After one member of our community came to the conclusion that she doesn’t need to seek out paid employment to feel fulfilled, she’s embraced more opportunities and thrived in her expat life.
One expat partner to another
After reading ‘Happily unemployed’, an article on our website, one member of our community, a UK-based expat partner, reached out to the interviewee via our member-only network. Why? “Like me, she doesn’t have kids, and like me, she has also made a conscious decision to not work,” she said of her fellow expat partner. “I had often wondered if there were others like me and felt relieved there were at least two of us.”
Like-minded people
This UK-based partner, who previously lived in Dubai (twice) and Costa Rica, revealed that she once used to feel “a kind of pressure” when it came to seeking work. “I had a job in Dubai and I enjoyed it. But that line of work wasn’t an option in Costa Rica. However, due to societal pressure I felt like I absolutely had to find some kind of job. Yet when I did, I remember thinking: I am not happy with this job, why would I continue if I don’t have to? ”
A new lease of life
“I told my partner how I felt and he fully agreed that I didn’t need to work. It was truly a team decision. From that point I felt such relief as well as a sense of excitement. This expat life creates many wonderful possibilities in terms of travel, meeting people, volunteering and study,” she added. “Since that epiphany in Costa Rica, I have done all of that and I value myself more as a result.”
No explanation needed
Now based in the UK, she volunteers once a week and started an online course. “I could have spent a huge amount of time and expended a lot of emotional energy trying to find work in the UK with no guarantees I would get a job or enjoy having a job,” she said, adding that she’d often felt unsure of what to say when people asked what she does and what she has done during her expat life. “I try to remind myself it’s not ‘my job’ to make people understand why I haven’t been working. I don’t need anyone’s approval. I know we have an awesome life and that’s enough for me.”
This article has been anonymised at the request of the interviewee
