It depends on where you are going from and to.
Going over the border from USA to Canada may not be a big upheaval. In Europe, the borders between France, Germany, Italy, Germany, Holland and Belgium (and probably many others) are virtually impossible to notice when driving. Northern Ireland, part of Great Britain, has a land border with Southern Ireland, but there is not a lot of difference between the countries. USA to Somalia is probably more of a culture shock.
General advice would be to make sure that your cell phone and ATM cards will work in the country you are going to. Phone calls may be extremely expensive, so set divert directly to answerphone, and set the message to tell callers to send a text, which is generally free to receive.
Look up if the electrical power is different.
Mains power around the world - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia If so, see what items you want to take will work on the foreign voltage. As far as I know all laptops are fine anywhere. If the plugs are different, find a mains lead for the country you are visiting, and wire that to a power strip for your appliances. That works far better than lots of adaptors. For many devices, you can buy a mains lead locally, but that can take time.
Even if you are not driving, make sure you know what side of the road they drive on in the foreign country.
Right- and left-hand traffic - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
When you arrive, tired, jet lagged, it is all too easy to walk out into the path of a car because you looked the wrong way.
Also find what laws and customs are very different in the country you are visiting.