This is a guest post by Jen Havice.

If Only I Had LinkedIn When I Was An Expat..

In 1995, my husband and I moved to London. It took weeks to get our television hooked up to anything resembling even basic cable television, I didn’t have a cell phone and had no idea that I would one day be glued to something called the Internet. I was lonely, a tad overwhelmed and not at all sure what I would do with myself.

My husband worked for a large bank and shifting employees like him between major financial cities on a regular basis was de rigeur. I figured our stint in England would last a year at most. We stayed five.

I look back now and wonder how my life as an expat would have been different if I had been able to access all of the networking tools available online. Even though I was able to make some highly meaningful connections and friendships while there, I have a feeling it might have been a whole lot easier with the help of social media tools.

If only…

At the time we moved overseas, neither one of us were sure how long we would stay. I used this as an excuse to just hang out and have some fun the first year. As time went by, I realized that London had become home. I needed to start living that way.

This meant working, volunteering, getting another degree. I had no idea what direction to go in. So, I went in all three and got a bit lost. If only good information had been a click away.

Tap into the power of LinkedIn

According to a blog post on LinkedIn from January of this year, the site has reached 200 million members. While the majority reside in the United States, their membership has been steadily growing around the world including several emerging markets. The United Kingdom alone has 11 million of those members.

In my current business, helping entrepreneurs and small businesses with their social media needs, I have come to realize how underutilized LinkedIn is by so many professionals. If this had been available way back in the mid 90’s, I like to think I would have been highly engaged with it.

Here are some ways to do just that if you’re in the same boat as I was:

1: Gather information and make connections

One of the things that LinkedIn can be used for beyond connecting with potential employers is information gathering. Many people create a profile and then rarely interact with the site. Joining groups related to your profession or interests provide a wealth of potential connections who can answer your questions. Entering in the conversations also helps to showcase your expertise in a field. Generating value added content and asking meaningful questions gives other professionals a reason to chat with you outside of LinkedIn. With platforms such as Skype, it doesn’t matter where those people live.

2: Get noticed

Many people do not realize that LinkedIn profiles can be optimized for search. Think of your profile much like a blog post on a website. Use keywords related to your business not only in your title that goes below your name but also throughout your summary and experience sections. Especially if you are in the market for a new job or are looking to grow your B2B business, being found easily in a search can make all the difference.

3: Update your status

Like Facebook or Twitter, members can add status updates for everyone in LinkedIn to see or to individual groups. Adding links to relevant blog posts you have written or to other articles online that might be of interest to your connections gives others a reason to engage with you. Depending on where you are in the world and who you are wanting to target, think about timing. Morning in the UK is the middle of the night in California.

Looking back, I’m not sure how much I would have done differently if I had access to today’s social networking tools but, I have a feeling I might not have wasted so much time trying to figure it out.

Jen Havice is a  forty something blogger, writer, and social media consultant. When not helping small businesses navigate the social networking jungle or writing for her social commentary blog, she chases after two large dogs and rides an even larger horse. She and her husband call the suburbs of Minneapolis home.  

The post Three ways to utilize Linkedin for business owners and professionals living abroad appeared first on Katya Barry.

1. Know that your product/service is just made for that particular market/culture
2. You have a burning desire to sell in a particular place because you just love that place and want to be there (yea, I reckon France and Italy do sound kinda attractive, right?)
3. You have contacts there: friends, partners, clients so you think it’ll be easier to start working there (smart move by the way).

Which ever way you choose to go, you’ve got to do one thing first.

RESEARCH.

Like with everything in life, research is crucial.

You will not go on holiday without first finding out where to stay, what to see, what to do, what the weather is  like,, what to pack, right?

Same here, you don’t expand without any particular strategy in mind and to get that strategy in place, you’ve got to invest time and maybe even some other precious resources into making it happen.

Plus we don’t want it for you to just happen, we want you to success and become an international star (of some sort, of your expertise,  the sort you want to be really).

Here are some things to consider when researching your new distribution channel (yes, even if you are service provider such a coach or consultant, you still have channels for distributing your services).

• You can hire someone to do the research for you. All well and good if that person is a member of your team and you trust them well. But in my experience, researching a new territory is such a crucial task that you really want to get deep into it yourself. (though a spare pair of hands always helps and if you do decide to hire someone, make sure they know what they are doing, going for local researcher there could be hugely advantageous).

• Identify market where there’s demand for you product. Do they want your offer? Are they ready to buy it now? Do they have the money to pay for it?

• Tap into their economy, how is doing now? Are people spending on goods or services or both? Are people studying a lot? People investing in education  is always a good sign for coaches and service related professionals.

• Do people follow latest fashion trends, go on holiday, buy cars, shoes  and make up (luxury goods)? Good sign for small goods providers such jewellery, pottery or other service providers such as nutritionists, yoga teachers etc.

• Do people have savings? Do they buy properties? For example, in Germany people tend to rent houses for life thus their savings should be large (theoretically) but in the current economical climate people tend to spend most of their earnings. Ideal for small foreign investors.

• Access your own comfort level. Should you go for a country where they speak English or the same language that you speak? Do you have partners, friends any connections at all in those countries.

• If you are going to export a physical product, are there barriers to entry for your specific product e.g it could be banned or not approved of there. What are the import and customs regulations? Are there any hidden costs? Like bribes; yes, it’s a big deal in most of the world, don’t tell me I didn’t warn you!

• How easy or difficult if it for a woman to position herself as a small business owner and leader in her industry (considering you are a femalepreneur)?

Back to you now. Are you thinking about expanding abroad yet? What would you like to hear me talk about next?

The post How to choose a foreign market to expand your small business to? appeared first on Katya Barry.

As a coach, I get asked a lot about what is it like to be an entrepreneur?

Here’s what you should know about entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs enjoy creating, developing something new and seeing if it can success. They are often referred to as ‘solopreneurs’ or ’one person show’.

These ‘lone rangers’ are capable of fast and decisive actions because they draw on their own areas of expertise and motivation. Being connected is extremely important here in order to get support, guidance, counselling and to build a strong team around which the business grows.

How to recognise them:

• Fast paced
• Full of ideas: often need a coach to keep them focused
• Creative
• Confident, perhaps inappropriately
• Resourceful; excellent problem solving skills but also a problem creator
• Persuasive; can easily convince other to buy, invest, trust or network

The thing with entrepreneurs is that they are starters not finishes. They have dozens of ideas and want to do everything at once often forgetting to select and focus on one project at the time.

And this is the reason why many fail or don’t achieve very much. Actually, many quit before they can even make one project successful and jump straight onto the next one. For many entrepreneurs their ventures turn into expensive hobbies.

How to work with them (considering they are your client) or what you should know about yourself (considering you’re an entrepreneur):

Entrepreneurs are motivated by

• New ideas, methods and products
• Need to achieve or prove something
• Need to be recognised
• Could be unhappy about current business situation

One thing you can do to help an entrepreneur is be with them at all times, listen and speak their language.

They are different and proud of it, so you job is to support their uniqueness.  Acknowledgement and reassurance play a huge role here.

They are often lousy managers but don’t know or agree with it. Encouraging them to do what they do well and turn what they don’t do well (or do not enjoy doing it) over to someone else could be struggle but is absolutely necessary for the peaceful state of mind. Delegation is the key here but keeping track of someone else doing their jobs, will still bring buzz to them.

Working with entrepreneurs can be both fun and frustrating because they can change their mind as often as the wind changes in the North sea.

Are you an entrepreneur and can recognise yourself in this article? What can you do to stay on track to achieve your goal without quitting first?

The post What is it like to be an entrepreneur? appeared first on Katya Barry.

Apart from the obvious of simply getting more clients, my personal favourite is becoming a world leader (of your industry of course)

Here’s what a world leader status can do for you:

• Gain more credibility and exposure so everyone knows you’re the one to trust.
• Generate income from different markets across the globe.
• Become the go-to expert in your industry and be sought out across cultures.
• Have clients desperate to work with you (instead of the other way around).
• Establish international relationships so a single recommendation sends you a flood of new clients.
• Work and travel with ease because everyone will be happy to accommodate you.
• Tap into new and established foreign markets so the diversity of your clientèle will be vast.
• Get speaking gigs around the world, because the word about you has spread to international conference leaders.
• Become a truly global brand so you can really make your personal impact on the planet.

Not bad, huh?

So here I am promoting going global and particularly reaching out to new emerging economies because their middle class is rising and their hunger for foreign goods and services is  growing as if there’s not tomorrow. Oh, and they have cash that they’re desperate to spend. You know, because they can. Because their economies are booming as opposed to western economies which…errrr… kinda not doing very much right now.

Last week I was following The Russia Forum 2013 which came in very timely for me as I’m banging on about international business and expanding into emerging markets. Here are some highlights from the forum to sparkle your interest a bit more:

Arkady Volozh, General Director of Yandex, gave his opinion on the prospects for the Russian investment market: he considers that Russians should invest in the Internet. Tens of thousands of people possess IT skills which could be used in other fields and thereby turn Russia into a technology exporter.

Marс Samwer, CEO and Managing Director of the European Founders Fund, called the Russian consumer market “fantastic.” Mr. Samwer noted that there is a growing middle class prepared to pay for high-quality goods and services. As such, he asserted the importance of building relationships with consumers based on trust, citing Amazon.com as a successful example.

Don’t know about you but my business is actively growing in Russia and other foreign countries.
There’re have been several debates about what a term international business actually means. So I asked various online communities for their opinion  and also if they thought their business were indeed international.

To start with here’s my opinion:

Being international doesn’t simply mean working with one or two foreign clients. It’s like if a Chinese pop band were to come to perform in London and their audience were Chinese people only, they can’t call them self as being an international band. The fact that they perform outside their country doesn’t mean that their audience is ‘foreign’.

Having an international business means that the audience of your industry in that particular country will recognise your brand and your expertise as a leader. It’s all about many people knowing you and talking about you, not just one or two.

It’s about translating your culture into their language and allowing their culture to evolve into your brand.

Consider MacDonald’s (or any other global brand you can think of). They don’t just have one restaurant in France and one in Singapore. They bring their brand overseas carrying their message while allowing the local culture to become a part of it too. Did you know, in every country they have meals specifically designed for the local market to suit local tastes and wishes which you can’t get anywhere else?

Or Adidas, uses local celebs to advertise their products showcasing local sports, values and traditions.

Here’re some other replies I collected during my research, all of these came from online based consultants and coaches from various industries and coutries:

•  To me international business means having clients and selling products outside of my own country.

• In the most basic sense, international business refers to a business that operates in at least two different countries. While that applies to a whole lot of businesses, I do tend to distinguish between international businesses and transnational businesses. The transnational ones are international, but they operate in so many different countries and tend to structure themselves in ways that are very favourable for them in terms of taxes, etc. While they were started and based in one country, their legal structure is now set up in a way that it’s hard to say that they actually are based in a home country anymore.

• I’m just starting out so my business isn’t international yet, but it will be. However, I won’t consider my international goals met until I have at least a few clients from emerging countries.

• International business means having international clients from all around the world. Like I live in the Philippines but my clients are from US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, UK, etc. I’m not an offshore business in the sense that I incorporate outside of my country of citizenship.

• That you have connections and clients in your business from several places in the world.

•  Interesting thought. I would consider if I had international clients or that I had students in my classes that were from other countries, then I would consider my biz international. So I guess I would have to say yes I am. Although it sounds very large and expansive to me and maybe bit scary even to consider the vastness of our reach. Great question!

• To me it means “whenever the boundaries disappear I see the world in you!”

• Your business is international whenever your unique traditions, values, and offer are transformed into general available truth, when they create a sense of belonging, and when they open opportunities for growth.

•  To me, it means your clients are international and your message reaches (and speaks to) an international audience. I consider mine one!

• To me it means that you have decided to devoting time and resources to getting clients in other countries. That you’ve chosen to make this part of your business plans and goals. I haven’t consciously made this a part of my biz plans even though I’ve worked with international companies and have international clients.

• To me it means, “We’re the best!” Sorry, the first thing I thought of was my alma mater, the University of South Carolina. We have topped the nation with our international business program for more than 20 years. I do consider any business that can work through the “cloud” or virtually an international business. I would be so honoured to get a client from a different country.

• Market and sell products and services outside of my own country. I don’t do so explicitly but with the internet, everybody who runs a search will be able to access my website and my services. Every English-speaker that is.

• Traditionally that you operate or have a presence or representation in various locations globally. Just because your clients are from all over doesn’t technically mean your an international biz. Although you could say your have an international outlook/philosophy/approach and explain why.

So what do you think? What does international business mean to you and is yours one?

Want to know more about how you can expand your business overseas and be globally recognised?

Check 

The FOREIGNATION e-course which starts April 29th 

The post What does international business mean and how to build one. appeared first on Katya Barry.

I’ve hand picked a number of those smart people and I’m going to show you what they do right and how you can do it too. I tried to break them down into groups so it’s easier for you to follow but many of the people on the list could fall into various groups here.

So, here we go.

People who use their names:

Names stand out, if you think you name is common to your origin, think twice and try to work out where it is NOT common and how the name will make you stand out. When watching CNN international, my husband always says that one can get a job there based on their unique name. I’m not sure about that but it probably plays a huge role when applying for job there.

Anne Samoilov
Anne’s name stands out form the average English speaking community. It’s a little bit odd for non-English speakers. You’ll probably wonder where she’s from. And then you’ll land on her site and will fall in love with her amazing content. Anne attracts foreign clients by speaking their language in terms of simplicity of language she uses in her copy and blog posts. Just the name of her signature program Fearless Launching says a lot to a foreign client.
Farnoosh Brock
Farnoosh’s name automatically draws the attention of anyone who sees it. Wouldn’t you like to know what a woman with such name did and where she came from? Plus when you listen to her podcast, you just fall in love with her accent and a gentle timbre of her voice.  Check Prolific Living here.

People who use their connections:

You’ve got connections? Use them and use them well! All your connections will help you grow and establish credibility in across the globe without you even knowing it.

Lewis Howes
Lewis is a fantastic connector and presenter. He teamed up with a number of high-flying entrepreneurs where they all support each other by promoting and selling each other’s products together. Clever approach!
David Siteman Garland

David runs a super successful web based show Rise to the Top based on interviews. He interviews entrepreneurs from various cultural backgrounds who work across many different online market sectors. He’s well connected and used his connections to book the most interesting people out there.

Yifat Cohen
Yifat is named as Go-To-Gal and is #1 person one person you should look out for if you’re interested in building your G+ presence.  Yifat has got so many followers; it blows my mind away when I see those numbers! But the best thing is that she actually takes time to talk to everyone who approaches her. So makes sure to get in touch with her if you want any G+ related help.
Alexa Hart

Alexa is one of the newest people in the online business industry but her ability and genuine curiosity to connect and to learn fromothers has taken her a long way in the past 9 month or so. She runs her web show called Atlas Sliced, just check her site out and you’ll know what I mean. The design of her site and the people she interviews, all represent the fact that she is a expert on a global scale.

People with accents and exotic backgrounds:

Well, this depends where you come form I suppose. But considering the fact that huge proportion of online business is done in English, then places of origin and cultural accent play a great deal here.

Mars Dorian
Mars is a German graphic designer who lives in Berlin. He blogs in English and is well aware of the fact that his English is not up to the top standards of the blogging community. BUT his grammatically incorrect sentences, funny use of words, and the fact that he’s not scared that people will throw rotten tomatoes at his site, has actually made it his big selling point. Plus his graphics are just so cool!

Mayi Carles
Mayi is from Panama and has the cutest accent ever! Her passion and her pronunciation (along side her funky shades) allow her to stand out from the crowd. She makes these gorgeous videos, where she invites you into her life and shares every day relatively common things but with a twist. Do watch her videos! And check her interview our on my upcoming podcast.

Natasha Vorompiova
Do you know how to pronounce Natasha’s Name? Many people don’t! Natasha has a strong yet cute Russian accent and it used to bother her. She thought her accent is stopping her from getting what she wanted. Until she realised that it was her unique selling point because it makes people listen to her properly. She’s is now one of the first to–go-to people for creating systems in your business. Accents rock just like SystemsRock!

Lisa Consiglio Ryan
Lisa is a nutritionist and health coach at Whole Health Designs. What really sold Lisa to me was the moment when I saw in her sales copy for a Detox program that she’s Italian and that eating on detox with her will not be boring. I love how she stressed out this very important point. She created a sudden connection with me and my attitude toward detoxing has changed. (I’ll be taking her program this spring and am so looking forward to the tasty recipes she’s going to share with us.)

Eleni Mitakos
Oh my! Eleni runs a car garage for girls GalMatic. What a great concept. I don’t do very my much with my car apart form drive and may be clean it (occasionally). But you just got to see her site and her smiley face! Head straight on the ‘About us’ page and see how she specifies that it is an Australian company.
How clever! I don’t need and want to know much about cars but I’m following Eleni because she’s one smart Australian lady.

 People who are brilliant communicators:

Communication is key to any success in life and business. When working on an international scale you have to make sure that all your clients and followers have an opportunity to hear your message receive it they way that’ll make them buy from you (or opt-in for whatever it is you’re offering).

Laura Roeder
Laura is a founder of LKR Social Media and is one of the most respected self-made successful entrepreneurs under 30. Laura built her business on providing lots of free content of which is webinars. Laura often runs her webinars on Fridays always advertising the time at which the webinar will be presented live in your local time zone. To me, who lives in Europe, being able attend a live event during my awake hours is hugely important. I always feel like I miss out of those event which are presented at 3am my time.

Erika Lyramark 

Erika is a different type of an entrepreneur, she’s a WhipSTAR! She crafted her own style over time and what sold her to me is her well written yet easy to read copy. Everything from her blog posts to the sales copy of her offer is so easy to read and understand. This is hugely important when attracting clients from foreign countries whose first language is not English.

Natalie Sisson

Natalie talks you for all corners of the world. She’s always on the go but we never stop hearing from her. The name of her business Suitcase Entrepreneur makes a potential customer understand straight away what she does and that she is a globe trotter. All Natalie’s messages are clear and straight to the point. As a foreigner and a client, I really like it.

I’m hosting a joint webinar with Anne Samoilov on Tuesday April 16 at 11amPST/2pmEST/7pmGMT/8pmCET. Join us to learn practical tips for How to Launch and Grow Your Brand Internationally. Sign up here http://www.katyabarry.com/webinar/

Recording will be provided to everyone who signs up.

The post How these 14 entrepreneurs made their brands truly international. appeared first on Katya Barry.

So what’s all that about you might wonder? Well, unfortunately the behaviour of a spoiled rich aristocrat from 1930s is still very much present today. I bump into foreigners living and working in foreign countries complaining about the local language, how it’s not what their language is like on daily basis. Oh my…

What strikes me the most the is that anywhere we go, for some very odd reason, we expect that people will speak our native language to us. Haha! I wonder how many of you wonderful readers could speak Russian to me?

Fair enough English, Spanish, French are just some of the languages that are widely spoken and learnt at majority of (western) schools but seriously, why on Earth would they speak English in Greece to you?

Why?

Tell me.

I kinda feel bedazzled here….

If you are one of those package holiday makers and only go to Spain and Greece for the sun, then I get it, you probably didn’t do too well at school and don’t expect much but the sun, beer, bacon, sausages and English or Deutsch (no offence here, just making a point).
How offended and lost do you feel when someone tries to speak Chinese to you in your home town and they speak LOUDER and s l o w e r in the hope that you’ll understand better?

Running a successful business with foreign partners and clients heavily depends on understanding the local cultural nuances.

And this involves respecting the local language.

You don’t need to speak Italian if you have Italian clients but you can find someone to help you communicate in Italian to gain trust and respect from day 1 (there’re so many poor but very smart students out there, get them on board ).

Remember what they say: first impressions count.

Please don’t emphases the importance of you language, or many wonderful books that have been written in it. Seriously, everyone knows it. Instead, praise the knowledge and the culture of the locals. Learn from them and from their language.

Attempt to say a few basic words like Hello and Thank You, people always respect those who try and are not scared to make a pronunciational or grammatical mistake.

This will allow you to bond with your foreign clients/partners much faster and you conversations will be on a deeper, much more exciting level.

I don’t agree with what they say that business should be separated from friendship, it might certainly work in the corporate world, but when it comes to soloprenurs and small business owners, relationships are everything! (and often they turn into life long friendships)

So look at your foreign clients and partners as friends who live overseas. Don’t just speak or try to speak their native language but speak their human and cultural language.

Don’t be an ignorant, spoilt brat, pick up that dictionary and learn 5 foreign words today that can help you establish a closer business relationship with your potential client.

By the way, how many foreign words do you use in your daily life?

Don’t like foreign? Don’t use it.

Want to create a super successful business relationships across the globe, learn how to communicate in your customer’s language.

I hope this wasn’t uberwhelming and you don’t feel like you have to play some serious spiel now. Go make yourself some chai and learn a new lingo. The one that will place you apart from the others. The one that’ll say bellisimmo and wunderbar.

Until next time,
Ciao!

I’ve got a new e-course launching on April 22 that’ll teach you how to become a true international leader in your field by working with foreign clients and expanding your business overseas  And, no, the fact that you can find foreign client simply by working via the internet doesn’t apply here. I’m painting a much bigger picture.

Want to know more leave your email address and I’ll send you a special invite. 

The post How to create successful business relationships through foreign languages. appeared first on Katya Barry.

And today I want to do a different type of post, today I want to answer a question that many of my followers  have been asking me recently.

And this question is:  How did I start my business?

So I’ve made a video for you to answer this question. Stay tuned until the end of the video to find out how to win a free coaching session with me.

Yes, I’m giving away 2 LASER Sessions for free because today is MY BIRTHDAY!

Watch this:

So if you’d like to win a free one hour long coaching session with me via skype and pick my brain as much as you want here’s what you have to do:

1. Make a video under 60 seconds explaining –>
2. Why I should coach you
3. What value I will bring to you and your business
4. Post it on YouTube
5. Send me an email saying that the video is waiting for me (plus I need your email so I know where to find you)
6. Post on my Facebook page announcing that you want to win my free coaching session and that your video is ready, add a link to your video too. (if you haven’t liked my FB page yet, make sure you do now!)

Deadline for submitting videos is Friday March 8th and the winner will be announced on Monday March 11th.

Happy filming!

Questions? Send them over to mail (at) katyabarry (dot) com

I look forward to working with you!

The FOREIGNATOR Summit is now LIVE. Join us now to learn how to break into foreign markets from the best of international minds http://bit.ly/X6UQyQ

The post How I Started My Business. appeared first on Katya Barry.

1. Always prepare a presentation yourself. Make sure you research the subject matter well, do not ask anyone else to put a presentation for you together. You’ll never be able to engage your audience if you are not sincerely involved and passionate about the subject.
2. Be picky about the topic you are going to talk about, especially if you are going to talk to an audience which is not familiar with your subject or from a different industry/culture.  Remember, it doesn’t matter that you’re giving a speech, what matters is that your audience is completely engaged.
3. Just because you think you can present, doesn’t mean that you are any good at it. As a professional presentation trainer (in my past job), I can tell you that practising your articulation and body language is the key to any presentation. Practice your speech/presentation in front of the mirror. If you’re feeling particularly adventurous and really want to rock the stage, then film yourself on camera. This way you’ll be able to watch yourself as many times as you like and find the points that you’re not happy with and then correct them.
4. Do not read from your slides, ever! It’s a big NO NO in the presentation world. Slides are there to support your audience visually, they know how to read, don’t make them think that they are incapable of observing visual and auditory info together.
5. Same goes for reading a speech from a piece of paper. We don’t live in the middle of the 20^th century where we were used to our orators to read the transcript out to us. Nowadays, engaging an audience doesn’t just mean delivering interesting and innovative info, but also presenting yourself as a brilliant show person.
6. Don’t overload your audience with the number of slides and pictures, tables, graphs. It’ll not add anything but only confuse them. Don’t use fancy animation in your presentation, it’s absolutely unnecessary. Plus, in case there’s a technical problem and you can’t use a presentation any more, imagine what the audience will think about it.
7. If you use slides, whether during online or live presentation, make sure your give a hard copy or online access to it to the audience. Remember to include a link to your website and other social media profiles you might have. Don’t include too much though, otherwise it might look like spam.
8. If you are talking about something, I’d like to hope you are passionately interested in this subject.  Please, make sure to express your emotions, energy and love too.

Have I missed something out? Tell me in the comment box below if you’ve got something else to add.

The FOREIGNATOR Summit is coming up. Join to learn how to break into foreign markets from the best of international minds http://bit.ly/X6UQyQ

The post 8 Tips for rocking any online or live presentation. appeared first on Katya Barry.

When you travel hundreds of miles for a holiday only to bump into an old school chum (or worse, a disliked relative) the expression ‘it’s a small world after all’ might spring to mind. But while the world is certainly becoming easier to traverse, and while television programmes have introduced even those of us who don’t travel to a range of cultural differences, more often than not culture shock still affects those moving abroad.

Simply put, culture shock occurs when people are suddenly confronted with an unfamiliar culture, a set of beliefs/attitudes or a way of life that they aren’t used to, and while this can be a novelty during a holiday or short trip it can become difficult to deal with during prolonged spells abroad.

Although some adapt to culture shock quite quickly others experience distressing feelings of disorientation and isolation, so when your time overseas is for work purposes culture shock can affect you both personally and professionally.

In an increasingly global business environment people working in various sectors often find themselves travelling to overseas locations – whether for advancement or in order to maximise foreign connexions.

If you are one of the thousands of people moving overseas for work here are some top tips for helping you tackle culture shock in a business environment. 

• One of the difficulties people face when working abroad (and when interacting with foreign businesses/colleagues/associates) is forming appropriate professional relationships. Often this can only be achieved through an awareness and appreciation of any cultural differences, so take the time to learn what your new culture will expect of you.

• Remember, something that might not be considered even a minor faux pas in your own country (like scrawling a note to yourself on the back of a business card) might be viewed as a serious insult in your new surroundings. Be sure to avoid making those silly mistakes which could be seen by your new boss as a sign of incompetency or a show of disrespect!

• In order to get the most out of your overseas work placement establish what attributes are valued in your new cultural setting. Presenting yourself in the best manner possible from the beginning will affect the way the company views you and can have a big impact on your success.

• Understanding how time and deadlines are viewed in your new cultural environment, and what kind of communication style/what level of formality is appreciated, are also key factors to getting ahead. Calling your boss by their first name is the norm in some countries, but in others it’s a big no no!

• Research really is essential, the more you learn about the country you’re moving to before you go, the less out of place you’ll feel when you arrive.

• To make your transition to a foreign workplace easier you might also find it useful to make some contacts before the move. Your future employers might be able to help, but if they can’t you can use social media platforms like Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter to connect with people from your new workplace. Knowing you’ll have someone to talk to on your first day might help you feel less like the new kid in school!

• Not being able to speak the language of your host nation is another big barrier many face. Even if you don’t have the time to become fluent in a new tongue, learning a few key phrases can make a huge difference.

• And lastly, the easiest way to integrate yourself in a new culture is to embrace it, no matter how strange certain customs or business attitudes may seem, the more you’re exposed to them the more normal they’ll begin to feel!

About the Author:

This guest post was provided by the Expat Hub team, a group of people dedicated to helping take the stress out of expatriation. By explaining the ins and outs of moving overseas the Expat Hub aims to make difficult life transitions that little bit easier!

Connect with Expat Hub on twitter @expathub or Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/theexpathub

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The post Overcoming Culture Shock in Business appeared first on Katya Barry.

But then the reality hit me.

My kid’s kindergarten was shut on Monday and Tuesday this week so I was on a mum’s duty.

And this is the thing. Family, broken teeth, sore throat, pets, kitchen duties and other crucial parts of my life are not going anywhere.

I planned to write a post about the way we see or interpret love in different countries. Instead I found myself delaying the writing process because in the last few days I feel in love with my family all over again. And it reminded me of why I do what I do.

It was my Dad’s birthday at the weekend. I couldn’t be there in person to share this day with him but my brother flew in from Switzerland to be there and I got to chat to my Dad on skype. Can’t complain, job minimum is done.

I love my Dad not only because he is my Dad and the best father and all those good things but because he was the one who encouraged me to travel, to leave home and to explore the world.

The best advice he ever game me was to be myself anywhere I went but behave like a respectful citizen of the place I was in.

He said: Be Japanese in Japan, English in England and Russian in Russia.

This has been with me ever since. I had to overcome many cultural challenges on both personal and professional levels, and every time I got stuck I referred to his wisdom.

The trick here is to fit in by being curious, friendly, respectful, resourceful and to always give something back to the society you live in or work with. Once I figured out what’s it like to be German, suddenly my life became so much easier and enjoyable.

Ok, I could never become German or French or Thai of course but do you see my point? Blending in or what Germans call ‘integrating’ is essential for healthy soul and successful business.

This week I spent two working days entertaining my kids by going ice-skating, shopping, taking them to a party, organising a party at our house, producing master pieces in water colours and play doh, reading, playing, building snowmen, making pancakes…. I feel like I lived a whole week in a space of two days!

You might be wondering what’s the connection here.

Well, the truth is I had no choice but to be a mum in the land of the family in the last few days. This is who I am and this is what I do.  And when schools are shut, kids are ill, it’s a storm outside, I step in and take over the daily activities of my children.

I am a parent and I learned it from my parent.

My love for my business is just as deep and it’s fed by the love and happiness of my family.

I do what I do because I choose be flexible, independent, knowledgeable, resourceful, a connector, a teacher, a baker, personal and professional coach and a noise wiper and a wound healer.

Love speaks all languages. Love is present is all corners of the world.

To love is to be present in everything that happens around you. If you truly love what you do, you’ll never fail at it.

Something along these lines, I think….

What do you think, what’s love to you? 

The FOREIGNATOR Summit is coming up. Join to learn how to break into foreign markets from the best of international minds http://bit.ly/X6UQyQ

The post How much do you love what you do? appeared first on Katya Barry.