How would you like to make $150 per hour or more typing away on your laptop? Right now, all around the world, people just like you are earning that amount…or more…by working as copywriters. There are so many good things about this business that I’m hard-pressed to pick just one or two. But I have […]

“If I could just get to $50,000,” Jason told me, “I’d be set. I’d be happy for the rest of my life.” I occasionally reflect on that moment, circa 1995, when I was standing in my front yard with my then brother-in-law. This was in Corinth, Texas, just north of Dallas. My then-wife and I […]

Ben and Jerry know the future. It’s at home. Not necessarily with a pint of Chunky Monkey in your paws, but, more likely, sitting in front of your laptop managing your workday. What I’m getting at here are comments made earlier this month by the head of London-based Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer-product […]

If you have the ability to work remotely, an opportunity increasingly open to so many of us, then now is time to take advantage. After all, why work from a cold, expensive, densely populated city, when you could enjoy a vastly better qualify of life for far less money in a warm, beautiful destination overseas? […]

The story of how expat Clara Carrington came to live in Uruguay begins with her quest to sail around the world. With her father hailing from Newport Beach, California and her mother from the coastal resort of San Sebastian in Spain, Clara has always felt connected to the ocean. After studying for her MBA, she […]

I moved from Washington State to Uruguay in 2006. For my first eight years or so in the country, I lived in Punta del Este, one of the foremost resort destinations in South America. During high season, the local airport in Punta fills with private jets, while the harbor is jam-packed with boats, including large […]

If you had complete freedom to transform your life, what would you do? Where would you live? How would you spend your days? Maybe you’d like to live next to a tropical beach so you could spend your mornings and evenings strolling barefoot on the sand. Or perhaps you’d prefer a house amid a lush […]

My day usually starts at the ocean around sunrise, which this time of year, is right about 7 a.m. here on the coast of Oaxaca, Mexico. The sun sets about 11 hours later, and there’s nothing but sunshine in between. I can’t imagine a better environment. But my days weren’t always like this. Years ago, […]

You ever watch a movie and a character does something that literally makes you cringe—makes you feel uncomfortable, even though it’s only make believe? I had that moment recently while cataloging several screenplays I’ve written over the years. I currently have a script in play in Hollywood—a romantic comedy I finished over the holiday break. […]

When Ian Douglass struck up a friendship with David Konwiser in grade school in Los Angeles, he didn’t realize it would change his whole life. David’s mother Cecilia is from Costa Rica and, when she saw how much Ian loved surfing and nature, she was adamant he visit her home country. After a decade of […]

If there is a silver lining to this dreadful pandemic, it might just be the work-from-home, work-from-anywhere revolution. Over the past year, companies have learned—much to their surprise, it seems—that workers are just as committed and productive outside of the confines of their cubicles. Meanwhile, workers have discovered a new, more flexible way of earning […]

“There is no way,” my childhood friend insisted, “that you’re earning 8.6% a year on a savings account.” That’s the way it goes with cryptocurrency—no one wants to believe you. So many have been so swayed by so much misinformation and misunderstanding from all manner of commentators that, at this point, they simply don’t trust […]

Time to hold myself accountable… Back in a letter to you in June, I explained my rationale for diving out of stocks. The pandemic was raging, the economy was sagging, unemployment was problematic, stimulus money supporting struggling families had an upcoming expiration date, and—perhaps most important—Wall Street was trading at irrational valuations. As I wrote […]

For almost five years, I’ve been earning a living online and traveling the world through blogging. In that time, I’ve visited more than 60 countries across five continents, all the while working with companies, brands, and tourism boards to promote services and destinations that I believe would be favorable to my audience. I’ve worked with […]

Despite the massive boom in freelancing, many baby boomers and Gen Xers still have the impression that developing an online income is unrealistic or somehow out of reach for them. Their thinking goes that you need to have advanced skills in a technical field like programming or web design to build an online income. But […]

Harvard thinks that the 9-to-5 is dead—that we’re heading for a 3-2-2 world. I think Harvard’s on the right track, just a bit off with the math. The way I see it, we’re heading for 24-7. Some of us, in fact, are already there. And I can tell you from experience, it’s a good place […]

I was born on Jan. 27, 1966. In a few weeks, I’ll be 55. I’ve seen firsthand a lot of the events that defined the U.S. over those intervening years. But Jan. 6, 2021…that’s the day America as I know it ended. Let’s call it Insurrection Day. Understand that what I am about to write […]

Expats around the world are an enterprising bunch, and perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than in France. When you’re surrounded by so much natural beauty, and some pretty amazing food and wine to boot, you tend to want to stick around. I’ve been able to carve out a niche for myself by working as […]

In 2006, Jennifer Choban moved from Portland, Oregon to Guanajuato, Mexico. She’d gotten divorced about a year before and was looking for a change of scenery and a renewed sense of adventure. So, when a coworker told her she was buying a house in Guanajuato, “I suggested to her that I take care of it,” […]

U.S. expat Bill Cotter was drawn to Costa Rica’s southern Pacific coast by his love for surfing and his desire for a more laidback, nature-filled life. The unspoiled, biodiverse region, which includes beachfront communities such as Dominical, Uvita, and Ojochal, combines affordability and spectacular scenery with modern infrastructure and amenities. This helps explain its growing […]

Arthur Ashe, the famous tennis champion, offered a quote that, to me, rings so true for baby boomers and Gen Xers who want to begin freelancing online: “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” Ashe may have uttered those words long before the online gig economy became popular, but they […]