I’m sure I’m not the only person considering leaving the US in the near future, but I’m struggling to make a short list of countries to explore.
I have friends that are starting the process for New Zealand, but their tech industry looks to be almost exclusively consulting driven. If like to end up at a place that’s more traditional. So where in the world should I look at?
Thank you!
Nobody knows you as well as you know yourself and after many years travelling and seeing what the world is actually like in practical day to day life this becomes even more true and you know even moreso what is important to you.
When I left Australia well over a decade ago I had no idea that I would value the things I learned to love only by having access to them on a regular basis and realising that they were readily available as options. If I'd gone only to where my idea of what I wanted would lead me to believe at the time, I'd have missed out immeasurably.
Figure out the logistics for a quick recon of practically every locale that isn't a hard no, and while figuring out those logistics expect to add liberally to the hard no list, and build from those experiences.
Definitely for those with particular medical requirements, these should be factored into your logistics planning for your destination. Information is typically abundant.
It really drives home just how fundamentally broken certain healthcare structures actually are.
US is still one of the best places to earn a high income as a software dev. I work for non-tech as a full stack dev. Good salary but not FAANG levels. My income is higher than a surgeon in Poland.
If you want to move I would optimize for income. Just grind leetcode and try to get into the highest paying companies. If you earned $300k+ while living way below your means that money would go REALLY far in some of the European countries.
This is my goal anyway. As my net worth reaches somewhere around $3-4 million, I'm going to most likely move back to Poland and buy a house somewhere in the mountains and maybe do some remote dev work for a US based company. Plus, since I am basically more American than Polish and have a good understanding of culture I could do some consulting for Polish companies looking to sell their product in the US.
I guess it really isn't the answer you are looking for. Also, keep in mind most countries have policies and laws that are often not popular with the people.
how does this work if you were to compare the two numbers more closely? like, adjust for cost of living, etc.
Quality of life (very) hard to put a price on, but that relevant as well.
The highest income tax in the US is 39%, in Poland 32%.
Generally, US dollar is much stronger than Polish currency. This means the dollar will go much further in Poland and gives you move buying power globally.
The life in Poland is much slower though, more family oriented. If it wasn't for the money I would much prefer to live in Poland but I think there is generally more opportunity in the US.
I've been here for a decade. Best decision I've ever made.
How do? Get a job up here. At least that worked for me, but that was in the before pandemic times. And it also depends on how old you are and other such demographics.
That said every country has its plus and minuses.
Dollars stretch a lot in most places and depending on what you want to spend your time and money in, it would make a lot of difference. Personally, I have decided to do something like 4 months of travel and 8 months of recuperation. Luckily, my current job allows me to do it and while it is a bit of a burden on family, it is doable.
If you’re English only that really affects the proper response to this question.
The next question is, about the US makes you want to leave? Put another was, what is or isnt in the US, that you would hope to find differently somewhere else?
You have 50 states you could explore first.
Another issue is around the slow decay into a theocracy.
You have sitting members of congress saying “I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk.”, and my conservative relatives talk openly and widely around wanting to revoke the second amendment and make this a true christian nation.
Will this happen? Maybe not, but I feel like it's entirely possible that it could, and I don't want to be here for that. I grew up in a hyper religious environment and my life is measurably better existing without religion. I don't want to go back to living in that environment.
You aren’t going to have to worry about a church takeover in France any time soon.
Edit: East Asia is also an option.
Though true separation between church and state began in France so, yeah.
You're not going to unite France and Germany on everything either. But you don't have to. They just have to agree to let each other keep being France and Germany.
Because California’s economy is forcibly diverted to subsidize Alabama's political decisions (given the way federal funding formulas work, largely specifically because those decisions are consistent failures in aggregate economic terms.)
Also, because being conmpelled to tolerate denials of fundamental human rights is an intolerable condition.
I agree. I think that the way the US does things is kind of ridiculous.
> Also, because being conmpelled to tolerate denials of fundamental human rights is an intolerable condition.
How do you feel about the US not managing it's own petroleum production at levels to support its own use, effectively requiring propping up the Saudi regime? I think we can safely say they have a worse track record on women's rights than Alabama.
Do you feel that's intolerable as well?