002: Why your 20s is the best time to move abroad
& how women benefit from this experience
You’ve probably heard the saying: “Travel while you’re young.” But let’s take it a step further—why not live abroad while you’re young?
Traveling abroad is one thing. Moving abroad? That’s a whole different adventure. It’s thrilling, challenging, and life-changing in ways you can’t imagine until you’ve done it. And yet, so few people take the leap.
Maybe it’s fear of the unknown, financial concerns, or even emotional ties holding you back. Those are valid reasons—but here’s the truth: if you’re even thinking about moving abroad, your 20s are the perfect time to do it.
This newsletter is your sign to stop just dreaming about it and start making it happen. I’ll show you why moving abroad in your 20s makes sense, why it’s especially empowering for women, and how your early 20s differ from doing it later.
So, let’s get into it—because your next chapter might just be waiting on the other side of the world.
Why You Should Do It in Your 20s
I might be biased when I say this, but I truly believe the best time to move abroad is in your 20s. My own experience of moving to Australia at 21, fresh out of college, aside—there are plenty of practical reasons why moving in your 20s just makes sense.
I. Your Health (and Your Family’s)
There are so many things we take for granted when we’re young, and health is at the top of that list. Your body is the vessel that takes you from point A to point B and allows you to experience the world. Your 20s and 30s are your healthiest, most resilient years. This is when you can climb that mountain, wander cobblestone streets for hours, and recover from jet lag (or a hangover) like a champ.
Thankful for my young, supple knees that carried me 5km’s to reach this beautiful waterfall over the weekend!
And it’s not just your health—this is also the youngest your parents, siblings, and grandparents will ever be.
Your parents might still be young and healthy now, but over time, you’ll start noticing the little changes—the wrinkles that weren’t there before, health complications that hint at their age. Eventually, they might need you around more, and that could be the thing that plants your feet permanently back home.
If your loved ones are healthy now, take advantage of it—because trust me, being sick abroad is hard, but worrying about sick family members from afar is even harder.
My lolo (grandpa), lola (grandma) and I, when I was visiting home in New York last year.
II. Your Age and Visa Considerations
The unfortunate truth about moving to another country is that not every country will accept you. They weigh how much value you’ll contribute against how much liability you might be to their social systems. Health plays a big role in this, and there’s a direct correlation between age and health. That’s why many countries have age restrictions and health requirements for visas.
Not all visas are created equal, though. For example, working holiday visas are only available to people aged 18 to 30 (or 35, depending on the country). These are some of the easiest ways to live and work abroad, especially without a job offer or partner to sponsor you. If you’re considering moving abroad, I highly recommend looking into this option.
In any case, it’s important to consider your age. The older you get, the more restricted your visa opportunities will be.
III. Freedom
The most precious gift of our 20s is freedom. We’re the freest we’ll likely ever be in our lives. Most of us don’t have kids, mortgages, massive debts, or ailing parents. Our 20s are our “pick-your-own-adventure” phase.
Woke up at 3AM to hike up a mountain, so I could catch the sunrise over Taranaki volcano last month (New Zealand). Talk about “choose your own adventure”!
Once you take on those responsibilities, your decisions are no longer entirely your own. There are too many variables and lives to consider, making a big move abroad harder to justify. When I got fired from my first job, it took me only a month to pack up my life and move. The silver lining of breaking up with my boyfriend and losing my job in the same month was that I had nothing holding me back.
The realities of my different experiences moving from America to Aus when I was 21 versus, recently, when I was 26 moving from Aus to NZ. Same person, different stage in life.
Now, in my late 20s approaching 30, I don’t have the same reckless abandon I did five years ago. I have a partner to consider, a career I’m building, and an apartment full of furniture. My frontal lobe has developed, and I’m more risk-averse thanks to my good friends “experience” and “wisdom.”
That’s not to say I can’t move abroad again—and in all likelihood, I will—but the older you get, the more inertia there is to starting over.
If you’re young, uncommitted, and maybe even a bit lost, perhaps a move abroad is exactly what you need. The sooner you do it, the better.
Why Women Benefit from This Experience
Something that has always scared me about womanhood is the idea that, if you’re not careful, you will always be somebody’s something—somebody’s daughter, somebody’s girlfriend, somebody’s wife, somebody’s mother. We’re often socially conditioned to play roles for other people: the good daughter, the supportive partner, the doting mother. Too many women jump from role to role without ever considering who they are to themselves.
Who are you when you’re not in relation to anyone else?
What do you like?
What makes you happy?
Where do you want to go?
Since I was 21, I’ve been calling the shots in my own life. Living abroad has taught me the joy of being completely, unapologetically selfish. Without family obligations or a partner to consider, I could go anywhere, do anything, and be whoever I wanted.
Being selfish is a gift-
A gift not many women get to have, and it’s one I know I won’t keep forever. So before you give up your best years of health, youth, and freedom to your career, partner, or anyone else, consider giving yourself the gift of living abroad for a year.
It might just be the best decision you ever make.
I made this FREE phone wallpaper to help inspire your move abroad. You can download it here.
What’s Next?
In my next newsletter, I’ll cover the practical steps you can take to move abroad.
If you’re looking for ways to meet other women on this expat journey, consider introducing yourself in my subscriber-only chat ⤵️
Catchya next week!
xx
Juvi
There is a lot I agree with here but it takes a special window in that season to pack up and go
and that's a hell of a silver lining, darling~ I'm sorry for the breakup and the job loss but, hey, travelling/moving abroad is pretttttty cool!