of his savings before he realizes he can’t afford a plane ticket back home.

Would it be worth while opening a savings account just to cater for an 'emergency get home' fund?

Post: #91

(03-26-2016 01:22 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  Thoughts on Location Independence in the Closing Days of My Thailand Trip

However, I do feel I need to temper my expectations for when I actually go location independent this summer.

At a couple points during my trip, I had doubts whether I’m cut out for this location independence lifestyle. I think it was this awkward, but temporary, transition phase when you stay in a new city for an extended time; the difficult period that starts after the novelty wears off, but before you really start hitting your stride. That was when I longed to be back home, despite all the faults the West has.

For example, I was spending money at an alarming rate that cannot be sustainable on a starter’s location independent income. I need to learn how to spend like a local around here. Start eating more street food. Avoid tourist traps with restaurants charging first world prices. Learn how to avoid getting ripped off by taxis. Getting a girl to translate and negotiate for me if there’s a language barrier. Get skilled at hunting bargains for hotels and apartments on the ground to complement online searches. Look into 2nd or 3rd tier cities like Chiang Mai to save on rent.

I think you should not be to critical with yourself here. You knew that this trip was a holiday with some work mixed in. So your mindset from the start was different. Once you don't have a full time job anymore and you know that you need to work to make money your mindset will change.

I learned during my time being location independent that I need to stay in a city no less than three months. You know the cities where you want to go already. I did not in most of the cases. So this is already a big advantage. The reason why I have the three months rule are the following:

- Three months give you enough time to discover the nightlife from Thursday till Saturday. It is enough time to hit all major clubs and bars in smaller to medium sized cities. You can get work done between Monday and Thursday and only spend money for food and nothing else on these days. Of course maybe a date or two during the week.

- I can get into my daily routine. Hit the gym - do the work - go to bed early

- Costant travelling is a huge distraction. To move from one place to another costs you at least two days a week where you could get work done. You need to pack your luggage, get to the airport, find the new place where you gonna stay etc. If you do this too often it gets very tiring and will impact your productivity. The most successful location independent people I met were the ones who were staying at the same place for more than two months.

Anyways just my two cents on that one point your mentioned. Hope it helps.

Post: #92

(03-26-2016 08:31 PM)Marmite Wrote:  

(03-26-2016 01:22 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  If one’s not careful, he might blow all of his savings before he realizes he can’t afford a plane ticket back home.

Would it be worth while opening a savings account just to cater for an 'emergency get home' fund?

Hmmm... nah. I've made a mental note to pull up the stakes and come back home to stay with relatives if I burn through 75% of the savings that I start with once I leave. Hopefully that will never happen and my goal is to create a consistently positive cash flow. It would be nice to partition my savings account, though. But I think opening a second savings account is a bit overkill and I like to think I have enough discipline to manage one

Thanks for the idea though.

(03-26-2016 09:16 PM)superschalk Wrote:  I learned during my time being location independent that I need to stay in a city no less than three months.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. It takes me a couple weeks to hit my stride in a new city, and I would hate to start the process all over again too frequently. It would drive me crazy, not to mention leaking money on airfares and setup costs if moving around too much. 3 months in each city for a year, or 6 months in each of my top two cities, with a few scouting trips elsewhere thrown in should satisfy my travel itch.

Post: #93

The standard for passport issuance at U.S. embassies abroad is the 52 page booklet. You must request the smaller one. Two weeks is very possible for delivery, but I would plan on four weeks. They will give you 90 days to pick up your passport from the day that you are notified (by e-mail).

Great story CleanSlate! There will probably be some bumps in your first year (after transitioning), but they will even out. What you see as a challenge with foresight, will be seen as an adventure worth living in hindsight. For a younger guy, one of the bigger issues will be cash flow. You wisely realize that the focus is one of discipline. From my experience doing this over and over in many different countries over many years, is that you will spend more money and the frequency of monetary transactions will be greater in the first 3 months as you get settled; it will slowly taper in 3ish month increments and you will notice a large difference (looking back) around 12 months. If you do not own a house, the taper will be quicker and not as steep.

Post: #94

Told my mother and sister of my plans. They reacted just as I expected they would, for the most part.

Sister took it surprisingly well, and seems to be supportive. Said she wasn't that surprised because she could tell that I didn't care about my job anymore.

Mom really struggled with the news when I told her via skype. She thought it was an April Fools joke and refused to believe me when I kept telling her "no Mom, this is not an April fools joke, I'm serious"

Will write more later.

Post: #95

(04-01-2016 08:38 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  Told my mother and sister of my plans. They reacted just as I expected they would, for the most part.

Sister took it surprisingly well, and seems to be supportive. Said she wasn't that surprised because she could tell that I didn't care about my job anymore.

Mom really struggled with the news when I told her via skype. She thought it was an April Fools joke and refused to believe me when I kept telling her "no Mom, this is not an April fools joke, I'm serious"

Will write more later.

For most people, change is scary. So many unknowns.

This seems wild to them. In reality, you've made a solid effort in planning that will pay dividends along your way. Any large change like this is way less daunting when you realize it's a bunch of smaller steps and that if you stay organized/focused it's all manageable.

Can't wait to hear more updates. Keep in mind you should be networking with RvF members in the areas you will live to get the best inside tips on ways to get the best bang for your buck. No pun intended.

Post: #96

It's now April and there is only a little over two months before I vacate my apartment, and three months before I leave the country.

Time to kick my location independence plan into serious gear.

I've been researching visas for the past few days (thanks to the forum members helping to enlighten me on visas - you know who you are). My family members have been concern trolling me about this stuff, but I just smile and nod and say I have it all taken care of.

Now here's a tentative schedule that I'm mapping out for the next few months.

April
* Research and fully understand visa options for countries of interest
* Give 60 day vacate notice to apartment

May
* Get a full physical and make sure immunizations are up to date
* Finish selling off all possessions and all furniture, donate what I couldn't sell
* Sign up for new mail scanning service
* Send in 2-3 week notice to my company
* Book flights and apply for visa at consulate (45 days prior to departure)

June
* Buy a new health / travel insurance plan if needed
* Start forwarding mail to mail scanning service address
* Get visa paperwork in order and make photocopies
* Vacate apartment and stay with relatives
* Sell the car

July
* Cancel or suspend auto insurance
* Cancel all bills or subscriptions no longer needed
* Spend time with Mom
* Finally, get the hell outta here!

A couple of wild cards that could throw my schedule off a bit...

- I'm still waiting for insurance to approve coverage for my new hearing device and it's been 6 weeks and no word from them. Don't want to leave my job to soon and end up on the hook due to cancelling insurance via quitting job too early. Shouldn't be a problem because there's still plenty of time, but it is cutting it a little close.

- I want to apply for the visa as soon as possible, and from what I've read, I can do it no more than 45 days before departure. So I will do it here in Houston 45 days before because I plan to go to Dallas and Virginia to spend time with family before I go. I wouldn't want to have to fly back to Houston to pick up the papers or something if the consulate drags their feet. The alternative is to apply in Dallas and then pick it up there when I go stay with relatives in late June.

Post: #97

Good to see you have got it planned so well. Which countries are you thinking of going? Still going to divide your time between Thailand and the Phils? Or somewhere else?

Post: #98

(04-05-2016 12:18 PM)Thaitanium Wrote:  Good to see you have got it planned so well. Which countries are you thinking of going? Still going to divide your time between Thailand and the Phils? Or somewhere else?

Thanks. I haven't decided which to go first, but it will be one of those two. I'm still looking into visas and stuff. There are several neighboring countries I want to check out as well.

I'm thinking that once I make my move over there, I might write a datasheet on how to become location independent... not about making money, but more along the lines of the detailed steps from A through Z, including:

- budgeting for overseas living
- picking the right banks
- managing taxes and insurance
- getting proper documentation for visas
- the best apps and programs for your computer and phone (skype, VPN, etc)
- winding your home life down, tying up loose ends, while booking a ticket and finding a place to live in your new destination
- how much it costs to make the move from start to finish

If there is interest in a data sheet like this, I'll try to make one.

Post: #99

(04-06-2016 02:58 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

(04-05-2016 12:18 PM)Thaitanium Wrote:  Good to see you have got it planned so well. Which countries are you thinking of going? Still going to divide your time between Thailand and the Phils? Or somewhere else?

Thanks. I haven't decided which to go first, but it will be one of those two. I'm still looking into visas and stuff. There are several neighboring countries I want to check out as well.

I'm thinking that once I make my move over there, I might write a datasheet on how to become location independent... not about making money, but more along the lines of the detailed steps from A through Z, including:

- budgeting for overseas living
- picking the right banks
- managing taxes and insurance
- getting proper documentation for visas
- the best apps and programs for your computer and phone (skype, VPN, etc)
- winding your home life down, tying up loose ends, while booking a ticket and finding a place to live in your new destination
- how much it costs to make the move from start to finish

If there is interest in a data sheet like this, I'll try to make one.

Would be very helpful.

262 made something similar but in post form (not one giant data sheet) but had great info.

/thread-47239.html

Post: #100

Sold most of my furniture today, sooner than expected.

One couple came by to look at a nightstand, and they ended up wanting the rug, entertainment unit, TV, and two chairs. Gave them a good deal for everything because they'll save me time and the trouble of trying to sell all the other items. My apartment looks pretty empty now.

Shit is getting real. And to be perfectly honest, I'm starting to get cold feet. Not saying I'm backing away from going through with it, but feelings of apprehension are starting to creep up.