5 New Years Goals for Expats
There’s nothing I like better than a fresh start - am I right?! And January gives us the perfect blank canvas to decide how we want the next year of our life to go.
2020 is gone! So get off your couch, pull out your notebook and let’s make a few New Years goals to get you excited about living overseas again - even during a pandemic.
Today I’m sharing 5 areas that should be a part of your New Years goals list for 2021 if you’re an expat.
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1.Travel to new places in your new location
Travel is probably one of the biggest reasons you moved abroad. You wanted to see another part of the world and your new location gives you the perfect launching point to do just that! With the end of the pandemic in sight, why not make travel a part of your New Years goals again?!
Pick two cities you’ve had on your radar within the region you can fly to. If you’re living in Bangkok, maybe your goal this year is to visit Vietnam and Singapore. Or if money is tight, find some interesting places within a bus drive or train ride away.
It’s also important to remember to travel within your new country because sometimes we take living there for granted and before you know it - it’s time to leave and you didn’t get to see all the places you thought you had plenty of time to visit.
Unfortunately, this happened to me in Angola. I thought I had plenty of time to travel down to Benguela to see the beautiful beaches local Angolans raved about. But before we knew it, our company asked us to move and we had to leave without seeing the infamous Benguela region.
Don’t let this happen to you! Make it one of your New Years goals to tackle your travel bucket list this year!
2.Create local language related goals
This one is so good if you’re living in a location where you don’t speak the language. We all know being able to speak the language where you’re living will greatly enhance your experience. So this year, let’s kick the learning up a notch!
As a student of Spanish, I wish I had spent more time practicing with locals in Argentina. So let’s start with that goal - practice your new language with at least 1 new local person per month. That’s a good start. It can even include the cashier at the grocery check-out line! One thing I did to help my Spanish was to have Spanish subtitles turned on while watching shows in English. It really helps to read the Spanish while watching TV.
Maybe your New Year's goal should aim to complete a certain Rosetta Stone level. Or hold a ten-minute conversation with a friend in the local language. Any goal that will push you out of your comfort zone and towards learning more of your new language will work great!
3.If you’re feeling lonely, aim to be more social
Expat life can be very lonely if you don’t make a point to get out there and meet people. If you thought making friends back home was hard...well now you’re someplace where you don’t know anybody and you’re also not great with the language yet. This means you’ll have to make a greater effort to meet people.
The best places to meet and network with like-minded people are at associations/clubs. This can include sports clubs such as intramural soccer once a week. Or a women's association. Or a mothers group that gets together for baby play dates.
Also be sure to check out your Embassy’s website for any associations or activities they host. In Angola, the American Embassy would host a yearly July 4th BBQ Cookout and it was always a great place to meet new people.
If you’ve been feeling a little lonely, make this the year you put yourself out there a little more to meet people in your new country.
4.Checkout at least 5 new places that aren’t popular for tourists
Have you seen all the major attractions/parks/museums in your new location? Well, this year why don’t you make it a goal to focus on checking out some “off the beaten path” places. You know, those places where most people don’t go when they’re just visiting for a few weeks. Restaurants count too!
When I lived in Buenos Aires, exploring a new place was as easy as walking down a different street to get home from lunch with Andrew. Literally walking one block over meant experiencing and seeing all new cafes, restaurants and street life.
Maybe there’s a neighborhood in your new city that most people wouldn’t consider “touristy”. Plan to spend a Saturday walking around it. You may find your new favorite hang out spot!
In both Argentina and Angola there were several places I went to near the end of our expat assignments that I wished I had found earlier. I remember saying to Andrew, “Man, I wish we had eaten here 2 years ago..we could have enjoyed this place for 2 years!”. Don’t let that happen to you. Get out there and explore new places in your new location!
5.Get really good at recreating a local dish
Is one of your goals this year to eat out less and get healthy? Or do you have a goal to save more by spending less at restaurants? Or maybe you’re just plain tired of eating out. Cooking at home can help in all three of those areas!
Is there a local dish you love but haven’t tried making? In Argentina, mine was empanadas. I saw the dough at stores countless times before I actually purchased some and tried to make them at home. I enjoyed incorporating flavors Andrew I and I liked from home such as pizza and mexican taco. I wouldn’t say I mastered empanadas but at least I tried a few times!
If you’re interested in trying to make your own empanadas, here are some recipes to get you started!
There’s never going to be a better time to try making the local dishes then when you’re living abroad. When you move home, it’ll be really hard to find all the ingredients you need. So go ahead and give yourself permission to experiment in your kitchen with local flavors and dishes this year! And if your city is still in quarantine, then cooking is a great way to pass the time indoors!
These are some great New Years goals to work towards this year to ensure your upcoming year living overseas is your best yet!
What are some expat related New Years goals you plan to achieve this year? Let me down in the comments so I can cheer you on!
Ready to learn more about living overseas? I lived overseas for the past 6.5 years and share everything you need to know about expat life in the posts below.
