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Living in the Philippines offers a potentially better quality of life and financial freedom compared to Western countries, but it requires careful budgeting, understanding tradeoffs, and a willingness to adapt to local culture and systems.
The host discusses the appeal of living in the Philippines, highlighting its potential for financial independence and a better quality of life compared to Western countries. He emphasizes the importance of multiple income streams and living below one's means to achieve this goal. The video touches on the host's personal journey, his plans for the channel, and his reflections on the economic struggles in the West, suggesting that relocation might be a solution for many.
The discussion delves into practical aspects of living in the Philippines, including choosing cities like Dumaguete or Cebu, navigating visa processes, and managing expenses in pesos and dollars. The host contrasts the tradeoffs of living abroad, such as sacrificing some conveniences for greater freedom and better relationships. He also addresses the challenges of finding genuine connections and the importance of cultural adaptation.
The conversation expands to broader economic and social issues, with the host expressing concerns about declining upward mobility in Western democracies and the rising cost of living. He suggests that skilled trades and entrepreneurship might offer more stability. The video concludes with reflections on the future of young people, the benefits of international living, and the importance of finding a place that aligns with personal values and offers a sense of community.
Living in the Philippines can offer a high quality of life, particularly for those seeking financial independence and a slower pace. You can live below your means, enjoy a more relaxed lifestyle, and potentially build better relationships than in Western countries. However, it requires adaptation and understanding the local systems.
Achieving financial freedom abroad often involves maintaining multiple income streams and living below your means, allowing you to save and invest effectively. The Philippines offers a lower cost of living, which can accelerate this process compared to Western countries. Careful budgeting and understanding local expenses are key to maximizing your financial independence.
The Philippines offers a lifestyle with a significantly lower cost of living and a more relaxed pace, which can enhance overall well-being and relationships. You can enjoy a greater sense of freedom and potentially achieve financial independence faster than in many Western nations. This shift allows for more focus on personal growth and community.
While living in the Philippines offers financial advantages and a different quality of life, there are tradeoffs. These can include sacrificing some Western conveniences, navigating visa extensions, and adapting to local culture and infrastructure. Building genuine connections also requires effort and a deep appreciation for the local way of life.
The cost of living in the Philippines is considerably lower than in most Western countries, allowing for a higher quality of life on a smaller budget. Expenses for housing, food, and daily living are significantly less, enabling greater financial freedom and the potential to save more. This economic advantage is a primary draw for many expats.
Retiring in the Philippines can be an attractive option due to the lower cost of living and a potentially higher quality of life. Many expats find it achievable by living below their means and understanding visa requirements. Careful planning and research into specific locations and financial management are recommended.
Retirees in countries like the Philippines have typically planned, worked, and saved for their retirement. This allows them to enjoy a life that appears easier but is the result of prior financial discipline. The video suggests that financial independence is achievable by living below your means and maintaining multiple income streams.
The video discusses the possibility of needing to return to work, even while living abroad. It highlights the importance of having multiple income streams to achieve financial independence and greater freedom. The host also mentions plans to continue vlogging from the US for those interested.
0:04 Testing, test. Okay, there we go. Okay, thanks so much everybody for your patience. The last one I just did had an audio issue, but this should be good. I'll just wait for the first person to hop on here.
0:42 Great, so we're going and the audio is on. Yeah, feel free to chime in with any thoughts you have, any questions you have. We'll wait for the first person to hop on here. I do apologize about the audio. Yeah, I've got a little indicator down here where I can make a determination as to whether or not it's getting picked up, so you should be able to hear me loud and clear. Let me know too if the background noise is a little bit too much, and of course, we can always hop on here later on when I'm at home. But when I'm at home, it can be a little bit challenging because sometimes there's background noise there as well. Just a reality here in the Philippines.
1:28 I'm having a great time. I just recorded a video with a fellow YouTuber, and I've got a couple in the tank I've got to edit, so that may come out this upcoming weekend. We'll just see how long it takes me to get caught up. And of course, next week I've got to make a determination. I'm leaning toward going to Siargao next. I should find out tomorrow whether or not I'm getting the job offer back in California. If I don't get that, then you can expect more content from here in the Philippines. If I do get that, I've got some ideas of where the channel direction will go. There's a lot I could talk about in relation to the challenges in the US. There's a lot I could talk about in regards to why I think so many guys will be coming over here to the Philippines, gals too, but most of my channel subscribership is male. And not just the Philippines, but Thailand as well. Some of you may be aware that I spent a year in Thailand and some time in Vietnam, about a month in Vietnam, before I came here to the Philippines.
2:46 And I can get into the reasons why I think a lot of guys will come over here. But that's my goal. I would say in probably three or four years to make the permanent move over here because I just enjoy it a lot. And you know, just a great community here, a lot of interesting people come through the Philippines. Siargao is certainly high on my list, but I'm also interested in exploring some other parts of the country that I haven't yet visited.
3:19 But yeah, we've got three folks watching. Feel free to chime in in the discussion and introduce yourselves. You can always ask any questions that come to your mind. Happy to respond. And yeah, just a beautiful day here. It's, we might get a little bit of rain. I noticed the forecast said there's about a 40% chance of rain, and I'm not sure whether or not that will roll in. But if it does, hey Gerard, good to see you. Welcome, welcome.
4:00 Yeah, thanks so much for being a subscriber. It's always nice to see your name in here. Feel free to chime in on any questions. I'm just kind of discussing a little bit about the direction of the channel. If I don't get the offer I'm looking for this week, then I'll just keep vlogging over here. If I do get the offer, the channel will have to go in a bit of a different direction. It's, you know, I've got to make the responsible decision. I'm not at my financial independence point, to be fully transparent. But you know, if I get the right opportunity back home, that's going to push me along further toward the goal, I think it's doable in probably three or four years. I've also got things to handle back home. One of the things I'm gonna have to get rid of is my storage unit. I have a storage unit back home, I'd like to ultimately get rid of that.
4:55 Hey Jake, welcome, welcome. Good to see you in here. Jake's been a subscriber for a while. Always good to see Jake. And yeah, feel free to chime in everybody. We've got five people watching. I'm sure some of you are new subscribers as well. I want to thank you for subscribing to the channel. You probably came from some of the recent content I've done with some of these vloggers that I really respect, in a lot of ways, these guys who I would call pioneers, guys who are long in the tooth over here, right? They've been here for, you know, two, three, four, five, six, seven years in the case of Paul.
5:35 And yeah, you know, I'm confident. Like, I realize that there's a better life over here for me. That may not be the case for you, but for me personally, there is a better life here. And it's really just once you figure out your plan, it's just a matter of repeating steps. It's a matter of making money and living below your means, and doing both of those things at the same time will help you move in the right direction financially. I call it Financial Independence, Retire Early. The retirement part is not as important as the financial independence part. For me, retirement just means that you're no longer sacrificing today for tomorrow, that you get to a point financially, you have enough income coming in, it covers your expenses. You're not, you know, you're not delaying gratification in the same way that you would be when you're working a full-time job back in the West.
6:30 I feel confident the channel will continue to evolve if the channel grows substantially enough to the point where it's covering all my expenses and then some, then certainly I could pull up stakes in the US earlier. I also have a car, which before moving over here, I'll likely want to sell because it's kind of what some people would call an albatross. It's this thing that is difficult to store, it's costly to maintain. Of course, registration is not free.
7:00 But yeah, these are just some of the things on my radar. And I hope that documenting this process, the journey to financial independence, the journey to getting rid of my things in the US, will be helpful for you because I'm sure many of you, you're not quite at the point where you're ready to move over here full-time, but you want to see what that looks like. And of course, there's other channels that cover that. Goo covers that, Gio's the individual that I interviewed earlier this morning. Mike does great stuff, Mike's PH Retirement. Of course, Paul, Old Dog New Tricks. There's quite a few guys. Right Beyond the Sea is another popular channel that have the blueprint sorted out. They can give you these intellectual frameworks with how to approach this.
7:48 So, you know, yeah, feel free, like I said, chime in with any questions or thoughts. We'll go for about an hour. And yeah, it's, it's good to see though four or five folks are on here. That's pretty decent for my channel. So, yeah, this will probably be a decent time for those, especially those on like the West Coast United States. It's not too late for them. I imagine for East Coast, it's quite late. We're approaching midnight. But yeah, I'll try to do them at different times to try to collect different people. Different people have different time zones and different times in which they're free and able to.
8:33 age, but I just want to be fully transparent. So, yeah, if I don't get the offer, I'm looking at Siargao because I am talking to a lady in Siargao, and I'd like to go meet her, actually. I met her through her aunt. I don't want to get too much into it, I want to respect her privacy, but she's, yeah, she's just a really interesting person, and I really enjoy chatting with her.
9:02 And there's, uh, yeah, there's just something about the people here that's so special. I don't miss the US. For those who might be wondering, what do you miss about the US? Hey Ron, good to see you. Welcome, welcome. The only thing I miss about the US is earning potential. Of course, as a US citizen, I can work most jobs. I can work multiple jobs. I can make quite a bit of income. But aside from the income, I don't miss the US at all. I don't miss the division, I don't miss the aggression, I don't miss the culture, I don't miss the weather, and much of the US. There's just not a lot I miss back home.
9:49 Yes, Gerard, I'm at a restaurant right now. I don't want to disclose the name just to maintain privacy. I'm starting to get recognized around town here in Dumaguete, and so I want to maintain my privacy and not get too much attention. Not that it's bad, you know, not that it's negative, but it's definitely a strange feeling, right? Because I'm not like some A-list celebrity, I'm not a famous sports player, so getting recognized is still something I'm having to adjust to, something that is not something I've experienced before.
10:32 Gerard, Ronell says, will you travel forever? So I think that's like in the far future. Right now, I'm not at the income point where I could just travel in perpetuity. I also don't know if it's a lifestyle for me. I like breaks. I like to break up my time in a location. Oh, by the way, please run up the likes if you can. Give us a thumbs up, it helps with the algorithm. But you know, I'm not in the play, I'm not in the point where I could budget to just travel and...
10:59 The more you move, the more you pay nightly rates for hotels. You may overpay for transportation. You may, you're paying for a place like in your home city, and you're paying for your accommodation in the new place. So it's much more economical to stay in one place at a time, and you can build up relationships there, you can build up friendships there, you can get to know people a bit better there.
11:32 Hey Solo Transient, good to see you. Yeah, it's always, always good to see you. Solo Transient, Ronell says, true, it adds up fast. Yeah, it can really add up a lot in surprising ways. I mean, you get a delay on your travel, now you've got to book an extra hotel. You go to a restaurant, and the food is not so good, so you go to a different restaurant. When you stay in one place, you really know where you want to eat, the coffee shops you want to get coffee at. You have, you know, the economical opportunities to have fun. You're not always having to spend on having a good...
12:21 Okay Billy, welcome. I think this is the first time I'm seeing you on the channel. Can you describe what's your favorite city in the Philippines? You know, I'm partial to Dumaguete. I really like it a lot. I've spent more time here than anywhere else in the Philippines. It's, uh, what Gio would call a soft landing. You've got your Western-style restaurants, you've got your foreigners that speak your language and also understand your background. They probably worked a long time in the US, or Australia, Canada. They know what's going on over there, they can relate to you.
12:53 You've got, uh, you know, plenty of English because of the college here, Simon University. So if you're needing to get services like phone service, um, if you're needing to, uh, get a ride, you know, all these things become easier in Dumaguete. It's also a city that's growing a lot. Lots and lots of people are moving here, so it's got this energy about it that's, uh, unique even for the Philippines.
13:19 I'm also a fan of Cebu for what it's worth. Cebu treated me well. I think Cebu is great. Okay, Billy, this is going to lean into your question: What's a good city to date? I think Manila and Cebu are going to be your best options because in Manila and in Cebu, you've got, um, you just got so many people and people from all over the country. Like, uh, when I was in Manila, or rather, when I was in Cebu, I was meeting people from all over the Philippines, not just the Visayas region, but also people from Mindanao, now probably some folks from Manila as well.
14:02 So it's just, uh, the numbers, right? I look at it like Dumaguete has a population of 150,000. Split that in half if you're a guy looking to date a woman, you got 75,000. Maybe a third or, uh, are above the age range that you're looking at, or a third below the age range that you're looking at. And so then you got 25,000. Okay, maybe half of those are in relationships. Now you got 12,500. Uh, maybe another half of those for whatever reason are incompatible.
14:29 So I would say it's just, uh, you know, Dumaguete is not going to be, um, you know, it's a place I think more oriented toward couples. Like, you've met a lady in another city and you want to move here now that you're committed, now that you're settled down. That's a little bit different story. But if you're looking to, uh, meet single people in general, like I'm sure there's some women on my channel that want to meet a nice man, then once again, Manila and Cebu are just going to have your largest populations of single people.
15:00 Solo Transi says, stay there in the Philippines, your channel will grow quickly. Thank you so much, Solo. I'm just more of a fan of having multiple streams of income. So my concern in the back of my mind is, what if something happens? What if my YouTube channel for whatever reason fades out or goes away? I don't want to be in this position scrambling to go back home and, um, okay, I've been away from home for several years. Where's my career at? I don't have relevant recent job history.
15:32 So my ideal is having investment income and YouTube income and perhaps some other online income. I think having multiple income streams is a way to protect the downside. Right? I could be very, very successful on YouTube. I could be a YouTube rockstar. I do think my channel is growing a lot. I've had 400 people in the last three weeks subscribe to my channel. But, you know, I, like I said, I like protecting downside. I like having multiple streams.
16:01 The idea of having multiple streams of income, I want to get to the point where when I come over here, I don't ever have to go back. I choose to go back to see friends, but that would be the only reason I want to go back is that I actually want to go see people I haven't seen in a while, maybe to take care of some business needs, but not, 'Oh man, I'm out of money or I'm low on money, I need to rush back and try to put my life back together.' That's not what I'm looking to do.
16:31 I understand maybe it's unlikely. I don't know what the odds of that are, but it does happen to some guys, and I don't want to be one of those guys. I think it's a bad look for the expat community. It's a bad look for the blogger community. And, uh, yeah, I think, you know, when you're not reliant upon one stream of income, you can be more honest.
16:53 You can, uh, you know, you're not being overly salesy or overly commercial, uh, in what you present on YouTube. I think that some channels can be a bit too salesy. They only want to, uh, share a certain way of like getting you hooked, like, 'Oh, it's going to, it's paradise.' That's not the case. There is no paradise, there is no perfect place. It's all about tradeoffs in my opinion.
17:23 Um, what do you got back home and what would you have here? They're not the same, right? There's some things that I miss back about back home. Conversely, there's a lot of things I don't miss about back home. And I think every one of you will feel the same way. There's going to be some things that you're giving up, and there's going to be some things that you're getting.
17:46 Okay, Billy, have you been to Davao? I hear it's clean and organized, but, uh, Morring, I have not been to Davao. So I've been to other parts of Mindanao. Have not been to Davao. I would like to go to Davao. It's high on my list as far as places to go. I think it's, you know, the big city in Mindanao. It's got a lot of your conveniences, it's got the modern shopping malls, it's got a lot to offer that is unique within Mindanao.
18:12 Um, to me, like when I hear boring, I get excited about that. I'm not looking for the most exciting nightlife town. I'm not looking for the wildest, uh, party scene. To me, I'd like that. So it is high on my list, uh, maybe for different reasons than some people would think, but I like the idea of Davao. I've had several friends go down there and enjoy it a lot, and certainly it's, uh, ranking high on my list.
18:39 Gerard says, a digital nomad may have a pay scale like the USA and still stay where you're at now. Yeah, if I earned what I'm capable of earning in the US here, it would be a no-brainer. I would never go back, like I said, except to see friends and family and to well, friends, not family, and to handle, uh, different kinds of business errands, that kind of thing. But typically, digital nomads, their income potential for many, not all, but many, is less than what they'd have back home, especially in the early stages.
19:11 Maybe they're more established, maybe they've been here for five years, they've had a lot of time to compound, uh, growth and investments, compound their channel. But for a lot of guys, initially, it's a pay cut. I mean, for me, it's a pay cut. I can earn a great income in the United States, uh, and not so much about...
19:42 Um, have you been to Baguio City? They have a nice upscale Starbucks, Ronald asks. No, I haven't. I haven't been to Baguio yet. I haven't been to that many places in the Philippines. So I've been to now, uh, four places in the Philippines. I've been to Siargao Island, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, and now Dumaguete.
20:02 Uh, I'd like there's some other places I'd like to go. Davao is up there. Uh, Baguio is up there. Malaybalay is up there. There's quite a few places I do want to go, but there's a thousand populated islands. So there's potentially a thousand different islands that I could go to. And, uh, yeah, there's just so many possibilities here. It's really mind-blowing how much variety there is in the country.
20:27 I don't differentiate as much about environment, differentiate the islands more by population. Do you want a big city vibe? You're probably going to want to go to Manila, Cebu, Davao. Do you want a provincial life? You're probably going to want to go to a less populated area. You want something in between? Maybe a midsize city is what you're looking for.
20:43 Uh, if you want cooler weather, of course, Baguio is popular. It's probably the most well-known of the cooler, uh, places due to altitude. If you want to be around a lot of foreigners, then certain areas are going to have more of that. If you want to be on fewer, then you're looking more provincial.
21:07 Let's see. How would you describe life in the Philippines? I lived in Thailand, but there's a language barrier in most cities. I would say in the Philippines, you are trading your conveniences for freedom. So you may have to wait a bit longer than what you're accustomed to at a restaurant, uh, depending on your city. Traffic may be more than what you're used to. Uh, there may be an occasional, uh, you know, brownout.
21:35 But the upside is you have more. Many of us will typically have more financial freedom. We'll have better relationships because we'll be able to invest time into our relationships, unlike in the US where people are in go, go, go, go, go mode. Uh, then, you know, the weather, like if you're in a cold part of the US, you're not going to have to deal with the extreme cold here that you would there. Uh, if you're in like the UK where you've got half the year is super rainy and overcast, there is a rainy season here. I find it's not as extreme.
22:08 It's all about tradeoffs. Uh, and it also comes down to your preference, right? If you'd prefer to be in a big city, you're going to have the challenges that come with living in a big city, the traffic, uh, potentially the noise. Um, but then you get your conveniences, right? If you want to fly out, fly to Japan, you want to fly back to the US, it's easier to do from Manila or Cebu. You're not going to have to fly up to one of those cities or take a ferry up to one of those cities. It's a quicker, uh, you know, jet out and jet back in.
22:37 So you really, I think, have to think about tradeoffs when you think about life in the Philippines. Um, you know, if you're more provincial, yeah, you can probably grow some vegetables, you can probably, uh, get to know people a little bit better. It's just going to be not the same fast pace that you'd have in a Manila or Cebu.
22:54 By the way, real quick, we got 11 people watching. Please give us a thumbs up. It really helps with the YouTube algorithm to, uh, share this content with more people. And also to share the stream with more people. 15, wow. I think 15 is the most people I've ever had on my, uh, on my live stream. I really appreciate all of you sharing your time with me, and, uh, that I'm able to bring you enough value.
23:22 Great question, Billy. Are people in the provinces more genuine than people in the city? I don't know. I think it's hard to figure out. It's really a hard determination to decide. It depends on your personality, your temperament, how skeptical you are, and how well you know people.
23:53 The biggest thing that is not easily solved is time. I think time on the ground will really help you sort out who you can trust and who you cannot trust. I've found value in vlogging because for vloggers, I can go and watch all their content. Some of these guys have a thousand-plus videos where I can get a sense of their character and who they are.
24:16 Yes, they have a persona, but there's only so much you can hide as far as a persona goes when you are live-streaming or putting content out there. I did enjoy Thailand a lot. That was probably the biggest challenge I faced in Thailand: the language barrier.
24:35 For most Thai people, they speak one language, and that's Thai. I don't speak Thai. I tried to learn, but I really struggled there. So, certainly, the Philippines has a big appeal in that regard for people from Canada, the United States, Australia, or New Zealand.
24:59 It's all about how much you save. I think that's an important point. If you're making $10,000 a month in the United States but spend $9,999, you're really spinning your wheels and not moving forward toward financial independence. Conversely, if you make $7,000 a month and live on $3,500, you're making steady gains every single month.
25:22 Of course, getting laid off or losing your job will chew into that. Conversely, if you get a promotion and start making more money, and you keep living below your means, you get the advantage of moving towards your goals faster. So, it's really a financial equation for younger guys, more than a concern for health or other things.
25:50 It's really about what's your income and what are you going to spend. If you're in the West, how can you maximize your income and minimize your expenses? That will also train you to be more economical. If you're used to living below your means in the West, you can bring that mindset here and live below your means.
26:06 Just because you move halfway around the world doesn't mean you're turning into a high roller. Will your foreign currency purchase more than it would back home? Typically, yes. But you still have to live below your means. For most of us, moving into a penthouse in Bonifacio Global City, eating at the finest steak houses every night, or buying a BMW is going to put us back at square one.
26:32 Of course, I know most of us aren't looking to do that, but you still have to live within your means. You still have to find a city, a location, and housing that is in line with your budget. You have to decide what you can afford to eat, what kind of coffee shops you can afford to frequent.
26:44 Do you have a mall kiosk budget? Do you have a street food budget? Do you have a high-end coffee shop budget? Do you have a BGC budget, or do you have a more provincial budget? These are all things worth considering.
27:07 Okay, Billy says, 'I looked at teaching online. It was not easy for me.' Teaching English online, I look at it as something for a year or two, not necessarily something most people will be able to sustain long-term. I think a lot of people get bored with it.
27:23 It may not pay enough for them to save money. Maybe they are able to cover their expenses, but they're not able to put money in the bank every month. I think most people, in the long term, should be aiming to be putting money in the bank every month for emergencies, for a repatriation budget, all these things that can come up and really take us by surprise.
27:47 Anono, welcome! Great to see you on here. Drew, 'Love your vlog with Paul.' Thank you so much, Drew. I really appreciate that. I had a great time sitting down with Paul, and we may be doing a follow-up later this week. Actually, after this stream, I'll be reaching out to him to try to set something up because I'll probably be hitting the road next Tuesday.
28:14 Okay, Billy, maybe it could be jobs on LinkedIn, back-office work, but may need a phone. Yeah, I just have mixed feelings about doing that. I think having a vlog for myself, or a business for myself, is going to be more efficient because I'm able to have the lion's share of the revenue.
28:47 If you're working for someone else, they're having to spend money on training you, and in some cases, providing you with equipment. If the needs of their business change, you may find yourself without a job. So, I think having your own control of your own streams of income is more ideal than being an employee of somebody else.
29:07 Maybe in some cases, you could be an independent contractor. You get a skill set, you offer that skill set to perspective buyers who need that service. But trying to rely on somebody else, I think, is just not as strong in the long term.
29:29 Fred, great to see you. Fred says, 'Hi Alex, good talk.' Thank you. Absolutely, always good to chat with you, Fred. Gerard says, 'What sparked you to start your channel?' Yeah, Gerard, so I was in Thailand six years ago, and I tried Thai Red Bull, didn't know it was a Thai product, and wanted to just share my reaction to it, my thoughts about it.
29:51 And yeah, it just kind of went from there. Then, when I went to Peru a few years later, I started to make content about Peru, just trying to show off the architecture because I thought the architecture and Colombia as well looked so different from what I'm used to in North America. I wanted to share that with the audience.
30:09 There wasn't really the intention to make money as much as just having fun and trying to have kind of a video diary of my experiences, making videos that I could reflect on my experiences. And yeah, just going from there.
30:33 Okay, Billy, what's your average monthly pay? So, my budget would be 75,000 pesos. I think 75,000 is a reasonable amount, but really, the idea would be I look at it in dollars. I try to denominate my budget in dollars because that's where my income is more often coming from.
30:49 I think $1,500 US dollars is ideal to start with. Above that, certainly great. Below that, I think you start to run into some risks. Let's see how much $1,500 USD is in pesos. So, about 85,000 pesos. That's really what I do. I know some people here on that 75,000 peso budget. I think 85,000 is a little bit better because you want to account for currency fluctuations.
31:17 The exchange rate may weaken, especially with dropping interest rates in the US. That typically correlates with the exchange rate weakening in terms of US dollars to Philippine Pesos. So, yeah, I hope that answers your question.
31:35 Okay, Billy, how long do you think you're staying in the Philippines? Yeah, so it depends, Limay. Your audience is growing rapidly. Well, thank you so much. I really appreciate that compliment. I've just been very fortunate to meet a lot of great mentors here in Dumaguete that have helped me take it to the next level, helped me improve my content, thumbnails, understanding how to be more efficient, understanding how to use my time here effectively.
32:12 Of course, featuring me on their channels, which is a rare feat. I think for me, that's just a massive compliment that they would be willing to have me meet their audience and get to know their audience. It's just so kind for them to do that because there's a lot more for these bigger channels to offer me than I have to offer them.
32:31 But to answer your question, Limay, I am in the interview process for a couple of jobs back in the San Francisco area. These jobs are offering me what I would consider pretty good compensation. I would just go back and stack money, live as cheap as I can, and save and invest as much as I can.
32:53 And there's, only at the income that I'm being offered, the pay rates I'm being offered, then it would only take me a few more years at that income to be totally financially independent and to be able to come over here permanently. I don't want to be in this situation where I lived here for five years and now all of a sudden I'm almost broke and I need to rush back.
33:11 And the channel, I'm not able to give it any attention because I'm struggling or scrambling. I like the idea of having a successful channel, but it's not easy. If it was easy, everybody would have a successful channel. But we have this bias because we see the most successful channels, thinking everybody can do it, and I don't feel that's the case.
33:33 It takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time, it takes some luck. It takes finding your product-market fit, understanding your audience, and what would be of value to them. Because I have to respect your time, the fact that 16 of you are giving me your undivided attention is so generous, and I wanted to make it worth your while over an extended period of time, not just for today or tomorrow, but for a very long time.
33:58 So, yeah, this is kind of a long-winded answer, Limay, but great question. Drew says, 'New subscriber for you, Paul, about two years coming this January. Hope to meet you, Paul and Mike.' Yeah, if I'm here in the Philippines in January, if I don't get that lucrative offer that I'm prepared to take, I'd be happy to meet with you, Drew.
34:20 It's, yeah, Dumaguete is just such a cool town. I mean, it has, in some ways, kind of a crossroads feeling to me. Like, even though you're in a modest-sized town, it's this crossroads of foreigners coming through and also a lot of interesting local people, cool coffee shops, nice restaurants. There's so much to see here, so much to do here. You can't go wrong.
34:46 I think, no, of course, it's not for everyone, but I do think it does.
34:50 Not for everyone, but I do think it does offer everyone something. For a lot of people, they might enjoy the restaurants. For others, they might enjoy the activities. For others, maybe they find a significant other here. There's just, uh, it, I look at it like it punches above its weight. It's, you know, 150,000 people, but it feels, in some ways, larger than life due to the presence of the vloggers: Filipina P, Paul Old Dog New Tricks, Mike's Philippine Retirement, Gio, really talented and hardworking folks.
35:19 Okay, Billy, why are some YouTubers faceless on camera? Yeah, you know, some people just want to maintain their privacy. I don't blame them. Being a YouTuber, especially early on, can be thankless. You can get some bad trolls, and some people just don't want to be recognized in public. They may have a job that, you know, based on their content, their job could be at risk. There's a lot of reasons to be faceless.
35:48 I don't mind because I feel like it's on brand for me to be on camera. I want to be accountable to what I say. I want to be able to people to be able to push back on what I'm saying if it's a genuine question or genuine concern. Uh, working in sales definitely made me have thicker skin. And so, uh, you know, I don't mind being on camera. I don't mind having a face attached to my content.
36:10 I've also checked in with my vlogger friends about that. You know, does it potentially risk your content? And they've gone through the scenarios with me and they're like, yeah, it's, I mean, I don't think it's a major risk. I don't think what I have to talk about is of much interest for potential employers. It's also not controversial. I try to stay away from the controversial stuff.
36:32 I don't really think that it's the, uh, style. It's not, I don't think it's my style. Uh, for other people, sure, they want to talk about certain controversial topics. I'm willing to talk about controversial topics, but I don't like the idea of playing status games. Oh, uh, people are this or people are that, or can you believe this vlogger, this? Can you believe this vlogger, that? It's just a very stressful subject.
36:54 And I'd rather be, uh, I try to be an optimist these days. Like, not always successful at that. Um, I also try to be a realist, but if I'm too pessimistic, I think it would harm my audience who is looking for a better life for themselves. For many of you, you do want something different than what you're experiencing.
37:18 And just coming on here and telling you, oh, it was hot today, and oh, this restaurant was out of mashed potatoes, and this and that, it's not helpful for the Philippines, and it's not helpful for people who'd like to live here or at least visit.
37:33 Welcome, welcome Tony. Always good to see you, Tony. Everyone, by the way, I'll do another, uh, polite reminder. We've got 18 people watching. Please give us a thumbs up if you haven't already. It helps to, uh, increase and draw attention to the channel. Share an algorithm. And, uh, yeah, I'm sorry, Tony, that, uh, I didn't, I should have sent you a message, but I'll be trying to do another stream probably this weekend, maybe midweek. This is another busy week for me.
38:03 I feel like every single day here, almost every single day, unless I take a day off, is jam-packed. Yeah, it's Tony, the growth has been wild. I can't thank Tony enough. Everybody, Tony is a channel member, and, uh, you know, channel members get access to content early. I'm also trying to start to do members-only content, content that is only for them, probably what I call a little bit spicier content.
38:30 Um, so those are the two main benefits. When we build up enough channel members, I'll do members-only streams periodically where we can have, uh, a small group able to ask more, uh, questions. Maybe there's some things they wouldn't want to share with the larger audience that they're more happy to share with membership or with members, with their fellow members. Uh, and it helps to support the channel. It helps me to invest more time into the channel.
38:55 If the channel got big enough that it far exceeded my, um, you know, my or even matched my earning potential back home, then maybe a situation where I go vlogging full-time. Uh, so yeah, that's certainly an appeal of membership, not a requirement, but certainly greatly appreciated.
39:15 Tony Drew says, new subscriber for you. Paul, about two. Oh, yeah, we already got that one. Anita Marcado says, good luck, Alex. Thank you so much, Anita. That's so, uh, generous and kind.
39:28 Unano says, I would be okay with a one-bedroom place overseas. Yeah, I mean, for me, per se, a studio or one bedroom is plenty. Less to keep, uh, less to clean up, less to keep up with, potentially more secure, easier to, you know, just drop and go traveling if you want to do that.
39:51 And, uh, yeah, I mean, it's, uh, you know, I think there's some advantages to single-family homes, but I'm more of an apartment guy. It's just more in line with what I'm used to back home.
40:02 Uh, okay, Billy, what's your process extending your Visa? Tourist visa? Yeah, so I just went down to Dumaguete immigration and dropped off my passport, paid the fee. It was 230 pesos to extend another 29 days. Uh, they told me because I didn't pay for express that I'll be able to go in tomorrow, probably tomorrow morning, and pick up my passport from Dumaguete immigration.
40:29 And, uh, yeah, and then I'll have to extend, uh, maybe another few weeks. If I'm, like I said, if I don't get the offer, I'll go back to extend again. But it's really just, uh, answering their questions, paying the fee, and giving them the time to process it. You can pay for express turnaround, I think. I don't know how fast they expedite it, but...
40:56 Gerard says, how much is a decent one-bedroom rent for in dollars? So Gerard, that's a pretty, uh, complex question. So a few of the qualifying questions I would ask you: what city would you prefer to be in? Uh, what neighborhood would you prefer to be in? How many square meters would you prefer to have? Um, what amenities would you prefer to have? All these locations factor into that.
41:22 The most expensive, I would say, is going to be a large penthouse style in Bonifacio Global City in Manila. That's going to be your highest, most expensive. And your cheapest is going to be a more, uh, you know, local style or, uh, you know, a Filipino style, very small apartment in a provincial area. And everything in between.
41:46 There's no real limit on the maximum. I would say most guys are going to want something that's at least a few hundred dollars, maybe three or $400 per month to be comfortable. Now, if you want a local style apartment, there's nothing wrong with that. I am currently on Airbnb paying $250 per month and I don't have aircon, but I've got a fan.
42:09 Um, I'm comfortable with it. I find that the Philippines is more moderate temperature-wise where I'm at. Certainly some places are hotter, certainly some places are cooler. The, uh, coolest temperature-wise place is going to be Baguio. Baguio does tend to run a bit expensive because a lot of foreigners like that lower temperature, closer to what they're used to.
42:31 Um, but yeah, that's that's the question I asked for you, Gerard, is what city are you looking at? Um, are you willing to sign a year lease? That's going to bring your cost down as opposed to renting on a monthly basis. Uh, do you need a lot of aircon? You rent aircon, that's going to run your electric bill up. Do you need to, uh, have the swimming pool?
42:55 Right, if you want a swimming pool, a gated community, that's going to cost more. Uh, so these are all questions to ask or to research when you are planning for your time over here.
43:09 Okay, Billy says, put money in your 401k. I'm not sure how to go about doing that, Billy, as I'm not, uh, currently employed. But I did max it out in the US. So when I've been working, I definitely max out my contribution because I typically get a match from an employer, and that's like free money, right?
43:24 It is delayed. I can't access my 401k until I hit 59 and a half, uh, without a significant penalty. So that's another emergency fund. I squirrel money away, and that, and, uh, that's another, uh, thing to, um, yeah, to pull up.
43:45 Um, great question though. Okay, Billy. A great comment. Okay, Billy. Uncono says, do you have to renew your visa every 30 days at the border? So it's not at the border. It is at immigration. Say, uh, the first one is 30 days, and then the subsequent renewals are every 60 days or 59 days, something like that.
44:05 So your first one, you'll have to get it done at 30 days. Your second one, I haven't done my second one yet, but I'll get 60 days. I don't know if it's like the 2030 pesos per month. Uh, let me convert that to dollars. 2030 pesos to USD, that's about $36 with today's exchange rates.
44:24 That you'll pay for the first month. I don't know if that doubles for your second month, if that goes up to $72. Um, but that's roughly what it costs. Now, now that fee may go up, the system may change, but currently, then you'll do that, uh, that first one, 30 days, every subsequent one every 60 days, unless you get married.
44:45 If you get married, then you'd be looking at a, uh, a 13A visa. You're, as far as I know, Unono, Unono, you're not at the typical retirement age, so you're not looking at the SRRV. Uh, but that's something to think about for those who are at more traditional retirement age.
45:04 How much is cell phone service and internet? So I do what's called getting load. I go to this, uh, third-party retailer. You can buy load from, uh, you can buy load from.
45:24 Uh, you know, anybody that has load, they'll typically do like a 3% markup. Uh, so if I want just the data, they charge me 102 pesos. They pay 99 pesos for that, and they charge me 102. That's something like, I think, 10 gigs. Um, and I do that every probably three or four days.
45:41 I go and buy load. If you extrapolate that over the course of a month, let's say just for sake of discussion, I do it every third day, 10 times. That works out to be like $20. I'd imagine you should budget $20, maybe $25 for data service. Great question though, Uncono.
46:01 I mean, definitely you want to have your data here. Uh, it's that's what I'm using right now, actually. I may have to go and get more load after this live stream because, uh, you know, live streams can definitely chew up a lot of data. So, uh...
46:15 Definitely chew up a lot of data, so, we'll see. They send me a text message notification when I'm out of data, and then I just go to Robinson's Mall here in Dumaguete and pay 102 pesos. Or, if I want text and calling, which sometimes I do if a friend of mine texts me, I'll pay 155 pesos.
46:38 That's super helpful. You can't do that; that's not doable. You cannot do 36 months; that's just not applicable on the tourist visa.
46:52 Gerard says, 'Can one get permanent residence?' It's pretty complex, Gerard. I think it's beyond the scope of my channel. I'm not an expert. I do know Philippine and I'll through his channel, PHX Prepper, he's either attained that or he's working toward it. I recommend checking his channel out, and he'll probably go into more detail on that over there.
47:18 Something that's very, very long in the future for me and my channel, something I may not be able to attain. So, if you don't find your answers there, you might reach out to an authorized, licensed attorney here in the Philippines who could potentially set up a consult with you. I'm not connected with any personally at this current time, but you could check out, you know, doing some Googling to find that out.
47:53 But yeah, guys, we'll probably go for another 15 minutes or so. Feel free to chime in with any questions or comments or thoughts that you have. It's been a great stream, the best stream I've ever done. I greatly appreciate everyone's support and interest, and it's just mind-blowing to me that over 2,000 people are actually enjoying my content and wanting to watch my channel.
48:18 I'm definitely starting to get hungry. My tummy is rumbling. I had a bunch of caffeine, and so I'm going to go get something nice to eat to, you know, fill my stomach up. I'm thinking about heading over to Robinson's to maybe go to one of the restaurants there. They've got some great restaurants at Robinson's. Maybe eat somewhere in town, maybe try somewhere new. There's a Chinese restaurant here in town called Chun Long, something like that, that I've been wanting to try.
48:54 California Bear 619 says, 'I like your interviews.' Thank you, California Bear. I've got two more in the tank that I need to edit. One, I didn't use my mic for, so it may not get the traction. And then the other one, I did record one with Gio Gio and the Philippines. For those of you who are familiar, he's got a great channel, and I sat down with him and chatted with him. I've got to do some editing on that; I'll probably tackle that this afternoon.
49:31 But yeah, thank you so much for the compliment, California Bear. I'm going to be doing more and more interviews because, one, that's what everybody wants to see. Interviews tend to do very, very well, and I'm getting better at them. I've had a lot of coaching now, and I just understand the process a lot better. I'm also getting more and more confident to go and ask people, 'Hey, are you open to be interviewed?'
49:51 I do need to post in some Facebook groups to try to find potential guests. If you know any potential guests you think would be interesting, have them reach out to me. I'll throw my email for the channel in the chat: [email protected]. And you can also, any questions anybody has, feel free to reach out on there.
50:20 Anano, what do you think of the West's future? Yeah, I think it's just, you know, my personal opinion, I think there's going to be a lot of struggle. One, I don't see the cost of living coming down in the West in our lifetimes. I think it will just continue to get more expensive.
50:39 I use the phrase, and you'll hear me say this a lot, a while ago, one guy typically could support a family of four on an income. Then it evolved toward you need two professionals working to support a family. These days, you've got two people, a couple, both working full-time, and they can't afford to have kids. So, I think a lot of people in the West will feel stress, struggle, and frustration at the fact that they're unable to start a family like maybe they envisioned when they were younger.
51:12 Certainly, some people do. I'm not here to decry or criticize those people, but you really need a solid income to do that. I know of several friends of mine who have children and they really struggle because even if they have a big income, they've got a mortgage payment, one or two car payments, their food bill is several hundred dollars a week to feed their family, vacations, all these things. It's like for one person, it's expensive. It's more difficult the more people you're trying to support.
51:46 I look at what's your income and how many people is your income supporting. If you're making 200k a year as a lawyer and only supporting yourself, okay, that's a pretty comfortable lifestyle. If you're making 50k a year as a librarian and trying to support a family of four, that's a different conversation.
52:14 The average household income in the United States a couple years ago, 2022, was 75,000 per year. That includes New York City and San Francisco, California, where incomes skew really high. So let's say for Middle America, it's 60k. Drop down by 20-25%. How much are they paying in taxes? If they're making 60k a year, they're probably coming out with 40k-48k a year, so now they're getting 4,000 a month. If they own their house outright, not bad. If they're paying rent, for a single-family home, you're easily paying 2,000-2,500 a month. So now they've got maybe 1,500 a month to pay their bills.
53:12 I think a lot of people in the West are just unhappy. Things have not worked out in the way that younger people were promised. It used to be in the West that the older people would be broke and the younger working people lived really well. A long time ago, people assumed to live well younger; they had the disposable income to have a family, they could take vacations. Now it's reversed; typically, the retired people have disposable income and live really well, and it's the younger people who are struggling.
53:44 So, I think you're going to have more and more disaffected young people, men and women, who feel like no matter what I do, I'm never going to be able to have an enjoyable life, that things will become less stable. I don't know what that looks like, but I find normal people are more and more open to me talking about this. They see the crime in their city, they see the houselessness in their city.
56:01 They see the inflation. The inflation is like bonking people on the head every single day, every single time they go to the grocery store. They're getting hit with inflation every single time they pay their rent. Back in my hometown of Nashville, I have friends that two years ago were paying a thousand a month for rent; now they're paying 1,500. They've gotten pay increases, but what does it matter? It's like if you get a 50% pay bump, but everything else goes up 50%, you're really not increasing your standard of living that much, even though you're older and should be compensated more for your experience.
56:41 Your lifestyle hasn't changed meaningfully. So, I think there's declining upward mobility in the Western democracies. I've been very fortunate to get into Bay Area Tech, which has done very well over the last couple of decades. I'm very, very fortunate to get my foot in the door in Bay Area Tech. I'm grateful to all the companies I've worked for who have invested money into training me, but not everybody can work in Tech.
57:06 The thing about the tech industry is that you need small teams doing really amazing work with massive results to create that really high.
57:14 As a result, a bad hire in tech can be extraordinarily expensive. They're very selective about who they want to bring on board because a really good hire can make them tons of money, bring in great sales, or write code that creates massive value for the company. However, I think there are going to be some challenges in Middle America where many people who haven't gotten a skilled trade or a solid education are seeing their quality of life decline. The middle class has been eliminated in much of the Western World. You've got people who own a lot of assets and don't have to work, and people who own nothing and struggle month-to-month. There's a small middle class of professionals, lawyers, doctors, and technical people, but those people are finite. If everyone was doing those jobs, the compensation would not be where it's at.
58:16 It just wouldn't be. So, I think it's important to be mindful. If you don't have an education, maybe you don't want to make the investment in that to look at skilled trades. I'm not a tradesperson, but it seems like that's a faster way to maintain an in-demand skill. With an aging population in Western democracies, having a physical job has some benefits, but there are also disadvantages. I'm not going to sit here and tell you to just go get a trade, bro. Certainly, trades aren't for everyone, but there's opportunity there. It's certainly to start your own business. I think if you're working for somebody else, your income is going to be capped. They've got to make a profit on you, spend money to train you, and pay for your insurance.
59:14 So the ideal for a lot of people would be to eventually start their own business, where you have autonomy and accountability. You are responsible, but you also have the potential upside that comes with that.
59:30 Gerard says, "I agree." Ronell says, "You can interview YouTube vloggers too." Yeah, several of my interviews so far have been with other vloggers, and I anticipate continuing to do so. If you know of another vlogger who's looking for guests, feel free to reach out to me. Gerard says, "This is the reason I wish to move out of the US." Yeah, I mean, I talked to recent immigrants in the US or first-generation individuals, and they're like, "Yeah, I mean, we thought it was going to be paradise here in the US." It's readily apparent we just moved to an economic zone where the value of our labor is extracted. We're tired. The country is not in line with our values. Whatever their values may be, they feel like there's a misplacement there, or they value these things, and the leadership in America values these things.
1:00:22 They feel like they don't have the time to spend with their families. They are not getting ahead in the same way that they thought they would. They may feel like they're treading water financially because of inflation. They may miss their home country. They may feel like, "Man, you know, here it's cold, there's this winter, and back home, there's not much of a winter." So that's a great point, Gerard. My first visit to Thailand totally changed my perspective on life. Six years ago, I knew I wanted to move out of the US, and with every subsequent year, that feeling has only solidified. It's only become more and more solid for me that I want to go try living somewhere else. I want to explore other countries.
1:01:04 Maybe it doesn't work out. Maybe Colombia is not for me, but I can find the place for me. I think I found that here in the Philippines. The Philippines may not be for you; you may come here and feel like, "Man, I really like vacationing there, but as far as living there, it's not the right place for me to live." And I think more and more people will do it. I think more and more people will have this sense of hopelessness in the US and feel like, "What do I have to lose?" I'm single, maybe I got a divorce, maybe I don't have many friends or family. Maybe people are too busy for whatever reason, they just feel like it's worth a shot, and I think that's the case for a lot of people.
1:01:49 Anano says, "If you're under 55, an old, single male, you should move out of the West. No upward mobility." I think it's mixed. It depends on how cheap you're willing to live. Like, if you're capable of maxing your income and living far below your means, which involves a lot of sacrifice. I lived in a shoebox apartment in California. I'm probably, if I go back, I'm living in a shoebox apartment in California. I'm not going out on the weekends. If I go out, it's to do free activities, to go hang out at people's houses, to go hiking, to go to the beach. It's not going to be going out to a fancy concert, not going out to fancy Michelin star dinners every night of the week, not to buy a sports car. It's a very what I would call a Spartan lifestyle.
1:02:33 So I was able in California to save about 65 to 70% of my income, but this was a lifestyle most people do not want to lead. I never flew back home for a year. I wasn't trying to date. I did go and get food at restaurants, take out, because I'm working so hard and so fast. There were times I just didn't have time, like I'm eating on my lunch break. So there are certain things you have to pay for to work so efficiently, but I tried to be very structured in that. Plus, California has rent control, so my apartment in California had rent control, where they're not doing this 20% rent increase you see in the Midwest. That's actually against the law where I lived in California. There's a maximum, I think, two or three percent that they could actually raise my rent in the building that I was in.
1:03:23 Now, of course, there are tradeoffs with that. They don't do the maintenance, they don't do the upkeep beyond what's legally required. Like, they're not constantly putting up a new paint job, they're not putting in a new set of stairs. The building is a little bit disheveled, but I don't care. I'm there to make money. I'm there expressly to make money. I don't care about living below my means in the short term because, you know, just for what it's worth, I know what I'm going toward. I know what I'm working toward. I know the lifestyle I can have over here, and I'm willing to make short to medium-term sacrifices to attain that.
1:04:07 There's nothing that's going to blow my mind away in America anymore. I've been to 36 states, lived in three different states. I've lived in Tennessee, Colorado, and California multiple times in each. There's nothing that's just going to blow my mind. I've eaten at fancy restaurants, flown many times, gone to the beach in Florida, spent time in New York City, lived near San Francisco, lived in the mountains of Colorado for several years. In some cases, it's "been there, done that," and there's a lot to see and do, but I feel like I've done most of what I wanted to do, seen most of what I wanted to see. Seeing my granddad's hometown in rural Idaho, seeing my mom where mom was born in Central California, lived in Nashville, went to concerts every night for years or almost every night for years back when it was really cheap to do so, or there were free concerts a lot of the times. Live near downtown, you know. I could go on and on about all the things I've done in the US, but suffice it to say, for the most part, been there, done that, got the t-shirt, and I'm ready to move on to the next phase of my life. And I think that lifestyle is abroad.
1:05:35 Apparently, Ancano says, "Apparently some people are going to stay and fight an American fight." Yeah, you know, more power to them. Each individual has to make their own decision, their own determination about what they want to do, how they want to live, where they want to live. If somebody enjoys their life in America, I fully support that. I think I've heard this said before: if your life in America is awesome, cool, cool beans. If you enjoy it, if it's the perfect fit for you, I support that. I'm happy for you. I have no ill will or jealousy toward people living the American dream, but it's not for me, and I have to be transparent and honest. It's not something that I'm interested in doing. I'm just one guy with a camera, with a laptop. So that's kind of my feeling about the stand and fight thing. I feel too, as just an average Joe, what really changes for the average Joe? I don't think so. You may feel differently, and there's nothing wrong with that.
1:06:36 Limay says, "Super friendly, gentle vlogger John Smo would be an amazing vlogger to interview, and vice versa." So I recently met John, and I'm a fan of John's channel. I've had some great conversations with John. I'd love to sit down with him when I make it up to SIU and ask him some questions and be featured on his channel. I think he's just got a lot of insight and a lot to talk about. He's also an entrepreneur. If you're a business person or business-minded, he's got a lot of insight. Check out his channel, everyone. I'll throw one of his channels down there, California Expat. He's just a sharp guy. When I sat down and talked with him, he's just got a good personality. I don't know how else to say it; he's just a very friendly and personable guy.
1:07:29 Anano says, "Do you think the Fed will turn on the money printer again?" Yeah, I think they're going to have to turn the money printer on. It's the only way to deal with the debt is to inflate out of the debt.
1:07:43 Inflate out of the debt and I've had people get really upset when I talk about this because they activate their just world hypothesis, right? Life is fair. Good things happen to good people. They start working their add world hypothesis. Life is fair. Life is what it is. Reality is neutral. We have to assess it accurately.
1:08:04 Oh wow, wow, good to see you John! Hey, welcome, welcome. We have to assess it accurately. We have to really think about the situation accurately. I personally think that, you know, I, oh, by the way, John, you're getting some compliments here. Some of my subscribers are familiar with your channel and your business. Shout out to John SMU.
1:08:27 But yeah, just to kind of tie in that question, I do think that the Fed will have to turn on the money printer. I think the economy will break a bit more if it doesn't eventually happen to provide liquidity. I think it'll need to.
1:08:48 We encono says, "We live in clown world now." Yeah, I mean, I think that's what a lot of people are feeling. Ma home, uh, R says, "You been to Seattle and Texas? I want to go to a Native American reservation."
1:09:00 Yeah, I've been to Seattle, been to Texas. I was in Texas for work about two years ago, Austin area. Very cool town, reminds me a lot of Nashville and Seattle. I like Seattle a lot, of course, the Seattle sound, Nirvana, you know, classic grunge rock music.
1:09:21 Gerard asks, "Is it just me or is there no roof at this restaurant? It's like, I don't know, it's kind of like a greenhouse style."
1:09:34 Ronell says, "I want to go to every base." Yeah, there's definitely an interesting goal. Will the US government pay off the debt? I'm not sure how they will. In an ideal world, they would. I, you know, it's not realistic to compare personal finance to the finance of a global economy, but I say this in a polite way.
1:10:02 I could not live with that kind of debt. I would be pulling my hair out. It would be very stressful with debt at that level. Of course, I'm an individual, I'm not a nation, so it's not really realistic to compare personal debt versus sovereign debt.
1:10:18 Gerard says, "America is a dream." Yeah, certainly that's a fair point. California expat John says, "Lim say ho, thank you." Lim say ho and John says, "Hi Alex, I literally saw your live just as I saw some of these kind comments."
1:10:33 Yeah, I think people are very familiar who are fans of the Philippines or who are prospective visitors, travelers, or long-term residents. They like your content. They like your vibe, John. I think that you have this kind of optimism that I think most successful entrepreneurs have. They're optimistic about the future, about their ability to problem-solve, about their ability to sort out people's needs and serve their clients.
1:11:10 So yeah, if any of you by the way are watching and you need various services, check out John's business, Purple Cal Marketing. And I'll go ahead and throw the name Purple Cal Marketing down in the description below. I think he's got some great offers for those of you who need those services.
1:11:28 Anano says, "Some guy did a Ted Talk on when young people have no future."
1:11:36 Yeah, I saw that. I think his name is Scott Miller. And I think whether or not that's fully true, I do think some things on the internet are exaggerated to capture people's attention. Nobody wants to watch something that doesn't have this extreme, eye-catching title.
1:12:05 Or, you know, "The world is going to end." I think everywhere in the world is just evolving. I think that some people will adapt to the change and be able to succeed in the new paradigm, and others will be left behind, as has been the case for millennia.
1:12:20 You see the way a person would attain success even a hundred years ago, that looks very different than the success of today. I think that with leverage, the internet creates leverage. In the age of the internet, with so much massive leverage, you have a lot more winners and losers.
1:12:39 You have some people that have far away massive success. You see this in the business world. I think something like four or five companies comprise 20% of the S&P 500. The economic output of the United States, Google, Amazon, Netflix, Apple, and Nvidia represent something like 20% of the US economy.
1:13:10 Conversely, there's some random guy who's trying to start a streaming service that is, you know, not able to afford the server space because, like YouTube, is subsidized by other parts of Google's businesses. And so yeah, there's more extreme winners and more people who just don't make the cut.
1:13:33 For those who don't make the cut, they I think they're fair to feel a sense of struggle or unhappiness. They may feel hopeless. I have to acknowledge that. I'm not going to sit here and tell you, "Oh, young people have the best future ever."
1:13:51 A lot of young people are struggling in the western democracies, and it's important to acknowledge that. It's important to be cognizant of that and to consider how we could help some of those people.
1:14:01 That's part of the goal of my channel is to sort out reality such that people can watch my content, watch my streams, watch my videos and get a better sense of, is this the right fit for them? Is it not the right fit for them? How could they upgrade their skill set to potentially make a larger income, keep their expenses low, and pursue the lifestyle that's more in line with what they want to get out of life?
1:14:29 Because life's short, we're not here forever. We've got a finite amount of time here. And the ideal world, of course, maybe I'm just a dreamer, but the ideal world is one in which a person can live in the way that makes them happy and feels makes them feel fulfilled.
1:14:48 And that's part of the goal of my channel is to come here and to, you know, be helpful.
1:15:16 California expat says, "Appreciate everyone. Alex, it was great to finally meet you accidentally in Daggetti recently after we've been in touch for years." Yeah, John and I accidentally met at the local mall, and that was a really like a once in a blue moon kind of thing where I happened to have just finished my lunch, and he was there to meet a mutual friend of ours. And I was like, "I know that guy," and so I approached John, and we had a great conversation.
1:15:41 And yeah, just, I mean, I've been in touch with John for several years over the internet after I watched him be interviewed, and that was really a wonderful coincidence to meet him there.
1:15:58 Limso says, "California expat, you're my go-to guy. Wishing Alex the best and hope you two can meet up." Yeah, my plan, if I get that offer in the Bay Area, I'll be going up to SIU. I want to meet the lady that I've become acquainted with, and I'd also like to meet John and get a chance to sit down with him and chat on his channel, and then also ask him some questions for my audience who's really getting so much better benefit from these conversations with these guys who I like to call them experts.
1:16:35 But he's not a boomer being cool. John is, I think, technically Gen X, so he's not a boomer being cool. That's a series that I think is really funny. I'm a fan of this subreddit, Boomers Being Fools, but I think the alternative, the positive side, the flip side of that, is Boomers Being Cool. Guys who are in the boomer generation that they want to pass on the torch, so to speak. They want to help the younger generations. They want to share their insight.
1:17:04 Your channel is loaded with ads. Awesome. Yeah, I mean, solo transition, and I got to be honest, like it costs money to create content. It costs money to buy laptops, cameras. It costs money to get coffee. It costs money to move around here in the Philippines. And so for those who are putting out quality content, then they've got to find ways to monetize their channel.
1:17:31 And so that's something that I'll keep in mind. If I get sponsorships, then of course that's a better, more ideal way to operate, right? Is sponsorships more than ads? Because there's just more opportunity in that. I think there's more value in that for the audience, and maybe a little bit less bothersome.
1:17:57 Anano says, "Have you seen the channel Masculine Development? He talks a lot about a lot of the stuff you do. Let me pull him up."
1:18:05 Masculine. Wow, so I haven't, but I'll give him a subscribe and I'll check his channel out. Always happy to check out other vloggers, and it might be an interesting collaboration. Maybe I could send him an email and, you know, maybe we do some kind of live stream collaboration.
1:18:29 But I'll probably start to wind the stream down in the next 10 minutes. I'm definitely feeling famished and want to go grab some lunch. Which is better, expat or passport bros?
1:18:46 Yeah, I don't know. I lean toward expat because I don't think that the sole reason for guys to move abroad should be dating. And let me explain why. If you are solely focused on dating as your reason to move abroad, and that relationship you find, and it doesn't work out, then you're living in a far away land. You may have not put as much effort into making friends. You may not enjoy that location.
1:19:19 You've got to, I look at it like you've got to have a deep love for the country that you move to. You've got to have a deep appreciation for the culture. I talked a bit about this with Paul, where I explained to Paul, like, part of what makes your life good is not just your wife, it's your community, it's your circle of friends, it's the fact that you like the weather, you like the culture. It's this multi-layered, almost like a lasagna.
1:19:43 You could tell where my mind is at, but almost like this lasagna effect where you've got all these layers that you...
1:19:49 You've got all these layers that you love and you're not limited to just, oh man, my relationship's great, but oh, I don't like the weather, or the cuisine isn't in line with what I want, or I feel really bored here. So I lean toward expat because if a relationship doesn't work out, if it doesn't materialize in the way that you thought it would, you still like a lot of other things about that place and you can still pursue another relationship. You're not thinking, 'Okay, that didn't work out, time to go back home.' Like, I just think that's suboptimal. Is it wrong? No. I think if a guy or gal decides they want to go back home, there's nothing wrong with that. Each individual has to decide where they want to live. Can they pull it off? Are they going to be compliant with the visa structure, which everybody needs to be mindful of?
1:20:43 Yeah, I have less appreciation for the passport bro movement. I think that it's a little bit too transactional. In my mind, it's a little bit too like, 'I go there with my money and I get attention.' And I just, I don't know, I think it kind of cheapens living overseas. I've been called that, but I don't know if that really applies to me because for me, even if it weren't for relationships, I'd still live outside the US. I love Peru, I love Colombia, I love the Philippines, I love Thailand. These are probably, I love Portugal too, would be like my top five, and Spain. Those would be my top five or six places to live, and I'd like to live in those places with or without a relationship. A relationship to me is icing on the cake. It's not a make-or-break for my happiness. I find my happiness through vlogging and through the community I have here, the relationships I'm able to build and develop.
1:21:48 But yeah, absolutely great question. Ron, Christopher says, 'What is your location?' So I'm currently in Dumag, Christopher. I'm in Dumag, Philippines, and it's just such a cool city. Anano says, 'You need to find a place where you want to spend the rest of your life.' Absolutely agree, Anano. You need to, ideally, you need to like most of the following. You need to like the culture. Culture is super important. You need to be willing to comply. This is the most important. You need to be willing to comply with the visa requirements, whatever they are, whatever they adapt and evolve to. You need to be compliant. I say that for every country. I believe in following the rules, whatever they may be. I believe in respecting the culture. It may be probably different than American culture, but I'm living there because I prefer it to what I'm used to.
1:22:37 You need to have, you need to find food that you like, right? I mean, that's going to be an easier one. I found good food in every country, but maybe for you, you have different preferences. For me, that's probably, it's probably a tier where compliance is number one, number two is culture, number three is relationships that you're able to build, a sense of community because I found that to be very healing for myself and for other guys that they're able to develop this vibrant community. I mean, back home, I was so desperate for friendship that I'd want to hang out with people I didn't really share values with. Here, I've got so many people that I'm in touch with. I can turn down interaction, I can turn down offers to hang out because I just got so many people that would like to hang out, grab coffee, grab a meal, go for a walk, chat. These things, there's so much abundance for me in my life here.
1:23:41 Anano asked, 'What do you think of the Great Reset?' I honestly don't know much about it. This is something that I just haven't been as familiar with. I think it talks about that may have, I don't know when it came out. I feel like a message in a bottle adrift in an ocean back home, that kind of answers your question on that. Cono, Ronal, thanks for answering. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you for your thoughtful question, Ronal.
1:24:07 Gerard says, '2.11k subscribers, what was it a month ago?' So a month ago, I was sitting at around 1,700, so I've gotten around 400 subscribers, and I'm getting more every day. I mean, every time it feels like every time I refresh my homepage, my YouTube homepage, I've got more people joining. And I think that'll just continue as I get better and better at YouTube, as I try to create more and more thoughtful or interesting content. More and more people will find value in what I have to say and what I have to share. I'm also able to do more and more interesting collaborations, get featured on different channels, and provide value to their audience. And in turn, they're like, 'Oh wow, this guy's interesting.' And other people are like, 'Oh, this guy's a joke, I'm not going to watch him.' Either way, it's cool with me.
1:24:58 Yeah, great question, Gerard. Christopher says, 'First year, first seeing your channel, are you traveling or relocating?' I would say I'm more traveling. I'm in what I call a discovery trip. I want to see different places in the Philippines. I want to get a better sense of what I like and what may not be for me. Dumag Getti has been awesome. It's maybe the place I've enjoyed the most. I also like Siargao, I also like Cebu, I also like Cagayan de Oro. So I think that for me personally, being a younger guy, I want to get a better sense of what I like, what's going to be a right fit for me. Also, if I meet a significant other, that's going to have a major impact on where I locate to. Some will say, 'Find your place before you find your person.' So I don't always necessarily agree with that.
1:25:44 There's 8 billion people on the planet. I think there's someone for everywhere, everyone. But meeting the right person will help you better enjoy a location. So, being here as a single guy in Dumag Getti is not the same experience as being a committed guy here in Dumag Getti, being a guy who's committed to a significant other who is guiding them around town. As Mike says, 'You get in a relationship, she's going to do everything in your power if you found a good one, the right one.' Everything in her power to help you save money. She's going to help you moderate your rental price. She's going to help you, you know, go grocery shopping. She's going to help you sort out your transportation, your healthcare. All these things, it's so helpful to have somebody on your side and backing you up.
1:26:35 Christopher says, 'First seeing your channel, are you traveling or...' Oh yeah, sorry, I answered that. 'Do you think you'd make a video about tech sales?' If I go back, yeah, you know, it may be something that I started a new channel for. Stoic, but I have mixed feelings about it because I know that some companies are not as comfortable with that. I don't want to disclose anything proprietary. I don't want to share any information that isn't public, so it'd have to be pretty generic. I think there's some other guys that do it well, like Trent Dressel is somebody who does great tech sales content. You know, I, it's one of those places where I'm pretty good, but I also want to be cognizant of the needs of the business, what the business does and doesn't want being put out there. I have nothing bad to say about my former employers, but some of them may be concerned about me having positive things to say. It's hard to tell. It's hard to gauge the value, the exchange of value there.
1:27:35 Anano says, 'Have a nice lunch.' Thank you so much, Anano. That's very kind. Christopher says, 'How long have you been in the Philippines? What kind of budget does a young man like yourself have?' So I aim for like, you know, $1,200 to $1,500 a month in expenses. I can live below that. I mean, some months are very cheap, like I don't go out as much. I'm trying to prep for certain tests like the GMAT or the LSAT. It's kind of tricky. I sometimes I'm going in too many different directions. I have to narrow it down. So I'd say on the low end, I've had expenses as low as $700, $800 in a month. On the high end, I've had months as high as $1,450. I lean toward trying to budget for the higher amount because, you know, it's more practical that way. Way below $1,500, I think most guys are going to struggle. I've spent multiple years living outside of the US now, so I'm able to live on less than what a less experienced person would live on. It's kind of like a skill set that you get, and the more skills you get, the better off you are at budgeting. You find, and also the longer you spend in one place, the more budget-friendly options you find. You know what to pay for things, whereas if you're a newcomer, you don't know what to pay for things. You're going to overpay sometimes. You may, you know, the less time you spent out of the US, you may be less used to foreign cuisine that may not be to your liking, where I eat a fair amount of local food, you know, when the opportunity presents itself.
1:29:15 Yeah, I've been here for a few weeks. Christopher, prior to coming here, I spent a year in Thailand. I spent a month in Vietnam. I've spent about six months between Mexico, Colombia, and Peru. Visited Europe, visited Northern Africa, Morocco. Been all over the United States, visited Canada. But I'm preferential to Asia. I've spent the most time in Asia. I see long-term, most of my focus on living here in Asia.
1:29:49 Uh, unfriendly. So, first time in Manila, taxi guy got me for 600 pesos to Makati from the airport. You have to be mindful of that. It's one of those things you learn, it's a hard lesson. I've definitely overpaid for taxi. It's definitely an uncomfortable lesson. Grab, I recommend Grab taxi. I'll go ahead and download this Grab app if you haven't already and you've got a trip upcoming. Learn how to use it. Load your payment card on there. Recommend using Grab as much as possible. They calculate the fare for you, they figure it out. They make a determination as to what you're going to pay, and it's more transparent on the pricing. So that's a way to kind of jump around that. Kenya and Dubai is nice, expensive. Yeah, they're definitely, I think above...
1:30:42 Yeah, they're definitely, I think, above the price range for a lot of would-be expats, but certainly for the wealthy expat or the higher roller, I think they could definitely be appealing. Anano says, 'I want to go to Southeast Asia.' Yeah, it's interesting, there's so much variety here in a very small space. So, you know, I don't tell people, 'You must go here, you must go there.' Some guys are going to love Thailand, other guys like Vietnam, some other guys prefer the Philippines.
1:31:10 I think there's something for everyone here that likes the tropical weather, the economical cost of living, the friendly cultures, the variety of landscapes. You've got the mountains, you've got the ocean, you've got so much to see and do over here. I feel like I could spend a lifetime in Southeast Asia and still not see everything.
1:31:33 Realistically speaking, probably 10 years per country. But I do see, for me personally, at the current time, this may change, but at the current time, I see the Philippines as the place that I want to focus my attention on. Bang, thumbs up, thanks so much, Christopher Leroy.
1:31:53 Anano says, 'I scuba dive.' Very cool, Anano. You're a more courageous person than myself. I tried it in Mexico, and it was terrifying. I didn't do lessons, though, so if I tried to do lessons, then I think it would be a better experience. But certainly, scuba diving is a big reason why Southeast Asia is so appealing.
1:32:11 There's a number of different places where that's a popular activity to do. But yeah, thanks so much, everyone. I am going to wind down. I can't delay my lunch any longer. Please, if you haven't already, rewatching this, subscribe to the channel down below. Comment if this stream has been helpful for you, and please subscribe. Sorry, I already said that. Please give us a thumbs up if you haven't already. It boosts us in the algorithm.
1:32:38 And yeah, thank you so much. I can't thank you enough to all of my new subscribers and the new subscribers coming in the future, and my long-term subscribers. Gerard asks, 'What time is it out there?' It's about 1:10 p.m. here, so it's definitely getting a little bit late for my lunch.
1:32:54 But I'm going to go ahead and jet and get that. But yeah, thanks so much, everyone. I hope you all have a wonderful evening or a wonderful day wherever you are in the world, and we'll see you soon.
Follow the journey through expat life, travel experiences, and the realities of living abroad while exploring different places, cultures, and everyday life overseas.
