Beating Expat Career Barriers - Ten Top Tips

Photo: Laura Leavell 

To round the expat career series up I would first like to thank the participants who have shared their career stories over the past few weeks. I end the series with a summary of the top ten tips from their stories.

If you are moving or living abroad but want to ensure that your career remains intact in some form or another, here are ten pointers to consider:

1. Think creatively and outside the box. You may need to rethink your career path but with creative thinking you can end up going in a surprising and fun, albeit new, direction. 
2. Assess your current skill set and ask yourself how you can use those skills in your host country, or how you can adapt them to fill a local need. Jo Parfitt's "A Career in Your Suitcase" is a great resource to help with this exercise.
3. Sieze opportunities that come your way - listen to people around you and use your network to identify gaps. Sarah Johnson's career story is a great example of listening to people you meet in the most unlikely of situations.
4. Use the experience you gain as an expat as a basis for your overseas career. Both Nicola McCall and Louise Wiles demonstrate how you can make this happen.
5. Think about retraining or brushing up your skills. There are many long distance learning programs out there to help you.
6. Be realistic about your career options when you move overseas as the barriers can be numerous: recognition of pre-existing qualifications, local language, work permits, local culture, job market, legal requirements. Start your research before you leave home.
7. Make your career portable so that you can take it with you should you relocate.
8. Don't underestimate the support you will need to keep your career on track overseas - check with your partner's employer of they will support any retraining or if there are any local schemes to help you.
9. Build up a network that can point you in the right direction, brainstorm with you and offer you feedback and tips.
10. Stay positive!

The ins and Outs of Expat Careers: Nicola McCall and A Tale of Adaptation

Nicola McCall calls the Netherlands
home for now
Photo: A van Mulligen (c)

British born Nicola McCall currently calls the Netherlands her home. Nicola’s life as an expat has been the consequence of her partner’s career – his employer has relocated the McCall family a number of times over the years.

Like Louise Wiles featured two weeks ago, Nicola is an expat coach. Whilst living abroad, her career and the development of her own career has been inspired and created by her own personal, expat journey. It has been a story of adapting.

Before Nicola moved overseas for the first time she worked in an international retailer’s headquarters as a Senior Human Resources (HR) specialist. She was responsible for employee relations, internal communications and employee engagement. With her move abroad, she formed a plan for her future career and actively pursued it. She explains,

“I intended to return to HR on our repatriation to the UK (which was planned for Summer 2006) so I did a UK University Post Graduate Certificate in Personal and Business Coaching, as this was a skill set being sought by HR functions at that time.”

But as we know, things don’t always work out the way we plan. Nicola found herself having to adapt when the family ended up staying abroad. She says,

“During the training I saw the potential to work with expatriate spouses in similar circumstances to my own and inspired by Jo Parfitt’s Career in Your Suitcase website and books, I decided to start my own expatriate coaching business in March 2006.”

There was a serious financial cost attached to this career shift.

“Retraining and accommodation costs whilst studying were in the region of £4,000. I had some career support allowance from my partner’s employers but the majority of the finance for my career change was personal,” explains Nicola.

She also needed other types of support to effectuate her desired career change,

“I could not have done the training in the UK nor home study without my partner’s support to care for our son. I also had support from my course colleagues, expats for practice and a mentor coach to help me complete my studies.”

However, the fact that Nicola is still living overseas five years later with a successful career of her own is testament to the fact that the personal investment was a worthy one. Her hard work and determination have paid off in the long run.

To all potential expat coaches out there, Nicola has some sound advice,

“There are many coaches coaching internationally so make sure you undertake training that gives you a qualification and accreditation that is internationally recognised. Join a professional association to support your continuing professional development.  Look carefully at what your niche is and don’t be surprised that you may actually attract those outside your niche in the first year!”

She encourages anyone who has an idea for their own business to give it a go. Nicola says,

“If you think you can – you can!”

To make a success of your overseas career, Nicola pinpoints an essential trait to help you keep going in the face of adversity,

“You need persistence. It is common to ask “why am I bothering?” particularly when you are facing the uncertainty of a new location, you are juggling family commitments, learning a new language, studying – in short creating a new life in a new location! But persistence will keep you on track.”

She also stresses the importance of a sound network and contact with peers.

“Asking for help and reciprocating when you can is one of the easiest ways to connect with others in a similar field – I believe it is part and parcel of networking,” she tells.

And finally, in Nicola’s opinion, a successful overseas career needs a dash of something extra,

“You need a sense of humour – it’s essential anywhere, anytime!"

Nicola's Recommended Links
Inspiring Expat Women sites and books:
www.expatwomen.com - information site covering expat women’s lives abroad
www.expatexpert.com  Robin Pascoe (see also her books)
www.joparfitt.com & www.career-in-your-suitcase.com  Jo Parfitt's resources for expat careers

Expat Entrepreneur: How to create and maintain your own portable career anywhere in the world - by Jo Parfitt 

containing a useful chapter on careers as an expat woman

Becoming a Coach/ Expat Coaching

www.expatcoachassociation.com

www.coachfederation.org/research-education/icf-credentials

www.associationforcoaching.com/home/index.htm

Useful article from 2003 the Pathways and Pitfalls of Coaching - 

www.associationforcoaching.com/pub/Path0312.pdf

Career information

http://www.johnleescareers.com/   -  you can register on the home page for access to career tools 

Networking

www.twitter.com

Nicola McCall

Nicola McCall MCIPD is a UK University Post Graduate qualified Coach, specializing in coaching expatriates to find fulfillment during their work and life abroad.  Visit www.livelifenowcoaching.com for more information.

The Ins and Outs of Expat Careers: Sarah Johnson and Teaching with a Twist

When her husband got a job with Nike in Hilversum, the Netherlands, Sarah Johnson left her teaching job in the UK to join him just across the North Sea.

For all intents and purposes, Sarah found that a move abroad brought with it the loss of her career. However, Sarah was eventually able to use her core skill set to blow new life into her career abroad. She explains,

"I was a teacher of Modern Languages (French and German) at a secondary school in the UK and now I teach Dutch to adults."

Instead of working in a school, Sarah works privately from her own home. She tells why she chose this route,

"I would never wish to teach in a Dutch school.  Discipline is seen very differently and I therefore never tried to get a job in a school."

To redirect her career, Sarah used her existing teaching skills and concentrated on a niche group; namely foreigners living in her local area in the Netherlands who wanted to learn Dutch. She explains how the idea came about,

Sarah Johnson's expat career took
an unexpected turn
at toddler swimming
Photo: Jeremy Doorten

"It was purely down to a friend asking me - 8 years ago now.  She heard me speaking to some dutch mums whilst we were at toddler swimming and asked me.  I laughed, but then reflected on it and put out feelers to see if anyone would be interested.  My Dutch was fluent, in that I could hold a conversation about anything, but certainly not to the level I can speak nowadays - although I'm still not faultless.  My first student was Spanish, oddly enough, and then my British circle of students started."

What Sarah has pursued is quite unusual. Language teaching abroad typically focusses on teaching your native language to locals, but Sarah has turned that idea on its head to support non-natives to learn the local, foreign language.

There is, as often is the case, a but. Sarah's career abroad has not been straight forward. There has been soul searching and she followed a downward slope before she picked herself up and got back on track.

"When we first moved to the Netherlands I went into customer services briefly until having our first child.  After that, I lost my way and didn’t know how to get back on track. When I hit my all-time low, I decided to write a book about how I was feeling.  Through many twists and turns of fortune, and through taking opportunities when they presented themselves, I found myself teaching Dutch to non-natives," she says.

Sarah started with one student and built up her client base gradually until she was teaching eight lessons a week. And then she took it a step further,

"In August 2009 I formed my company “Building Blocks Multilingual” which is becoming increasingly successful.   Instead of teaching hourly lessons on a weekly basis I am now offering intensive courses, which are proving to be popular.  My aim is to get the language system – Blank Canvas – that I have devised and developed myself, which makes learning languages more straight forward, into schools across the globe.

Sarah Johnson shows that thinking outside the box and making the most of a creative mind and opportunities really can pay off.

Sarah Johnson

Sarah Johnson is a language teacher and the creator of Building Blocks Multilingual. 
You can contact her on 035 623 2746 or on her mobile 06 25 52 30 85 or send her an email at johnsons1 at mac dot com

She blogs her novel under the writer's name of Summer Knight. In her own words, Sarah explains,

"It details the difficulties I encountered in a different country, having lost my career to all intents and purposes.  I try to post a chapter every week: 

http://metamorph2010.wordpress.com/"

The Ins and Outs of Expat Careers: Louise Wiles and Expat Coaching

Photo: Enrico Corno

Born in the UK, expat coach Louise Wiles now calls Portugal home but this is far from her first stop on the expat express train. She moved to Spain a decade ago and then to Portugal before she repatriated back to the UK for three years. She then lived on Madeira Island for five years before landing last year in her current destination of Lisbon.

All this moving around is a result of her husband's career. But what about her own career? How has she kept it going with all the moving around and what advice does she have for other accompanying partners? I spoke to her to find out and discovered the expat career path is not always a straight one - but planning the journey is essential.

I asked Louise about her career starting point and what effect a move overseas had on her career. Louise explains how she turned a move overseas into a career opportunity,

"My original profession was in sales and then training in Sales and Management. When I first moved to Spain I considered working for the same insurance group, AXA, in Madrid but decided I wanted to do something different. I trained as an English teacher (TEFL) and had my own business for a year. Then I decided it was my opportunity to do what I had always wished I had done and study Psychology." 

Louise saw a move overseas as the chance to retrain
through distance learning
Photo: Shho

Whilst living in Spain, Louise obtained a Psychology degree from the Open University in the UK and followed it with a Masters in Occupational Psychology from the UK based University of Leicester. Both of her degrees were obtained through distance learning.

However, having obtained the qualifications, expat life posed another challenge. Louise explains,

"A big issue was how to get the qualifications recognised here in Portugal. Because I was moving around I never completed my three years practice work in order to become a chartered occupational psychologist."

When Louise left the UK for the second time, she went armed with a plan,

"I chose to complete a certificate in coaching and to build a business from home – portable and related to my experience as an accompanying partner."

Her portable career solution not only works with her mobile lifestyle, but it also helps keep the balance in her home life. Louise says,

"Running my own business also means that I am able to fit it alongside my other commitments as a mother of two young kids with a husband who travels a lot – my business needs to be run from home and flexible enough to work around the demands of two young children (8 and 5)."

Many expats face a similar need to maintain flexible working arrangements - and Louise has created her own solution.

I asked Louise what kind of support she has had to build and maintain her own career abroad. The answer is disappointingly typical for many accompanying spouses. 

"None – from any outside party – just me and support financially from my husband (well our family income!!).  Actually I think I did get financing for a language course and my TEFL course in Madrid from my husband's company during our first relocation – but I've have had no support since," shares Louise.

This lack of support in her own situation is the reason why Louise is developing a programme for accompanying partners which aims to identify and develop a portable solution for their lives abroad.

Louise's number one tip for others who want to pursue their career abroad is simple,

"Do your research before you leave your home country. Make sure your expectations are realistic before you move abroad."

She goes on to say,
"Check whether your home country qualifications are recognised in your destination country and if they are not investigate what you will need to do to convert them – if this is possible. If not, consider how you could build your own business or freelance whilst abroad. Think about how you would set up a business and what the requirements for registering that business abroad would be – you may not even be able to do so in which case consider setting up your business in your home country before leaving. You could also consider working as an associate for someone else."

I asked this creative expat coach which three skills she thinks are essential for the success of an overseas career. She says without hesitation,

"Determination, creativity and passion."

Louise's Recommended Links

The Expat Coach Association

The International Coach Federation

Get Ahead by Going Abroad:
A Woman's Guide to Fast-Track Career Success
by C Perry Yeatman and S Nevadomski Berdan

Career in Your Suitcase by Jo Parfitt - a recommended read by Louise Wiles

Louise Wiles offers specific programmes for accompanying partners who want to create an individual portable approach to their career and lifestyle on relocating abroad.

To find out more about Louise and her services visit her website: http://www.SuccessAbroadCoaching.com or contact her by email

Louise@SuccessAbroadCoaching.com. You can also follow her on Twitter: LWexpatlife

The Ins and Outs of Expat Careers: From Human Resources to Writing

This is the first post in the series about expat careers. To kick off the series I thought I would share my expat career experience with you.......

I moved from the UK to the Netherlands in 2000 and at the time I was a Human Resources (HR) professional. I had studied for a Post Graduate Diploma in HR Management and intended to continue practicing HR when I moved abroad.

Within two months I had a new job with a large international company in a HR role. But to start earning again I’d made many compromises. The position was lower than my UK role was, the salary less. It was a temporary role and working through an employment agency.

Despite the number of international companies based in the Randstad in the Netherlands I found that the job market for my niche was relatively small because my Dutch was nowhere near good enough to work in a Dutch company – and that reduced my options considerably.

Feeling insignificant in a big
office block
Photo: Ryan Smart

After years of working on a specific contract in the same company, having been given a permanent, direct contract with the company the project came to an end and I was moved within the organisation to another team. It went downhill from there.  I felt like a number not a valued team member, a face in the crowd. I started reviewing my career options. I needed creativity in my daily work life. I wanted to write for a living but didn’t really see how.

I considered how I could combine HR and writing and then I discovered Jo Parfitt and attended one of her courses. It was the springboard that took my career on a new direction. During the course, Jo made a general statement to the group which stuck with me,

“You can make a career of writing and you can earn well with it. But you need to be passionate about what you are doing.”

I knew I wasn’t passionate about HR anymore. It hadn’t fulfilled any of the hopes I’d had, especially for much of my time in the Netherlands. But I was passionate about writing.

When I went on maternity leave it was the opportunity to take stock and make the change. I never went back to my HR role nor the international company. I set up The Writing Well instead.

The main barrier was financial but my departure from my former HR position left me financially secure for a number of months so I had a safety net – plus the income provided by my husband’s role gave us enough security to support the inevitable drought times.

Setting up a business in the Netherlands turned out to be straight forward, particularly given the nature of my company. I visited my local Kamer van Koophandel (Chamber of Commerce) to register The Writing Well and then registered the company with the Dutch tax office. That was the administration taken care of.

I undertook a web design course with NTI so I was able to design and build my own website for the launch of The Writing Well. And then I began networking and producing articles for various expat websites and publications – for free.


It built up my name and portfolio and then paid work started to steadily flow in.

A while after I started writing, I started a distance learning course at the London School of Journalism to boost my professional skills and keep my personal development going.

For expats wanting to make a move into the world of writing, my advice is this:  choose a niche, know your market and grow your networks.

Working virtually is vital if writing is your chosen
expat career.  Photo: Maripepa

Grow a platform for yourself (or as Anastasia Ashman and Tara Agacayak call it – a global niche). Writing is a great expat career because it is portable. Your clients can live across the other side of the world and it makes no difference so long as you can work virtually in an effective manner. I would also add that you should make the most of distance learning courses.

You do need the support of those around you. My husband enables me to take the time to disappear into my home office and work because he takes on the household and looking after the children. He has motivated and supported me from day one and even before – and takes an active role in decisions I make, and activities I undertake relating to my business. Jo Parfitt has also been a great support over the years – somebody who remembers her network at every possible chance and points clients in the right direction.

To succeed in a career overseas I think you need to be able to effectively network, both virtually and face to face. You need to be passionate about what you are doing and it certainly helps to be creative – to think outside the box. Finally - believe in yourself.

• Useful links for an overseas career in writing:

www.joparfitt.com
London School of Journalism

• Here are just some of the websites that welcome articles which enable you to build a portfolio - 

www.expatica.com

www.expatarrivals.com

www.iamexpat.com

www.expatwomen.com

www.expatexchange.com

And for inspiration to build a creative career doing what you love, no matter where you are visit Tara Agacayak's site - Turquoise Poppy.


Next week Louise Wiles shares her expat career story.

The Ins and Outs of Expat Careers

Photo: Vera Berard

Next Monday a new blog series begins on "A Letter from the Netherlands" about pursuing a career when you live abroad.

Particularly for accompanying partners, and those who move overseas to live with a local, this subject is a thorny one. For some, moving overseas is the perfect opportunity to make a career change and take a risk doing that one thing they always wanted to do. For some an expat life opens up doors. Others find doors slammed hard in their face.

The reasons for being unable to pursue your current career abroad are varied: lack of work permit; qualifications not being recognised; no jobs available in the local arena; cultural differences; legal restrictions; retraining needed; safety reasons; language barriers..... and so it goes on.

But it's certainly not all doom and gloom as our interviewees will reveal. A move overseas is a tremendous career opportunity for those who can think outside the box and put their creative being to work.

Over the coming weeks I will be speaking to a range of expats in different countries about their careers and how a move overseas effected their working lives. They'll share their experiences and give tips and advice and share links and resources that have helped them along their expat career journey.

If you have an expat career story you would like to share, please send a mail to "amanda at thewritingwell dot eu" and I'll let you know how.

On the subject of expat careers, the March edition of the Expats@Home newsletter goes out tomorrow with guest expert Tara Agacayak telling us about creative careers. You can found out more and sign up at http://www.thewritingwell.eu/Newsletter.html.

Ten Things You Don't Know about The Netherlands and the Dutch Until You Move Here (Part 1)

Photo: Suresh

The typical Dutch stereotype consists of cheese eating, clog wearing tall people talking a dialect of German with a backdrop of windmills sailing round on the flatlands. However, there is much more to this small country and the people who live in it than the rest of the world thinks. Here's the first part of a series on things you don't necessarily know about the Dutch and their country until you move here.


1. Coffee is an Obsession
There is a fair bit of cheese here and the Dutch do miss their Edam and Gouda cheese when they leave the shores of the Netherlands but what comes as more of a surprise when you come to live here is the national obsession with coffee. The Dutch drink a lot of coffee. I mean an awful lot of coffee. How's this for coffee drinking? After the Scandinavian countries, the Dutch are the world's biggest consumers of coffee. The average consumption is about 150 litres of the stuff per year - three cups a day.

Photo: John Nyberg

It's drunk for every occasion and is usually accompanied by a sweet treat if you are visiting.

2. Part-Timers Rule
Despite the government trying every way they can think off (aside from compulsory work laws) to incentivise women to work full-time, it has failed miserably. The Dutch have the most part-time workers in the whole of the EU. To quote the European Commissions statistics group (Eurostat),

"All regions in the Netherlands record a remarkably low average (ed: of working hours) compared with other regions. The highest value in the Netherlands was found in Flevoland with an average of 31.6 hours per week, which is still 2.4 hours less than in Martinique (France), the region with the lowest value of all regions in the EU, not counting the Netherlands. This supports the conclusion that the Netherlands is a special case regarding the average time spent at work."

And the best thing is that Dutch women are extremely happy with their working lives and the home-work balance. They simply have better things to do. Read the article on Slate for more explanation.

A Dutch Decade... Ten Highlights of Ten Years

This week I celebrate the milestone of ten years living in the Netherlands. There have been highs and lows. There have been tears and laughter. Here are my top ten highlights from a decade in the land of the Dutch - in no particular order.

Birth of my First Son: having a baby in Holland is not like having a baby in other Western countries. Almost 30% of births here are home births compared to 1% to 2% in the US and UK. More than a third of Netherlands based women plan home births but end up in the hospital for medical reasons. I am one of those women. Despite this, planning for a home birth was a memorable experience and one that I would not have had if my son had been born in England. His arrival into the world is most definitely a highlight to cherish, regardless of where it happened.

Birth of my Second Son: There was no home birth planned the second time round - there was no choice. The experience though was a great one - with a doula on hand, an amazing maternity nurse and a birth plan followed to the letter. Within a few hours of the birth we were all at home as a new family of four.

Kraamzorg: What made both births particularly special in the Netherlands was the postnatal care from the kraamverzorgster. I am in no doubt that this is the best thing to come out of the Dutch healthcare system, or any other Dutch system for that matter. For someone who doesn't have their direct family and best friends round the corner, such support for the first week after a birth is invaluable.

Photo: Anouschka Rokebrand

My Dutch Wedding: we married in the Netherlands in a beautiful setting in Hauwert where the houses have thatched roofs and you can still picture horse and carts on the quiet roads of the village. My brother flew over from the US, my family and friends came over from England and the Dutch contingency made the trip upwards for a day that could not have gone better. It even stayed dry, which for July in the Netherlands is proving to be a miracle........

Starting my Own Business: There is nothing like a complete change of career to test your character, nerves and wallet. But in 2008, that is exactly what I did when I set up The Writing Well and left the world of human resources behind. It was the best career move I ever made and I have never looked back. Without my expat life this is a move I would never have made so I have my Dutch surroundings to thank for a happy, creative work life.

My Husband's Career: It's not only my career that changed because I moved to the Netherlands. My husband also made a challenging and daring career move to an international organisation where the principle language spoken is English. His English has obviously developed astoundingly over ten years, so much so it became his working language. Thankfully, his Dutch is still quite good too.......

Mastering Dutch: Of course, whilst my husband was improving his English, I have spent ten years coming to grips with the Dutch language. It has been a real highlight to move through the journey of the eight steps to learning a language:

1. avoiding eye contact and refusing to speak
2. admitting you have to talk to somebody at some point and speaking English everywhere 
3. getting through the mumbling 'dank u wel' and nodding enthusiastically stage,
4. saying 'wat zegt u?" a hundred times a day with a blank look on your face
5. reeling off automated responses to set questions you know you will be asked (such as "Wilt u koopzegels?" or "Wilt u een tasje?") 
6. reaching the stage of being able to hold a basic conversation
7. realising you can read Dutch newspapers, watch Dutch films and talk to the neighbours quite confidently as well as accepting Dutch grammar for what it is and no longer asking why there are so many exceptions.
8. feel practically like a native if it weren't for that accent you have whilst speaking Dutch......

My 30th Birthday: Without a doubt one of my best birthdays ever - the highlight was a flight over some of the Netherlands in a Cessna C172. The event was a total surprise arranged by my husband, who wanted to show me a little of his homeland from another viewpoint. I should also mention that I find having only the floor of a little aircraft between me and a drop of up to 800 feet a little daunting. However, fears of death aside, it was an amazing experience. 

My Flight Certificate - a record of 

my survival

We took off in Lelystad with an experienced pilot and flew over the Ijselmeer to Texel where we stopped for hot chocolate (though a stiff drink may have been more appropriate). We then took in the view of Friesland, took a tour over Zwolle and headed back to the airfield in Lelystad. I even had a go at flying the plane myself, but freaked out after seven seconds so passed the control back to someone who knew what they were doing. My husband however, revelled in flying the plane for most of the flight back to the airfield - he had ambitions to be a pilot in his youth but the fact that he can't see past his nose without contact lenses put an end to that dream.  To say it was cloudy and bumpy that day is an understatement - however the view I saw from the back of the plane over a paper bag was beautiful.

Expat People: During ten years living in another country I have met people, both in real life and virtually, who have had an enormous impact on my life - people who have guided my career, inspired me to reach higher, become trusted and treasured friends and supported me through the lows. An expat life forces you to look for a network in places you wouldn't look back in your home country. The result is a colourful and rich group of contacts.

Nurturing Bilingualism: Realising that your offspring can speak two languages by the age of three is a rewarding experience. Hearing a little voice switch languages depending on the audience is truly amazing and one gift of expat life that is priceless.

Guest Post: "Why Expat Women Make Great Entrepreneurs" by Karen Armstrong Quartarone

Expat women are a special breed… adventurous, resilient, open to new experiences, and just down right sassy. They also happen to make great entrepreneurs. Here’s why…

Expat Women are Risk-Takers

Whether you’re an accompanying spouse or you went to live abroad on your own, as an expat woman you’re a risk-taker. You left the comforts of home and ventured out into the world. You took a leap of faith and stepped out into the unknown. There was risk involved because you didn’t know what was waiting for you as you crossed the border into expat life. Entrepreneurs know that risk-taking is part of the game. They know that in order to build a successful business they have to take calculated risks and accept responsibility for the outcome. They know it’s true: nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Expat Women Know the Meaning of Perseverance and Determination

Your first few months in your new country probably weren’t very easy… a new language, a new culture, new sights and sounds. You committed to going abroad and you were determined to make it work. Despite the times you wanted to pack your bags and catch the next flight home, you pressed on. Entrepreneurs are faced with good times and bad, but they don’t give up when the going gets tough. They remember why they started their business and dig deep for the strength to persevere. They know that the brick walls are there to test their determination and they know that “failure” is just a temporary setback that tests their resolve.

Expat Women are Organised and Focused

I don’t care if your home looks like it was hit by a tornado. The fact that you got everything together and made it out of your home country proves that you have at least some sense of organisation. With so many things to arrange prior to your departure and everything else that needed to be done upon your arrival, you had to be organised. And you had to be focused while taking care of it all. Successful entrepreneurs cut through all the clutter and organise their resources. They have a lot to get done, but they focus on the task at hand and see it through to completion.

Expat Women are Adaptable

No matter how well organised you are, your expat journey has likely taken some unexpected twists and turns. You were a bit thrown off by unforeseen events, but you quickly shifted to plan B and rode the curves of the windy expat road. Entrepreneurs don’t enjoy the predictability that most employees do. They have to adapt to changing markets and create new products and services. They shift gears easily as the wants of their clients and customers change.

Expat Women are Growth-Oriented

You wouldn’t have explored new lands if you weren’t open to new ideas and experiences. In leaving your familiar surroundings and venturing into the unknown you had to stretch beyond your comfort zone. These are clear signs that you’re growth-oriented. Successful entrepreneurs are lifelong learners. They continuously seek to expand their awareness and test themselves with challenging projects. They know that in order to grow their business, they have to grow themselves.

Expat Women Seek Out a Support Network

Unless you’re still in the “honeymoon” phase of your expat journey, you’ve probably reached out to other expat women. You enjoy connecting with like-minded women who share your adventurous spirit and can relate to your experience. As an entrepreneur, the road can be a lonely one. Successful entrepreneurs know they can’t go it alone. They seek out a network of kindred spirits who support their success. They brainstorm ideas, give feedback, share wins and victories, and cheer each other on during the uphill times.

There are many other reasons that expat women make great entrepreneurs – these are just a few. If you’re an expat woman entrepreneur, I imagine you can relate to these and come up with a few of your own. If you’re an expat woman who’d like to become an entrepreneur, know that you have what it takes to start your own business – because every entrepreneurial venture starts from within.

Karen Armstrong Quartarone is the founder of Expat Women Entrepreneurs, a worldwide community of entrepreneurial women living abroad who want to thrive in their expat life.

Design Your Life: A Course for Women Entrepreneurs

Expat life can be a challenge - that is a given fact, but it can also be a chance to make changes in your life that you ordinarily wouldn't make. Expat life opens doors for you, doors that you would not normally even notice the existence of. Sometimes opportunities come along in life that we don't recognise as life changing events and looking back we realise that one little decision we made set us of on an exciting new life journey. It is recognising our opportunities that is sometimes the difficult part.

Expat life can be confusing - also true. The feeling of "where do I belong?" is a common one in the expat community. Wondering where to lay down roots, and questioning where home really is, is something we all do at one time or another.

Expat life can disrupt your career - I know from experience. Moving overseas often means that you have to pursue a new career, take a step backwards or start all over again. However, it can also be a chance to follow your dreams and be the time to base your working life on your passion. It could be the time to take a bold step, try something new and go into business for yourself.

If you feel like you could use some help to design the life you want to live as a woman expatriate then consider a Life Design Course lead by Karen Armstrong Quartarone. Karen gives expat women the tools to focus on areas of their life (not just career) that could use an overhaul, or even just a little tweaking, and make changes for the better.

I was lucky enough to attend a course she ran last year and I am still using the tools she provided on a daily basis - and I am able to clearly focus on the things that are important to me in all aspects of life. It is not a course you attend, nod enthusiastically and then forget.... it becomes a way of life.

Her next course starts on 26th January and you can take part wherever you happen to be in the world. For more information visit http://expatwomenentrepreneurs.com/wordpress/?page_id=1743

You can contact Karen at Karen@expatwomenentrepreneurs.com and please feel free to contact me should you wish to know more about my own experiences with the course.

Want your C.V. to hit the right target for a job posting abroad?

Sharon Gil-Or has put together an info web to provide expats with in depth guidance on relocating overseas. She recently interviewed me about putting a C.V. together for an international job posting.

The interview includes information and tips about what you need to include in your C.V. for a job abroad and the differences to the C.V. you would use for a local job. Your C.V. needs to target both the company you are applying to and the position on offer and you need to be aware of local customs, requirements and laws. Find out more by reading the full interview here:

http://www.expats-moving-and-relocation-guide.com/overseas-jobs.html

If you need help with your C.V. The Writing Well offers a C.V. writing service. Visit the website for more information.

Any Expat Women Entrepreneurs Out There?

Karen Armstrong is a life coach who believes in fostering and nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit of expatriate women. To this aim she has founded Expat Women Entrepreneurs, an online community of women who share an entrepreneurial spirit and want to connect with each other.

Living abroad, let alone setting up a business as an expat, has it own unique challenges but drawing on the experiences and advice on others can really make a difference.

Karen is an American living in Italy, married to a local and runs her own life coaching business, so she knows first hand the issues facing expat women in both life and business.

Within weeks of the launch of Expat Women Entrepreneurs, Karen contacted me with useful information and links relating to the challenges facing me personally as a writer in the Netherlands. She is pro-active, motivated and passionate about helping others.

If you are a female expat entrepreneur and want to know more visit Karen's website at http://www.expatwomenentrepreneurs.com/ or contact Karen by email at karen@expatwomenentrepreneurs.com

The Expat Entrepreneur - Article about Jo Parfitt

Women Unlimited, an online community for women entrepreneurs, has published an article I have written about Jo Parfitt, an expert on the subject of expat careers.

I first met Jo a few years ago when I attended one of her writing courses. She was the motivation I needed to follow my dream of a writing career, instead of doing it as a sideline whilst holding down a loveless full time job.

I saw the success Jo has made of a writing career, despite moving from country to country over two decades as an accompanying spouse, and she inspired me.

Last May, I interviewed her at her home following the publication of her 25th book. For many months I struggled to find a publication to get an article about her published - some editors had already included an article on Jo or a review of "Career in your Suitcase", were about to feature her new book or had a contribution from Jo due to hit the press any day.

So I was delighted when my article "The Expat Entrepreneur" finally got an audience.

Watch this space for more about Jo Parfitt when she kicks off a series of interviews with expats in the Netherlands that I have done for this blog.

Are you a S.W.A.T ?

Whilst reading Aurora’s latest newsletter I came across the term S.W.A.T mum. Now, I know what some of you are thinking, especially those of you who are mothers: some days we do indeed need to engage the skills mastered by the elite forces of the ‘Special Weapons and Tactics’ team just to keep our toddlers or teens in check.

However, this is not what Aurora has in mind. S.W.A.T. stands for "Smart Women with Available Time".

Those women who have chosen to give up careers to become stay at home mothers, or accompanying spouses, following partners across the globe and consequently quit working. They are professional, qualified women with years of experience in the work place who opt to take time out. Subsequently, whilst looking after children, or after setting up a new home abroad, they have the time and the desire to return to the working world, but not on a full-time basis. Enter the S.W.A.T. team.

Whilst this is yet another acronym to add to the collection (SAHM and WFHM to name but two) there is a growing challenge for employers across the globe to lure these women back to work. In the Netherlands, this is a hot topic. There is a skills shortage and talent is opting to stay home. The reality is that many women find that the reasons they left their full-time jobs are still valid reasons blocking a return to that world, even on a part-time basis.

As a result, many skilled women are looking for an alternative. They are setting up on their own, creating businesses they can run from home. Expatriate women and mothers are starting out on new career paths that fit around their lifestyles, their travels and their families. These are smart women indeed!

ACCESS for All

Last week I got involved with the editorial team of ACCESS magazine. During my eight years in the Netherlands I have heard a lot about ACCESS but have had very little contact with the organisation. As a result of sending in an article I had written, I have suddenly become an ACCESS volunteer and have been doing some proof reading of articles for the autumn edition of the magazine. I hope to do some writing too for the next editions of the publication, and whilst attending a meeting last week I was asked if I could help out with some copy writing in the future. All this was started with one click of the enter button on my laptop!

All in all, ACCESS is providing me with a great opportunity to gain experience in other areas of the writing and publishing world, as well as a chance to network with other expatriates and writers.

ACCESS are looking for volunteers with all sorts of skills and backgrounds, both in the Amsterdam and The Hague offices. If you are interested in helping out then get in contact with the ACCESS team.

Both offices also offer courses and workshops designed for expats living in the Netherlands;

• Dutch language courses
• Orientation for newcomers in the Netherlands
• Childbirth and baby courses
• Personal development
• Job seeking help
• Health & safety
• Caring for yourself
• Legal and tax

Check out the ACCESS website and quarterly magazines for more information.