These days, the American Dream is often termed the American Nightmare. Hellish hours are the consistent norm as of 2012, with an estimated 60% of the population of the United States working at minimum of 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year just to cover their basic cost of living. For the most part, people are living paycheck to paycheck, barely skimming by and having just enough to pay their basics. In some cases, people are choosing to juggle their bills, paying something late this month and then switching something else the following month so they can just manage to squeeze by. For these 60% who are living on borrowed money, there is no existence outside of work. Instead, there is only the endless treadmill grind if 40 hour work weeks and mandatory overtime until you are finally old enough to be “allowed” to call it quits at the age of 65.
For many, there is nothing to look forward to other than a long, dark tunnel of never-ending tedium, working the same eight to ten hour shifts day in, day out, with maybe Sundays off, over a period of 40+ years until they are finally 65 years old and “allowed” to retire. These are the average, everyday living conditions of people in the United States.
This is the American Dream as it exists today. And it is because of this nightmare reality that more and more web-savvy individuals are looking towards the borders beyond the United States for their next Big Break. For these intelligent few, the horizons beyond are beckoning with the lure of a location independent lifestyle as an international expat, roaming the planet while working on the Internet and taking advantage of the lowered cost of living in countries around the world. This allows them to bypass the debt and credit necessities of living back home and instead transport themselves into the world of debt-free living where their money is going three to four timers farther than it ever would in their home country.
Imagine having $1,000 a month actually be worth the same as $3,000 per month, or even $4,000 per month. That is the reason so many expats are exploring the digital nomad lifestyle, because when you take your business to a country like Bulgaria or Thailand, Mexico or Colombia, your dollars are worth three to four times what they are back in the United States. As long as you have an Internet connection and some form of digital income (such as PayPal or direct bank deposits) you can live as an expat, which means pensioners or any type of freelancer or individual working on the Internet can transition over, out of the brick-and-mortar and into the full-time traveler life.
Best of all, the digital nomad lifestyle is incredibly easy to transition into. Most governments only require that you provide proof of around $1,000 per month of income, either from a pension or some other form of monthly deposit into your bank account, such as a salary or freelance income. And, since most countries only have a couple of weeks of waiting for your application to go through, you can be pursuing the location independent dream within just a few short weeks. While your neighbors and friends back home might still be stuck on the hamster wheel grinding out 40 hour work weeks for a salary that barely breaks even, you can be location independent enjoying the freedom of the digital nomad lifestyle where a mere $1,000 a month gives you an upper middle class existence on par with what $4,000 a month back home would give you.
For more information on living as an international expat in countries around the world, check out articles by other expats who are already living the dream life.