It was the warm, flower-scented breeze drifting across Tamarindo that hooked me. I was in Costa Rica for less than twenty-four hours but had already fallen head over heels with the country. That was over four years ago. I knew then I had to find a way to make this place my home.

When I wrote Happier Than A Billionaire: Quitting My Job, Moving to Costa Rica, & Living the Zero Hour Work Week, I wanted to share with others my experience of quitting the rat race to finding a happier lifestyle. It’s never easy picking up and moving to a country where you don’t know the language, but I knew the hectic life I was living was not working. There was a time I wondered if I was going to spend the rest of my life stuck in the office, a destiny infinitely scarier than the idea of moving to Central America.

There is something truly unique about Costa Rica that many people find irresistible. I can be at the top of a volcano one morning and at the beach by the afternoon. I can live in the mountains and enjoy temperatures in the mid 70’s°F, or settle in a hot beach town and learn to surf or paddleboard. I want to experience it all, and there is still so much more to accomplish.

However, I am not in a race anymore. The first thing you learn in Costa Rica is to take your time. Not everything here is done at the rate I was used to in the states. But on the flip side, one learns to take your time, have patience, and treat others with kindness. Whenever I am in a crowded bank with only a few tellers handling the large crowd, seniors and disabled people go directly to the front of the line. No one rolls their eyes, or huffs and puffs. This is the type of friendliness and respect that gets eroded when we live a lifestyle that is too hectic. And once you get into this friendlier rhythm, it’s hard to imagine treating people any other way.

This journey has been fulfilling beyond my expectations. My book has become number one in two categories on Amazon and has been profiled on CNN.com. For me, Costa Rica has given me far more than the gift of happiness; it gave me a story to share with others.

I often wonder where I would be if I didn’t take the chance and move to Costa Rica. Would I still be in that office, staring out the window dreaming of another life? I want to go back in time and tap that overworked woman on the shoulder and tell her, “It’s okay; there is an adventure right around the corner…just hang in there.”