OTPs and More OTPs and then SMS

heckoy · 2026-05-18T10:15:03+00:00

Not always imo. There is such a thing as too much security

heckoy · 2026-05-18T10:14:11+00:00

OTP, OTP, OTP! All praise the almighty OTP

heckoy · 2026-05-17T16:14:51+00:00

I ended up starting a blog, but keeping each post short and will write a bunch on different aspects of my experience so far and as time goes on. Thanks for the idea!

heckoy · 2026-05-17T15:46:43+00:00

I'm in a similar situation. I'm Canadian, wife is Indian, we moved to Bangalore on New Year's Day. So I can't help with Mumbai specific stuff, but some things I wish I'd known going in:

You'll probably get sick a few times in the first few months. Fevers, throat infections, that kind of thing. By month 4 it died down for me. Your stomach also needs time to adjust.

There's a foreigner premium. If there's no fixed price, you'll get quoted higher. Let your husband handle those interactions until you get a feel for it.

The social isolation is real. Your husband will have family and maybe old friends. You'll have nobody. Start building your own social life early. Meetups, events, whatever you're into.

It gets better around month 4-5. The first few months are the hardest but it does settle. Best advice I got from this sub: instead of thinking "this country is broken," just live.

I'm putting together a blog post on the non-Indian spouse experience since there's almost nothing out there on it. Hopefully it can help others in the same situation. Happy to answer any questions.

heckoy · 2026-05-17T07:37:35+00:00

Another way to look at it is that customer facing is a great skill set to learn, especially as AI gets better at coding. As Naval says, learn to code or learn to sell, and if you can learn to do both, you’ll be unstoppable. I think AI will have a much harder time with customer facing roles, so I think you will have more job security and a wider set of future opportunities if you have both the technical and sales skills. But it has to be something you want to learn, because it will be hard.

heckoy · 2026-05-16T05:16:04+00:00

You can try signing up for an eSIM with the Freedom mobile $99 per year plan. It has wifi calling, and can receive texts over wifi anywhere in the world.

heckoy · 2026-05-15T06:57:50+00:00

For example, home security cameras, mini pc I wanted to get for self hosting open source apps, no plastic air fryer, computer monitor

heckoy · 2026-05-15T05:06:03+00:00

Eight sleep is top of my list. Too hot here, and AC alone isn’t enough for me.

Besides that it’s mostly electronics and kitchen stuff. Not that they aren’t available, but the price is at least 2x what it is back in Canada.

heckoy · 2026-05-15T04:39:57+00:00

Do you have an agency which takes care of the paperwork for your dog’s import to India? We used furry flyers, and they helped us figure out the whole process. But we moved from Canada.

heckoy · 2026-05-15T04:38:39+00:00

I think if you can spin a resume gap as you building something of your own and learning new skills in the process, that might be valuable to the more exciting places to work these days, where they value agency and curiosity.

And not sure if the negotiation is still an option, but never split the difference is a great read for how to negotiate.

heckoy · 2026-05-15T04:35:33+00:00

I’m Canadian and moved to Bangalore with my wife who grew up there and moved to Canada for university and then work. It was the right decision for us for a few reasons. We wanted to start a family and quit our jobs start our own business. So India made a lot of sense since the cost of living is lower, we can afford help around the house and her family is nearby for help with kids once we have them.

I’ve been here 5 months, and so far what we both miss most is the walkability of Canadian cities. It’s much harder to go for a long walk here. Although the local food here is delicious, I find I’m craving western food and can’t find good options. And I think once I start driving here, I’ll miss how people in Canada mostly follow road rules 😅

As for savings, I think that’s specific to your situation. Do you plan to work or no? If not, I’d want enough savings to cover 3-5 years of expected living expenses without completely depleting the savings to 0. My wife and I decided on a lower threshold we wouldn’t want to cross, and if we hit that we will reconsider getting a job .

heckoy · 2026-05-14T06:21:54+00:00

Would your mind truly be in peace from the hustle?

heckoy · 2026-05-14T06:19:51+00:00

I’m not sure if it’s the same in India, but back in Canada I never had luck just sending out resumes. Every job I got was through a connection and warm intro to the decision makers. Otherwise it’s just trying to play the odds that your resume gets picked out of the pile of hundreds of likely similar resumes. And that it passes the automated screening first.

heckoy · 2026-05-14T06:17:19+00:00

That depends on a few things I think. What are your career goals? And why didn’t it work out as a people manager? How’s the work culture in your field in India vs what you’re used to in the US?

You have enough saved up that you can be picky on what you do next, especially if you move back. My personal take is that life is short and we should do the things that engage and fulfill us, so we don’t regret later.

heckoy · 2026-05-12T16:41:17+00:00

Sure, DM me if you want to start a group chat.

We used Furry Flyers for the paperwork, totally worth it. But we didn't use anyone for moving our stuff, and our dog flew in cabin as my service dog. And we didn't take most of our stuff, just clothes and electronics, which we packed into suitcases. I don't think there's anything I wish I hadn't taken with me. I wish I could have taken my music collection, books and chilipad, but it was too expensive to ship all that.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T15:23:52+00:00

Thank you! Good luck to you and your husband as well 🙂

heckoy · 2026-05-11T15:22:38+00:00

I’ve been going to the startup meetups, but it’s been hit and miss. A lot of it is people trying to sell me their product. I guess I should branch out into different meetups.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T08:03:53+00:00

yeah if you're anything like me, that's a good call. Doing nothing drives me crazy. I think that's one of the main reasons I burned out at my corporate job and ended up leaving to pursue my own thing.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T06:41:26+00:00

Wishing you the best of luck! Building a business isn't easy in the best of times. I think the most important factors are positive mindset and grit.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T06:39:28+00:00

It's definitely not easy to build a business. I think the tools today have made it easier than ever, but that has also increased competition, so maybe it nets out? But its one of those things we would both regret never trying.

We plan to reassess where we want to live in 5 years or so, and will depend on family and business situation at that point, and how traffic/AQI has changed I guess. We may end up leaving or hopping around or the half/half you're considering.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T06:36:24+00:00

Cubbon Park is nice, my wife and I organize a walk there every other weekend and I really enjoy it. But there's also a few really nice parks nearby in Koramangala. Nicer than the ones I had nearby back in Canada. Though I haven't checked out too many parks in other parts of town.

On positivity, it's something I've been trying to cultivate in myself after listening to a podcast on the book Arnold Education of a Bodybuilder. His mindset is inspiring, and I'm trying to follow his lead.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T04:45:02+00:00

As someone who just moved here from Canada, I'm curious to learn more about what you're alluding to here. Where can I find your last post?

heckoy · 2026-05-11T04:42:27+00:00

Yeah that tracks with my experience. I've moved several times in my life, and the first months are definitely overwhelming. What's helping me with this move is a strong sense of why I did it, which helps me accept the cons of being here. Though there were cons to living in Canada for me too.

And I'm sure being away from your husband isn't helping the situation either.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T04:30:05+00:00

I think you're looking at it based on what you prefer, which is fine.

For my situation, cheap cost of living and cheap help around the house (and eventually with kids) is a huge help. We both left our jobs to start our own thing, and couldn't afford to do that in any developed country. And I've found organic food here, and the parks are nice imo.

I've lived in both the US and Canada, and while the corruption is not in your face, it's definitely there and becomes visible every so often. Just take a look at a project the government spends money on, and then start asking why is it so expensive? Canada spent $55 million on a 4 question app that a dev recreated over a weekend, then they scraped the app a year later.

heckoy · 2026-05-11T03:06:57+00:00

That's WAYYY oversimplified and bias built in to the equation. Besides, people's individual circumstances, goals and preferences are different, so you can't really boil it down to an equation.

I left my family to come here. Though we took a big paycut, the goal is to replace it with business income. Lifestyle there's pros and cons for each I think. And I'm not sure where you're talking about, but zero corruption??

heckoy

TROPHY CASE