Moved to Abu Dhabi!

Yes, that is past tense. I moved to Abu Dhabi last December. Thirteen years, in fact, to the day I left the United States for Saudi Arabia, December 27^th. Making the decision to leave Saudi Arabia after 13 years was monumental. This post is about exploring why I decided to leave and what my future plans might be.

Making life changing decisions is never easy. It is stressful, sparks feelings of uncertainty, and fosters anxiety. I have learned over my life that I do not do well with life changes. I am a creature of habit. I like to know what the future holds even if that future is not my forever future. And when I am stressed I fall back on old habits. . . Stress eating is my coping mechanism. You would think that I would have learned to cope better by now, wouldn't you? It was the difficult part of the process. Getting the job was the easy part. I applied for and got a job working with a friend in Abu Dhabi. The process took almost one year but finally happened after many ups and downs. Moving house was not too difficult either. Leaving friends behind was very sad. L

As I write this, it is not lost on me that this blog was primarily set up to document my travels and I've just admitted that moving countries stresses me out! It's not just moving from Saudi Arabia that is the problem. It is also moving away from friends I know that I cannot see regularly or may not ever see again. It is what it is. Only thing I can do is acknowledge the feelings and push through them.

Anyway, back to my story. . .  After I finished school last year somehow I got the notion in my head that I wanted to work from home. I have been researching online teaching positions in graduate programs. I called my DNP program at MUSC and applied for a position with them as well as a few other universities.  As I was searching for teaching jobs I noticed YouTube videos published by people making really good livings working on their computers from anywhere in the world. I started to research more by listening to podcasts, reading blogs, and watching vlogs about location independence. Many terms describe this type of lifestyle and don't necessarily mean one travels the world while doing it. There are virtual, remote, work-from-home jobs, location independent jobs, freelancers, consultants of all shapes and sizes. At some point during my research I decided that I wanted to be a digital nomad. This combines the work-from-home or laptop lifestyle with travel. And I love to travel. I want to do it full time. That might not mean traveling every day but rather traveling slowly. I want to try both ways to travel. Maybe I will like traveling more frequently initially, then slowing down. Or maybe the reverse will hold true. Either way I want to try being my own boss or having more control over when and where I work.

I can picture myself in a café in Ubud, Bali, Belgrade, Serbia, or Buenos Aires, Argentina, grading papers, writing content for a website, or doing some occupation as yet unknown to me. The picture is enticing. . . I want to set my own hours at the same time be able to make a decent living. I don't need to be rich or make so much money that I don't have to work at all. The idea of having freedom to come and go as I please is what drives me. I would not be subject to anyone's rules about working hours or have to deal with people and their problems. A dear friend told me years ago while working as a bank manager that people have problems. Truer words were never spoken! Managing people is stressful and not what I want to do for the rest of my life. I want to inspire and motivate people. Who better to do this with than students?! I am still on the hunt for an online position but am also exploring other avenues. I firmly believe that having multiple income streams is the way to go these days. No longer will we put all our eggs in one basket and stay with the same company for decades. Depending on one company in troubling financial times can have devastating effects. With multiple income streams, one can better mitigate the effects of a falling economy. Thus, I am beginning to look into alternative ways to make a living.

And that, my friends, is the reason for this post. I will begin to explore the options of writing regularly on this blog. Can I do it and produce decent content, enough that people will find it interesting and want to follow the blog? Can I commit to the process of writing? I don't see myself as a natural writer but I love the written word. Reading is a long time passion. The challenge will be to write enough to keep myself interested.