Farming is a completely different type of job than software development or designing integrated circuits.
When you program a computer, it does what you tell it to. You can diagnose what’s wrong and fix it. Whether you can fix things is based a lot on your own skill and knowledge.
If you become a farmer, you can do everything skillfully and still have a crop fail. You are at the mercy of the weather.
Have you even grown a small vegetable garden? That might be a first step to get some idea what you are facing if you go into farming.
Don’t assume farming will be easy. It can be one of the toughest jobs. Spend some time out on a farm helping out with whatever needs to be done to research this option. If you enjoy being outdoors, and are ok with the uncertainty of farming, then maybe it is for you. If you love the land, then farming may be for you.
Since your wife wants to move to another country, I think it is worth going through the immigration processes for various countries. Immigration processes can take years, and still have an uncertain result, so you might as well get started. If you can afford to visit some countries, that may make things clearer too. There are more changes to moving to another country than just money. Climate and culture can have a big effect on a person’s life.
Where I live in Canada, a starting salary for a software developer can be about CAD $40 000. So the $100 000 figure other people are talking about isn’t applicable everywhere.
Regarding freelance work, do you have enough time in the day that you could start doing freelance work while still working at the job you have? If you take on some side projects, you could see how that goes without quitting your job.
I think part of what this decision comes down to is what your goals are, and what the goals of your family are. What are your priorities? What is most important to you?
I think it could help to take the first steps on all three options at once, to get a taste of what each of them is like. Things might become clearer as you get more information. Right now I don’t think you know enough about each option to make a good decision. Research is what is required.
Also, I read a book recently about making good decisions. It is called “Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work” by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. There are some techniques in there, like asking yourself, “Imagine a year from now the project I was attempting to do has failed. What are the reasons?” that have helped me figure some things out in my own life.
Farming is a completely different type of job than software development or designing integrated circuits.
When you program a computer, it does what you tell it to. You can diagnose what’s wrong and fix it. Whether you can fix things is based a lot on your own skill and knowledge.
If you become a farmer, you can do everything skillfully and still have a crop fail. You are at the mercy of the weather.
Have you even grown a small vegetable garden? That might be a first step to get some idea what you are facing if you go into farming.
Don’t assume farming will be easy. It can be one of the toughest jobs. Spend some time out on a farm helping out with whatever needs to be done to research this option. If you enjoy being outdoors, and are ok with the uncertainty of farming, then maybe it is for you. If you love the land, then farming may be for you.
Since your wife wants to move to another country, I think it is worth going through the immigration processes for various countries. Immigration processes can take years, and still have an uncertain result, so you might as well get started. If you can afford to visit some countries, that may make things clearer too. There are more changes to moving to another country than just money. Climate and culture can have a big effect on a person’s life.
Where I live in Canada, a starting salary for a software developer can be about CAD $40 000. So the $100 000 figure other people are talking about isn’t applicable everywhere.
Regarding freelance work, do you have enough time in the day that you could start doing freelance work while still working at the job you have? If you take on some side projects, you could see how that goes without quitting your job.
I think part of what this decision comes down to is what your goals are, and what the goals of your family are. What are your priorities? What is most important to you?
I think it could help to take the first steps on all three options at once, to get a taste of what each of them is like. Things might become clearer as you get more information. Right now I don’t think you know enough about each option to make a good decision. Research is what is required.
Also, I read a book recently about making good decisions. It is called “Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work” by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. There are some techniques in there, like asking yourself, “Imagine a year from now the project I was attempting to do has failed. What are the reasons?” that have helped me figure some things out in my own life.