Americans leaving country declare life abroad the new 'American dream' in viral videos

 TikToker Andrea Elliott says more Americans are realizing that a better quality of life exists outside the US.

People are sharing their emigration stories online, saying that "the new American dream is to leave America," and they are encouraging others to do the same.

A growing number of TikTok videos tagged #expatlife #digitalnomad #leavingtheusa posted last year are convincing some people that their dream life may lie outside U.S. borders.

Americans living abroad are taking to social media to document their new stress-free lifestyles outside the US and explain why they think the American dream has a new meaning. One of those people is 37-year-old Andrea Elliott, who has lived in Houston, Texas, her entire life until she decided to move across the world to Indonesia in January.

Elliott married at age 20 after the birth of her first child and said that until a few years ago, when she began traveling, she was "always busy taking care of someone else". After her divorce in 2019, she started traveling with friends and eventually took solo trips.

He said, "Once I got the hang of traveling alone, that was it. I had a bug."

Elliott said she knew immediately that she wanted to move out of the United States, but she planned to wait until her 12- and 16-year-old sons turned 18 before selling their home in Houston. But after returning from a summer trip to Bali in 2022, her sons said they wanted to live with her ex-husband.

“They are happy, all parties are happy,” he said. “I visit my children every quarter and they also come and travel with me.”

The belief that anyone can be successful in America, regardless of background, with enough time, drive and patience is waning among its citizens. Americans are dreaming less about upward mobility and more about a less stressful lifestyle where they can enjoy time with their families.

An October WSJ/NORC poll found that only 36% said the American dream "if you work hard you'll get ahead" still holds true, down from 53% in 2012. The survey found that 45% of people said the belief "if you work hard you will get ahead" was once true, but no longer.

"The new American dream is to leave America," Elliott told Fox News Digital. "It was supposed to be living here, having a job, retiring at 60, having a house, having a family, and now we're not even able to afford to live."

He said that the increasingly hectic culture in America is making people feel tired, especially as many Americans are struggling to keep up with the high cost of living in America.

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According to Worlddata.info, in 2022, the cost of living in the US was the 17th highest compared to the rest of the world.

"They're struggling to make payroll, they're racking up debt on their credit card bills, they're making minimum payments and that's not good for me," Elliott told Fox News Digital. "Life is to stop work for a few hours a day, go to the beach, relax, do yoga."

He said he has 15 years of experience in the American energy sector and has been part of the American workforce. Due to Bali's lower cost of living, her expenses are much lower than before, and she can support herself through social media content creation and hosting spiritual retreats for women.

Elliott said the shift to remote work during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic allowed many Americans to experience a healthy work-life balance for the first time. With the growth of platforms like TikTok, Americans were exposed to new places, lifestyles, and the idea that they don't need to be tied down to a place they don't want to be.

“There is a life beyond work. There is a life beyond corporate America,” she said. “You can actually live a very quality life.”

Despite her distaste for the American lifestyle, Elliott said she still appreciated the "benefits" of American citizenship.

"I don't think I would revoke my citizenship or my passport or anything like that," she said. ""I can still depend on my government for any help from abroad."

Elliott said, "That being said, I don't see myself coming back. It's a dead end for me."