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First Time Expat-- Training Help!!!

Last activity 02 November 2014 by syed zee

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ng1136

Hello,

What type of training, either from the company itself or personally sought out, would a future expat need to have in order to properly prepare for their first international assignment?

Many Thanks!

Bidara sary

Hi welcome to the Expat.com
May we know what training are you referring to?
So that we can all help give our opinion

Good luck

ng1136

Thank you for your response, this would be for a first time international assignment I want to make sure I cover all bases when preparing for this type of assignment. So any opinions from personal experience of how you have prepared/ trained in the past to make sure you were successful in a new country would be extremely helpful!

Did you take any language classes, did you stick to the company's training or did you do any additional training to make sure you were prepared.

Again, thank you so much- any suggestions are helpful!

stumpy

Learn as much as you can about the country, especially the do's and don'ts.

Learn basic language skills. Most countries I have been in appreciate your attempts to communicate.

Always maintain a positive attitude when dealing with locals. 

Be respectful.

Remember you are a guest in their country.

Fred

Stumpy's post, as always, was informative and bang on correct.
The 'respectful' part is most important, as is your mind being open to the ideals and norms in your chosen country.

So many expats seem to say, "It's much better in <western country>", with absolutely no thought for the people they're insulting, all be it without intending to.

An open mind is essential for anyone moving to a new country.

beppi

There are aspects that you can prepare and train yourself for, like the abovementioned language, culture, dos and don'ts, etc., but the more difficult issue is how you yourself react to the stressful situation of having to find your place, life and happiness in a foreign environment - this you only learn through experience. It is good to keep the following in mind:
- Keep an open mind: It's not up to you to judge (and complain about) how your hosts run their lives and their country!
- But it is up to you to make the best out of what you find: Blame yourself (not others, and certainly not the locals) if you're unhappy!
- Read about culture shock (e.g. the Wikipedia entry, which I co-authored) and remember that the first 6 - 12 months will be a roller-coaster-like time of confusion - and only after that you can really tell whether you are prepared for an Expat lifestyle!

HaileyinHongKong

I mostly worked on choreography.  I suppose people with different jobs might have different experiences.

syed zee

i agree with Stumpy's post u must know the basic knowledge of that country because there r many countries where peoples don't know English so communication  with local bodies is not easy. secondly u must know the basic laws of that country .u must have an eye on the daily living cost.try to learn as much as u can for that u know Expat.com is the best web site which can help u

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