Many people move overseas with no clear idea of what they will do when they get there. Perhaps they relocate as part of a partner’s career move or simply wish to experience life in a new country for a while. Many such expats find inspiration while living abroad and go on to start their own successful businesses.
We’ve dug out a number of great reads written by people who have been there, done that and have got the income to prove it. These authors share great insights and tips into how you can become an expat entrepreneur and achieve your dreams while living a great life overseas. Complete with comprehensive details of successes and mistakes, these books will make great reads for aspiring expat entrepreneurs who wish to start out on their own.
1) Expatriate Entrepreneurs in Emerging Markets by David English
Within his book, David focuses on the potential of developing markets and shares ideas on how expats living in developing nations can put their skills and knowledge to best use. He shares the success stories of 30 European and North American expats who have started their own successful enterprises within the emerging markets and presents a set of key lessons that would-be expat entrepreneurs can take from these stories.
2) Expat Entrepreneur: How To Create and Maintain Your Own Portable Career Anywhere In The World by Jo Parfait
Jo Parfait is quite well known on the expat circuit and as a result of her experiences as a trailing spouse she has developed undisputable expertise on some of the challenges that expat partners face. In order to establish her own identity during her years following her husband around the globe, Jo decided to use her writing skills to start her own business and the rest, they say, is history. In How To Create and Maintain Your Own Portable Career Anywhere In The World Jo guides expats through the process of starting an expat career and provides valuable advice and insights into how would-be entrepreneurs can make the most of their skills and experiences in order to earn their own income while also enjoying the adventures of expat life along the way. In addition to sharing her own experiences, Jo tells the story of 23 expat entrepreneurs who have started their own successful business. Each of them offers their own advice on how to get started in business while living overseas and share stories of their own struggles and how they overcame them.
Expat entrepreneur makes a great read for trailing spouses who are in search of a little inspiration but is equally recommended for any other expats who wish to use their skills to make a living overseas.
Expat Entrepreneur: How To Create and Maintain Your Own Portable Career Anywhere In The World is available for sale on Amazon.
3) Laptop Entrepreneur by Nick Snelling and Graham Hunt
This book makes a great read for anyone who is looking to make a living from any location in the world. Within the book, Snelling and Hunt offer a very practical approach to starting an online business that is based on their own experiences and the expertise of their contacts. It offers really valuable guidance to people who have little or no previous knowledge of methods of earning money via a portable career and guides interested parties step-by-step through everything they need to know about making the most of the possibilities that the Internet offers. Topics of interest include blogging, affiliate marketing, social media marketing and website copy writing.
4) Turning Points: 25 Inspiring Stories From Women Entrepreneurs Who Turned Their Careers and Their Lives Around. Edited by Kate Cobb.
Turning Points tells the story of 25 women who have taken the bull by the horns and transformed their own lives through starting their own successful businesses. The book places a heavy emphasis on how people can change situations they are unhappy with and harness their skills and energy to make a difference to their lives. If you are living overseas and finding that the life you have is not the one you want, this book will provide you with real inspiration that can help you to make the changes you need.
5) Your Portable Empire: How to Make Money Anywhere While Doing What You Love
This book focuses on helping people to identify methods of gaining alternative sources of income through taking advantage of the potential of the Internet. Based on the principle that any would-be entrepreneur can make a valid income provided they identify a method of solving a problem that people commonly experience, the book guides readers through the process of identifying, communicating and interacting with buyers in a pain-free manner, regardless of where in the world you are based.
The book includes the real-life stories of people who have implemented the principles he shares, together with practical tips on how potential entrepreneurs can go about creating the business they need to support a portable living.
