Seattle, and deciding to maybe "make the leap"... (job market, neighborhoods)

[sublimeami]

To start, for nearly 36 years (I am a native to AZ), I have lived in various places within the Phoenix Metro area. I have found it to be a good place to live with a nice quality of life throughout. Most of the time, I have lived in quality places in pleasant neighborhoods, and have overall been comfortable.

I was married for about 8 of those years, and was also content and comfortable during that time.

Life has happened at various times here though, things did become not so pleasant during intervals (not having to do with the locale), and I picked myself up and moved on.

But, no matter what, even after researching various different places, the sense of familiarity and comfort, let alone that I do think the Phoenix Metro area is a good place to live in most respects, subconsciously kept my roots here.

The thing is though, I don't really have that many "roots" here, aside from this being the area I grew up in and became so-called "comfortable" with...

The regular process of growing up created distance from old friends. No extended family has ever lived here (only my parents relocated here from the Midwest in the 1970s for health reasons), so I'm not close with any cousins, uncles, grandparents, etc. Also with my own fault of being too focused on my marriage/wife (and not maintaining old friends or making new ones), and with distancing myself from old high school/college "friends" due to the need to separate myself from old circles of drug use/excessive partying in my youth, let alone spending much time since then devoting myself fully to my job and excelling at it, lasting friends have become few and far between.

Luckily though, my work life is full and fruitful here, as I make a decent income and work with some awesome people with whom I very much relate to, and have built a solid relationship with over the past decade.

But, I've always been one to keep work as work, and everything else as just everything else.

So, last is not least though, and with all that being said, I have managed to recreate and maintain a really great relationship with my Dad over the years, and he lives not so far away. I feel very thankful for that, because in earlier days, due to a good mix of his faults and mine too, it could have easily went the other direction (used to be not a good relationship).

Anyways, a little bit more about me...

Single, no children, nearly 15 years of management, customer service, administrative, professional experience, and MUCH more, with high accolades. Associates Degree. Decent financial situation. No real strings attached to Phoenix. Well-traveled, with no qualms about making the most of new situations. Outgoing and personable. Street smart and intelligent. Relatively physical fit and healthy. Not much fear in the general sense, but...

a whole lot of it when it comes to really making the leap from all I've ever know to something not so known!

I guess there's just a lot of "what ifs", but I'm really thinking it's time to make a change. It's not to make a change and hope for the best to escape something, but to really make a change toward an immersion of something different that I have had a subconscious yearning for many, many years now. A REASON and a chance to build a life that I seek, and hope for the chances I may find...

Bottom line is this: I have always gravitated toward something comfortable, which has lessened my tendency to make a leap. But, I feel, in all responsible reality, I have the means to be able to make a chance and that leap. I just feel sometimes that I'm just too much of a "wuss" to really make the jump.

But, it's not just really Seattle that brings these "what ifs" about, it's just the whole prospect of moving somewhere far and new that makes me tend to retreat into my comfort zone..

MY PRIMARY QUESTION IS THIS: For those who have made "the leap", took a chance, and went with their gut to try somewhere new - what did it take, and what hurdles did you jump to make that decision? And, furthermore, how do you feel now, after some time has went by?

FINALLY: For those who are happy where they are at now (or even those who may not be), what simple advice would you give those who are considering something like this, or a move toward similar?

I've experienced the suburbs of Seattle Metro through car (and 50% of the state of Washington). I also just spent some time in April without a car based from Downtown Seattle, just to experience the city from that perspective, and totally LOVED it.

Again, it's just the decision to make the decision to make the plunge, and I would love to hear some general feedback from that perspective. Of course, I wouldn't consider this move without being resourceful and having a good job prospect(s), so I'll save those related questions for another post...

[flyingsaucermom]

This is quite an informative post, but this is the Seattle forum where the most reasonable expectation is to get answers for questions far more specific to Seattle than what you're asking. Many of us have 'made the leap", but none of us can readily say if it's best for you since the relocation process is tailored to the particular circumstances of an individual.

But not leave you stranded...

The simplest advice is always about the basics: Maslow's basics. Can you afford to live here? I mean, can you really afford to live here? Make sure you've done your due diligence about the differences in COL between AZ and Seattle. Once you've established that it's not a pipe dream then it's time to learn about the job market for your particular career track. Know something about programming? I could swear it's a prerequisite in these parts (I'm kidding... mostly...). What companies are hiring? What are they willing to pay? Once you get the necessities of food, clothing and shelter out of the way then you can really consider the lifestyle that makes you happy: what are the kinds of people, scenery, activities, weather, politics, etc... that brings contentment to your life? You talk a lot about "change" and "leap" but surprisingly you don't really mention why Seattle in particular fills your bucket.