The Hidden Power of Living Abroad

How learning to live like locals in three countries changed everything we thought we knew

Jul 16, 2025

Comfort has a price tag — and abroad, it’s steeper than you think.

Today’s guest post is a gem from

, a serial abroad-er who’s lived in Germany, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, and learned that the real superpower of life abroad isn’t a visa or a new job. In this post, he navigates an important aspect of the economics of living abroad: The cost of familiarity.

Give it a read and if you’re lurking as a free reader… maybe today’s the day you go paid. Treat yourself.

Nothing beats a grilled steak from a grass-fed cow that's been out on the pastures for its entire life.

Take anything you like that you've gotten used to in your life. If you move to a different country, that regular food staple might become an expensive delicacy.

This happened to us when we moved from Australia to Cyprus.

A small dry island has no space for cows, so most beef is imported, which means it's either incredibly expensive or of poor quality.

Our options? Enjoy steak, pay the premium, or get used to local food such as fish and halloumi.

Fish and halloumi aren't bad alternatives, but they require you to get used to them, incorporate them into your cooking routine, and know how to source the good stuff.

When moving countries, this is a cost to familiarity.

There are two ways to deal with this hidden cost. You can pay, or you can change.

Technically, the cost of familiarity has a financial part, but also an opportunity cost —the cost of missing out on the opportunity to change one's perspective on life.

Living like locals

The main takeaway from cost of living is that the locals live there, too.
So whenever you see yourself spending exorbitant amounts of money, think about what the locals would do.

(Expat Series: Cost of Living)

This is easier said than done but contains all the truth you need to uncover the hidden cost.

When you arrive in a new country, you are not a local. You'll spend more while you explore and figure out how everything works.

The longer you stay, the more you will move towards being a local. Simple things will take only a few months to change, others years.

In Singapore, we started out going to expensive, imported goods supermarkets, buying cheese, yogurt, milk and other stuff we were familiar with.

The longer we stayed, the more we figured out where locals shop, including cheap fresh fruit and veggie markets.

You won't be able to jump right in as a local, so you'll have to factor in some cost, but over time, you'll have the choice: Do you want to continue eating European cheese, or do you want to figure out how the locals live and adapt your lifestyle?

Some things will be easier to throw overboard, so knowing your non-negotiables is important.

We've been away for seven years, but we still fly back to Germany every year to visit the family. Our recent flight booking is north of $8,000 NZD, even though our youngest is flying cheap while under two.

For $8,000, we could have had a decent holiday somewhere nice, yet we opt to go to the same place in Germany every year. So far, it is a non-negotiable that we are willing to pay.

The key takeaway here is that being aware upfront helps. Stay flexible, have some extra buffer while you get used to it, and ideally keep track of what you spend in a simple spreadsheet (try this to start).

A simple 20-minute review of what you've been spending every month is a good start. Often, the simple rule "the locals live here too" will help to gauge. If you are cutting into savings early and your earnings aren't enough, you're doing something wrong.

A move that changed us

When moving to Singapore, we had to get rid of a lot of our stuff. Places we could afford in Singapore were much smaller than in Germany, so we had to get a new bed, a smaller dining table, etc.

Over the years, this triggered a series of changes, until we finally went from moving like this:

To moving like this:

No container, just six bags.

The financial implications aside, we seized the opportunity and learned to not just travel light, but also move light, by ditching our familiarity with big places with a ton of furniture.

Moving to a new country isn't just about chasing a job opportunity or enjoying a milder climate.

All other things aside, it's a huge opportunity to change yourself by being open to new perspectives.

The cost of familiarity here is an opportunity cost. If you want to stick to what is familiar, you might not only pay money but also miss out on changing yourself.

Having to get rid of our furniture before moving to Singapore triggered a spiral of events. The container to Singapore was a 20-foot container, packed to the brim. Singapore to Sydney was only half full, and when we left Australia, we had only six bags.

We couldn't have done this all in one go. It took time, but over the years, new perspectives changed us, such as being content with less and focusing more on time and experiences.

An opportunity cost we luckily did not pay.

Getting out of our habits and prejudices made us see things differently.

A different outcome of events could have been renting a bigger house and taking all we have, but I assume we wouldn't have learned as much.

Learning from the local culture

My German colleagues' first reaction when I announced our move to Singapore was whether I would keep my German employment contract. A German employment contract gives you the ultimate safety and peace of mind.

Most Germans are quite risk-averse and would never give up their safe job without having a new one lined up.

I got a local contract with shorter notice and much less protective employment laws than Germany, meaning I could be fired much quicker. I was ok with that as I had confidence in finding a job no matter what happened.

However, my perspective on job safety changed when we eventually got to Australia.

Here, many people work as contractors. They are often well-paid tradies with little job security other than the knowledge that they'll probably find something else easily.

A contract can be paid by the hour and last for a few months, for example to build a house.

Many are freelancers or sole traders with no formal employment, moving from contract to contract. Of course, this also exists in Germany, but not at the same level as in Australia.

Anyone and everyone seems to have their own little business. What struck me is that these guys have such a different attitude towards life.

Yeah, it sucks if you need to look for a new contract, but the attitude towards that is so relaxed. Not that they don't work hard, but they'll utilise the time between jobs and go for a little trip overseas — essentially taking unpaid leave, embracing the unknown. I know almost no Germans who would do that.

When the waves are pumping on the Northern beaches, lots of tradies aren't working either, making use of their freedom :-)

(source)

That's something to be learned.

I, too, learned to take things a little easier. Unpaid leave is fine, and quitting your job without something new is fine, too. (If you have the means, that is.)

I didn't fully adopt that lifestyle, though.

I still like to have a high savings rate and an emergency fund larger than most Aussies would, and I avoid debt, but I have adapted to being much more relaxed.

Every country and culture has a unique way of approaching things. None is perfect, but by introducing ourselves to these new perspectives, we can adopt a bit of the lifestyle into our own.

Embrace the change

A move abroad is an adventure, whether it involves trying to live like the locals to avoid high costs or adopting certain ways of life.

You can’t know everything upfront, and sometimes you just have to accept uncertainty as part of the adventure.

The best way to deal with uncertainty is openness and flexibility.

Openness to be ready to take in the new perspectives.

Flexibility to adjust your habits and correct course.

Moving and not fully embracing new perspectives will cost you money and the opportunity to see your life from these perspectives.

But openness doesn't mean abandoning all judgment. The goal is thoughtful selection, not wholesale adoption.

That's our superpower after all —- having experienced multiple ways of living gives us the ability to cherry-pick the best from each culture while avoiding the pitfalls.

That was a good one, right? Thanks for stepping into your little house of stories today.

Was there a moment — maybe over a meal, in a market, or with a neighbour — when you realised you were still trying to live your old life in a new place? I’d be honoured to read it.