It's Time for a Reset

And It all starts with your environment

When was the last time you moved out of your current area?

If you have been striving for more, but seem to be making little progress, you may have hit a plateau.  

I certainly did.

I felt stuck and uninspired.  

You no longer have that same drive or excitement.

Each day doesn't seem to carry the same weight and impact that you know it should.

The novelty has completely worn off and your day-to-day carryover the same details as yesterday.  

Your current area restricts your ability to live truly.

• Rent prices are through the roof
• Groceries and meal prep tend to cost as much as takeaways now.
• People tend to watch the footy and hit up the pub every weekend.
• Beers after work provide a constant distraction

The circle of people you are around are your friends by name and definition but they no longer inspire you.  

Let me provide you an example of how different life setup can be depending on the country you live in.  

I am going to use London as an example.  

Londoners think you must earn around £65,000 ($84,443.00 USD ) to live comfortably in the capital.  

The average salary, however, is £44,370 (57,636.63 USD) A report collected from the Collective Wellbeing Carnegie discovered that  

• 34% of people in the UK aren’t eating as healthily, while 16% have cut down on regular exercise.
• 35% of people say the crisis has limited their ability to spend time with friends, while a 24% say the same about family.
• 50% of people say that the cost of living emergency has limited their ability to participate in leisure activities (e.g. eating out or going to the cinema).
• 56% of people in the UK think the Government is offering too little support to help people through the rising cost of living

It's clear to see your life setup is going to struggle.

• you will choose cheaper unhealthier food

• be living in more expensive, lower quality housing

• Be surrounded by others just like you running the rat race

Let's Compare a scenario here.

London UK compared with Medellin, Columbia  

1. Rent

London:

Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: £1,800 - £2,200.

Outside the city centre: £1,200 - £1,500.

Medellín:

Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: £300 - £500. Outside the city centre: £200 - £350.

2. Utilities (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage):

London: £150 - £200.

Medellín: £30 - £50.

1. Groceries:

London: £250 - £350.

Medellín: £100 - £200.

1. Transportation:

London:

Public transport (monthly pass): £150 - £200.

Owning a car (insurance, petrol, parking): £250 - £400.

Medellín:

Public transport (monthly pass): £25 - £35.

Owning a car (insurance, petrol, parking): £100 - £150.

1. Dining Out:

London: Mid-range restaurant, three-course meal for one: £30 - £50.

Medellín: Mid-range restaurant, three-course meal for one: £10 - £15.

1. Entertainment & Leisure:

London:

Gym membership: £40 - £60.

Cinema ticket: £12 - £15.

Medellín:

Gym membership: £15 - £30

.Cinema ticket: £3 - £5.

Summary of Average Monthly Costs:

• London: £2,600 - £3,500.
• Medellín: £600 - £1,200.

Key Differences:

• Housing: Rent in London is significantly higher than in Medellín, often by three to four times.
• Utilities and Groceries: London has higher utility and grocery costs compared to Medellín.
• Transportation: Public transportation in London is more expensive, though both cities have decent public transport networks.
• Dining and Entertainment: London also tends to have higher costs for dining out and entertainment.

Living in Medellín is considerably more affordable than in London, with costs potentially being a third or less of what they would be in the UK capital.

That was a lot of data and numbers........

Take a pause and just reflect on the numbers we gathered here.

If you could live somewhere that has a lower cost of living, what could you gain more of?

• Time (not pressured to work as often to afford the bills)

• Disposable wealth to grow from, potentially invest into a business.

• Better weather? (most of these locations I suggest have great all year weather)

• Better health? (better weather means more sunshine and activity as well as healthier more affordable food)

This Post is not to discourage you from living in one of these big cities. I think they can be great once you have yourself set up and in a good financial place.

Choose a place where you can grow and develop and lay the foundation for yourself.

Read on For my top 3 suggestions.

Where to move for a Hard Reset  

Thailand

It's a stereotype for a reason guys......

Thailand has an incredibly low cost of living compared to most other countries.

The people are friendly, rent and food are cheap and you are in a community of other like-minded online wealth creators.

I believe this is the best place to start if you don't have anything set up and or not as much saved up in your bank accounts.

Let's call Thailand level 1 for digital nomadic exploration.

in terms of expenses, you can honestly do the research yourself but I will provide some rough numbers here for Bangkok, the main city.

About the only thing more expensive in Bangkok than London is Milk..... fun fact (68.25 Baht vs 59.19 Baht)

you can get away living off $650 USD a month all expenses, in Thailand depending on the location, of course, this would be roughing it a bit.

Chiang Mai is also a cheap destination further north if you want something even less costly or smaller than Bangkok.

Think of Thailand as level 1 to get yourself and your business up and running. You can explore and network with tons of international people. 1-3 years of fun and work will do the job to get you to level 2.

Medellin, Columbia

Maybe you haven't heard of this one before. Medellin has only recently stepped into the limelight as a new destination for aspiring expats and wealth enthusiasts.

Similar reasons to level 1 Thailand, Medellin has a low cost of living actually lower than Bangkok....

cost of living Index has pointed out "You would need around 88,434.5฿ (10,348,050.1Col$) in Medellin to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 120,000.0฿ in Bangkok"

As I was writing this post I was surprised and had no idea it was actually cheaper!

this makes Medellin also a great destination for the same reasons as Thailand.

Better brush up on your Spanish though.

there is a growing community of expats and nomadic digital workers here to network with all the same.

Medellin is a level 2 destination.....

reason being?

There is a HIGH crime rate and its only just become a destination to travel to as an Digital entrepreneur.

You need to be well-travelled and have your street smarts to fully live in this area. Plus English is not as common as in Thailand.

Dubai

If you are ready to take the leap and are better prepared, than Dubai could be your next best destination.

with the country virtually having no tax, (unless you earn over $850,000 USD a year then it's 9%).

Dubai will provide you with lavish living and all the benefits of a major city.

Lower costs than that of London or New York.

In terms of Networking this is easily level 3, the connections and people you could meet here could have a drastic impact on your business and more importantly....

The wealth and abundance you see in Dubai will change your own thinking and the limitations you have automatically set yourself.

Dubai will shatter those beliefs!

From the book Psycho-Cybernetics

"The brain and nervous system are continually leading us in the direction of images we think about consciously, or images that are so much a part of us that we’re led toward them on autopilot. The alcoholic or drug addict has goals just as much as the entrepreneur, politician, professional athlete, or mother-to-be. "

So in essence, being in Dubai surrounds your subconscious with an environment conducive to wealth creation.

In terms of the cost of living, it is higher than the previous two options by a fair amount so I only suggest moving here when you are ready and prepared.

When you're earning bigger dollars the impact of living in Dubai compounds as you pay less and less tax.

• Experience the sun all year round

• Located, geographically, to every major country or city within a 7-hour flight

• Little to no Tax

Just watch out for the brutal summers where you might want to go monk mode indoors or simply leave and return for the cooler months.

We haven't spoken about visas yet for any of the locations, but I will say getting visas is easy for both Thailand and Medillin, however, in Dubai you either have to sponsor yourself, be sponsored by an employer or invest in Dubai most notably in the form of real estate.

Take that into consideration.

I only recommend Dubai when you are earning a higher income while having more disposable funds and a strong foundation.

Environment

I will be discussing more about the environment in the near future as I move to a new spot.

Stay tuned.

To change your current reality we need a total environmental shift.

Stop going the same way to work each day.

Stop talking with the same people that you know deep down don't provide you with any new perspectives.  

Stop living the same day on repeat, trapped in your own habitual cycle.

Danaerys Targaryen once said "I'm not going to stop the wheel, I'm going to break the wheel." (Had to insert a GOT quote)

Change the norms of your day-to-day to radically force a change within your life.

Ignore what others think.

Press on and make the move.

Let me know how it goes and if you have any other destinations you're passionate about!