10 years of expat life
Posted on May 26, 2021 by Fulvia Sechi, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
If any of you are thinking about becoming an expat, these are some of my key lessons:
10 years of expat life
At the end of August it will be 10 years since I left my country, Italy. So it will be the anniversary of years lived between Spain and Germany with some parentheses in UK and Florida. Saying it like that, 10 years seems like a really long time, I’ve met a lot of people, learned new languages, cultures, traveled and toured a lot, but I can’t believe how fast time has passed.
If any of you are thinking about doing the same these are some of my key lessons:
Many people think or fear that by leaving their country they will end up losing their lifelong friends. Here, that’s not at all true. Ties, if close, transcend distance and time. Of course, it’s up to us to continue to cultivate relationships, but now we can not only travel more easily (except for the year of Covid), but technology allows us to make calls, video calls or simply send messages, photos and videos with ease and frequency. We can stay connected and continue to share thoughts and experiences even at a distance.
Becoming an expatriate means leaving everything that is familiar and close to us to start from scratch elsewhere. So it’s normal to be scared or nervous after all it’s a big life change but it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a mistake. With uncertainty there is almost always a bit of fear but also excitement about the new phase of life we are about to experience. The best thing we can do is trust ourself and know that yes, there will be moments of hardship but also great rewards and that we can do it!
With this choice we are trying to offer ourself new opportunities whatever is the reason that drives us to do so: work, romantic relationships, desire for adventure, study, etc.. If we want to get certain results, we have to take some risks (possibly calculated, I’m not suggesting to do anything crazy). Of course, things can also go differently from what we projected, and I mean both positive and negative, do not expect to be able to predict everything and have everything under control. If I think about my personal experience, in some places it was easy to find a job but rather complicated to create a circle of friends while in others I immediately met a lot of people even though my knowledge of the language was still poor. There is no a rule.
Be open to differences and experience them with interest and fun, not with annoyance. Do not compare the tastes and habits of the country you are going to with those of your own, instead keep curious about exploring what is different and new to you. If you miss some things, you will find others that you will also enjoy in the new country. This is what allows you to open your mind and adopt and understand other perspectives. I really enjoy it when I come across cultural differences. For example, just 2 days ago my neighbor invited me to ‘Richtfest’ to celebrate the construction of the roof of their house. Needless to say, at first I didn’t even understand what she was talking to me about….
I hope this short article is helpful to those considering this life change!
