The Key

I subscribe to a newsletter from Live and Invest Overseas.

In a recent email, I was intrigued by this article—The Key to a Successful Move Overseas.

I opened it expecting a magical insight, and there was not only one, but two. I’ve copied the two keys inline below—

#1. I’m Talking About Open-Mindedness

The world is a big, interesting place full of opportunities and options. It’s not all roses. Bad things happen… are happening… will continue to happen. Maybe worse things are on the way. We recognize all that.

But, here at Live And Invest Overseas, we choose to focus on the potential and the promise all around us, rather than the problems and the trouble.

We choose to recognize that, no matter what experiences we’ve enjoyed to date, we don’t know everything… and we’re always curious to know more.

We have our ideas… now we’d like to be introduced to some other ideas, from other folks in other parts of the world. How do they do things? How do they live their lives? What can we learn from them?

If you share that way of looking at the world, then I’d say that, yes, a new life overseas could be everything you’re imagining it might be.

What’s the second quality you need to make a go of this?

#2. A Sense Of Humor

Your open mind will lead you to all kinds of new and interesting places and experiences. It will allow you to reinvent your life completely (if that’s what you’d like to do)… and to make discoveries that, today, you probably can’t imagine.

Some will amount to the greatest, grandest adventures and the most fun of your lifetime.

Others will frustrate you, intimidate you, concern you, confound you, even conspire to drive you out of your mind. Some days, enjoying the new life in paradise you dreamt about for so long, your patience will be tried and your fuse will be short.

Those days, when nothing makes sense and no one is around to help, what will you do?

You’ll make a choice.

Either you’ll moan and groan, rant and rave, and wonder what’s wrong with all these so-and-so’s you’re now living among… why don’t they understand?…

Or you’ll smile. You’ll chuckle.

You’ll remember that nothing was ever going to be all roses and that nowhere is perfect. You’ll remind yourself of the big-picture reasons why you made this leap in the first place, of all the advantages you’re enjoying living where you’re now living.

And you’ll laugh.

It’s that decision, which you’ll face again and again and again, maybe every day, that will determine the ultimate outcome of your personal retire overseas adventures.

If you can choose to find the absurdities and the chaos around you interesting and charming, rather than maddening and blood-pressure elevating, you’re golden.

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What’s the KEY or the Point?

I’m glad you asked.

I think both points apply to Agile Coaches and coaching as much as they do to moving to a new country. Imagine a world of your Agile Coaching where you…

Looked at each new coaching client as a new country that you were relocating to.

What if the central Meta-skills you brought to each of those clients was—

Open-mindedness

And

A sense of humor

What if you entered each of those systems as someone who was brand new to the country. With as few biases and stereotypes as possible. In other words, you entered as a “good tourist.” Also, not taking yourself too seriously.

So, my friends, I’m wondering if there is a tremendous lesson here for us Agile Coaches. I think so, but the final determinations are yours.

Stay agile, my friends,

Bob.

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Whatever your role or experience, life in the agile space can be challenging today. Having someone to serve as your coach, as a sounding board, a truthteller, and a trusted partner on tap to leverage during those tricky bits can be helpful. That’s precisely where Agile Moose can help you.

We’re not just an Agile Coach, but a business domain expert, a personal advisor, an organizational design and development consultant, and a leadership coach and partner.

The moose brings over 35 years of technical and product leadership experience across various contexts. If you’re stuck and know it, reach out, as I can help.