Rick Riordan wrote in The Lost Hero “Don’t stay in one place too long. It was the only way to stay ahead of the sadness.” I agree with that somewhat. I don’t think it is to stay ahead of the sadness. I think it is mostly about finding a place that makes you happy. If you don’t feel like you should be somewhere… chances are you shouldn’t be. I do think that if you live in one place for too long does have its downside.
A little backstory
Mike and I always dreaming and working towards moving out of the house we are currently in. We have done that every few years or so. In the 9 years, we have been together we have lived in 4 different houses, in 4 different cities.
Our dreams and aspirations for building our life together keep getting bigger and bigger. We both know that we are made for more and we work hard to make that happen. We went from working a minimum wage job barely scraping by, about to be evicted to living in Tampa paying twice the rent we were before.
I say this not to make anyone feel bad about their situation. But as a reminder to keep your head in the game and your eyes on the prize. Things will work out for those who do the hard work. With that being said, I want to share with you 5 reasons why I think you shouldn’t live in one place too long.
Look at your environment
If you are on a personal growth journey one thing I can not recommend enough is looking at your environment around you. Is your environment draining you? It could be your living situation, the people around you, whatever it may be if you are constantly feeling drained then it may be time to skip town. So you can find a place and people who lift you up. Not ones that bring you down. Moving somewhere with a clean slate can be refreshing.
Moving costs too much
I wrote a post on how to move when you have absolutely no money. If you really want to move you will make it happen. You will sit down to make a plan and cut all the unnecessary crap in your life. Declutter your house sell your unused items to add some money to your moving fund. Every little bit helps.
Give yourself a time frame and a budget. Look at the places you want to live for a rental average times that by first, last, and security. Do your research about any additional costs that may occur.
I have always said that if moving is something you really want to do then you need to sacrifice now, so you can live better later.
Get stuck
The whole reason why I started my personal growth journey was that I was feeling stuck. Like I wasn’t doing anything in my life for me. My life was on this constant loop. I did the same thing day in and day out. Since moving to Tampa I find myself more creative, more willing to try new places and do new things. I think because I thought I had to live in one place for all my life. It was contributing to my feeling of being stuck. I thought that I was meant to live and die in Pasco.
If you have that feeling, I am here to tell you don’t have to.
Explore and grow
Moving to a new place allows you to explore a new area and to grow as a person. I was scared to move to Tampa. Why? Because Pasco County was my home. I have lived there since birth. So that meant I knew where everything was and knew a lot of people. I wrote a letter to myself while I was in the middle of moving. Obviously, I posted it here.
I did not think I was going to like Tampa… AT ALL. We are in the middle of year 2. January 25, 2022, will be 3 years. It is coming up fast. That is crazy and I still have so much to explore.
Mutliple Streams of income
We always thought the end goal would be to own our home and live out the rest of our life there. Something changed between Mike and me. After 9 years together we are slowly fine-tuning our plan. We have always wanted to travel. We have been talking for the past few years about buying a home. Yes to live in, which seems counterintuitive. But hear me out, we want to own our own home live in it, fix it up then rent it out.
Our goal is to have several different streams of money coming in. We want multiple businesses. We are always checking out Zillow and the Banff Homes for sale on Redfin just to see what’s out there. Right now we’re just talking and making a plan. The end goal has always been to be able to work, have multiple streams of income and go anywhere we want in the world.
Fear and doubt
Fear and doubt put you in this box of thinking “I can’t, I won’t, I don’t”. Your fear and doubt are what are holding you back. I wish I would have known sooner in life that I did not have to live in Pasco my whole life. Also, I wish that if I knew when I was younger I would have had the courage to actually move. My fear and comfort zone probably wouldn’t have let me. But now that I am an adult… I want to live and visit any and everywhere I can.
If you are debating on where or not you should pack up on your stuff and blow that popsicle stand… this is your sign to do it. Mike and I are in the process right now of figuring out where we want to live. So we can get our plan set in stone. I love Florida and exploring it, but deep down I know Florida is not meant for me. If you have that same feeling you shouldn’t live in one place too long either.
Until Next Time, Have a great day! Remember you are a badass!
Interesting post! It really makes you think. It sounds like the two of you have a great plan and I hope everything works out how you want it.
If you think that you are living in an unhealthy environment, then I suggest that you need to move to another place where you can find a healthy environment for yourself and for your family.
Exactly. No one should have to live in an unhealthy environment.
As a person who wants to move (especially since my move was cancelled by the pandemic)
I am sorry to hear your move was canceled by the pandemic. Hopefully, you can move soon!
It’s an individual thing. I like to settle somewhere and stay. I wouldn’t move somewhere I really didn’t want to be living for a fair number of years.
Absolutely! Don’t move to a place you don’t want to.
This one really made me think – whereby, I didn’t turn off my brain reading any of your posts 😉 . Being such a busy body and at least mentally a nomad at heart, I’ve been living in the same flat for about….I think, 37 years. Over the years, this flat has become the only constant in my life.
And if that is a place you love living no need to move.
I am kind of the opposite because I move so much when I was a kid. I only stayed in one place for 2 years and then moved. I have been in my current apartment and city for 6 years. I would like to stay more because I feel like that brings some stability.
Absolutely! I 100% agree, if you are not used to having a stable environment then it is understandable that you would want to live in a place for a long period of time.
I do agree with you on not too long at a space , however I’m scared of the hassles packed & unpacked while moving…lol…cheers Siennylovesdrawing
That is the part that sucks the most. The packing, decluttering, and unpacking.
On this I fall badly, because I have always lived in the same city and house all my life!
I lived in the same county for all of my life. Living in Tampa is new for me. It is not just a city I visit now. It is where I live. I will spend the next few years exploring it, but I think ultimately we will move out of of state.
I’ve been in this situation before, and I agree that you’ll feel stuck and afraid to move since you’re so comfortable in that zone. I’ve been out of that apartment for a while now – the best decision I’ve ever made!
Exactly! I thought I was crazy for feeling this way!
I’m alone without a partner so it’s much harder to motivate myself when I’m dying from an envirinment I can’t escape. It’s really tough.
I hear that. But you gotta push through if you are not happy in your environment. No one can make you happy but yourself. They can only add to whats already there.