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Travel · 50 items · 4 min read

Easier Living Abroad

For a solo founder who can work from anywhere and wants to live somewhere else for a month, a season or years. Format: easier > harder. Working from anywhere works best when your life stays stable while the location changes.

Sections
  1. Formulas
  2. Choosing a base (1–12)
  3. Setup (13–25)
  4. Working (26–37)
  5. Living (38–50)

Formulas#

  • Geo-arbitrage: earn in a strong currency, spend in a weaker one. The same revenue buys more runway. (Tim Ferriss, The 4-Hour Workweek)
  • Productivity abroad = stable routine × good internet × time zone overlap with customers. If any one factor is weak, work suffers.
  • Stay length ↑ = cost per night ↓, friends ↑, stress ↓. Monthly rentals beat nightly ones on every axis.
  • The hidden costs of moving: visas, taxes, loneliness, lost routines. Budget for all four, not just rent.

Choosing a base (1–12)#

  1. Staying 1–3 months > a new country every week.
  2. A home base plus trips > permanent wandering. You need somewhere to come back to.
  3. Cities with other remote workers > places where you're the only one.
  4. A time zone that fits your customers and team > perfect beaches with 3 am calls.
  5. Fast, reliable internet (checked before booking) > "Wi-Fi available."
  6. A mild climate in the season you're going > extreme heat or monsoon.
  7. Healthcare you trust nearby > remote paradise with no clinic.
  8. Easy visa rules for your passport > constant visa runs.
  9. A walkable neighborhood > a car-dependent suburb.
  10. Returning to a place you like > always trying new places. You'll get friends, a gym, a favorite café.
  11. Low cost with high quality of life > the cheapest place possible.
  12. Near family when needed > so far away that a family emergency means 30 hours of travel.

Setup (13–25)#

  1. A monthly apartment with a real desk and chair > a hotel bed as your office.
  2. A co-working space > working from your bed. Separate the work place from the rest place.
  3. A portable office kit (laptop stand, keyboard, headphones, adapter) > hunching over a laptop for months.
  4. A backup internet option (mobile hotspot, second SIM) > one connection.
  5. Travel health insurance that covers remote workers > hoping nothing happens.
  6. A tax setup you understand (advice from a professional) > ignoring residency rules.
  7. A business bank and payments that work abroad > blocked cards.
  8. Cloud-first files and backups > everything on one laptop that could get stolen.
  9. A password manager and 2-factor authentication > being locked out abroad.
  10. A mail address and a phone number at home > missing important letters.
  11. Few possessions > shipping boxes around the world.
  12. Checking the apartment on a video call > trusting the photos.
  13. Knowing emergency numbers and the nearest hospital > searching during an emergency.

Working (26–37)#

  1. The same daily routine in every city > a new routine every move.
  2. Deep work in the mornings, exploring in the afternoons > exploring all day and working guilty at night.
  3. Calls clustered on fixed days > calls scattered at odd hours.
  4. Async communication by default > needing to be online at the same time.
  5. Slowing down work during travel days > launching on moving day.
  6. Not changing cities during a big launch > moving mid-crunch.
  7. Automated systems and AI agents that run while you sleep > a business that needs you awake at your customers' hours.
  8. Weekly reviews to check that work still gets done > "vacation mode" by accident.
  9. Customers who don't care where you are > clients who need you on site.
  10. A clear working schedule shared with customers > surprising them with slow replies.
  11. Local meetups or coworking events > working alone for months.
  12. Using the location for business (meeting local founders, customers) > treating it only as scenery.

Living (38–50)#

  1. Joining one local activity (a gym, a language class, a sports club) > being a pure tourist.
  2. Learning the basics of the language > English only.
  3. Friends in each base > starting from zero every time.
  4. Keeping regular calls with home > drifting away from family and friends.
  5. Health routines that travel (bodyweight workouts, running, sleep schedule) > losing fitness with every move.
  6. Cooking some meals > eating out every day.
  7. Respecting local customs and prices > acting like it's all a backdrop.
  8. Accepting slower days > trying to be both a full-time tourist and a full-time worker.
  9. Checking in on your loneliness honestly > pretending it's always fun.
  10. Going home when it stops being fun > pushing on for the story.
  11. Deciding per season ("this winter in X") > committing forever.
  12. Using travel to learn what home you want > running away from home.
  13. Treating these years as a chapter > an identity. Nomad life fits some seasons and not others.

If you keep only 5: #1 (stay 1–3 months), #2 (a home base plus trips), #4 (time zone fit), #14 (a co-working space), #26 (the same routine everywhere).