[stpete]

Insightful blog post-CleanSlate.

I can relate to much of what you wrote.

I think there is a fine line between doing what you did, making a somewhat planned but still a leap of faith, and overthinking and overpreparing and waiting for someday to come. Maybe in some ways that jump you've done forced action and to swim and stay afloat.

Do you have clients in the USA? I have a similar business model to follow a path of nomadic work. Many of my clients are in the USA. While I don't talk to them on the phone but maybe once every two weeks, we do email during the day. How has being in SEA affected your working with clients in the USA regarding time zones and communication?

[CleanSlate]

Most of my clients are in the USA. Being 12 hours away has been a minor issue with respect to scheduling skype calls, etc. But we almost always use email. Sometimes I schedule my emails to be sent during US working hours, especially for outreach, where I don't want prospects to know I'm 12 +/- 2 time zones away -- at least not yet.

[CleanSlate]

Yet Another Update:

I'm happy to share that my financial position is much stronger than it was even a few months ago, and it's not just because of the cryptocurrency bubble.

I have two clients on a monthly retainer, which pays me enough money where I can start saving again.

When I started my business, my goal was to match my old job's salary.

Now I am almost up to my old job's take-home pay.

With the lower cost of living here in SEA, my tax savings using the FEIE, and with less money going to the job's "benefits", I actually have more disposable income than I did when I was in the States.

This will last as long as the retainer agreements will last -- that remains to be seen -- and as long as I continue to market my business in a way people are able to find me when they look for some specific work that they need to outsource.

Anyway, I've settled into a nice routine. Here's what my day looks like now:

- Wake up and make a morning coffee with coconut oil
- Go to gym and do 5x5 compound lifts
- Eat a big post-gym workout lunch
- Work 5 to 6 hours
- Have dinner
- Each evening I do one of the 4 things... 1) hang out with other forum members, 2) chill with my Vietnamese girl, 3) meet other expats, or 4) chill at home myself.

More on this later. I'll put up a new and more detailed blog post about it.

[Buakaw]

(05-26-2017 02:55 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

- Go to gym and do 5x5 compound lifts

Someone has got some serious gainz over the last 3 months

[Road_Less_Taken]

(05-26-2017 02:55 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

Yet Another Update:

I'm happy to share that my financial position is much stronger than it was even a few months ago, and it's not just because of the cryptocurrency bubble.

I have two clients on a monthly retainer, which pays me enough money where I can start saving again.

When I started my business, my goal was to match my old job's salary.

Now I am almost up to my old job's take-home pay.

With the lower cost of living here in SEA, my tax savings using the FEIE, and with less money going to the job's "benefits", I actually have more disposable income than I did when I was in the States.

This will last as long as the retainer agreements will last -- that remains to be seen -- and as long as I continue to market my business in a way people are able to find me when they look for some specific work that they need to outsource.

Anyway, I've settled into a nice routine. Here's what my day looks like now:

- Wake up and make a morning coffee with coconut oil
- Go to gym and do 5x5 compound lifts
- Eat a big post-gym workout lunch
- Work 5 to 6 hours
- Have dinner
- Each evening I do one of the 4 things... 1) hang out with other forum members, 2) chill with my Vietnamese girl, 3) meet other expats, or 4) chill at home myself.

More on this later. I'll put up a new and more detailed blog post about it.

Sounds perfect!

[CleanSlate]

Blog update - similar content to my datasheet on making money with an online business.

Added screenshotted proof that I'm making money!

http://www.masculinexpat.com/make-money-...-business/

[redbeard]

Just got a Traveling Mailbox. Thanks for helping us out, CleanSlate.

[Orson]

Location independence and the growing expat movement calls for an update on remailing services.

I know that OP and others reflect favor for USglobalmail based in Houston, but competition to serve this market is growing, too.

Here's a roundup from late November, 2017, from "tech-vise":
https://tech-vise.com/best-parcel-forwar...-shoppers/

I notice that Stackry in New Hampshire - like Houston, Texas - is also a state free from income tax.

And then there's THIS highlight for those who simply want a place for packages and mail to hang out for up to 180 days for FREE!

Quote:

Vyking Ship

With Vyking Ship, you get a free account in Minnesota, the USA where your mail and parcels can relax for 180 days at no cost to you. This is by far the only service which doesn’t come with an asterisk and extra conditions to get 180 days of free storage. You don’t pay a dime to sign up and nor is there a monthly or yearly fee to get your hopes down.

ME LIKEY!

[puckerman]

(09-21-2016 01:18 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

* Got an apartment rental in Bangkok for 1 year for which I feel is a steal compared to US rental prices

Is this not the opposite of being "location independent"?

[CleanSlate]

(12-20-2017 08:39 AM)puckerman Wrote:  

(09-21-2016 01:18 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

* Got an apartment rental in Bangkok for 1 year for which I feel is a steal compared to US rental prices

Is this not the opposite of being "location independent"?

I don't really see it that way. If your definition of location independence is going from place to place every month, that's fine, but it's expensive and wasteful. It saves me a ton of money to post up in one place for at least 6 months to 1 year, get a lease agreement, and pay rental prices at less than 25-40% Airbnb/hotel rates.

I can always fly out to different places from my current base. And if I decide I didn't like my current base, I can move to another base for a year.

[Seth_Rose]

Have you spent much time in Bangkok? I’m wondering how long one needs to live in a city to see if it is going to workout well for them. For example, if someone wants to settle down in SEA for a while like yourself, how do they go about doing recon for the best city for them? Spend one week or one month in each city? Or just do a lot of research beforehand?

[CleanSlate]

I’d say 2 weeks bare minimum. But 3 months is a more reliable indicator whether you’ll like staying there or not. I realize that’s not possible for those who have jobs back home, but if I gave Vietnam only a week or two, I would have never come back here. Meanwhile I stayed in BKK for 8 months, and it took me that much time to realize that it’s not a long term place for me.

[Seth_Rose]

Hmm I'm confused. I thought you said you just signed a 1-year lease in BKK, but then you said you didn't like it after 8 months?

[CleanSlate]

(12-23-2017 12:49 PM)Seth_Rose Wrote:  

Hmm I'm confused. I thought you said you just signed a 1-year lease in BKK, but then you said you didn't like it after 8 months?

You got that right. I rented out the remaining months on my lease through AirBNB.

[Seth_Rose]

Gotcha. Thanks for clearing that up. Bangkok seems like a fun place to visit, but long-term living could be a bit hectic from what I've read.

[CleanSlate]

I just closed down my blog.

As you might have seen, I had not been diligent in updating my blog past the 1.5 year mark. It wasn't getting the traffic that I hoped would get, and the affiliate marketing stuff didn't work out either.

More importantly, it's just not something I'm interested in any longer. This was just a temporary phase -- a transition between two dividing halves of my life -- and I'm now moving onto new things.

Thanks to all who supported me in my journey, even if from afar.

[TejasRojo]

Are you heading back to the states or just giving up the blog?

[Trumpian]

So did the location independence mission fail then? Come on bro, you're leaving us hanging lol.

[DarkTriad]

(09-25-2018 04:57 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

I just closed down my blog.

As you might have seen, I had not been diligent in updating my blog past the 1.5 year mark. It wasn't getting the traffic that I hoped would get, and the affiliate marketing stuff didn't work out either.

More importantly, it's just not something I'm interested in any longer. This was just a temporary phase -- a transition between two dividing halves of my life -- and I'm now moving onto new things.

Thanks to all who supported me in my journey, even if from afar.

Any way to get the archives? I'm about to make the leap myself, and it sounded like really useful info.

[CleanSlate]

(09-25-2018 06:40 AM)TejasRojo Wrote:  

Are you heading back to the states or just giving up the blog?

Just giving up the blog. I'm still abroad, but leaving the door open to going back to the states eventually. Not anytime soon, but maybe years later.

(09-25-2018 10:38 AM)Trumpian Wrote:  

So did the location independence mission fail then? Come on bro, you're leaving us hanging lol.

It was a success, so I'm moving on to a different mission.

(09-25-2018 03:49 PM)DarkTriad Wrote:  

Any way to get the archives? I'm about to make the leap myself, and it sounded like really useful info.

No, sorry. I didn't archive each blog post. But I still have the expat handbook. If you want it, PM me and I'll send it over. It's free.

[chrisblackbeard]

Just stumbled upon this from your post on my thread.

I bought the one-way ticket for the Philippines this January! Absolutely pumped!

Love to know what you are up to, or how things are going

Anyways, great post,
cheers!

[CleanSlate]

(09-30-2018 05:16 PM)chrisblackbeard Wrote:  

Just stumbled upon this from your post on my thread.

I bought the one-way ticket for the Philippines this January! Absolutely pumped!

Love to know what you are up to, or how things are going

Anyways, great post,
cheers!

Good luck on your journey! Keep us posted.

[yourboychris]

I was checking this thread on and off for the past 2 years. Just noticed the blog link doesn't work and saw you closed it down.

Good luck on your future endeavors!