Yes, "closer home" refers to being in a country with a shorter and cheaper flight. It does not refer to moving back to home country. I do not think that any countries closer to home would pay close to the amount that we receive where we are right now. Though I have not investigated that in a lot of detail.

That is a really good point that the hassle of the travel is just once a year. Happy children are priceless, and I will count my blessings! I think I need to just figure out how to lower the overall cost of the annual trip home.

Thank you everyone for sharing.

I had no idea that at some point teachers had a reduced Social Security rate if they have a pension. While neither of my predicted amounts are that large for Social Security and pension, it is at least a lifetime benefit and regular monthly income which can hopefully cover some of the basics in retirement - groceries, utilities, etc. With additional investments added to the mix, plus rental income, I am hoping that all will be okay. I am also just looking at Social Security as a bonus, but not depending on it in case things change with it down the road.

I have thought about going back home to teach a bit before retirement to increase my teacher pension amount, however the amount I save abroad versus in home country is not even comparable. So for the time being I will just stick with my plan and then readjust once the numbers become even more clear down the road.

One thing I am finding a bit surprising is how many teachers I know not saving for retirement, at all - and they are not that young either. I guess everyone has a different situation and they might have something else to fall back upon.

As my financial literacy grows, I am curious about how others are planning for the retirement. If you'd like to join in the conversation, please share:

1) How do you save for retirement when working outside of your home country?

2) What percentage of your salary are you able to save towards retirement? What would you ideally like to save?

3) Do you have a teacher pension in your home country (if you have worked there) and if so, what will it look like?

4) Do you have any passive income streams, and what are they?

5) What are your best tips about finances and retirement?

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To answer the above questions, I am using Interactive Brokers and index funds to save for retirement while living abroad, and save 30% of net monthly income. I'd like to increase this to 40%, and that will take a lot of focus to do. I do have a teacher pension in my home country with about a decade of service, and I am still investigating what this means. I do rent out a house in home country, and one day hope to maybe purchase a second property if I plan well. My tip is to remember that it is never too late to get into finances, even if you feel you have lost some time!

Thank you so much for this advice to those of you that have experienced children moving away for university.

Your ideas are helpful, and I appreciate you taking the time to share.

For those of you that have experienced your children moving off to university while you have stayed in a different country, potentially far away from where your children are going to school, what are your top tips to navigate this phase of life?

Living and working overseas has provided significantly more economic stability to our family than working in our home countries. The cost is that our family has to travel about 25-30 hours and spend about $10K USD on flights every time we want to visit family and friends in our home countries. While our school does cover some of this, by the time we add the flights, the rental car, potential accommodations and general travel expenses for summer months, it really starts to add up.

As a result, even though we are in a great region and at an excellent school that we and are children our happy at, we have wondered about moving closer to home due to this long and expensive annual travel home. If we did move closer to home, this definitely would mean less pay as the schools in these general regions do not cover housing etc.

Has anyone been in a similar situation, and did you decide to stay in the good economic conditions, or move closer to home and give up some of the economic benefits?

For many years I worked in public schools, and I will absolutely go back to public schools one day for a variety of reasons.

One tip is to find the RIGHT public school for you. Depending on the state you are in, you'll have different options. Certain states have amazing public school systems. I was not in one of those states, but I found the right school with a vision and mission I was aligned with. There are a variety of charter and magnet schools that run as public schools. IB Americas has numerous regional organizations that you can join and find jobs through if you are interested in IB schools.

I think it is more about finding the right public school fit than comparing the caliber of students of international and public schools. I had amazing students in public schools, and I have amazing students in high performing international schools. The key was that I was at the right type of public school with excellent administrators that fully supported their teachers.

Living in new countries and regions, with perhaps new and exciting activities and languages, affords many of us to pick up new ways to spend our time.

What new activities/hobbies/languages have you picked up as a result of living in a new country/culture/region?

@buffalofan - I really like your point about the 4 categories you mentioned: job itself, country, travel opportunities and savings potential. I was in a 3/4 job and now I am feeling like I am in a 4/4 so it reminds me to have gratitude and just appreciate the time. I was seeking balance and simply liking my job.

@psychguy - Great point about, "Don't confuse what you do with being who you are." Taking ourselves too seriously and getting too wrapped up in work becoming our identity can be detrimental.

@ThamesPirate - The 4 categories you mention are nice frames. And I see what you mean about sometimes advancing your career means a change in how great some of those categories are.

@popgirl - It is interesting isn't it?! Sometimes, in some cases, top tier simply means the school has been around awhile, but it does not always necessarily mean things are more "cutting-edge" at the top tiers than the younger, less well known places.

It would be interesting to hear stories of success of educators who have moved from less desirable schools/situations to more desirable schools/situations that they are thriving in. Any of the following might be interesting to share about:

- What do you not miss about your old school/situation?
- What is your favorite thing about your new school/situation?
- What advice would you give to colleagues who might be not sure about moving on, but know it is probably better for their emotional/mental health?

While much is dependent upon the particular context and school, I have only MYP experience and have worked in three tier 1 schools. Just one situation out of thousands of teachers out there...

Teachers who I have seen thrive in the MYP have a certain creative spark, and tend to appreciate and value the entire IB continuum - PYP, MYP and DP.

Thanks PsyGuy. Yes, your D seems probable.

If a job has been posted for the past 4 weeks, and the school just extended the posting for one more week, what do you think that might mean?

A) There are no suitable candidates in the pool so they need more to apply.

B) It was the holiday break, they are busy and do not have time to review stuff so just extended it.

C) They extended the process because more people are leaving the school and they are reshuffling etc.

D) (Insert what you think)

While I do think they mean well, they really do not have time for me. They even forget to do the yearly observations. Weeks go by without an authentic conversation. I know they are busy and all, but I am use to having really good bosses, so I am use to a higher standard and much better relationship. It is what I bring as well, and unfortunately when I am not treated that well, it is a real challenge to show up authentically.

They have cut me out of the bigger picture, even though we are supposedly on the same team. I am not sure what to think anymore. They have lied to me, and I did need to address it. Ever since then I have been cut out of the picture.

Regardless, I am learning some interesting skills in terms of emotional management, so I guess I am technically still learning something!

What traits do you look for in a boss?

What are indications that they are helping you grow as a professional?

What are indications that they not concerned with your professional growth?