110: 30 biggest myths Americans believe about moving abroad

A lot of Americans dream about moving abroad, but most never take the first step because of the myths they’ve heard — about money, visas, jobs, language, safety, family expectations, and even career impact. These beliefs create fear and confusion long before people ever look into the actual requirements. In this episode, we break down the 30 biggest misconceptions that stop people from pursuing a life overseas and explain what’s true, what’s outdated, and what’s simply misunderstood. You’ll learn what actually matters, what doesn’t, and why moving abroad is far more realistic and attainable than many Americans realize.

We also talk through the mindset shifts that help you move forward, the common fears that hold people back, and how to separate real obstacles from imagined ones. By the end, you’ll have a clearer understanding of what it takes to move abroad — and what might be unnecessarily keeping you stuck.

For more details on what we covered, listen to the related episodes highlighted in this conversation:

 • Episode 104 :  Before you move abroad: Take this one trip first

 • Episode 49: Can I get a job abroad if I only speak English?

 • Episode 91: US Expat Taxes: What every American moving abroad should know

 • Episode 75: Healthcare systems in Europe: What Americans need to know

 • Episode 30: Why I love living in London and why you might love it to

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Website: jordangiberson.com
Instagram: @jordan.giberson

Transcript

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And the reality is you can try it for a year and move home if it's not for you. Take a couple months to really settle in and find your place and your footing and find your routine and all of those things but I genuinely have never heard of a person that says, I really regret moving abroad. Hey, my name is Jordan Giberson. I'm a Texas girl living and thriving in London. The best thing I've ever done? Moving abroad, hands down. And I'm passionate about helping others do the same. Are you curious about finding a job abroad? You're in the right place, friend. I'll teach you the tried and true secrets of how to make moving abroad a reality for you and how to live a fulfilling life once you get there. We'll cover topics like choosing the best visa for you, how to get a job offer in another country, how to get over your fear of moving abroad, and how to live a life you love once you get there, this is The Move Abroad Podcast. Hello and welcome to another episode of the Move Abroad podcast. Today we're going to be talking about the biggest myths that Americans believe about moving abroad. We all believe myths about one thing or another, but today it's going to be move abroad style. So if you've been curious about moving abroad and what it's really like, you might be thinking that it's a certain way whenever it's really a different way. So I hope that you find this episode helpful to hopefully realize some things are actually myth that you believe in, in terms of moving abroad. So without further ado, we'll go ahead and get started with today's episode. Myth#1, that you might be believing about moving abroad is that it's only for rich people. Sometimes I think Americans assume that moving abroad is a luxury that only wealthy people can afford, or that you have to have a ton saved up in order to move to another country. But a lot of people don't actually need a lot to be able to move abroad. But people don't need as much as they think to be able to move abroad. So in terms of visas, some visas do require modest savings, but it's probably not as much as you think. And that's also only for certain types of visas. Like for example, if you are going to be a freelancer, you need to be showing a certain amount of income. Another example is that. A lot of countries have a lower cost of living than a lot of U.S. cities. So if you're living in a really popular city in the U.S. like maybe Seattle, Austin, New York, a lot of those cities are going to be more expensive probably than where you're going to be moving to. So a lot of expats might move with maybe five to 15,000 depending on the visa type and the destination that you're moving to. So it's not only for rich people. Myth#2 is that it's more expensive to live abroad. So Americans might equate European vacations with European living costs. So, like I said a second ago, maybe you are living in Austin or Dallas or New York or Seattle, or another expensive city like la. Then you might be experiencing a higher cost of living than a lot of other European cities that are going to be far cheaper than those cities in the us. So you can always do a little cost analysis and look up the cost of living in the city that you're thinking about moving to in Europe as compared to where you're living. And I think that would be a really interesting exercise to see what the difference looks like and what the difference in salary looks. If you're planning on being employed to understand the difference because you might actually be further ahead if you move to Europe in terms of expenses and being able to save than you are in the U.S. So I think it'd be a really interesting comparison. But that is a myth that it's more expensive to live abroad. It's not a vacation all the time. It's normal life. And European living costs are lower than a lot of U.S. cities. Myth#3 I need to ship all my stuff. People think they need to recreate their entire American home and bring everything with them, but a lot of the expats actually move with two to four suitcases and they buy the rest locally. You can always set a budget for how much you want to spend on your furniture. Maybe you move into somewhere that's already furnished so you won't have to worry about it. Maybe you decide that you're going to buy furniture and move to somewhere that is not fully furnished, so you definitely have options, but a lot of expats don't ship all their things. If you want to ship your things or you have pieces that. You just really love. You can definitely do that and not for a very high cost. You can send them in shipping containers and it takes six weeks or so. So you can definitely ship things that are important to you. I think are just, depends on what you want, but you don't have to ship all of your stuff. Myth#4 is I'll be too homesick if I move abroad. People feel worried about missing family and friends and the comfort of where you're from, but you know what? We have technology like. Video calls to maintain strong relationships with our family and our friends, and you might miss home from time to time. I do every once in a while, but that doesn't mean that it's not worth moving abroad I guess you'll have to answer that for yourself. Does that mean that it's worth not moving abroad? I'd say no, but you might need to decide that for yourself. You could also plan trips back home every. Four to six months and just make sure that you're saving money in your budget to prioritize that. I have prioritized going back every six months and there are times where I've gone back another time in the year, so you could go back every three months. So every quarter or every four months, every six months, you can figure out the cadence that works well for you to be able to maintain a strong relationship with your family. And like I said, I maintain a great relationship with my family. I have. Video calls with them, phone calls with them all the time. So I'm able to keep up that relationship and I go back home every six months, sometimes more often. So I do get homesick from time to time, but then I say, wait, I can just call my mom right now and talk to her. Or I say, wait, I'm actually going home and six weeks. So this is not a big deal. So you worrying about being too homesick, I think that's a little bit of a mess. Myth#5 is I need my family's approval before I can move abroad. You might be saying, I don't think that's a myth that people are believing in, but I honestly think that people might feel like they need, or they have this desperate want, at least for their family's approval to move abroad. And sometimes this desire is not met. I know it was not met for me. My family was not really supportive of me until I had moved abroad and they saw that I was happy and keeping a good relationship with. Them and then they were supportive. They're like, okay, she's financially stable, she's okay. She's happy. So I think that we need to not let people keep us from chasing our dreams. It's your life and you only have one chance to live it. As silly as that might sound. But I think that it is a myth to have this mindset of, I need my family's approval before I can move abroad. It's your life and we just gotta live it. Myth#6 is I need everything figured out to move abroad. This perfectionism causes decision paralysis. I feel like this is one of the biggest barriers for people moving abroad is that they feel like they have to have everything figured out or there's some mystery to moving abroad that they wouldn't realize you only need a visa, a housing plan, and just the first steps, everything else gets figured out on the ground. Once he moved there, whenever I was moving abroad, I. Had my visa, and it wasn't until a week. This is a little bit crazy and I would not recommend, but it was like a week before I moved abroad that I had booked my flight and figured out my housing. I figured it out very last minute, and I would recommend doing like a month Airbnb or something similar so that you can go view houses or apartments once you're there to get a really good feel of what it's like before. Signing anything. So you really only need your visa and a flight and like short term accommodation and just pack a couple suitcases and you're good. Like really everything else gets figured out. You'll kind of figure it out. Once you're there, you do not need to have every single thing figured out. So don't stress out too much. Myth#7 is that moving abroad is irreversible. I think that we have this idea or mindset that it's such a big deal, and I'm not going to say it's not, it is a big deal to move abroad, but I feel like people fear making a life changing mistake that they can't undo. And the reality is you can try it for a year and move home if it's not for you. We can do anything for a year. It might take a couple months to really settle in and find your place and your footing and find your routine and all of those things but I genuinely have never heard of a person that says, I really regret moving abroad. There might be things that they miss about back home. There might be imperfections in their life. There's imperfections in every country and in everyone's lives, but I don't think that it's irreversible by any means. You can always go back at any point. That's what got me to finally move abroad is I said, no one is holding me hostage if I move abroad, if I stay there for a few weeks, and I. Absolutely hate it. I can move back home and I gave it a shot and that's fine. I have the ability and the free will to be able to move back home at any time that I want. So moving abroad is absolutely reversible. You can move back home at any time that you want, so don't make it feel like it's this huge, irreversible thing. Myth#8 is that it's too complicated to get a visa. People think that the process is mysterious and impossible to navigate. I totally understand. It's something that we haven't dealt with before a lot of times before moving abroad for the first time. So a lot of times visa overwhelms stops people before they even start researching, or maybe they research for a bit and they just feel overwhelmed and so they stop. A lot of visas do actually though, have. Quite clear requirements and are easier than expected. It's just about finding the right match for you and what you're looking for. Whether you want to be employed, you want to be a freelancer, you want to do a job seeking visa, those actually exist where you go to the country and you look for a job and that's legal. Whatever you wanna do, start a business. There's a visa for pretty much every circumstance that you want. Not every country has. Every Visa the exact same. So like the UK doesn't really have a retirement visa, but other countries do. So you'll just have to look into the type of life that you want, like what you actually want to do whenever you move abroad, if it's being a student or freelance work or whatever. And just looking at that visa and it will list out the exact requirements. Like it'll probably be a bulleted list Maybe three to five requirements and you just read through and just make sure that you do qualify for that. So it's not really that complicated. It's just a little bit of paperwork, so this is a myth that it's too complicated to get a visa. Myth#9 is that visas take years to get Americans compare visas to the U.S. immigration timelines. You might have heard about the visa complications in the U.S. and how difficult it is, but their reality is that a lot of European visas are processed within two to 12 weeks. I actually have expedited my visas and I've gotten'em back in five days a lot of times, so you can actually do it really, really quickly. It does not take years to get, there might be a little bit of bureaucracy and a few steps along the way that you need to do, but it can definitely get processed within a few weeks, like 12 weeks. It might be a little bit more, but I'd say overall the average is that visas are processed within two to 12 weeks. You wanna start the process, but do not worry about the visas taking years to get, or being too complicated to get it. Myth#10 is that you need a job offer before applying for any visa. This closes the door for a lot of people prematurely because a lot of visas don't require job offers. A digital nomad visa, a. Freelancer visa, student visa, job seeker visa. There's a lot of different visa options where you don't need this. I will say if you want to have a nine to five job, if you want to be employed, then you probably do need a job offer before applying for the visa. But a global talent visa in the UK is an example where you can kind of sponsor your own visa and then. Apply for the job after, and you sponsor yourself. That is a rare circumstance. So if you do want to have a job abroad, then you might need to get a job offer before you apply for the Visa, because the company is essentially sponsoring you, they're saying, Hey, government, I am in charge of this person. I'll make sure that they're taken care of and paid so. They wanna make sure that you're not gonna be just entering the country and being homeless or not having any money and taking things from society, I guess, without paying for things. So anyways, in those circumstances, you do need a job, but it just depends on the need that you have. So you don't necessarily need a job offer before applying for any visa. There are other options. Myth#11 is that I need to know exactly where to move before I start. This really leads to overwhelm and endless research. Oh my goodness. You could go down a huge rabbit hole. I am embarrassed to admit this, but whenever I was looking to move abroad, I already knew that I wanted to be in London, but I did research on locations anyways. I wanted every single blog, every single person to tell me that London was the best. That there were no other places that would be better for me to move abroad to, which sounds really silly because I knew I wanted to be here, and so I got in this endless research loop for a long time. Finally. Recon convincing myself that I wanted to be in London where I already knew that initially. So I think that's good to have reassurance and to do a little bit of research. But my goodness, you need to give yourself a deadline. Do not do endless research because you really only need a short list. You can refine the exact city and country as you learn more about visas. The cost of living lifestyle preferences. If you get on a communication board of some sort, like a Facebook group and you learn about different locations and the different vibes between them, I think it'll really help you. And you can also do a, like a test drive of your city abroad to do a bit of a scouting trip., I did a podcast episode a few episodes back. So if you go back to episode 104, it's before you move abroad. Take this one trip first. So if you want to know more details on how to do a scouting trip abroad, if you have maybe. Three Spanish cities that you're thinking about moving to, then go back and listen to episode 104. But the myth is you don't actually need to know exactly where you want to move abroad to before you start. You can definitely take a lot of steps forward without totally deciding on that. Myth#12 is you need to speak the local language fluently before moving abroad or getting a job or visa. This is probably one of the biggest misconceptions. A lot of European countries have very large English speaking job markets, and you can learn the language once are there as well. And you'll probably learn it a lot better and a lot faster, a lot more accurately if you learn it there from the local people and how they actually speak it, not from a textbook. A lot of companies also operate fully in English or they use English as their primary business language. So if you've been thinking about moving abroad, but you say, I don't know the local language, I'd go back and listen to episode 49. It's, can I get a job abroad if I only speak English? There are certain types of companies that are better to look for and certain opportunities that are better to look for. So you can go back and listen to episode 49 if you wanna dig into that a little bit more. But it is absolutely a myth that you have to speak the local language fluently before moving or getting a job or getting a visa. So don't stress too much about that one. Myth#13 is I need a lawyer to move abroad. Visa Paperwork feels intimidating. I totally get it, but a lot of people, most people I'd say, are successfully able to apply on their own with clear instructions online and proper documentation. A lot of times it's very straightforward. If you have a job offer or if you're going to get employed, a lot of times that company will hire a lawyer or a company to process your visa for you. So you don't even have to worry about hiring a lawyer. They will do it for you. But even in those circumstances, you probably can just apply for the Visa yourself. It's the same thing for a freelancer visa or a digital nomad visa, or a student visa. Honestly, the applications are pretty straightforward and the eligibility requirements for that visa are pretty straightforward. As you're applying for the Visa, it will be really clear if there's a question where you're like. I really have no idea what they're saying and honestly, you can probably Google it like so much is online. You probably don't need a lawyer to move abroad if you are filling out paperwork or you do have a really interesting circumstance with getting a visa and you already know that, then you might need a lawyer. But honestly, most cases are going to be really straightforward and you do not need a lawyer to move abroad and to get a visa. Myth#14 is it's unsafe to live abroad. I feel like a lot of Americans believe that the u.S. is the safest option. I think it's just what we're familiar with, what we're used to, but the U.S. has a much higher crime rate compared to most European cities, especially for violent or bigger crimes. Petty theft, I feel like is a little bit bigger in Europe. Thin in the us, but in terms of high crime rate or being really unsafe as a woman or just being outlaid and just feeling like not safe where you are, a lot of expats feel a lot safer abroad. I know I do. I feel a lot safer actually living abroad than I ever did in the U.S. to be honest. And that's also statistical. The U.S. is actually ranked a lot lower in terms of crime rates compared to most European cities. So if you're worried about feeling unsafe living abroad, then honestly it's a myth. Don't buy into that. Myth#15 is companies won't hire Americans. People assume that employers won't deal with visas or don't wanna hire someone that's only English speaking. But the reality is plenty of companies hire international talent, especially in tech and healthcare and teaching tourism. Multinational corporations are really big as well. Like those would be really great to go for. Companies hire Americans all the time, especially in international industries, and especially in bigger companies. So don't stress about that one too much. That is also a myth that a company won't hire you as an American. Myth#16 is my U.S. degree won't count Abroad. People might worry about their education and that it might not be recognized, but most U.S. degrees are definitely valued globally, especially in Europe. You might have a circumstance, if you are an American lawyer, for instance, American law and you don't know necessarily. International law in the country that you're moving to. So in that circumstance, you might need to have a little bit of a career shift, but most degrees and most circumstances, your degree will count abroad. So don't worry about that. Myth#17 is that moving abroad will ruin my career trajectory. Americans are worried about stepping outta the U.S. workforce and worried that I might hurt them, but honestly, international experience often boosts your career and opens more global and maybe even remote roles. Having this U.S experience and having international experience, if you go back to the US a lot of times, is really valuable. A lot of companies value that experience. And it really sets you apart from other applicants too, because not many applicants have had that experience. So if anything, it'll definitely make you stand out as an applicant. Myth#18 is that the only jobs abroad are teaching English. People think that teaching English is the only option. We hear of this a lot of times, and I do think that it's a really easy way to be able to move abroad. It's a very easy path. A lot of people, if not most of every person is able to do this job. So if you want to move abroad and you don't have any experience, that would be something that would be quite easy to do, to be able to move abroad for a year or two and teach English and then transition to the career that you're looking for. So it's definitely a possibility to do this, and a lot of people do teach English abroad, and that's their step in the door. So it's one option. But it is far from the only one. You do not need to teach English in order to move abroad. There are so many other paths, especially if you have good work experience, then my goodness, don't worry about needing to teach English and that's the only job option. So that is definitely a myth. In fact, I know so many people who live abroad and honestly, I don't know one person that is living abroad right now that is a friend of mine that teaches English abroad. So rest assured, you do not need to teach English if you want to move abroad. Myth#19 is I must take a massive pay cut abroad. People assume that all foreign salaries are low because of currency differences. So the reality is that salaries often align with the cost of living, and that combined with healthcare savings, you might honestly end up ahead. So really depends on the circumstance. It depends on where you're moving to, what stage of your career, what industry you're in. So you might be taking a quote unquote. Pay cut, but the cost of living might be so much lower that actually you're going to end up ahead. You might end up saving more because of the cost of living difference from where you're living now, and again, combined with the healthcare savings. Because European countries have universal healthcare, so they have public healthcare. You don't have to worry about paying so much into healthcare. You also don't need to worry about paying a car and other expenses that you need to worry about in the U.S. So honestly, you might end up ahead, just do a little bit of research and calculating on that in terms of cost of living. So you might see a little bit of a pay cut depending on the city abroad that you're moving to. In some cities, you might be actually paid more. It just really depends, but don't worry about that. I think that is a myth that Americans believe. So don't worry too much about that but do research on what your salary would be for where you're at in your career and what the cost of living is compared to where you're at now. Myth#20 is paying taxes abroad means I also pay double taxes. People think that they'll need to pay double taxes if they move abroad, but in reality, European countries have tax treaties with the U.S. so it's rare you're going to pay double taxes. For more tax information, go listen to episode 91 that episode is absolute gold. If you have not listened to that episode and you're worried about taxes or about finances in general, my goodness, episode 91 is amazing. Go listen to it. Episode 91, U.S. Expat Taxes, what Every American Moving Abroad should know. Don't worry too much about paying double taxes, but go listen to that episode if you wanna learn more. Myth#21 is healthcare abroad is low quality Americans associated lower costs with worse care, which is fair enough. But the reality is that healthcare in many European countries is high quality, affordable, and efficient. Honestly, the healthcare abroad is. So great because you don't need to worry about going into debt if you end up getting sick because the country takes care of you because there's global healthcare and it's quality healthcare, it's really good healthcare. For more information, you can go listen to episode 75, healthcare systems in Europe. What Americans need to know, that myth that healthcare abroad is low quality. Myth#22 is public transport abroad is unsafe or unreliable, and I feel uncomfortable not having a car. Okay. Americans compare transit to U.S. cities, but European public transport is clean. It's. Safe. It's extremely reliable. You can totally get a car if that freaks you out. If you really want a car, you can definitely do it and in some places it's beneficial to have a car if you're like kind of moving to the countryside. But honestly, public transport is amazing. I love it. I honestly prefer it to U.S. travel. You end up walking a lot more. You end up more active, you're outside more. I love that I can read a book on public transport. I honestly take naps on public transport and I love it. It's so much less stressful. Like whenever I go back to the U.S. and I drive again, if I drive 30 minutes, I'm like, my shoulders are sore. I was quite tense. I realized driving and it's a lot more exhausting. So public transport I think is the best. I love it so much. So don't worry about public transport being unsafe or unreliable, and if you wanna get a car, you totally can. So don't let that stop you from moving abroad. I think that's definitely a myth. Myth#23 is Europe is too cold or too dark to live in. A lot of people overestimate the weather issue. There are many regions that have great climates like Portugal, Spain, Southern France, Italy, Malta, the Greek islands, there are so many places that are really warm. If you want to move somewhere north, let's say you wanna move to the Netherlands, or you wanna move to the UK, then yes, it's going to be colder and darker. In the wintertime, but the reality is that Portugal, Spain, Italy, they're just a flight away. It's a couple hour flight away and it's not very expensive, and you can always do a weekend getaway to somewhere that is warmer and sunnier if you wanna get away in the winter. I also, in the winter, go back to visit my family in Texas. So maybe you're from somewhere that's cold and dark anyways, but maybe you're from somewhere that's warm and you can go back during Christmas time and the holidays too. So I feel like I have so many breaks from the cold and dark winter. And I think that there's so many great activities in the winter as well. Like you get to cozy up. In the UK we go to pubs and there's a fire. So I think there are a lot of really cool activities that happen in Europe during the wintertime that's too cold and too dark, like there's so many Christmas markets in Europe. I think that Europe can be so magical in the wintertime and there are so many things that are so beautiful about that period of time that's like. Colder and darker. So I think that there are definitely ways around that, and it is a myth that there are some regions that are not cold and dark to live in Europe. Myth#24 is I won't be able to find American products and foods. People fear losing their familiar comforts, and I understand that, but really there are global brands everywhere. If you wanna find your Kellogg cereal, you can probably find your Kellogg cereal. And honestly, you'll probably discover better local alternatives. You might find that your diet changes a little bit, but honestly it might be in a positive way. There might be new foods in your new local city or country that you find too love and that become comfort foods for you, but you can really find your comfort foods that are American products and foods in Europe as well. So don't worry about that too much. Myth#25 is that people abroad don't like Americans. This is a really huge social fear, but a lot of locals are warm, they're curious, and they're really welcoming. Especially if you make an effort, people are going to welcome you. So don't worry about people not liking Americans. I think that's really a myth.#26 is I'll be lonely and I won't make friends. Social isolation is a big fear, but in reality, expats often build really strong community quickly because they're going to language classes together. They make effort to go to different meetups. They maybe are working in coworking spaces or coffee shops and a lot of other expats are on the same journey. They're experiencing the same thing, so they're gonna be a lot more open to being friends with you. They're gonna be a lot more open to bringing people into the friendship circle and inviting you to things because they've also been in the same circumstance, and they're also in a country that's not their own. So a lot of times. That's why I recommend that people move to communities where there are strong expat communities. So there are other people that have moved abroad because I think it's also great to make local friends, but sometimes it's harder to get into local circles because they might've been best friends with their friendship groups since they were like 12. So it's harder for you to get into that friendship group, or it might take a little bit more time. So you'd have to be a little bit more patient perhaps with making local friends. But definitely with expat friends, you'll be able to make friends quite quickly, so you will not be lonely and you will make friends. You just have to definitely put in effort, like you can't just sit in your apartment and expect people to come to you. You need to be putting in the effort, but it will come after a little bit of time. Myth#27 is if I move abroad and I don't like it, then it's a failure. People are worried about feeling a failure, and I think that this creates a huge pressure to make the right choice, but there is no like. Quote right choice. I think different places have different benefits and pros and cons, and there might not be a perfect or right choice, but I think that's what gets us in this. Like analysis paralysis where we go down this research rabbit hole and we just can't make a decision and move forward. But moving abroad is absolutely reversible. We've talked about that earlier in the episode. You can also move somewhere for a little bit and say, oh, I visited this other city in this country and I actually think that this might be a better fit for me. And you. Start like doing things to be able to move there. Many people do move back to the U.S. after a little while and they see it as a great experience and deeply valuable experience. So it's not a failure. It's good to give yourself the freedom to say, I'm gonna move abroad until I feel like moving back. Like maybe it's within six months, maybe it's a year, maybe it's two years, maybe it's five years, maybe it's never, I think that it's just good to give ourselves this option and say, okay, I have a goal of living there for a year, and I'll reevaluate at that point and see if I want to move back. And that is absolutely not a failure. That is definitely accomplishing the goal that you have to move abroad and if you move abroad for a few months and you just really hate it. Which I honestly don't think that's gonna happen to you, and I really have never heard of that. But, if it happens, then just know that you have the option. No one's keeping you hostage and you still went after your dream and went for it. And a lot of people are too scared to go after their dreams and what they really desire in life. So honestly, you should be getting yourself a pat on the back. Even if you move there and you say, this isn't really for me. I'm gonna move back. And that's totally fine. It's not a failure. And Americans move back home all the time. Myth#28 is it's selfish to leave the U.S. and my family. I totally get this family guilt holds a lot of people back, and it holds me back, especially because my family didn't really support me. They thought it was a crazy idea. I felt selfish because I felt like they were thinking, why would you wanna leave us? Why would you wanna leave? Be far away from our family? Don't you love us? Don't you wanna keep a good relationship with us? But. I wasn't running away from something. I love my family and I still have a great relationship with them, but I was just running towards a new opportunity and something that was exciting and the adventure of it. So it's not selfish to leave the U.S. and your family. You might end up moving back as well and you come with a fresh perspective and. You've grown so much in that time. So it's not selfish to want to explore in your life and to have new growth opportunities. And you can still maintain strong connections. Your family might come to visit you, and distance sometimes can improve relationships because you're more intentional with the time that you do have together. So don't worry about it being selfish to leave the U.S. and your family. Don't buy into that belief and that myth.#29 is I'm too old to move abroad. I hear this all the time. People thinking that moving abroad is only for college students or 20 somethings, but people move abroad in their thirties and their forties and their fifties and beyond. Visas don't really have age limits, so don't think that you're too old to move abroad. It is never too late to explore and grow and want to have that adventure. So don't think that it's just for people in their twenties. You are not too old to move abroad. And our last myth, Myth#30, is I need to wait for the perfect time. This belief keeps people stuck in an all move abroad in two years mindset. My goodness. The number of times I've heard of people saying, I'm gonna move abroad in two years, and then two years comes by and they say, I'm gonna move abroad in two years. People keep waiting for the perfect time or waiting for perfect things to align. Not, it's not just gonna be handed to you on a golden platter. There will never be a perfect time, and in the future there might be an even less convenient time. You just have to go for it. And remember that nobody's keeping you hostage. You can move back at any point. And if you don't go for it, will you regret it later in life? Because there really is never going to be a perfect time. Maybe there's something really big that time sensitive and is going to end soon then yes. Wait for that one particular. Life event, that one thing to end, but don't keep waiting for the perfect time to end. I feel like that's one of the biggest myths about moving abroad is that there's going to be a more perfect time or a better time, and there probably is not going to be. You have to go for the things that you want in life when you want them, and, relentlessly pursue that because if not, the time will pass you by and you'll miss your shot So don't wait for the perfect time to move abroad because it might not happen. So I hope that was helpful. I hope there were a few myths that you have believed that were totally busted in today's episode. So that was the 30 biggest myths that Americans believe about moving abroad. I hope that we did have a few like. Aha moments in today's episode and that you feel encouraged and that you had some myths and some walls come down so that you can pursue moving abroad this upcoming year. So with that, I'll go ahead and close today's episode. If you'd like to start taking the next steps to move abroad, you can download the free guide. It's the five exact Steps to Move Abroad. You can grab it. There's a link at the bottom of the podcast description, or you can go to Jordangiberson.com/guide. Or you can just click on the link that's in the podcast description. It just says, grab my free guide. Five exact. Steps to move abroad so you can go snag it there. But I hope that you found this episode encouraging and helpful, and looking forward to the next episode on the Move Abroad podcast. Same time, same place. I will catch you then.