Taking the leap.
Helloooo from the other sideeeeee 😆
Hi ya from St. Petersburg, FL — the Sunshine City in the Sunshine State. It really is true as my fiancé and I have already joked how it only rains when the Tampa Bay Lightening are about to play at 8PM in the Stanley Cup (better luck next year, boys! ⚡️).
The past month here in St. Pete has been an absolute whirlwind. Now that we’re pseudo-settled, I wanted to share some of the key takeaways for anyone considering an uproot and transfer to new (& hopefully sunnier) pastures.
Note: I understand that not everyone has the flexibility and timeframe we had to make this happen. It was something we spoke into existence for a long time and are beyond thankful to both work virtually.
Without a doubt, it will be more expensive than you think.
I am a planner, tried and true. I had check lists for months, weeks, and days out. Whatever you think the all-in move is going to cost — it will be more than that. Our first trip to Target to get essentials (read: Toilet paper, Soap, Towels, etc. was $500 and we had to go back the next day for stuff we forgot 😂.) Thankfully, we found ways to justify or breakeven along the way. ie: turned in my car lease and got a check from the dealership that paid for a majority of the moving truck expense. Sold off/gave furniture to friends. It’s MUCH less expensive to offload and buy new. I give an example below.
From the onset, let people in on your adventure.
From a biz stand point, start letting people know of your adventure before it happens. Just like going OOO on vacation, if you’re up front about your schedule, everyone around you will be more understanding of your situation. It puts less stress on you and the relationships. It also means putting in the extra time and effort on the front end to ensure all loose ends are tied up before ✌️’ing out.
Purging is good for the soul.
And for improving the above moving truck expenses. Did ya know that adding the square foot of a desk would have been 3x the amount that we paid for it in the first place? Whoa. We went a couple rounds with the moving company to ensure our quote was as accurate as possible. Start small and start early. Pick a room and little by little purge things that you won’t even remember are gone when you get to where you’re going. Give to friends, neighbors, NextDoor, and my favorite Goodwill. Be sure to contact your tax advisor as they can help you navigate these tax deductions. If you’re looking for someone who can handle your biz across the country, here’s my guy Mauro in Glendale, CA.
Your expectations need to be flexible.
Like anything in life, have high hopes but be willing to go with the flow. I know from my project managing days that the ideal timeline still needs a buffer — life happens. Same goes with the trek to your destination. For us, it was 5 days on the road (CA > AZ > NM > TX > MS > AL > FL) with two cats. Although we didn’t get to do all the sightseeing most road warriors would do along the way, we did find ways to seek adventure with our furries included. And of course, mom and dad had the evenings out once the kitties were snuggled in the hotel. #bucketlist
Document EVERYTHING.
We were warned that some moving companies gouge you. Welp, along the way I recorded everything and threw it into a Google Drive folder. Photos, documents, emails, and texts. It proved to be helpful. Many less-than-acceptable things happened and we were without our stuff for 2+ weeks (luckily nothing was broken!). For example, we were promised that any furniture taken apart would be assembled back together. We shipped our bed frame and when it arrived, the parts were missing. And the drop off crew said that they were not licensed to assemble it. Had to trash it since we’re not Home Depot gurus. With some major followup and pushback, we were reimbursed for the bed debacle.
Was the adventure worth it? 1000%. Would I want to do cross country again? Ha, my new motto is “never say never,” but for now… TALOOP digs will be in St. Pete — come visit!
To ☀️ days!
P.S.: Considering a big move yourself? First off, congrats! Moving is stepping outside of your comfort zone and I am all about that. For reference, I’ve moved 16+ times across 3 states. 5 times during my California residency. When I moved to CA after college, I had just 2 suitcases. It’s a ride no matter how you slice it. Happy to give you a pep talk and some tips. Just holler! 🥰