Somewhere Else is an intriguing place.

Where You Are is filled with too much noise, too much uncertainty, too many problems.

The right people aren’t here to build out your community, network, and organization.

It’s boring, there’s nothing fun to do, nothing unique.

It’s easy to imagine that Somewhere Else has everything you’re looking for.

The right people and networks, unique events and activities, everything that’s missing from Where You Are has somehow been cultivated there.

You might transplant yourself to Somewhere Else and at least at the beginning, it’s everything you imagined it would be.

Sure maybe you haven’t tapped into those networks, met those people, gone to more than a couple of those unique events, but they’re here, and in time you’ll become an insider, reaping the benefits of your new and improved location.

A couple of years pass, however, maybe only a couple months, and Somewhere Else is starting to look a lot like Where You Are.

You realize that it’s not just you. Everyone here in Somewhere Else is talking about Somewhere Further.

While most of them just talk about Somewhere Further, you’ve done this before, you pack up your things and take the leap, sure that Somewhere Further is going to fulfill the hype that Somewhere Else promised, but failed to deliver on.

The cycle repeats, taking you from Somewhere Further to Further Still, to Far Far Away.

Optimism and excitement turns to the mundane, disappointment sets in, and your feet begin to itch.

Soon enough, you start hearing people in Far Far Away talking about Where You Are as the most exciting place to be right now.

It’s got everything, they say. An amazing network in your industry, tons of events, a vibrant art community, and don’t forget the craft beer scene.

You’re skeptical, but it’s been a while since you left. Maybe Where You Are has transformed from the boring, static place it was when you were there to a thriving, energetic hub of innovation and excitement.

Far Far Away was getting boring anyway, so once again you pack up once again and head back to Where You Are.

It doesn’t take long to realize that not much has changed in Where You Are.

You hang out with the same people you used to, work a similar job to the one you had, pass your time in the same ways you did when you first lived here.

Sure the craft beer scene is good, but none of the new places have anything on the old spots you already knew about and visited regularly.

How could people in Far Far Away have been so wrong about this place?

Slowly, painfully, you begin to take stock of the evidence presented by your experience.

Maybe Somewhere Else was never as intriguing as it appeared.

And maybe Where You Are is what you make it.