5 Key Things that Helped Me Move and Start a Life in Spain

It has been 3 years and 4 months since I packed my bags and decided to move to Europe. And this year alone, I officially became a Spanish citizen. Was it easy? Of course not. You should know that anything worth having never comes easy.

Disclaimer: if you’re comfortable in the Philippines and don’t have any plans of moving, then this post is not for you. Feel free to leave and spend your time elsewhere, no hard feelings.

And if you’re more of a visual learner, check out my YouTube video where I talked about the five key things that made my move possible and the surprising way COVID actually helped me achieve this dream. No sugar-coating, no trust fund secrets, just practical advice from someone who made it happen from scratch.

Let’s get started.

1. Money

I’m not going to sugarcoat this for anyone who’s reading this—if you are thinking of moving abroad, you need money for obvious reasons and also because Philippine peso is weak. Once you’re out, you will realize that your 1 million pesos are not worth much especially when you start experiencing the drastic increase in cost of living. Just compare the cost of living in Manila and in Barcelona—they are worlds apart.

In my case, I didn’t ask money from my family or friends. I don’t have a trust fund or generational wealth. I work and save money—that was all I did. What helped actually was COVID, ironic I know. When COVID hit, I couldn’t travel anywhere and I was grounded for 2 years, not by choice obviously. In hindsight, not being able to travel was a blessing in disguise because I was able to save money. The only thing I spend money on is travel and since I couldn’t do that, all my income went directly to my savings. Also during COVID, I had so much time on my hands that I decided to have 2 remote jobs which increased my income and savings.

Just imagine this—I’m working for UK and US companies, getting paid in $ and £ while living in Manila where cost of living is not that high. My monthly expenses at that time was only 20% of my income. Because of this, I became debt-free and the money I saved up gave me the courage to move forward with my plan. I know that moving to Europe will be expensive so I was preparing myself not just financially but also mentally and emotionally.

Visa application alone is already expensive and if you add apartment deposit that you will have to pay for in advance—you really need money to avoid financial stress. With all the uncertainties that come with starting a life abroad, it’s best that you manage your finances well ahead of time.

2. Remote Work

I started working remotely in 2015. I quit my corporate job because I desperately wanted to travel to South America indefinitely and to be able to sustain that, I started doing remote jobs.

In all honesty, I took a big pay cut because I was just starting and I still needed to build credibility. The pay cut didn’t matter much to me because at that time, all I wanted was to travel and nothing else. I would do anything to sustain a life of travel.

After 14 months traveling to different cities in South America, I went back to the Philippines. I continued doing remote jobs—whatever I can get my hands on. Then I got lucky because I was introduced into the world of Amazon online selling business. Long story short, focusing solely on understanding the ins and outs of Amazon helped me get better-paying remote jobs. And when COVID hit, I was never at risk of being laid off because Amazon was booming and brands selling on Amazon need all the help they can get.

When planning my move, having remote jobs is what made it easier for me. In 2021, just when COVID was ending, the number of countries issuing digital nomad visa was on the rise. So being able to work remotely helped massively with my plans because it opened opportunities for me.

Another benefit of having a remote work is that I don’t have to look for jobs and compete with the local labor market. If I needed to find a job, I would have had a hard time because one of the requirements of the companies here in Spain is that you can speak both English and Spanish. Another plus—I don’t need to worry about money because I have a stable income, ergo, no financial stress.

Filipinos normally take the traditional route when moving abroad—student pathway, skilled work visa or getting married. Don’t get me wrong, those are good options, just not for me. To find what works for me, I did extensive research and deviced a plan.

3. Uncomplicated Civil Status

Not gonna lie, this is a big factor. I can understand why people have a hard time moving abroad even if they want to—there’s just a lot of moving factors to consider. In my case, when I moved to Europe in 2021, I was single and didn’t have kids. Today, I’m in civil partnership but still don’t have kids.

If I was married and have kids, I know that it would be much more complicated and expensive to start a life abroad. I might only consider it if I’m working for a company that’s willing to offer me a job in a another country and pay for relocation expenses, or if I have a remote job.

If you were able to do it, kudos to you. Much respect.

So if you’re young, single, and/or married and don’t have kids yet, now is the best time to consider about moving and starting a life abroad. Believe me when I say—you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

If you’re in doubt, check out my other post about the perks of being a Spanish resident.

4. Patience and Courage

I think these 2 are self-explanatory. You need to have both—patience to wait for things to fall into place and courage to do what is necessary.

I’ve always had courage especially when it comes to traveling, exploring new cities, trying new things. I’m very much a risk-taker with a fail fast mentality. Starting a life abroad with no family and friends is no joke. You can easily get homesick or depressed and negative thoughts can start creeping in. You need courage to push through and to believe that everything will work out for you.

As for patience, COVID taught me that. Being grounded for 2 years and not being able to travel—it was a struggle. But the situation was forced on everyone so I focused on what’s in my control and made the most out of it. All I had at that time was time on my hands so I used it wisely and worked 2 jobs, thus, increasing my income and savings in the process.

And I think that was when everything started falling into place—my remote jobs became the driving force that turned my plans into reality.

5. ‘I CAN DO THIS’ Mentality

Again, this self-explanatory. If you’ve planned well and you’re ready to take the leap, you need to have this mentality. You can’t let negative thoughts to take over and you have to keep in mind that you are your own superhero and no one’s coming to save you. When you feel trapped, know that there’s another way out. All you need to do is find a workaround, see things from a different perspective, calm your mind, sleep on it, think outside the box and be creative about finding ways. Don’t throw in the towel just yet, not until you’ve exhausted all the possibilities.

I understand that there’s always this question lurking around—what if I fail? Embrace it and learn from it. Also, it’s not the end of the world so don’t be dramatic.

You lost so much money? Earn it back even if it means doing 2 jobs.

What’s the worst thing that could happen anyway? You go back to the Philippines and pick up where you left off. You see, Philippines will always be our default country—it’s our safety net. We can always go back, it’s our birthright.

At the end, it’s all up to you. Will you keep telling yourself excuses or will you finally have the courage to make things happen?

You can do this, we can do this.

Got questions? Drop a comment or send me an email.