{"id":1756,"date":"2014-01-14T04:42:16","date_gmt":"2014-01-14T09:42:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/?p=1756"},"modified":"2020-11-20T09:52:22","modified_gmt":"2020-11-20T14:52:22","slug":"living-paradise-without-working","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/blog\/living-paradise-without-working\/","title":{"rendered":"Living In Paradise Without Working"},"content":{"rendered":"

Living In Paradise Without Working<\/strong><\/h2>\n

So, you\u2019ve decided to move to \u201cparadise\u201d… but how are you going to survive financially?<\/p>\n

As Cecil Lewis says in The Trumpet is Mine, the whole point of living in paradise is to enjoy a comfortable, lazy life.<\/p>\n

His paradise was the South Seas \u2013 \u201ca shore where the struggle for existence is unknown, and where, for once, the rose proliferates without a thorn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA shore where the struggle for existence is unknown…\u201d<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, that\u2019s a privilege usually reserved for millionaires. Since I\u2019m not a millionaire I wasn\u2019t able to afford the luxury of jetting off to my own private island. My goal was quite different.<\/p>\n

I wanted to find a way to generate a sustainable cash flow sufficient to allow me to live on a tropical island… without having to work.<\/p>\n

I achieved it. For two years, I lived with my Chinese girlfriend Yu Xia on the tiny jungle-covered islands off the east coast of peninsular Malaysia in the South China Sea. One island I stayed on was the stunningly beautiful Pulau Tioman<\/a>, location for the \u201cwaterfall shower scene\u201d in South Pacific: \u00a0\u201cI\u2019m gonna wash that man right outta my hair!\u201d<\/p>\n

We took a shower in that waterfall!<\/p>\n

Lewis\u2019s South Seas imagery captures Tioman very well: \u201dPrimordial memories of palms and coral reefs and sun-drenched sands; of fruits and flowering trees; of women warm in welcome; of peace and isolation\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

For two long years, working as a business teacher in sweltering Singapore by day, I sat hunched over an old green-baize table on the balcony of my tiny apartment, developing a system that would generate a steady income that did not require my physical presence.<\/p>\n

My solution enabled me to exist on those dream islands for a further two years without working a single day…. a permanent holiday in paradise!<\/p>\n

Handpicked Related Content: Travel The World For Next To Nothing With Frequent Flyer Miles<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

How I Lived In Paradise Without Working<\/strong><\/h2>\n

So, how was it done? You need to consider both aspects of the problem: income and expenses. Let\u2019s start with expenses. How much money do you NEED to live in paradise? I am not asking how much do you WANT.<\/p>\n

Expenses<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Wants are infinite, but needs, actually, are very few. My definition of a need is \u201csomething without which daily existence would not be possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

To save you wracking your brains, here\u2019s my list:<\/p>\n