Having family living nearby offers a variety of benefits. They are usually supportive, often ready to lend a helping hand and can even serve as free babysitters should the need arise. However, sometimes, due to financial needs, job availability and other various scenarios, you might be forced to move away from those you love most. Thankfully, there is some good that can come from this situation, as you will learn below:

Four Benefits of Moving Away From Family

1.) Forces Independence

Even as adult children, it’s not uncommon to call on mom and dad to help when in a bind. Whether it’s being stuck on the side of the road with a broken-down car or needing an experienced hand when repairing something at home, parents are valuable assets. However, this support can become somewhat of a crutch. We can automatically reach out to our parents instead of trying to figure things out for ourselves. In many instances, we grow as people much more when we have to struggle a bit to find a solution for a problem, instead of getting help.

2.) Encourages Deeper Relationships With Friends and Spouse

Another good aspect of moving away from family and perhaps your hometown is the fact that it encourages deeper growth when it comes in a marriage or significant other relationship. The person who you live with will now become your primary support, so in general, this will encourage a deeper relationship to develop than was present before. You might even develop new relationships with friends that grows deeper thanks to the fact that you are away from those who have always served that role previously in your life.

3.) Exposes You to New Ideas and Ways of Life

If you only stay put where you grow up and don’t get out there and see what the world has to offer, there is a lot of potential good things you might miss out on. When you move away from your family, hometown and previous relationships, you are embarking on an adventure. Even if you only move a state away, some of the ideas that hold true in your new place of residence might be vastly different than your old. Moving across country will be even more adventurous. This makes moving away a great opportunity for you to expand your horizons and embrace other ideas, ways of life and grow as an individual and immediate family.

4.) Allows You to Make Your Own Identity

Another benefit of moving away from family is the opportunity it creates for you to fashion your own identity as a person. Especially in small towns, people are often known by their family name and reputation. If you come from a small town, perhaps you can relate. In essence, this means you are given some form of identity, simply based on your name. Even if your family’s reputation is good, this can get frustrating if you want people to think of you as an individual, not one of a group. Therefore, moving away and making a life somewhere other than your current home can be advantageous.

Although it can be great to have family just down the road, or at least in the same town, there are some advantages to living life on your own as are outlined above.