A quick look around the manosphere will reveal mass amounts of young men who are sick to the back teeth with the prospect of the “go to college, get a career, get married, have kids and die” paradigm of the previous generation.
And who can blame them?
In today’s world of technology, travel, and seemingly unlimited options – we don’t have to follow this paradigm laid out for us by the previous generation.
I left home at 17 and began searching for an alternative to this system and way of life. After a decade of searching and looking, eventually finding what was right for me and living life on my own terms, I’ve come up with a list of five ways you can have an alternative lifestyle and live free.
1. Teach English overseas
Teaching is one option for escaping the 9-5 by going abroad.
Yes it’s cliché and yes it has been said a million times before, but that’s because this is possibly the easiest and most popular way to get away from home and make some money.
There is an absolutely HUGE demand for English teachers all over Asia, South America, and the Middle East. If the job market sucks at home and you need a way out, this would be your best bet.
After my article on why Asia may be the best place for a young western man a some people asked HOW to get started in teaching English. I’ve written this article and provided links at the bottom to accredited courses for those who are seriously interested. There are a lot of useless, scam TEFL courses out there so it is important to pick one that you will actually get a job with.
There are 1.3 billion people in China and approximately another 600 million in the ASEAN nations of South East Asia, and they all want or need to learn English to get ahead in their careers and lives.
If you have the adventurous spirit and are willing to live within humble means for a year or two until you get experience and the more lucrative jobs become available, all those people means a lot of opportunity for you. You’ll generally be expected to work about 20-30 hours a week and be paid decent cash.
Heck, living in the tropics isn’t half bad either.
2. Day trade
Day trading can lucrative, but also risky.
Day trading is not something you should take lightly. It is a fact that the majority of people who do it lose money over the long run. However, that’s because most people have no clue what they are doing and trade too often.
I personally would never choose this as my one and only source of income, but for those with less responsibility and a little capital to get started it can be a lucrative way to live with location independence and not have the man breathing down your neck.
Thankfully due to the function of short selling and spread betting you can make money even when the market in general or a specific share price is falling.
Again, this is not for the faint at heart or those who value a steady pay check and security. For those with the gonads to live by their wits and the patience to study properly and learn how things work, however, this could be the Willy Wonka ticket to wealth and freedom.
Tread carefully if you choose this option.
3. Work in offshore oil and gas
This is one of the most lucrative fields on the planet, as I outlined on Return of Kings before.
However, this option is virtually closed to those without either connections or some in-demand trade or skill. It’s also worth mentioning that now is not the best time to approach this industry, as times are tight and it could be a couple of years before things bounce back and jobs become widely available again.
That being said, if you are willing to retrain and skill up it could be the perfect time to do so and prepare for when things do kick back into action.
Offshore work is hard, dirty, and you work long hours. If you are willing to do that you will be rewarded with a fat pay check, six months off per year, and the ability to work in some of the most remote, adventurous places on Earth.
So far I’ve been doing it for three years and have worked in West Papua, Indonesia, and Australia. The check comes in at a little under 15k per month on the rig.
Tradesmen and workin’ horses – this is your ticket to the big leagues if you are willing to take it. All that time off can be used to start a business, travel or just spend quality time with your family if you have one.
4. Freelance
It probably won’t look quite like this, but close enough!
If you have a skill that is in demand these days and are good at what you do, there is absolutely no need to be tied down to a cubicle in some mind-numbing, soul-destroying corporate office.
Web designers, graphic artists, writers, and computer programmers are all examples of those who can make a living in the ever-growing freelance industry found online at sites like Odesk and ifreelance.
When I was traveling in Thailand I met a Swedish guy who worked as a freelance computer programmer writing code for a big company. He literally did about six hours work per day and spent the rest of the day catching waves and having full body massages on the beach in Koh Samui.
It may not provide you with the security of the office job, but then if you really wanted that you probably wouldn’t have read this article to begin with. Freelancing is a growing sector, and my guess is there will be a trend towards this kind of work arrangement in the future.
Why not get ahead of the game and start now?
5. Become an entrepreneur
There’s really no way to quantify this category because it covers such a wide range of possible occupations and ventures.
Let’s just say this – there are plenty of people doing things their own way, answering to no boss and living life on their own terms by embracing their inner entrepreneur and running their own businesses.
I’ve met a few from all different walks of life during my eight years in Asia. One guy flew all over the world setting up blimps at concerts and fairs, one ran a bar on Bali and seemingly was having the time of his life doing shots out of tourists’ titties on a nightly basis for a living, a few exported furniture and crafts from Indonesia, while many more ran blogs and websites selling goods and services.
If you relocate somewhere in South America or Asia for a year or two, the money you have saved should multiply by a factor of two or three compared to the cost of living at home, buying you a lot more time to get your venture off the ground.
If that isn’t your thing you can stay right where you are and do it there. There are thousands of successful entrepreneurs in America and Europe, with more popping up every day.
Summary
It’s a world full of opportunity and change. We are not trapped the way our grandfathers were – working for the same shitty company for fifty years and getting a gold watch and a pat on the back on the way out the door to retirement.
Opportunity to live an alternative way of life is available like never before. If that’s what you want to do and you dread the idea of working in a traditional career and way of life, I’m here to tell you that YOU DON’T HAVE TO.
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