Success Tips for Expat & International Careers

Expat Careers: Positioning Yourself as an Expert Opens up Opportunities for Jobs Abroad

More people than ever are looking to work abroad. Official statistics show that people leaving the UK to work abroad has increased 30% in the last decade and 1 in 10 British citizens are living overseas. Researchers at the World Bank have shared that people from Burundi to Indonesia are being more vocal about their strong desire to work in another country. You will find this trend in countries across the globe.

Reports indicate that the key motivator for moving abroad is the desire for an improved lifestyle. Some people are looking to “work to live” versus “living to work”. (My husband and I now live in Italy for that very reason.) Others are looking for a better quality of life because of lack of job opportunities in their home countries. Although every country comes with its own challenges, people are ready to leave the long commute and the daily grind of life in big city behind for something different. They are ready to leave home for the multitude of opportunities abroad. 

Due to changes in the economy and globalization, jobs are moving abroad too. Forrester Research predicts that by 2015, 3.3 million US high-tech and service-industry jobs will be overseas. That's 2 percent of the entire workforce. Both companies and professionals must now think globally when it comes to recruitment and employment.

Given this trend, and the increased demand for professionals with great skills and experience, companies are no longer as concerned about nationality when recruiting for new positions.

Expat Careers: The Impact of Stress on your Job Search

Searching for a job is extremely stressful. If you are without a job, the anxiety of not knowing where the money is coming from to pay the rent or mortgage can be heavy load to carry. If you are in a job in which you are unhappy, finding the time to search for a more satisfying job can be difficult and very frustrating.  And if you are in a new country, the additional challenges of not having a work visa, language skills or a support system can complicate matters further.

Managing stress is an important part of any job search process. When stress is not managed well, it cannot impede a person's ability to think clearly, make the right choices and effectively articulate what they have to offer to prospective employers or clients.

Not only will things like performance at interviews suffer, but stress can impact your personal and professional relationships.  Often times we may unknowingly or unintentionally take out our stress on friends or colleagues. It is important to remember our professional network is one of the key tools of in the job search and in managing our personal brand or professional reputation. Acting stressed out, frustrated or even unprofessional is not going to inspire others to recommend you for job openings of which they are aware.

People manage stress in different ways. About.com, a web site full of great resources for stress management, has a test to see which stress relievers best fit your personality. Try it and see which stress management techniques will work best for you and your lifestyle.

Is stress from your job search affecting you and your professional relationships? What is one step you can take to manage your stress today? 

Working for a Better Life

When considering which career would suit us best, we are often told to think about our life purpose or vision, our values, motivators, or skill sets. But one important factor that is often overlooked is lifestyle.

An ideal job is not only aligned with our vision, values, motivators and skill sets, it also supports our personal life and interests.  When we don't take our lifestyle into consideration when evaluating a job opportunity, we could end up taking a job that would make it difficult or prevent us from doing some of the things we enjoy most. When this happens we can become resentful of our work and then that ideal job is not so ideal anymore.

Here is a very simple example. Suppose that one of the things that you enjoy most is meeting friends or family on Thursday nights for dinner. A great job comes up with a nice increase in pay for which you consider applying. The one problem is that you would have to work late three nights a week. This would prevent you from going to your favorite weekly gathering. Looking back over the last year, some of your best moments have been trying new restaurants or sharing stories around the dinner table with these people. Giving that up would be hard. But the new job title and salary increase are very attractive and you decide to apply for the position. 

After a series of interviews you are offered the job. What do you do?

Some people might jump at the chance and sign on the dotted line without hesitation. They might welcome the opportunity to spend more time developing themselves professionally and decide they'll see people on weekends. Others might indicate that they are happy to work three nights a week, but request that Thursday not be one of those nights, as they are not ready to give up that time with those they care about most. If having every Thursday night off isn't an option, then they might explore the possibility of having every other Thursday night off so they don't have to completely give up such an important tradition. And if working on Thursday nights is unavoidable others might try and start a new tradition on another evening, or on a weekend.

Whatever the choice, it is important that the job not prevent that person from meeting that need to connect with their family and friends. If it does, and the person does not take action to get that need met in some other way, then it is almost inevitable that an antagonistic relationship will result between life and work. This will affect the quality of the person's professional and personal life. And what was once considered a step forward would actually become a step off the path to a more satisfying professional life.

Keeping your desired lifestyle in mind when planning your career, be it where you spend your time or in what country you live, will help you build a career that enhances rather than inhibits a fulfilling personal life.

 
In what ways is your work supporting your life?  If your work is inhibiting your life in some way, what is one thing you can do to change that?