The term geoarbitrage was popularized by Tim Ferris
in the "4-Hour Workweek" book.
One definition is to leverage cheaper labor in other countries by outsourcing one's personal and business tasks. This means hiring a virtual personal assistant to get rid of time-consuming tasks and outsource it to someone else.
I'll focus on another meaning of geoarbitrage.
The main idea is to earn money in a higher standard of living country and live in a lower standard country. For example: work for companies from USA, Canada or Europe while living in Asia or South America.
Why would I do that? Because living in a lot of places in the world is cheaper. Because you can travel and live a very comfortable life then.
Let's say you are retired and get less than $800. In USA you would have to live really on the breadline. But at the same time you can live much more comfortable life in such countries like: Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Bolivia, Malaysia.
Another example: You own a flat in Warsaw. You can rent it and get about $600 - $700 per month. Next step is to move to the country where you can live with that money for the whole month.
http://www.hobotraveler.com/budgets/list-of-countries-where-you-can-live-for-500-dollars-per-month.php
The conclusion is: you don't have to work anymore! Of course your life wouldn't be comfortable but you can get used to it and who said that being free and doing whatever you want because you don't have to work isn't worth it?
Geoarbitrage can also help you save money. Let's say you can earn $1200 via the internet (as a programmer, designer, translator, etc.). In Poland I'd save about $300, but in countries where life costs about $600 I'd save twice as much. And, moreover, I could live near the beach and have great weather.
One definition is to leverage cheaper labor in other countries by outsourcing one's personal and business tasks. This means hiring a virtual personal assistant to get rid of time-consuming tasks and outsource it to someone else.
I'll focus on another meaning of geoarbitrage.
The main idea is to earn money in a higher standard of living country and live in a lower standard country. For example: work for companies from USA, Canada or Europe while living in Asia or South America.
Why would I do that? Because living in a lot of places in the world is cheaper. Because you can travel and live a very comfortable life then.
Let's say you are retired and get less than $800. In USA you would have to live really on the breadline. But at the same time you can live much more comfortable life in such countries like: Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Bolivia, Malaysia.
Another example: You own a flat in Warsaw. You can rent it and get about $600 - $700 per month. Next step is to move to the country where you can live with that money for the whole month.
http://www.hobotraveler.com/budgets/list-of-countries-where-you-can-live-for-500-dollars-per-month.php
The conclusion is: you don't have to work anymore! Of course your life wouldn't be comfortable but you can get used to it and who said that being free and doing whatever you want because you don't have to work isn't worth it?
Geoarbitrage can also help you save money. Let's say you can earn $1200 via the internet (as a programmer, designer, translator, etc.). In Poland I'd save about $300, but in countries where life costs about $600 I'd save twice as much. And, moreover, I could live near the beach and have great weather.
In general geoarbitrage means the independence
of location. You can work for clients from i.e. USA being in Japan / China /
Germany / Indonesia / New Zealand. Wouldn't it be awesome to work like this?
I've always wanted to travel around the world and I see my chance in geoarbitrage. I don't have enough money to take a sabbatical to travel. I can't afford to be one year away from work, because my specialization (mobile technologies) changes very fast.
My plan is to leave Poland just after graduation and travel the world by living for a month in different countries (like Japan, China, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico , etc.). It seems to be an amazing adventure.
There are not many people who decided to live this way, but you can find some on the internet. The one you can read here:
http://pretirementliving.ca/how-to-save-12000-in-12-months-by-living-in-paradise/
There is also a list of 3 low-cost but amazing places in the world:
http://financialhighway.com/the-location-independent-lifestyle-3-low-cost-but-amazing-places-in-the-world-to-live/
You can also watch a video of Digital Nomads who have a location-free lifestyle:
On the other hand, this style of life isn't for everyone. It changes our habits and makes you feel you have no permanent place in the world. It sometimes means instability.
Examples of disadvantages of geoarbitrage you can find in the article "The Less Romantic Side of Geo-Arbitrage":
http://spartantraveler.com/the-less-romantic-side-of-geo-arbitrage/
For me it's a great way to spend a few years of my life before I start a family. It's easier when you're young and have no liabilities. But when I get older I'd like to have a wife and kids and with them I think it would be really hard to have a location-free lifestyle.
Questions:
1. What do you think about this location-free lifestyle?
2. Is it attractive to you? Would you try to live for some time like people above?
3. Do you think that location-free lifestyle would be available for you even if you have family, kids?
4. What advantages and disadvantages of it can you see?
I've always wanted to travel around the world and I see my chance in geoarbitrage. I don't have enough money to take a sabbatical to travel. I can't afford to be one year away from work, because my specialization (mobile technologies) changes very fast.
My plan is to leave Poland just after graduation and travel the world by living for a month in different countries (like Japan, China, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico , etc.). It seems to be an amazing adventure.
There are not many people who decided to live this way, but you can find some on the internet. The one you can read here:
http://pretirementliving.ca/how-to-save-12000-in-12-months-by-living-in-paradise/
There is also a list of 3 low-cost but amazing places in the world:
http://financialhighway.com/the-location-independent-lifestyle-3-low-cost-but-amazing-places-in-the-world-to-live/
You can also watch a video of Digital Nomads who have a location-free lifestyle:
On the other hand, this style of life isn't for everyone. It changes our habits and makes you feel you have no permanent place in the world. It sometimes means instability.
Examples of disadvantages of geoarbitrage you can find in the article "The Less Romantic Side of Geo-Arbitrage":
http://spartantraveler.com/the-less-romantic-side-of-geo-arbitrage/
For me it's a great way to spend a few years of my life before I start a family. It's easier when you're young and have no liabilities. But when I get older I'd like to have a wife and kids and with them I think it would be really hard to have a location-free lifestyle.
Questions:
1. What do you think about this location-free lifestyle?
2. Is it attractive to you? Would you try to live for some time like people above?
3. Do you think that location-free lifestyle would be available for you even if you have family, kids?
4. What advantages and disadvantages of it can you see?
To be honest I am always impressed by people who have an idea and are able to earn money (the large and small) with minimal effort.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago I heard about this form of of earning, but I thought with is rather a Urbanlegende :)
What more can I say. I see only advantages of this solution and combining it with living in a place where it is cheap to maintain just ideal. Maybe one day I decide on a similar solution :)
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ReplyDeleteI aslo admire people who have so much self-determination to be able to work and travel. I think that in the age of internet communication it is a great idea to try something like this.
ReplyDeleteI would definetely like to try this type of work for sometime, just for fun. Im sure that you have to be well organized in order to handle this location-free lifestyle. In my opinion it's worth considering issue, esspecially if you love travelling!
If you're doing it just for seving money you shouldn't have wife and childer because they generate huge costs.
The business aspect of it, creates interesting question like: Why not employ someone from abroad in order to cut costs of your project?
As it appears to me geoarbitrage ia an awesome way of getting pleasure out of life. Nowadays, social pressure is so visible that people forget what is really important in their lives. They focus on getting the best possible education in order to have a decent job and lead a stable life which is usually likely to turn out to be monotonous and tedious. Then, there comes the time when they start to regret and ponder over whether the decisions that they have made were right and reasonable. Moreover, I totally agree with the statement claiming that we should benefit from youth and being capable of getting unforgettable adventurous experiences. I mean before we decide to stabilize our lives and settle down, we should be sure that we have attained our goals and ambitions i.e. that we have taken all of the possible advantages out of our youthfulness. I just want to emphasize that one day we’ll be old and there will be no return to youth which means we should make our decisions consciously. In the case of geoarbitrage, people who earn money in rich countries and spend it in the countries where the prices are not that high, do not need so much time to work to maintain their standard of living whereas they can benefit from their willingness to gain experience and capability and sense of adventure. What is more, working for different companies from different parts of the world makes them more conscious, enrich their CVs and gives them lots of opportunities for the future. The effort that geoarbitrage demands to be put in the work is inadequate to life that they can lead thanks to it. That is what makes it attractive. Obviously, it has some drawbacks such as living far from your country of the origin, missing your family, having to adapt to new cultures and societies. In my case location-free lifestyle would not be possible as my life is already stabilized which disenables me to travel a lot. On the other hand, if I could I would probably try to live this way but not for a long time, I suppose. Concluding, my opinion is that this kind of lifestyle is definitely worth experiencing especially for young ones who are brave enough and who should think of it seriously before they decide to settle down, however it is not always accessible since people have duties and obligations like families, work, school etc.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI love that lifestyle! I've always dreamt about living like this! More specifically, I dream about living during the summer in a place where it is warm and where I can find good waves for surfing, and during the winter or rainy season in the mountains so I can spend my free time skateboarding and skiing! It will be perfect to work as a graphic designer and web designer and at the same time to teach people how to swim, ski or snowboard. Now I only have to find a good companion, who can join me, and after I can go out in the world :)
ReplyDeleteI agree that the best time to fulfill this dream is when you are young, just after graduating from your college or university! Eventually, when we grow up we will get tired of constant travelling and we would like to settle down somewhere to start our family. If you will not be happy with the place you live in, you can always move to a different place with your family. However, you must remember that for older children the constant change of your place of residence can have a bad effect on them, since children need their peers, friends and stabilization in their life.
Hey! nice post :) but i think you don't have to name it "geoarbitrage" anymore. Just name it "become a Consultant" :) This is what the life of IT consultant looks like. You travel the whole world, doing projects. You missed the very important detail. If you want to work for clients from the other countries, you'd have to be where they are. So this is life. Life of a consultant anyway... you have to travel the whole world, but you earn really really good money, you don't need to live a low cost life. You still don't have your place :) you feel like you don't belong nowhere and sometimes you really feel that instability in your bones. But the main goal is to travel to the places where the next project will be going on. If you like a creative work, travelling etc. You probably are born a consultant. And again, this is not the work for everyone, because consultant works for idea, you will need an idea which would fulfill your mind, and you would be able to answer the question - "why am i doing this?" as long as you would be able to answer that question, you have the reason to live like that. All in all, this is just my opinion but, geoarbitrage really reminds me of a consultancy :)
ReplyDelete1. I think geoarbitrage is a brilliant idea for adventure-seekers who are limited because of the money. As stated by the author, this opportunity allows an individual to travel and work at the same time.Working while traveling frees a person from the burden of time restraints, worrying about outcoming emails, unfinished projects,etc., while on holidays.It is a fantastic way to see the world if you can't affort to travel without working. Personally,I know a lot of people who have done it and claim to have the best time ever.
ReplyDelete2.Personally,I would love to do it one day.Just pick few places on the world that I always wanted to visit,pack my bags and do it.I believe that it is easier to do it now comparing to even few years ago due to amazing power of the internet. Thanks to the advanced technology,you can pretty much work from anywhere in the world. Also my profession would allow me to work remotely. Hence once the opportunity arises,I would be sure not to miss it.
3.I would say that this free spirit approach works best when you are single and not responsible for others. You are in control and don't have to take responsibility for anyone,but yourself.On the other hand,it gets complicated when you have family,but it is still possible. I would say that it all depends on the location and job offered,e.g. spending a year in Thailand when the children are young and before school,could be seen as a fantastic holidays.
4. There are many pros and cons as with any kind of job.The main pros are: discovering new places,being unrestricted, meeting new people,learning new customs and traditions,being your own boss.
Main cons: away from family, dangerous,unstable job, risky.
1.This is certainly interesting way of life and incredible adventure, but rather for young people who do not have liabilities in the form of the family.
ReplyDelete2. It is attractive proposition, but not for me. I love to travel and I think that it would be an amazing and unforgettable adventure. I want to move out of the Polish in the near future, but in the country of my choice to stay longer, I want to go there with my fiance, start a family and find a job on the spot.
3. For me, definitely not, I think it may be hard to reconcile if he has a family.
4. What are the advantages and disadvantages that you can see?
Pros: meeting new people, new places, cultures, lack of boredom
Cons: risk, lack of stability
1. Lifestyle like any other. In my opinion every person can have her/his own lifestyle and If she/he would be happy with it - it is great.
ReplyDelete2. No. It is just not for me. It is probably full of adventures, new situations and many more horrible things :)
3. If I want it- yes.
4. I have already say about disadvantages, about advantages - I realy cant see any. As I said before every person is different and has his own recipe for life.
In today's world, each of us combines the least expenditure of energy to earn as much money. I think it is a decent idea and very interesting;) :) I'm also curious how it will prosper in a few years :)), I hope that also in Poland, someone comes up with similar ideas, then it could be interesting :) himself after graduating study, also I hope that I can come up with an idea, so that I can earn the money;)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Piotr, that it's interesting way to spent about 2 years after graduation. Later we have jobs, families, children, so we should be responsible. But for me it's not so attractive, because i don't like moving many times although I like traveling and I would like to make a trip around the world some day. I think it's better, because you can traveling even if you have 1 year old child.
ReplyDeleteThe main advantage I think is ability to visit many places and meet many people. Language learning is also nice side of location-free lifestyle. The biggest problem I think is lack of stability.