So you’ve packed up your life and moved across the world, but one day, you might head back home or you may consider staying longterm. Whatever your plans, keep your eye on the prize, your longterm goals and where you want to go in life. It’s easy to get swept up in the hustle bustle of Shanghai life, but if you want to return home with a lot more than, “I learned more about myself than I ever believed I could” on your resume, you’ll need to read on.
If you haven’t moved overseas yet and we’ve caught you off guard, click here to start at the beginning with our student Candice’s blog on making the big move.
Back on subject, how can I make my expat years work FOR me and my career:
Building a network- a worthy investment
The beauty of a network is, it works FOR you. However, you have to build it before you need it. Maybe you have already built one back home, but now it’s time for you to build your new network here. When you invest in your relationships — professional and personal — it can pay you back throughout the course of your career. Networking will help you develop and improve your skill set, stay on top of the latest trends, meet prospective mentors, partners or clients, and gain access to the necessary resources that will foster your career development. Joining some events is definitely a great opportunity. Mandarin INN has multicultural events and workshops to help you not only experience Eastern culture but also expand your network from all over the world. Mandarin Night language mixer is a nice try because it provides you with a relaxing atmosphere to meet new people and chat with them. Here I’d like to share with you some interesting topics we had talked about last time.
What impressed me most must be “How do you spend Valentine’s Day in your country?” One of our guests, Nikki said that she would make cookies and share with other couples, but not her lover! Quite COOL! Charlotte told us she preferred to have a dinner in an Italian restaurant. How romantic!
Then we also discussed the phenomenon of grandparents raising grandchildren in China. You can say it is because China’s One-Child Policy makes it easy for grandparents to step in to support their kids by looking after their grandchildren. While in some Western country (like US), when the elderly retired, they regard it as their “Golden Time” which means they can totally enjoy themselves. This is a huge difference between the East and West.
Professional development-a career-long obligation
When it comes to professional development, many will feel reluctant to continue. To be honest, professional development has many benefits that helps one’s career in the long run. With the professional world changing at a faster pace than ever before, standing still will cause you to be left behind as peers expand their knowledge and skills. You must force yourself to learn new things, outside of your comfort zone. Don’t forget to list it on your resume as well as your LinkedIn profile. A complete LinkedIn profile can help you have more success in your job, whether it’s being seen by a potential client, partner, or even employer.
*Shameless promotion: we just become an official school on LinkedIn, add our school page on your profile to show folks back home you’ve been learning a new language!
Attitude is everything
It is more important than education, networking, your resume, money, failures and successes. Whatever you are doing for your career, you should try your best. Sometimes we fail, but we certainly miss 100% of the shots we don’t take. Keep at it and share about it both online and offline.
If you are just looking for some events to build your network and meet new people, I have a good news. Our next Mandarin night will be held next Thursday, don’t miss this great opportunity! Invite me okay? :)
About the blogger:
Vivi is a rising sophomore at Shanghai Business School. As a business student with English expertise, she’s helping Mandarin Inn with social media this summer as our Marketing intern. A fervent movie lover, black and white especially. If you love old movies, let her know. She’s always up for making connections through movies, travel and blogging!
