Moving to Sweden – The Beginning

Leaving the UK and moving to Sweden. It’s a big statement isn’t it?

A new adventure and a fresh start.

Mel and I have spoken about our plans with a few friends recently. Every time we get asked a whole load of questions about why. So I thought I’d write a post and explain things in a little more detail.

Why Sweden?

A great question.

To put it simply, Mel and I want to move to a country that is more in line with who we are as people. Unfortunately the current situation in the UK and the last 4-5 years have shown us that this isn’t our permanent home.

Speaking as someone who is British (and up until recently a proud European), it is both upsetting and disappointing to no longer feel like the country of my birth is “home” to me.

But things are what they are and life moves on. Sometimes we need to make a difficult choice so that we can experience greater things in the future.

Sweden is a country that consistently ranks highly in the World Happiness Report. In 2020, Sweden ranked 7th.

It’s also a country of outstanding natural beauty. Something that is really important to us. Mel and I love the outdoors, forests and exploring new places.

97% of Sweden is uninhabited. That’s a staggering amount isn’t it?

Above all else it’s important for us that we’re living in a country that cares about the environment. Full of people that have a similar mindset and that show kindness to others.

We believe Sweden to be the right choice for our future and likely as our forever home.

What would you do for work?

We’d do the same thing that we do currently. The only difference would be that it’s in a new location.

For anyone that doesn’t know what we do, we run a business that provides content and education for digital agencies, marketers and designers around the world. We have over 1,000 customers in almost 50 countries.

As our business is focused purely online, it’s very easy for us to relocate. We’d just need to setup a company in Sweden and then transfer assets and all of the relevant information in accordance with the advice of our accountants.

I’m sure there will be lots of little nuances that we’ll learn along the way. Moving a business to another country is likely to be full of surprises, but in principle it’s a fairly basic thing.

Isn’t Sweden expensive?

A little.

The cost of living is a bit more than it is in the UK, but most prices are fairly comparable. VAT is 25% in Sweden, so this will add a little to the cost of most things.

House prices are something that actually surprised us though. We’ve seen plenty of wonderful houses for under £100,000. To get the same type of house where we live in the UK would be 4-5x the price.

The other things to consider would be taxes and health costs.

Taxes are higher in Sweden. A little more of our money would go on taxes. Yet the Swedes actually look like they do something useful with their taxes. Who would’ve thought?

Health costs are also a factor. There isn’t a free healthcare system like the NHS in the UK. So some healthcare costs are inevitable. The good news is that these costs are capped each year. For doctors / hospitals it’s currently 1150 SEK (approx £100).

There’s a separate capped cost for prescriptions at 2350 SEK (approx £204).

So in summary, it’s a little more expensive but costs that we are perfectly happy to pay for a lifestyle that suits us better.

What about the language?

We’re already learning it. Currently via a mixture of online learning resources such as Duolingo, a couple of books and even watching TV or listening to popular songs in Swedish.

Jag älskar svenska (I love Swedish).

Personally I’m really enjoying the language. A lot of it makes quite a bit of sense and I haven’t found too many silly rules yet – unlike some of the idiosyncrasies that we have in the English language.

Most Swedes are able to speak English as it’s something that they learn in school. So even if we’re not perfectly fluent when we move (narrator’s voice: we won’t be), then we should still be okay.

It is important to both Mel and I that we are at least able to try speaking to people in Swedish first. It’s a sign of respect after all.

“Fika”

This is something that I think will win over the hearts of any sceptic.

Swedish people love their coffee. They love making time for coffee – drinking with others or by themselves.

“Fika” is the name they give to having a coffee and cake break. Who doesn’t love a slice of cake??

It’s more than that though. It’s about making time to spend with family, friends or colleagues. Fika is a really serious practice in Sweden and a very important part of Swedish culture.

As a former cinnamon bun addict, I can definitely feel myself sliding down the slippery slope of pastry.

“Lagom”

Now this is the one Swedish word that I love the most.

When loosely translated into English, “lagom” means: just the right amount.

The Swedes have “lagom” as part of their lifestyle.

It’s about slowing down and taking the pressure out of life. Making more time for doing the things that you love.

One of the worst things with modern life for most of us is that we’re always busy. There’s always another thing that needs doing, another knock at the door, another phone call etc.

We get stressed. We struggle. Life gets harder.

We forget to make time for ourselves and the things that we love.

Mel and I have done this for too long. Things will change when we move to Sweden.

When are you moving to Sweden?

Realistically it’s not going to be for a while yet. At the time of writing, we’re about a year into a global pandemic.

The most likely time to move would be in 12 – 18 months from now, or about 2 years at the latest. We want to have enough time to get everything prepared here and to have the right plans in place for a smooth transition.

It also makes sense for us to take the next year to get as healthy as we can and ensure that we have enough funds saved up to make the dream come alive.

So… what’s next?

As mentioned above, the move is a little way off. I just wanted to write this post to let friends and family know a little more about our plans.

Mel and I would like to document the process in more detail. There’s a few reasons for this.

Firstly, we want to be able to stay in touch with friends and family, keeping them updated with what is happening.

Secondly, we know from seeing other people sharing their content that it’s actually quite an interesting thing to share with the wider world.

There’s definitely a YouTube channel and podcast idea on the horizon. Maybe even a book tour and a branded sponsorship with Tesla?

Ultimately if what we experience manages to help one other person to achieve their dreams, then it’s worth documenting and sharing.

It’s the start of a journey

This is just the start of a long journey. If you want to follow along, then you’re more than welcome.

If you accidentally clicked a link, found your way here and you think this all sounds a bit shit – well sorry. I humbly apologise. Here’s a video of people that hate cats meeting kittens. Maybe it’s more your thing?

Seriously though, thank you for reading. If you have any comments or questions, drop them in below – more than happy to answer!