Living Abroad: It's Not Just an Adventure
- Kelly Brogdon Geyer
- Sep 18
- 2 min read
When you tell people you live abroad, you usually get one of two reactions:
“Wow, that must be amazing! I’ve always wanted to do that.”
“I could never. I like my comfort too much.”
Here’s the truth: living abroad is amazing. It’s also messy, lonely, hilarious, frustrating, liberating, and humbling — often all in the same week.
It’s not just about new food, new scenery, or fumbling through supermarket checkout lines in another language. (Although, let’s be honest, nothing tests your resilience quite like trying to buy cough syrup in a pharmacy when you only know five words of the local language.)
Living abroad forces you to become someone new. Not in the fake, Instagram-perfect way, but in the raw, “oh wow, I’m really doing this” kind of way.
What They Don’t Tell You About Life Abroad
No one warns you that:
You’ll miss things you never thought about before (like your favorite toothpaste or your go-to coffee order).
Everyday tasks take 10x longer because… bureaucracy.
Friendships can feel harder to maintain when people come and go constantly.
“Home” becomes a complicated word.
But here’s the other side of the story:
You learn patience, resourcefulness, and the ability to laugh at yourself.
You discover communities that feel like family, even when they speak five different languages.
You gain perspectives you could never get by staying comfortable.
The Transformation Nobody Advertises
Living abroad isn’t just a relocation. It’s a transformation. You get stretched in ways you can’t predict. And yes, sometimes it hurts. But it also builds resilience, creativity, and courage.
You stop defining yourself only by where you came from and start creating the person you want to be.
That’s why, when people ask me about living abroad, I don’t just say it’s “fun” or “challenging.” I say: It changes you. And if you let it, it changes you for the better.
The Bottom Line
Living abroad isn’t for everyone and that’s okay. But if you’ve ever dreamed of it, know this: it’s not just about changing your address. It’s about changing yourself.
And that’s where the real adventure begins.
Let’s Connect
Change is never just about systems, processes, or places. It’s about people. Every shift we go through, whether it’s a career move, living abroad, personal adjustments, or navigating transformation at work, shapes who we are and who we’re becoming.
I work with individuals and organizations to design change that feels less like a burden and more like an opportunity.
Ready to turn your change into growth?
Reach out here and let’s start the conversation.
Connection. Clarity. Change.
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