Earning USD while living in Bali or Lisbon is basically a cheat code for life. You're geo-arbitraging your way into a higher standard of living without working more hours.
But there's a catch.
The transfer fees will kill your margin if you aren't careful.
If you're using a standard wire transfer from a US bank to an Indonesian one, you're getting hit twice. Once on the flat wire fee (usually $35-50) and once on the absolute garbage rate they give you.
So the problem is thinking of your bank as a partner. They aren't. They're a utility, and they're trying to extract as much as possible for a basic service.
Wait — this matters. If you're an independent contractor, that 3% you're losing every month is your vacation fund. It's your health insurance.
Actually, scratch that. It's just plain waste.
I spent 11 minutes setting up a multi-currency account last year, and it changed my entire business. I now receive USD locally and convert it when I want, not when the bank decides I have to. Take control of the flow. Don't let the middleman own your 'cheat code.'
