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Mwata smiling in a safety helmet and visor, clearing brush on his land in Portugal.

Who I am

I'm Mwata. I have built a new life abroad twice.

I had a good job and a comfortable home in the Netherlands, but something felt missing. A course helped me clarify the life I really wanted, and in 2021 I moved to Bali with only two bags. I built a life there from the ground up: a consultancy company, a newly built house that I bought and a local inspection business. After three years, I wanted something different. That led me to build my second life in rural central Portugal.

I made this Blueprint because, although I had help with individual parts, nobody guided me from the first idea through all the decisions that followed. I did not need someone to decide what my life should be. I needed someone to tell me what to check first, based on real experience. That is what I wrote down in this Blueprint.

The granite main house in 2024: roofless, overgrown and in ruins, next to a large boulder.
April 2024The main house, in ruins.
The same granite house in 2026: fully renovated, with a new dark roof, under a deep blue sky.
April 2026
A timber cabin with a terracotta roof behind a small pool, with olive trees. An outdoor area under pine trees, with wooden pergolas, a deck and a fire bowl between granite boulders. Raised vegetable beds in the new garden. A bowl of fresh blueberries, strawberries and cherries held up in front of the view.

Still a work in progress, but the idea from two years ago is now real.

From my life into the workbook

What I faced: which region of Portugal, and which piece of land?

What I did: I travelled for two months in a campervan and viewed 25 plots. I felt connected to one region, and not at all to another.

What I learned: you only find out on the ground. Go as a tester, not a tourist.

In the Blueprint: Step 2, Explore: test it in real life before you decide.

  1. 2020

    Selling the house

    I sold my house in the Netherlands to travel the world. Then COVID stopped those plans. A course helped me clarify what I really wanted.

  2. Bali

    Two bags, a new life

    During a two-month sabbatical in Bali, I finally had room to think. I wrote down what I wanted: to live near the sea in a warm climate, run my own business and help people. Back home, I left my job, sold what I still owned and moved to Bali with two bags. I started a consultancy, bought a newly built house, and later started my own inspection business.

    Mwata on a green ridge in Bali, looking out over a volcano rising above the morning mist.
    Bali, a few weeks after I arrived.
  3. Three years later

    A new picture

    Bali changed, and so did I. I missed being creative: building things and working in a garden. A YouTube channel about living more self-sufficiently set me thinking about another move.

  4. April 2024

    The third plot

    I travelled through Portugal in a campervan, exploring the regions and visiting plots I had shortlisted. I had not planned to buy on that trip. But when I saw the third plot, I knew it was the one.

  5. Summer 2024

    Signing

    I signed the purchase agreement. My money plan was already in place, so I was not afraid to commit. By the end of that year, the land was officially mine.

  6. Today

    Living it

    I live on my own plot of land in the countryside of central Portugal, with enough projects to keep me creative for years. It is not finished, and it does not have to be. It is real.

Aerial view of Mwata's former house in the Netherlands, with a curved thatched roof and a garden.
A laptop and building floor plans on a wooden desk in Bali. A campervan parked on a cliff above the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal.

My house in the Netherlands, sold in 2020 · inspection work in Bali · the campervan trip through Portugal.

Mwata smiling, with a lake and mountains behind him.

Why I share this

I started by writing down what I wanted my everyday life to look like. That helped me decide what to do first and what I needed to check before making bigger commitments. Building a life in Bali, and later in Portugal, taught me a lot. Some things worked; others were harder than I expected. I wrote this Blueprint to share what helped me and give you a practical way to work through your own decisions.

What I stand for

A life is chosen and built, not inherited or drifted into.

Much of the life you live now came from choices, some made on purpose and some made by drifting. You can choose again. Health, money and the people you care for set real limits. Inside those limits, you can decide what matters, make a plan and build it, one step at a time.

My vision, purpose and mission

My picture (my vision)

I build a life where I am present, dependable, and true to my values. I have the freedom to shape most of my days, spend time in nature, explore, and work on meaningful projects with the people I love.

Why I do this (my purpose)

To inspire and help people realise the life they truly want by sharing my experience, practical knowledge and the tools that help them make it happen.

What I am building (my mission)

To develop and share a Blueprint that helps people clarify the life they want, explore realistic ways to create it, and turn their choices into action, whether where they live now or somewhere new. Phase 1 is available now. Phases 2 and 3, Build it and Live it, are planned for people who decide to move, wherever they go.

My biggest lesson was learning to truly hear what I wanted. Now I want to help you hear what you want.

Try the free exerciseSee Phase 1 →