Moving Countries Will Not Change Your Finances

There’s a money myth that a lot of people, in particular South Africans, buy into and believe.

That myth is that moving to another country will change you finances and lead to financial freedom.

I bought into this myth as well and it shaped my life.

I started traveling and living abroad right after graduation (under-grad) in 2005 because I believed that's what would lead to financial freedom.

Many people think leaving to work abroad will change their financial issues and they will save more because of currency arbitrage (exchange rates).

The truth is: if you have a bad relationship with money, moving to another country can make things worse.

Because now you're dealing with money in 2 different countries, so you have double the issues because your expenses at home don't disappear and you have new expenses in the new country as well.

And some of these countries are way more expensive than South Africa, but we cant always admit that moving countries isn't always good, because of the invisible pressure to look successful.

I ended up with US$60,000 in debt because I just took my money mindset and traumas with me everywhere I went.

So I had international debt - debt in the UK, USA and South Africa.

Forget saving or investing!

It was a mess, and worse because I thought I was the only one going through this.

The shame almost destroyed me.

I hid my financial issues because I thought I was the only one going through this, so I pretended to everyone back home that life was amazing abroad because I didn't want to be seen as a failure or be laughed at.

My first trip from traveling - I came home with 2 suitcases full of gifts for everyone.

I spent almost all my money on shopping because I wanted to prove that I was doing well abroad.

In all my time abroad, I hadn’t made even one payment towards my undergrad student loans (NSFAS).

The money I spent on those gifts could have easily paid off the undergrad student loans.

I didn't know better - I’d seen my uncle get us gifts when he traveled so I mimicked this behavior.

And the more I pretended the worse things got.

Things changed when I became honest with myself and everyone in my life.

The day i admitted that things weren’t working, is the day I freed myself.

I stopped worrying about what others would think and focused more on how I wanted to feel everyday of my life.

I accepted that the change had to come from within. That I had to heal my money mindset, traumas, vows, ancestral stories etc.

That's when the shift really happened.

How do you think that moving countries will change your finances?

Share your insights in the comments section below.