You don’t just wake up one day and move to Portugal.
Or Mexico. Or Italy. Or even just… out of whatever city you’ve been stuck in for the last ten years.
Before the flight… comes the slow unraveling.
It looks like:
- Googling “cheapest countries for Americans” with 15 open tabs
- Going silent in meetings where you used to speak up
- Re-reading that old tweet about “quiet quitting” and nodding a little too hard
- Starting a spreadsheet called Exit Plan Maybe and then hiding it in a folder named “Taxes 2023” so no one finds it
This is the moment right before you leave.
It’s subtle. Sometimes secret.
But it’s the beginning.
🧠 The Exit Doesn’t Start With a Plane Ticket
It starts in your head.
Then in your gut.
Then in your Google history.
You’ll know it’s happening when you start noticing things you didn’t before:
- That $18 salad that used to just annoy you now feels like a personal attack
- That old “American dream” pitch feels like a scam email
- That sudden burst of inspiration to calculate how long your savings would last in Oaxaca
Leaving doesn’t start with motion.
It starts with permission.
Permission to ask:
“What if I don’t stay here? What if I don’t keep doing this?”
✈️ Leaving Is an Emotional Decision, Not Just a Financial One
People love to make it sound simple:
“Just work remotely! Just get a visa! Just move to Mexico—it’s cheaper!”
Sure.
But what about:
- Your aging parents?
- Your identity as a “successful” professional?
- Your 401k that feels like a guilt anchor?
- Your fear of loneliness, or failure, or regret?
Leaving isn’t just a financial equation.
It’s emotional math.
And the numbers don’t always come out clean.
But still—if you’re here, reading this—you’re starting to calculate anyway. And that matters.
💥 What No One Tells You
Right before you leave, you’ll experience two things at the same time:
- Extreme hope
- Deep panic
You’ll feel clearer and foggier than you’ve ever felt.
You’ll start doing weird things like:
- Tracking your monthly expenses for real
- Reading Reddit threads about immigration bureaucracy
- Writing in a notebook again
- Giving yourself a fake deadline like: “If I still feel this way in 90 days, I’ll go.”
Spoiler: you will still feel this way.
Because this isn’t just a phase.
It’s the start of a decision.
🛠️ The Tools Help. But the Feeling Comes First.
I’ve created all kinds of guides, checklists, and survival tools for this journey—but I know none of it matters if the emotional part isn’t named.
So if this is where you are right now?
Floating between exhaustion and excitement
Wrestling with logistics and longing
Asking “Is it crazy to even think about leaving?”
It’s not crazy.
It’s clarity.
🎒 Want to Start Planning Without Committing?
That’s where the Exit Toolkit comes in.
It’s totally free. No fluff. No pressure.
Just a few tools that help you turn “maybe” into “okay, let’s look.”
✅ Visa & budget checklists
✅ 90-day exit planner
✅ Emotional prep guide
✅ Printable “What Do I Actually Want?” worksheet
🧳 Get the Exit Toolkit Here →
(And yes, it comes with a tiny invite to The Vault—no monthly fees, no weird “limited time” thing. Just tools.)
Final Thought
The moment right before you leave is quiet.
You might not tell anyone.
You might not even believe yourself yet.
But something’s shifting.
And one day—maybe soon—you’ll look back and realize this was the first real step.
Welcome to The Departure Lane.
You’re already moving.
🧳
—Colin
Still figuring it out. Still building the map.
