There’s a quote I love that says this:
It just puts it into perspective, doesn’t it? That we can all answer the same question so differently? That what I may think is a solid, standup reason may make zero sense to someone else? Our motivation for doing something makes us look at even the same experience very differently. Ask a surgeon why they went into medicine (action) and you’ll get a different motive (intention) from each one: to heal people, for the prestige, to make money, to make my father proud. Ask an expat what motivated them to move abroad and… well let’s find out.
What was your motivation to move abroad?
Though I discovered generally six types of motivation (incentive, fear, achievement, growth, power, and social) I found that the answers I got from fellow expats fell mostly into these 4 categories: incentive, achievement, growth, and social.
INCENTIVE
“I studied abroad in high school and couldn’t get over my experience. When I got married and had kids I wanted for them to experience that deliciousness too.”
“This life is so much easier for a single mom. In the States I never had time… I was always going and going.”
“Not having a mortgage is pretty tempting.”
“My earliest memories were of living abroad and they were idealistically wonderful. After my parents moved back, whenever they talked about their favorite or best memories it was always their time abroad… And it’s expensive to see the world but this way not only is it possible to see the world from a non-tourist point of view, but I’m the one getting paid.”
ACHIEVEMENT
“The world is too big a place not to explore it.”
“I love adventure and going outside my comfort zone.”
“The opportunity to travel and learn a new language.”
“I was feeling stagnated in my school district, Stateside, and I wanted to surround myself with more likeminded people.”
GROWTH
“I become a better person when I’m in a situation where I don’t know anything.”
” To experience new things. To grow personally.”
“Romance novels! I loved books about historical England and always wanted to visit or live there… I still haven’t been even though I’m married to a man who has family throughout England. It’s a steady joke in our household… ‘you know where you never take me?'”
SOCIAL
“To be surrounded by new people and new cultures.”
“I feel like you really don’t get to know a culture, its people, customs, language, and traditions unless you live there for an extended period of time.”
” I wanted my kids to be exposed to and accepting of cultures and languages and norms other than their “home” culture so they would not become ignorant xenophobes and appreciate that people have different and similar values across cultures; that they see that they are part of a larger, global community.
“Doing what you love is grand, getting paid to travel AND do what you love… PRICELESS”
Photo Credits: Motivation – photosteve101 Incentive – Phil O’Driscoll (adapted by Expat Village) Social – Day Donaldson (adapted by Expat Village)