How do you approach it if you want to live abroad for 3 months

Just one more week and then it’s time: we’re trading the dreary Netherlands for sunny LA for no less than a month.

Now Jon just has to work hard there and write a new film, but the undersigned and Otis are the lucky bastards who get to go along. Nowadays, I hear more and more around me that young families are packing their bags and going abroad for a few months. The author of the book ‘The 4-Hour Work Week’ encourages everyone to take such an ‘early retirement’: why wait until you are older? I would really love to travel with our family for a few months someday, but that requires a lot of organization and courage. Whether you want to work abroad for a while or take a sabbatical: with these points, you at least take a step in the right direction to make your dream come true.

• Share your dream: spread the word! Tell everyone who wants to hear about your ultimate dream and eventually it will become a reality. People may have useful tips or ask after a while how things are going, so you are reminded of your travel dream again.
• Work break: imagine just telling your boss that you’ll be gone for three months, of course, no one agrees to that. But if you start to massage in a bit early that this trip is your ultimate dream, you might help find a replacement, and your boss will get back a fully recharged and different employee, then the cards are already shuffled differently. Or maybe this is the ultimate moment to finally quit your job (which you’ve been struggling with for a while) and think about what you really want to do in terms of work during your trip.
• Saving: for many people, ‘too little money’ is often a reason not to pursue that long-cherished trip abroad. But if you really want to, you can absolutely build a buffer and save a good amount to embark on the adventure. Look critically at your spending habits and cut out all unnecessary purchases, expensive dinners, and shop more consciously (at the market or Lidl). If possible: put your house on Airbnb so that those costs are at least covered while you are abroad.
• Plan well in advance: such a month-long trip is of course not planned overnight. Start rolling out your plan well in advance so that you can save on time, arrange everything at home, and find cheap flights and accommodation. And ask as many tips as possible from people around you, so you know well where you do and especially where you do not want to go.
• Believe in it completely: don’t let others discourage you. If people around you say it’s impossible, it only means they think they can’t do it themselves. Try to switch off your negative thoughts and think about how much happiness it will bring you if you make your dream a reality.