Nomad Capitalist Chapter 16: How to Get Started - A Practical Summary

Henderson opens the final chapter from a muddy car ride in Montenegro. He is furniture shopping for his new beach apartment in Kotor Bay with a general contractor named Anka. They are debating white sofas. He jokes about reckless tourists. She offers him a mint. For a second he wonders if she is making a move. She is not. She is just extremely good at her job.

This little scene captures something important. Henderson hired Anka on the recommendation of someone he barely knew. Within an afternoon, she was already handling his residency paperwork better than the lawyer he had paid for the job. The lawyer, Vesna, could not even tell him what documents were needed. Anka figured it out during a furniture run.

And that, Henderson says, is how most of the nomad life works. You try things. You test people. Sometimes the shiny law office is not the answer. Sometimes it is the contractor who picks you up in a muddy wagon.

Stop Researching. Start Doing.

This is the core message of the chapter. And honestly, it is the core message of the entire book.

Henderson has seen it hundreds of times. People say they are different. They say they are action-takers. Then they spend another six months reading articles, calling random lawyers, comparing jurisdictions, and doing absolutely nothing. He admits he used to be the same. Years of trying to figure out the offshore world by himself before he finally trusted the experts and started moving.

Here is his blunt truth. Every day you do nothing, there is a cost. And “doing nothing is not an option” is a lie people tell themselves. Doing nothing is always an option. It is the option most people choose.

He tells a story about someone who asked him, “Andrew, can we buy a van in Tbilisi if we move there?” You probably can. But that is not the right question. If you focus on what you actually need to do to get there, the van situation will figure itself out. People hold themselves back with tiny irrelevant questions because the big decisions feel too scary.

The EKG Formula One Last Time

Henderson walks through his entire EKG framework as a final action plan. If you have been reading the book and doing the exercises at the end of each chapter, this is where it all comes together.

E - Enhance Your Personal Freedom

First, decide what your international life looks like. Are you dipping your toe in with a few trips? Testing locations for six months? Already know where you want to live?

Pick one. Stop reading. Decide.

Then figure out the paperwork. Do you need a residence permit? Can you get citizenship through investment? Do you want a second passport as a Plan B or do you need one right now? If time matters, pick a citizenship by investment program and start the process today.

If you have a partner, talk about it together. Where to live, where to have kids, how to educate them on the road. If you are single, decide whether a relationship is a priority right now and how that changes your plans.

And think about healthcare. Henderson reminds you that world-class medical care exists outside your home country. For some people, just knowing that is enough to stop worrying and start exploring.

K - Keep More of Your Money

Henderson says the easiest first step is opening an offshore bank account. It is simpler than you think, especially if you are willing to get on a plane. You could start with somewhere basic like Canada, or go to Georgia or Ecuador, or if you have the funds, head straight to Singapore.

Why is this the perfect first step? Because it builds confidence. Once you have money sitting in a foreign bank, the whole lifestyle starts feeling real instead of theoretical. You feel connected to a new place. You planted a flag.

After that, tackle the tax quadrants from earlier chapters. Where are you personally leaving? Where are you going? How does your exit affect your tax situation? Do you need new tax residency?

Then handle the business side. Where is your company now, and where should it be? This is one area where Henderson strongly recommends professional help. Do not try to move your company offshore without someone who knows the rules.

Finally, diversify. Gold in a Singapore vault. Assets outside the banking system. You can literally order gold stored in a high-security vault online right now. It is that easy to start.

G - Grow Your Money

This is the part that requires getting off the couch. The best foreign investments are found on the ground. Frontier market opportunities only reveal themselves when you actually show up.

The easiest entry point is cryptocurrency. If you have not bought any, Henderson says do it now. Set up a regular investment schedule. Weekly, monthly, whatever works. If crypto is not for you, cross it off the list and move on.

Then book a ticket. Go explore an investment market. Once you step outside the imaginary lines of your home country, the questions in your head change. Instead of “Can I find kale at the local market?” you start asking real questions. How much tax am I paying if I stay? What opportunities am I missing? What does my retirement look like if I change nothing?

Embrace the Uncertainty

Henderson ends with something I think is the most honest part of the book. He says there will always be uncertainty in an international life. But here is what is certain: if you keep doing what you are doing, you will keep paying the same tax rate next year. That is guaranteed.

The uncertainty comes when you make a change for the better.

One of his coaches says, “Uncertainty is where the magic happens.” If everything were certain, you would never progress. Most of life is uncertain anyway. So you might as well throw yourself into bold action. That is where the good stuff happens.

Henderson compares your personal nomad strategy to a puzzle. Each piece alone is useless. But fitted together, they create something beautiful. Which pieces you need depends on your goals. Figure out what you want, pick the strategies that get you there, and hold yourself accountable.

Key Takeaway

This chapter is a summary chapter. It does not introduce new ideas. It takes everything from the previous fifteen chapters and turns it into a simple message. Stop consuming. Start executing.

Henderson’s closing words are worth repeating. The world is full of opportunities that most people cannot see because they are trapped behind imaginary lines. More freedom and more prosperity exist today than at any other point in history. You just have to go out and find it.

From my own perspective after spending twenty-plus years in IT, I see the same pattern everywhere. People research endlessly. They compare options. They read one more article, watch one more video, attend one more conference. And they never actually do anything.

The difference between people who change their lives and people who just think about it is embarrassingly simple. The ones who change their lives made one decision and acted on it before they felt ready. That is it. No secret formula. No special knowledge. Just action before comfort.

Henderson spent years doing exactly what he warns you not to do. Then he stopped. He hired experts. He trusted them. He made fast decisions. And he built the life he writes about.

If this book gave you ideas, good. But ideas without action are just entertainment. Pick one thing from this chapter. The smallest, easiest thing. And do it today. Open that bank account. Book that flight. Make that phone call.

The van in Tbilisi will figure itself out.

Book: Nomad Capitalist by Andrew Henderson | ISBN: 9798461831486

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Part of the Nomad Capitalist series