series

Moving Part 4: Making it “official”

Moving Part 4: Making it “official”

Samantha Gratton

Packed Truck | Moving Peaces

As a continuation of my series about moving, here’s a little lesson on breaking the news. If you missed earlier posts in the series you can check them out here: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

It all feels like a dream until you start telling people. It should feel like a dream for a little while. Dream away. Because once you start spreading the news, people will have questions and even more so, they will have comments. For instance, one friend told us we were crazy, to our faces and then walked away. Someone seemed to hardly find it interesting and kept talking about how good their soup was. Others were shocked and said very little, but some immediately celebrated with us and for us. We just never knew how someone would respond.

So, think through what your plan is and then tell people in stages, starting with those closest to you. I had talked about the desire to move for years, so to some it was not much of a surprise. For others, sharing the news about a move can seem monumental to those first hearing about it. It’s important to get some feedback along the way though, which is why it is helpful to share it with those you trust and love first. The more you share your plans and story, the more you will get a better idea of just what you are about to do means to you.

Further, don’t just think about what your plan is but have an actual plan. Without it, people will quickly tire of this “official” stage when you haven’t yet hit the “it’s really happening” stage.

Somewhat contrary to what I just said, here is the order in which my husband and I broke the news.

  1. Landlord (our lease required a 60-day notice, but otherwise, he was not the closest person in our lives)
  2. Parents
  3. Close friends (limited details)
  4. Siblings
  5. Close friends (extensive details)
  6. Friends
  7. Employers
  8. Commitments (i.e. utility company, volunteer organizations, bands, book club)
  9. Extended family
  10. Social media

The order of your list might be different but it is good to consider what your timeline will be based on your comfort and your responsibilities.

Have you had to break the news about a move? How did you do it and how did it go?

Moving Part 3: Lining up Logistics

Samantha Gratton

Packed Truck

Based on our move across the country two years ago, I’ve started writing a little more about what all went into our move and some of the steps I’d recommend considering when making such a decision. Are you new to the series? Feel free to check out part 1 or part 2 first.

Part 3: Lining up Logistics

Logistics in a move may include selling your house, saving money, finding a new job or fulfilling prior obligations before going through with it. For some, it might even be realizing that the timing is off and needing to table it for another time in life. (At one point, this where we were at despite all my best efforts. Ultimately, the timing was best when I wasn’t trying to force it). All of these are understandable reasons to delay or decide against a move. If it comes down to that, be honest about it. Maybe you tried skipping a few steps but you weren’t actually ready yet for whatever reason.

When we decided to move, we had been saving money away for years, were renting our house and knew we were moving to an area with a good economic climate. Our situation is not the same for everyone else. We were able to move without jobs lined up, which, albeit scary, worked out. Sometimes, that is not a possibility, and that’s okay.

If you are looking for jobs, consider making it clear when you plan to move by providing dates if possible. Or explain your reasons for choosing to move to the area in your cover letter so your potential future employer knows you aren’t just applying to jobs at random.

For us, lining up logistics meant researching the area we were going to and starting to understand what the business climate was, what the cost of living would be and talking to anyone we knew who had lived in that part of the country. We had far fewer logistics than most people might have, which was partly why this was the right time in life for us to move. No house, no kids, no debt.

Having any one of those things is not necessarily a deal breaker, just something to consider. If you own your home, consider your options by putting your house up for sale or maybe, up for rent with a local management company. With debt, it may be worthwhile to work towards paying off your debt before a move so you have more freedom and flexibility. With kids, I cannot give a lot of guidance as we don’t have any kids yet, but I’m guessing you’ll have a few more logistics to work out depending on their ages and needs. As I said, we didn’t have these three things, so lining up these details may look very different for you.

Instead, we had to overcome the hurdle and insecurities that came with moving without a job or sense of security on the other side. We had to go back and fully understand our intentions, which meant repeating parts one and two quite frequently.

This an incredibly tricky step in the process. It can be exhausting and disheartening. For some this stage takes weeks and for others, this can take years. Try to stay positive through it all, but also realize your limitations and manage your expectations as much as possible.