Post: #1

After pondering big life questions such as whether to ever get married again and/or have kids, I decided that these big questions are too much for right now. So I'll just focus on the next five years, and then decide where to go from there after five years. I'm going to reserve my marriage/kids decisions until the five years are up.

My five years starts the day I become location independent. My cut-off date is May-June 2016, when I expect to leave my current job and run my portable business full time. I'm also going to be flexible on the five years. It could be only four years before I'm ready for the next step, or maybe seven. I'll keep it flexible.

So the plan is, once the handcuffs come off:

* Set up a base to live in a country for at least the first year. This place will have hot women, low cost of living, fast internet connection, some English speakers, and a good expat community where I can connect with others. This would be where I bootstrap my business, at least for the first year.

* Once every 3 months, take a 1-month vacation out of the base country to its neighboring countries. This quarterly vacation will partly be for relaxation, fun, getting bangs, and partly for scouting missions on potential places to live in the future.

* After the first year, move to another base country and live there for another year. Continue taking quarterly vacations while I can.

* Lather, rinse, and repeat for another few years. By 4-6 years, I should have a pretty good idea on which country fits me the best, whose women I like the best for LTRs and possible marriage, and where I can continue to do business.

* Then, I'll move to that country, and live and work there. Totally immerse myself into that culture. By then, I will be 40-45 years old... old enough to have plenty of valuable experience, and still young enough to find a woman to start a family with.

When I start this plan, I'm thinking Thailand would be the perfect base for the first year. From there, I can take vacations to the Philippines, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, etc... all within a reasonably short flight away. Whichever country I like best for business opportunities, expat communities, and women suitable for LTRs, I'll move there and set up another base.

I'm also thinking Mexico, Colombia, and other places in Latin/South America, but I'm shying away from those places as semi-permanent places. Safety is a concern. I won't count them out as vacation spots, however.

Sound like a reasonable plan? I feel this would help me break my life down into bite size pieces instead of trying to figure out everything in one swoop.

Post: #2

5 years is a very long time to plan for. I find that it's hard for me to plan more than about 5-6 months in advance. Even 3 months is a lot. Things can change VERY fast. Take it 1 day at a time.

Post: #3

Ideally, I would take it one day at a time, but I'm not very good at that. I'd probably end up as an aimless wreck filled with angst.

I understand that even the best laid plans go out the window because life happens. I get that, but just having a plan puts me on a path forward where I focus my efforts on getting myself through the crossroads I'm at. It's calming and gets me more focused on my location independence efforts NOW, instead of worrying too much about the future.

Post: #4

I once heard 18 months is a good number, because in that period things often change. I've found that to be very true.

Post: #5

I think the plan is sound, however I would advice using milestones.
Example - first milestone is to decide which countries are optional. Second would be to arrange the move, third would be to start the business and so on.

Also, do not get hung up on dates. It may take more than one year for the business to succeed. So these are more guidelines than an actual plan.

Good luck

Post: #6

I recently completed a five year plan - running from January 2010 to January 2015. Completion of a date-specific plan is possible, but involves considerable control of your environment. I'd argue this is a valuable skill in itself.

Did I achieve everything I set out to achieve? No. But it certainly got me to a better position than I was in previously. And the attempt opened my eyes to a number of truisms I had been previously (and possibly blissfully) been unaware of. Aim for the moon and land amongst the stars sort of thing.

Post: #7

CleanSlate, how did the beginning of your five year plan work out for you? Currently on one myself although it's in the accumulation phase.

Post: #8

Before making the decision of where to settle down for a year, I would suggest doing a world tour for three months. You've got a basic list of places you're considering already, so it's not like you'll be travelling with no direction. Such a tour will really help you narrow it down. Hit a few different countries, a number of different cities and see where you end up.

Post: #9

(09-22-2015 05:30 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  When I start this plan, I'm thinking Thailand would be the perfect base for the first year. From there, I can take vacations to the Philippines, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, etc... all within a reasonably short flight away. Whichever country I like best for business opportunities, expat communities, and women suitable for LTRs, I'll move there and set up another base.

I'm also thinking Mexico, Colombia, and other places in Latin/South America, but I'm shying away from those places as semi-permanent places. Safety is a concern. I won't count them out as vacation spots, however.

Sound like a reasonable plan? I feel this would help me break my life down into bite size pieces instead of trying to figure out everything in one swoop.

Take one thing into account : within SEA, flights are not expensive, and easy to book without prior preparation (lots of low-cost companies in SEA).. But within central or south America, plane tickets are very expensive and must be bought a few days in advance (to avoid even more expensive prices). So, this is a major plus for SEA...

Post: #10

Definitely a good idea to explore. I second Suit's suggestion of a 2-3 month tour at first, getting a feel for several places. I'd say 10-15 days in a place is enough to know whether a place is a good fit for you to live.

My 10-day assessments have basically panned out pretty much accurate for the places I've gone on to live in. You can get enough of a feel of generally how you'll fit in, how the people are, and how you'll like it.

Conversely, the two places I jumped into for stretches of time without doing scouting missions first, ended up being disappointing and frustrating - despite how much I wanted to like them, how much other people raved about them, or how good they looked on paper.

Post: #11

(11-22-2015 12:52 AM)Suits Wrote:  Before making the decision of where to settle down for a year, I would suggest doing a world tour for three months. You've got a basic list of places you're considering already, so it's not like you'll be travelling with no direction. Such a tour will really help you narrow it down. Hit a few different countries, a number of different cities and see where you end up.

That's reasonable. I'll definitely hit up Thailand, Vietnam, etc.

But, I have a feeling that settling in the Philippines may ultimately be the best thing for me to do, only because English is widely spoken.

Realistically, I may struggle to live in countries where little or no English is used, but rather tonal languages are spoken (China, Thai, etc).

Travel difficulties in my recent trip only impressed me on the importance of being able to speak the same language as the locals to get myself out of a jam (not just with travel, but in general).

Post: #12

^^ Other than the language gap, I find Thailand to be a much more livable place than the Philippines. Safer, cleaner, much better food, nicer accommodation for the same price. A lot of taxis and shopkeepers speak basic English. But then again, the language factor might be a bigger issue for you.

Post: #13

I think the best thing you can do is do a few short term visits, do some research, and pick a country/region to make your stock-and-trade.

Post: #14

(09-22-2015 05:30 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  After pondering big life questions such as whether to ever get married again and/or have kids, I decided that these big questions are too much for right now. So I'll just focus on the next five years, and then decide where to go from there after five years. I'm going to reserve my marriage/kids decisions until the five years are up.

My five years starts the day I become location independent. My cut-off date is May-June 2016, when I expect to leave my current job and run my portable business full time. I'm also going to be flexible on the five years. It could be only four years before I'm ready for the next step, or maybe seven. I'll keep it flexible.

So the plan is, once the handcuffs come off:

* Set up a base to live in a country for at least the first year. This place will have hot women, low cost of living, fast internet connection, some English speakers, and a good expat community where I can connect with others. This would be where I bootstrap my business, at least for the first year.

* Once every 3 months, take a 1-month vacation out of the base country to its neighboring countries. This quarterly vacation will partly be for relaxation, fun, getting bangs, and partly for scouting missions on potential places to live in the future.

* After the first year, move to another base country and live there for another year. Continue taking quarterly vacations while I can.

* Lather, rinse, and repeat for another few years. By 4-6 years, I should have a pretty good idea on which country fits me the best, whose women I like the best for LTRs and possible marriage, and where I can continue to do business.

* Then, I'll move to that country, and live and work there. Totally immerse myself into that culture. By then, I will be 40-45 years old... old enough to have plenty of valuable experience, and still young enough to find a woman to start a family with.

When I start this plan, I'm thinking Thailand would be the perfect base for the first year. From there, I can take vacations to the Philippines, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, etc... all within a reasonably short flight away. Whichever country I like best for business opportunities, expat communities, and women suitable for LTRs, I'll move there and set up another base.

I'm also thinking Mexico, Colombia, and other places in Latin/South America, but I'm shying away from those places as semi-permanent places. Safety is a concern. I won't count them out as vacation spots, however.

Sound like a reasonable plan? I feel this would help me break my life down into bite size pieces instead of trying to figure out everything in one swoop.

I like your 5 year thinking and cut off date.

I became self employed 8 and a half years ago but putting a 6 month cut off date by which I would quit my job. I quit on that day and have not looked back.

There is a huge difference between SE Asia and Latin America of course but you just have to pick one and do it. You will never be the same.

Don't listen to the naysayers who just give you different caution tales about short vacations. It sounds like you want to go all in. There are always flights home or elsewhere if you hate it. I moved to Japan in my late 20s having never been to Asia or Japan. I stayed 2.5 years and went on to another phase. You don't have to go see what it's like to see what it's like. You acheive that the moment you step out having moved there. The new sights, smells, customs, and endless layers you will discover in the new place are richer when you just GO, free as you are hoping to be, and not with the uncommitted caution of checking it first.

Whether you choose Thailand or Ecuador, Vietnam or Costa Rica, these are functioning and very livable places with life and vibrancy that is moving along 24 hours a day without you.

You have hit a chord with those who are envious of your plan, and secretly hope you will fail because they themselves cannot make themselves do what you are so close to doing.

Reach that tipping point where your business pays you enough to be free, get a light weight laptop, sell your crap, and go for it.

Post: #15

I don't think there are that many guys wanting CleanSlate to fail. I think most guys are rooting for him and are just trying to pass along some genuine thoughts. CS will do what is best for him. I just don't think anyone here wants him to fail. I think we all want him to succeed.

Post: #16

(11-28-2015 06:01 PM)samsamsam Wrote:  I don't think there are that many guys wanting CleanSlate to fail. I think most guys are rooting for him and are just trying to pass along some genuine thoughts. CS will do what is best for him. I just don't think anyone here wants him to fail. I think we all want him to succeed.

You are right its not many here.

Post: #17

(11-28-2015 09:08 PM)offthereservation Wrote:  

(11-28-2015 06:01 PM)samsamsam Wrote:  I don't think there are that many guys wanting CleanSlate to fail. I think most guys are rooting for him and are just trying to pass along some genuine thoughts. CS will do what is best for him. I just don't think anyone here wants him to fail. I think we all want him to succeed.

You are right its not many here.

But you are probably right about those around him in real life that don't see life like people on the forum do. I didn't think about them at the time I posted that. Was just thinking about the forum.

Post: #18

After thinking about it for awhile, more and more I want to stay in America. Just because some freaks have taken over, doesn't mean that I don't love my country. I'll fight for America, and I'll die for it if comes to that.

Post: #19

It's a good five year plan, not the specific details of it, but that it's a bit broad. I think it's best to leave yourself a healthy bit of wiggle room to adjust and adapt but still have a general guideline of what you're looking for.

Post: #20

im coming to your garage sale the deals will be good!

Post: #21

Yeah, I never got the feeling that anyone here on this forum secretly wanted me to fail. You all have been very supportive and I would not have been able to set my plan in motion, starting with my first Philippines trip right after my divorce, without this forum.

In real life, on the other hand... I get that there might be a few who secretly wants me to fail. But most of my closest friends and family may actually be more supportive than I think.

I have been dropping hints among my friends and family that "something" is in the works. I couldn't help letting the word "sabbatical" slip off my tongue. Or, most recently, during this Thanksgiving holiday, I was raving how much cheaper life is in SEA compared to here. During my family's tradition of us men going outside to smoke cigars (those delicious Cubans, I should say!) and drink scotch, I'd quip: "a 5 day trip to Disney World cost twice as much as three weeks in SEA!"

My first cousin responded, "so you want to live there?" as he drew a puff from his cigar.

I kinda hemmed and hawed, and said "I've thought about it... I suppose it's possible."

He said, "If that's what you want, you should go for it."

By the way, offthereservation, if you're anywhere in or near Texas or the Gulf coast, bring a truck and come to my fire sale

Post: #22

It does feel liberating selling your stuff. I've done it twice in my life, but both times I regretted it later. The stuff I sold was valuable to me and hard to replace.

As much as I want to live overseas and be location independent, I know I will need and want to come back to the US for a month or three. My strategy will be to have an inexpensive home/apartment with my stuff it in it here in the US so I have a place to come back to in-between adventures.

A cheaper option would be to pay $150/month to put it all in storage, but then you have no place to live.

When I left for the Phils last year I had no return date, but after 2 months I wanted to return. Coming back to the US without a place to live and staying with my parents for a month until I found a new job really sucked.

Next year I'll be leaving the US again, and while I'd like to think it will be for good I know I will probably want to come back and spend time in the States. Not too much time.

Everyone's different though. Just something to keep in mind.

Post: #23

I'm kind of hoping to avoid renting storage space or an inexpensive apartment. Maybe buying a condo, renting it out, and hiring a manager to take care of it would be in the cards, but I don't have the kind of money to come up with a down payment yet... and I'm not prepared to deal with handling real estate half a world away. So I will sell everything (or at least put a few things in my sister's house).

Onto, what made you want to come back to the US after a few months in the Phils? Was it something about expat life that you were not quite prepared for?

Post: #24

(11-30-2015 07:15 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  I'm kind of hoping to avoid renting storage space or an inexpensive apartment. Maybe buying a condo, renting it out, and hiring a manager to take care of it would be in the cards, but I don't have the kind of money to come up with a down payment yet... and I'm not prepared to deal with handling real estate half a world away. So I will sell everything (or at least put a few things in my sister's house).

Onto, what made you want to come back to the US after a few months in the Phils? Was it something about expat life that you were not quite prepared for?

Yes.

It was my first time abroad solo. Before that I had only been to Mexico City a few times to visit an old LTR's parents.

I think the big problem was a lack of identity. Most of the forum members here have jobs in Asia or telecommute so they have work to keep them busy. I had nothing to do but daygame and that got old quick. Next time I will bring my computer with self-projects to work on.

I also wasn't able to lockdown what I would call LTR material. Granted I was only there a month in Manila and month in Davao. I think it takes more time to secure the quality we're seeking but it is definitely there.

Also I felt like my finances weren't as solid as I would like them to be and I would worry about that.

Also the weather and living in a small condo got to me a bit. Next time I may rent a large house farther out of town.

I was grateful to be back in the US where everything is plentiful, efficient and easy. However after 4 months I had enough of it here too. I love the weather, and I love my stereo/records and my guitar, but the women here are undatable for me anymore.

To summarize, lack of identity and lack of an LTR made me come home. Two things I plan on fixing the next trip.

Post: #25

The above is definitely understandable.

I've been in EE since July, but I've made it work for a few reasons:

1) In my last job, I travelled a lot solo, both in and out of the US.

2) At most, I only daygame every other day. I do my other hobbies and interests on "off days."

3) I may have found an LTR girl just before poosy (and thus I) went into hibernation here. Fifth date was Friday. Not gonna lie, it was a matter of luck, many approaches, and many dates to nowhere to find her. We'll see if she pans out.

4) My spending is coming in under budget.

5) I grew up near the Great Lakes and lived in Minneapolis for a few years, so EE weather and winter darkness by 4p isn't a shock.

@Onto - if I do end up in the Phils I may have to get a bass again. Then with you on the guitar maybe we can record that "I Wanna Fuck Your Face" Beatles "cover" mentioned on another thread