Instagram story viewer> @amandamaxime> Posts

Amanda - Accredited coach for career-driven expats

@amandamaxime

4.2K

followers

1984

following

🐆 turning your “what, where, how, with whom” global life fog into clarity and a confident next chapter
✈️ former diplomat
😍 250+ expats coached
📍CDMX

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Long story short has never been my thing 😅 but there have also been a lot of moving pieces these last years. My journey has shaped me into the coach I am today - guiding expats not just with professional tools but also with the empathy, understanding, warmth and experience I bring from my own life. Exactly why so many expats want to work (and keep working) with me.

I’d love to hear from you - who are you and what is your “start here”? Feel free to DM me if it’s personal 💜

#expat #expatliving #livingabroad by @amandamaxime

98

10

9 months ago

A lot can change in a year.

From stagnation to expansion.

From home to Mexico.

From single to a happy relationship.

Actually, all these changes happened in just a few months.

Thanks to one major shift:

I decided to get into motion.

It’s one of the principles people inside The Co-Pilot live by too.

And there are receipts 💅

People are moving from the expat waiting room to a new country. Doubling down on their relationship. Investing in where they are now.

Bottom line: they don’t wait for something external to change. They take full responsibility for where they are, and decide to move forward even when the destination isn’t clear.

This is the level we play at inside The Co-Pilot.

Want that too?

Hurry as doors to The Co-Pilot are closing this Tuesday. by @amandamaxime

155

25

4 months ago

POV: @businessinsider wants to hear your story on how you’ve lost your sense of one home after nearly a decade abroad 🤩 (front page material 💅). Happy to have shared this on a global platform, as I know there are many others who feel the same way.

Do you recognize what I’m talking about? And where is home for you? Let me know! by @amandamaxime

122

21

5 months ago

Being tired of having constant back thoughts of “but will I stay here?” rippling into your life while simultaneously doing everything in your power to avoid making the actual decision that will return peace of mind.

Being so grateful for your amazing life and at the same time feeling lost, lonely or stuck abroad (and then feeling guilty about that).

Longing for a committed relationship but not actively dating because you “don’t know where you’ll live in a year”.

Knowing you need to make friends in the place you just moved to while barely keeping up with your social circle back home and the other 2 countries you lived in, quietly thinking “but I actually don’t want more friends 😬”.

Spending money on classes to learn the language and then also secretly loving not understanding it without effort so you’re able to check out mentally outside or in big groups (I see you introverts).

Considering moving home so you no longer need to miss out on the family gatherings and dinners with friends while knowing you’ve completely outgrown the place.

Not fully investing in the place you live in now because the possibility of moving elsewhere is still a realistic one, then not making any moves because you’ve already invested in your current chapter.

Craving for your holiday home-home because it just feels so easy there, but returning exhausted from said holiday because it felt like a world tour, now craving your other home.

Counting your blessings belonging in multiple countries, while realizing you’ll never belong somewhere fully ever again - because your heart is scattered around the world and not one place will ever make it home again.

Did I miss one?

——-

👋🏻 Hi, I’m Amanda! Life coach for high-achieving expats who feel stuck in a chapter of their life abroad. I help you go from editing your life to taking full authorship of it, so you can thrive wherever you go. by @amandamaxime

24

2

4 days ago

Let me know if you’ve been there too 🙋🏼‍♀️

(Also, this comes at no surprise as I’ve been pushing myself non-stop for the last weeks (months). The move and all the previous travel took a lot from me, and when we slow down, this is when the tiredness can come up).

Find my podcast This Expat Life on your favorite platform if you want to hear more honest stories about living abroad 🎧 @thisexpatlifepodcast by @amandamaxime

47

15

10 days ago

19

1

11 days ago

Some say the first week in a new country is the hardest. For me it's the best: no one knows me yet, and I get a blank canvas.

The move is the same. What comes up depends on you. That's why inner work matters if you want to thrive abroad.

🎧 In Episode 122 of This Expat Life, I share the 3 things I'm doing differently as I leave The Hague for Mexico. Link in bio. by @amandamaxime

9

3

17 days ago

Before I dive into it, you’ve got to know that I spent two years in what I call the Expat Waiting Room: the mental place where you know that where you live now (in my case my home country😅) isn’t for you in the long term, you just don’t know what is - so you wait.

When you can’t see clearly in the fog, waiting feels safe because then at least you can’t knock anything over.
 But waiting is costing you a lot too. In my case, being in waiting mode impacted my happiness, relationships and more.

So here’s what I did to get out of the Expat Waiting Room - and to land on my decision to move to CDMX:  1) I clarified what really mattered to me in this season of my life: my ambition & desire for expansion, and being in an environment where I could thrive. More than being physically close to family, owning a home, or living a comfortable life in my home country.

2) I connected to my inner world - I already knew I wanted to leave The Hague, but doing the inner work I realized I was waiting for something or someone to change things so I could respond to it and make my move. I made a conscious decision to stop waiting and get into motion myself.

3) I worked on my limiting beliefs that kept me stuck. Compared to most people I actually make big decisions easily (this move to CDMX isn’t my first rodeo), but this time I had let myself be stopped by my beliefs more than before.

4) I got into action without seeing clearly where my path would take me: I decided to move out of The Hague without knowing where to next. I got ready, went on the workation in Mexico I had already planned, and started checking in with myself: gathering data. How I felt on a daily basis showed me that Mexico City was the right next step.

And a bonus step: throughout these 4 steps I committed to living my life as if I already knew where I’d be. NOT in permanent pause mode as many stuck internationals do (“I don’t want to invest in dating right now, because I might not live here anymore in 4 months”). This led me to the relationship I now have, in Mexico City. Your global life is too precious to live it in a waiting mode 💜 by @amandamaxime

22

0

18 days ago

📝 Writing can be lonely
✈️ Living abroad can be lonely
📝✈️ But writing about living abroad doesn’t have to be✨

Comment JOIN to sign up for our October Authors Abroad meetup with dedicated writing time and knowledge-sharing about the publishing process

Can’t make it in October? You’ll also get access to our WhatsApp group chat to connect with the community and plan future meetings!

#writersofig #livingabroad by @amandamaxime

5

0

19 days ago

When I moved back home to the Netherlands after my posting as a diplomat in Brazil, I had a clear plan: grow some roots in my home country again, and quit my job to follow my heart (starting my global coaching practice).

Life had a different plan.

Because three weeks after I moved home, my dad unexpectedly passed away.

Less than two years after that, my mom.

And four months later, my grandma (and last grandparent I had).

Mix in a global pandemic, a painful break-up and other losses, and you can see why the first couple of years of my chapter back in The Hague were challenging, to say the least.

I still quit my diplomacy career and started coaching internationals around the world, and I also grew new roots here. Just in a different way than I had expected.

And two years ago, when the dust had settled, I realized I wasn’t thriving in The Hague. I tried to make it work anyway, until I caught myself being abroad as often as I could.

So last November, I finally called it: I’m closing this chapter. It served its purpose, and I’m allowed to let it go.

(I gifted myself one more summer in The Hague, because as all locals know, summers here are unmatched 😍).

Even though I didn’t know at the time where my next chapter would take place, I just felt in my bones: this decision will change everything. And so it did - for all the areas of my life I felt stuck in, things magically rearranged themselves.

And now it’s happening: summer’s over, I packed my bags, and yesterday I flew to my love who was waiting for me on the other side of the world.

I’m incredibly excited to start this next adventure, AND it hurts as I reflect on and closed this chapter in The Hague.

In hindsight I can see exactly why I needed to be there.

And I’m reminded that sometimes it’s really up to us to change our context, so we can find alignment again.

Next chapter, I am so ready for you 💜

PS. All my The Hague photos in my favorites folder are cats and dunes, which I think is very telling. Photo 1 was taken after the first VERY rough year in The Hague, just before I left diplomacy. You can see what I went through in my face 💔 and I’m proud of myself for how I turned it all around 💜 by @amandamaxime

110

13

21 days ago

The #1 piece of advice I give to aspiring expats, seasoned global citizens, and myself again as I’m moving tomorrow 🙃, is this:

Find your local anchors.

A coffee place with the perfect oat milk capp where they remember your name, your new favorite running route without having to consult Google Maps, a random location you just like to visit, or the supermarket, a new gym to build a routine, and all the other things that make you feel anchored in your new barrio.

These anchors will make you feel settled, at home, and like you’ve got this.

While I’m so ready to close this chapter in The Hague, I will miss my local anchors SO much. Thank you for providing me with what I needed 💜

If you’re new(ish) to The Hague, steal my favorites:

☕️ my fav work spot by far, not only for their good oat milk capps, but also for their excellent service and very friendly staff. They truly embody the idea of a local coffee shop where all locals are welcome. They also remembered my order and brought it to me every time without asking, and surprised me with the bill on the house my last time 🥹💜 thank you @annemaxdenhaagfred

🧘‍♀️ @studio.bondi for providing me with calm, exhalations and peace in some volatile years. Sunday yin yoga classes with @yogi_joe_dwyer (with good stretches, humor and knowledge) were by far my favorite to transition to the new week 🙏🏻 I just hope I can find a similar class in CDMX!

🍷@cafe.franklin a real quality gastropub where I basically brought everyone who was new to town, and then my local friends 😄

@statensport9 for the friendliest, most welcoming gym I’ve ever been to

Strand Zuid and ‘t Puntje were my fav beach bars by far (only open Apr-Oct).

And finally, the GORGEOUS area of Meijendel, where the dunes stretch endlessly in front of you, especially if you’re doing a long distance run 😆 My place to calm down, feel space and run my emotions out when my heart got broken and bruised.

I love my local anchors 😍 what are yours? by @amandamaxime

27

4

23 days ago

“What makes The Co-Pilot different from therapy?” - well, THIS: action.

Celebrating my clients’ wins (as well as my own of course) has become my favorite activity on Fridays. And last Friday I realized, I have to share this publicly! Because the last wins were just too good 😍

As a coach who’s been trained at senior level, I like to do the inner work with them and help them get over their own blocks, generating sustainable change…

But after working with expats for 4+ years, I’ve also realized that they often already KNOW what needs be done or how they get in their own way - they are just missing the motivation, trust and accountability to take the scary steps.

A new chapter however rarely arrives on its own, so to get out of indecision you need a little push. (Yeah waiting for things to calm down really isn’t going to change anything 😘).
That’s why in my program The Co-Pilot there is a big focus on taking action and keeping momentum.

And with clear results, as you can see.

But the real beauty for me is how they brought their wins: because each of them realized how they had been blocking themselves by buying into the limiting beliefs that had been quietly running the show.

It wasn’t just wins and results - they also started seeing themselves recently.

And that’s a win they’ll take with them for the rest of their lives.

I can’t wait to see what comes next!

Ready to stop waiting too? I have 2 spots opening up inside The Co-Pilot this month. DM me PILOT to hear more. (Price going up in October). by @amandamaxime

25

3

a month ago