Four Seas One Family

In this episode, we do some myth busting about the value of paying collective taxes. We see how an American expat learnt to appreciate something about his host nation that would raise eyebrows and receive loads of criticism back home. It is often veryhard for an expat to communicate the way other people in differentparts of the world are living and how the particular system theylive under would be of some good use elsewhere.

ABOUT GUEST:

Tom Heberlein is a retired environmental sociologist professorfrom Wisconsin now living with his wife in Stockholm, Sweden. Tomexplains how he fell in love with Sweden. He also explains why themyth and mystery of paying high taxes in Sweden is misinterpretedbuy many Americans. Tom also takes the time to explain step-by-stepwhy logical and fair tax paying is better for the collectivecommunity.

Six Reasons Why to appreciate SwedishTaxes:

1. Swedish income taxes aren't much higher than US taxes. Alsotaxes in Sweden provide universal medical and education.
2. Tax forms are simple. In fact, Swedish tax forms come alreadyfilled out!
3. There is NO property tax.
4. Sales taxes in Sweden are higher but far less noticeable andincluded in a sale.
5. People who pay taxes in Sweden are given a cash return insteadof hard to calculate deductions.
6. Slightly higher taxes in Sweden give tax payers more choicesand, in turn, freedoms.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

I'm anAmerican Living in Sweden. Here's why I came to embrace thehigher taxes.

Related Article:

Living in Switzerland ruined me for America and its lousy workculture.

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO THIS EPISODE!

Thank very much for taking the time this week toshare.

If you have any feedback, please leave a note in the commentssection below or leave a voice message via our SpeakPipepage. We would love to hear from you!

If you enjoyed this please share it with your friends, familyand co-workers by using the social media buttons you see at thebottom of the post.

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And, finally, please take a minute to leave us an honest reviewand rating on iTunes. They really help us out when it comes to theranking of the show and I make it a point to read every single oneof the reviews we get.

Please help us spread the word and leave a review in iTunes byclicking here!

Thank you for listening to Four Seas One Family. We are all thesame and at the same time uniquely different!

Recently I've come across loads of articles stating the "Top #" of places to live as an expat. After a while, I've found these lists on the edge of becoming misleading and sometimes down right biased.

These " Top #" lists point out the best nations to:

Retire / Start a new business / Work or Do business / Get health care / Find a partner

Study or Do research / Learn a new skill / Find romance / Start a family / Etc,……

I am finding that these oversimplified statements are lacking fully developed background information about the locations listed. I'm afraid, that this may cause some people to develop the wrong impression about an overseas location and make incorrect decisions about moving to a particular location.

As an expat you have to learn that no place is a perfect place. Expats should take the positive elements around them and developed a healthy relationship in their second home. They have come to learn that there may be things in their new environment they don't agree with or can change.

Please understand that Paradise doesn't exist and your host nation is not obligated to change because of any personal conflicts you may be having.

Please understand that Paradise doesn't exist and your host nation is not obligated to change because of any personal conflicts you may be having.

Saul Fleischmann (American in Japan): Rite Tag: http://www.ritetag.com

Anton Botes (South African in Taiwan): Show Reel: http://www.antonbotes.com

Christine Chang (Taiwanese living in Hong Kong)

Stephen Penny: Host of the Tech Expats Podcast

Jon Dunning: Host of the Big Nosed Ugly Guy podcast

Jonathan Rollins: Co-Host of The Power Meeting Podcast

Mohanalakshmi Rajakumr: Website: http://www.mohadoha.com

Thank very much for taking the time this week to share.

If you have any feedback, please leave a note in the comments section below or leave a voice message via our SpeakPipe page. We would love to hear from you!

If you enjoyed this please share it with your friends, family and co-workers by using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of the post.

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic episode updates of our podcasts.

And, finally, please take a minute to leave us an honest review and rating on iTunes. They really help us out when it comes to the ranking of the show and I make it a point to read every single one of the reviews we get.

Please help us spread the word and leave a review in iTunes by clicking here!

Thank you for listening to Four Seas One Family. We are all the same and at the same time uniquely different!

In this info-packed episode, James sits down for a chat with fellow New Yorker, Jamar Whaley. Jamar shares his expat experience and talks about his observance on how people from low-socioeconomic classes are not offered or simply blocked from opportunities to study abroad and why this needs to be changed. Jamar often gives an emotional inter-personal perspective on his life abroad.

In this episode, we chat with Ms. Clara Wiggins, a prolific blogger, writer and mother of two wonderful girls from the UK and now living in South Africa. Clara is a TCK (Third Culture Kid) and shares her expat experiences with us and offers up some tips for living life abroad. Clara talks about the challenges of raising and educating children in an environment unlike the one they come from. Also, she taps into issues accompanying spouses of different types face while trying to maintain their relationship.

Clara is also the author of a book that I feel future and present-day expats should read called "The Expat Partner's Survival Guide". In her book, Clara opens up a pathway for understanding issues expats face while adapting to life overseas as well as explains some crisis an expat may face abroad.

Mentioned in this episode:

Expat Partner Survival:

https://expatpartnersurvival.com

Clara's engaging handbook about living life as an expat:

https://expatpartnersurvival.com/buy-the-book/

Expat Partner Survival Guide on Amazon.

Please take time out to read Clara's fact filled series about expat depression. Find out how to handle depression and where to look for help:

A Series on Expat Depression: Introduction

What's it's like being a same-sex expat partner

Time really flies and people change. Hopefully people change in good ways and appreciate the things they have and the people around them. Sara Hong is a former student of mine. I first met Sara when she was a forth grader and now she's working in the legal field in a country that is very unlike her own. Sara is in the city that never sleeps. Join us while we take a walk with Sara through events in her life abroad that at first confused and later amused her. Sara does all this while, at the same time, keeping a positive outlook on her expat life.

With her energetic personality, Sara shares some of the steps she took to prepare for her life abroad. Tune in and hear how Sara is adapting to life in her new environment and the ways she has learnt to further her personal development and interactions with people.

On this Valentines Day, James chats about the few steps couples can take to help their relationship apart stay afloat. It's not a secret that long-distance relationships can cause a lot of stress to partners and require that both partners be patient and trust one another throughout.

The following are five tips to deal with the ups and downs of a long-distance relationship.

1. Have mutual positive feelings

2. Strong commitment

3. Have faith and trust

4. Communication

5. Be Mature

We often hear of or meet people who sacrifice many things for the betterment of others.

In this episode, we sit down for a heart warming chat with Mr. Jon Dunning, originally from London, England, now living in Auckland, New Zealand. Listen to how he and his wife looked abroad to make a better future for their family. Jon wholeheartedly shares his story about how his situation back in London, along with the contacts he made while working overseas, gave him the idea to look beyond borders for a new life experience. Despite some odds against them, learn about the situations his family had to face in order to stay together during their journey to a place they now call home.

Jon touches on how he and his family learnt to become part of their new community. However, at the same time, he also eloquently touches on the fact that nowhere is perfect and that adjustments will always have to be made. While talking with Jon, I discovered that what he and his family went through shows how determined they had to be. His story shows that the willpower of a family can supersede all obstacles.

Jon is also a podcaster and you can find it at the following link:

http://bignoseduglyguy.com

Busy Philadelphia native and Penn State graduate, Mr. Saul Fleischman, connects to us from Osaka, Japan to share his expat experiences. Saul is a long-term expat in Japan, with over 22 plus years living there, and shares his story of how he ended up in the place he now calls home. Saul is a straight-talker and walks us through how he followed the typical road many expats take while searching for a purpose in their adopted environment. He describes how Japan left an impression on him during his early visits. However, he points out clearly, even with all it's uniqueness, Japan can still be challenging.

Saul has a successful Internet business that he manages remotely.Rite Tag: The Social Media Marketing Toolkit: http://www.ritetag.com

At the end of 2015, I had the opportunity to interview Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar, a South Asian American Expat, now living and working in Doha. Mohana is a wonderful speaker and writer who gets to the point. She talks about how she and her two young children adapted to their host nation. Also, she sheds some light on the intricate interactions of the expat community where she lives. Besides being a wonderful writer, speaker and parent, Mohana is also a podcaster! This is why in the interview I called her "super woman".

We are glad to have American expat Mr. Jonathan Rollins as a guest on the show. Now, living and working in Sweden, Jonathan is also married to a wonderful Swedish lady and they have a young little (1.5 year old) boy bouncing around the house. I learnt about Jonathan through a blog post he wrote about gun control in the US. His viewpoint of his home from abroad prompted me to track him down for a chat. As it turns out, Jonathan has an interesting story about how he ended up in Sweden and to top things off he is also a podcast co-host of a popular Swedish podcast! He podcasts in English mixed with Swedish! Very cool! And that's not all! Jonathan is also a comedian! You just can't get better than this! Join us for this memorable podcast!