Exploring the Intricacies of World Travel & Becoming an Expatriate

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Karla Fraser Podcast.m4a

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Hi and welcome to the You World Order Showcase podcast. Today we have with us Karla Fraser. She is the founder and chief executive officer of expat career and expat career specialist. She's a coach of higher education and consult higher education consultant and as you're expat career.

Coach strategist Karla is here to help you realize your expect dream with confidence as your higher education consultant. She's here to partner with you to create the best experiences for your student and staff. Welcome to the show, Karla. It's really great to have you here. And we were talking about where you live.

Which is not.

A country called Dubai.

But true. Thank. Yes. Thank you, Joe. Great to be here. Glad to be able to share with you and your audience. So yes, I live in the United Arab Emirates. This is the country most people refer to where I live as Dubai, which is in Everett.

And that is one of the seven Emirates within the country of the United Arab Emirates. But it's the most popular one. So ironically, the country gets nicknamed by its popular spot.

Yeah, it's like calling America Texas or something.

We're New York. Yeah, exactly.

Or New York or wherever, picking one of the states that does not actually represent the whole country. So.

Anyway, how did you get into being an expat? What? What made you you were talking about? You. Been there, like, twice. And the first time was 15 years ago. But what? What prompted you to leave wherever you were from?

Yeah. So it goes back to childhood. I'm the third culture kid. So I grew up between two countries and one of them being the country of my family. So I grew up between the US and Jamaica, and I spent my childhood in Jamaica and spent my teenage years in the US and I kept going back and forth.

In between that time.

And so the concept of living abroad or moving was not foreign to me. And then I've also had extended family members that have lived in other places, lived in the UK, went and lived and worked in the Panama Canal, lived and worked, and went to Cuba so.

Just as a kid growing up, I was.

OK, I live between two countries. So to become an expat where using my career, my skills, my expertise to live and work abroad wasn't out of the scope of my thinking. It was just a matter of how I wanted to do it and which is part of the reason why I got my.

Educational background and history, geography and international affairs.

Very interesting, very interesting. I I grew up mostly overseas also like I I would live most of my childhood up until high school overseas and we were talking a little bit about the culture shock that you help people get through that. And I can relate to that.

Totally with them. My dad was in the military, so we moved around a lot because of that. But there was always somebody there to greet you, to help you through the first few.

Months that you're in a new country because it is so totally different, no matter where you're coming from, when you go to a different country, the culture is different and there's things that you do that you you're going to offend people and not even realize you're offending them.

And they may do things that offend you too. And and they don't mean it. It's like.

This is just how we do things here.

Very true. And I think that is one of the important things that any expat digital nomad or otherwise, you're just going to another country just realizing that there's going to be some level of culture shock unless you're spending a week there and you're just on vacation, once you start spending over 30 days, you're going to start to realize.

Some of the differences between what you're accustomed to and what is the custom norms and traditions of wherever.

You are.

And so one of the things I try to help folks, especially folks who are going long term is through an E course that I have is to understand the cultural culture, shock culture differences through that and get.

Get a good.

Understanding get a baseline understanding and you know start to build.

Coping skills start to understand things are going to frustrate you, but what is your purpose there? Why did you take on this experience and not let the fact that you know food's different? Food may be spicier than you're used to, or you know because of the.

Served at different times.

Times exactly. You know, things are just quite different and you know, don't let that frustrate you and just you plan for it. You you know that it's coming.

Mm-hmm.

So do you help people when they're transitioning to like any country or are you specific to the United Arab Emirates?

So I typically work with folks in regards to any country, any region. I create a broad based knowledge and working with expats in general, folks in higher education get the specialty because that's my career expertise and I know that space the best. But overall I can help folks.

Navigate whichever space whatever region.

I think because of my geographical background and my political science and international affairs, I can help them navigate, figure out the, you know, the geopolitics, figure out a lot of different things that will impact where they look, why they look there, is that a good spot for you to be looking right now?

Yeah.

Where are the opportunities? You know, you may want to go to Europe, but Europe may not be where the opportunities are for you and your particular feel at the moment and how you can reevaluate and figure out if.

Where the opportunities are is somewhere where you.

Want to go?

Yeah, that's that's really a good point. And in terms of like.

Figuring out where your best opportunities.

Are it so? Let me ask it.

I'm I'm developing a question in my head and it's coming out kind of convoluted here, but when would people come to you? Would it they come to you if they're like, you know, I'm. I'm thinking that I just want to leave the country that I'm in. And do you only work with people from America or do you work for from with people like just moving around the globe.

No worries.

In.

So let's tackle the first part. I or the second part first, and then we'll go into the next part. I I work with people from around the globe. My clients have been from different countries and want to explore different other regions of the world. And when you come to me.

Theories we can start with a simple as an explorer to one hour exploratory strategic conversation about hey, this is a thought in my head. What are my options?

And I could kind of talk you through to say, OK, based on your career, based on your skills, these may be your options and then you can say, OK and we can that can be it or you can say you know what I'm I'm in this space, I've done some of my pre research.

I kind of have a sense of where I want to go or what I want to do, but I.

Need help in.

Figuring that out and that could be help with your resume and cover letter to make sure that it's fitted a specific region that could be help in understanding the job search process in different parts of the world because it's different.

It could be helping understanding benefits and offers and what I what you should be looking for. It could be OK. I'm ready to. I got an offer. I need to start planning and thinking about a move. What do I need to do? I have a house. I have a cat. You know. What do I need to do?

That's a big deal.

Right. And with you and when you were, you know, a young person moving with your family, the military takes care of all of that for you pretty much you as an expat going on your own, you have to navigate all of these things.

You know what documents you need to be thinking about if you have children and you're divorced, what legal documents you need to have if your children are under the age of 18 to take them out of the country and not have any challenges. So we talked through a lot of those nuances as part of where we are in the process. So I.

That can help you along the process up until you land and you're managing that culture shock.

That's that's really fascinating is it's a great.

Gift.

In a way to to humanity, because I I know from personal experience that there is so much involved. It's one thing to move from like one house to another or one state to another, or one territory to another. That's not. That's within a country.

Versus leaving the country that you're in and.

And packing up.

Your whole household, which in itself just the logistics of getting your stuff from point A to point B.

Can be like overwhelming if you start to, it's just it's just one small piece of a much larger puzzle. And thinking about things like, you know, it's your, your future employer going to help you with this. How much is it going to cost you know is it?

Hmm.

Is the cost benefit ratio there for you to actually move your whole household over there or would it make more sense for you just to go there by yourself?

And live and then move your family over later. I mean, these are these are questions that people really need to explore in depth before they start.

Sending out resumes or thinking they're just going to leave their country unless they're really young. I guess if you don't have much and you're by yourself and you're single, then yeah, pack your backpack and grab your passport and you're on your way. But.

There's there's different from.

Very true.

The tears in in the process, depending on where you are and what your goals are, your end goals.

Absolutely true. And they think you know when you have a family or you have pets or you have elderly parents, you know you have to factor in a lot of different things. Are you going to sell your home? Are you going to rent it out? Are you, you know, what are you planning to do with your assets in your home country?

And that could be any home country. Of course, I I tend to have a tendency to talk about US or North America in general, but that could be Zimbabwe. That could be the Philippines, that could be Germany. It's where you're moving from. What are the things you need to put in place in order?

To do that.

I have a colleague that I'm, you know, we're colleagues and you know, she just recently moved to the UK.

But she has to navigate through her and they see a variety of different processes in order to be overseas worker, and they're different than what my process is. So each place has its own. I have it a bit easier with the US.

As a U.S. citizen that I don't have to register with the government.

Now they do say we need to register for safety reasons, but I don't have to register as an overseas worker or an ex pattern, whereas this person does so it's.

It's very different for different people, but a lot of the processes are very similar. You still have to pack. You still have the side with your family, you still have to figure out what is the like you said, the cost benefit ratio is that package good enough? Do I wait for something else?

Do I need to learn the language? Do I you know?

A variety of things.

You've got.

Kids. Kids add a whole another layer. You know, you were talking about. You know, if you're divorced and being able to take your kids out of the country, but also educating your kids in different countries requires different.

Different tax I you can't just like show up and think you're going to stick your kids in the public school because different countries have different.

Public school systems and not not all of them, are open to just anybody walking in the door, and there are other options. I know I went to an International School for a period of time when I was living overseas. The the military does provide an education for their.

For their their employees, for lack of better word. But I know a lot of times when you go overseas, there are other.

Educational options for you.

Available and you know, maybe even home schooling. But I I would imagine that different countries have different rules around home schooling that aren't necessarily the same as from the place that you're leaving and you need to investigate those too.

Yes and yes. I would all of those things apply. So whether or not your company or organization will contribute to the education of your children, whether or not you're going to put them in a public or private institution and just remember some of the public institutions are not necessarily going to be in English either. English is your first language.

You need to go to an English speaking institution so you have to navigate some.

That, or if you're friends speaking and you need to find a friend to speak in school for your son or daughter to go to, because eventually they're gonna they maybe end up back in. Let's say you're from France and the France education system for their tertiary degree or their higher education degree. So those things are all important to navigate. If you have a partner or spouse that's coming with you.

What are their responsibilities and duties?

You know, if their job is remote, can you manage the time zone difference? So there's a lots of different nuances based on your career based on family structure based on, you know, whatever you can think.

If it happens in your daily life now, you have to think about it being happening in your daily life abroad.

With a whole different flavor to it because.

When you go abroad, it's and and you're not going on vacation.

It's a whole new experience and.

You know, just traveling from state to state can be a, an an interesting experience.

But you multiply that when you go across the border.

It's just like.

Things are done differently in different places.

And and it's fun. And it it's it's can be exciting to experience those things and your life will never be the same who you are as a human being is never the same after you travel. And you realize that hey.

There's different ways that people live and experience life and and travel through the process that we all travel through. Not to get too loud with you, but it's it to me that was the greatest gift I ever got was growing up and being able to live in different places in the world.

And and living in the on the economy, not just living on a base where you're surrounded by like people who are just like you.

And typically that is the ex fat story. Now, depending on what country you're living in, you may be in a compound setting, but most 9 times out of 10 or even.

Many times I tend you're living in the local community.

Some people may choose to live in a more expat local community. Some people may choose to live in a more local national community or somewhere in between, and so you're part of daily life and and the daily frustrations that everyone experiences living in that country. You will experience too. I've lived.

Essentially lived in 11 countries.

These.

At different periods from anywhere from a month to, you know, four years. So it it's it's a different experience in each of those places and they the countries have their own challenges. I lived in a war zone. I lived in Afghanistan for a period of time. I've lived in Singapore.

For a period of time, and those are vastly different countries with vastly different ways of life, and what I had to do in order to be an expat in those spaces, yeah.

I my dream is a world where there aren't any borders and we can all just kind of like.

Mingle, because I think that that.

The more that we mingle, the more that we find out that we are each other. There is not a whole lot of difference between us and.

Right.

It it kind of makes me excited to see you out there doing something like this, which really just.

Paves the way for people and makes it easier for them to actually experience living abroad and and working and and interacting with people that they might never have interacted with.

Before. So how do people get in touch with you and and?

What?

What kinds of people would would?

Be best served by contacting you.

Sure. So I would say folks who are career professionals who are willing and able and wanting to use your current career experience. So you are an accountant, you're an engineer, you are university.

Administrator. So whatever your current profession is, you still enjoy working in your profession. So let me add that piece to it. But you want to do that in another space, in another place, another country that continues to serve your purpose.

And you know, it may be a place that needs additional development and growth. It may be a place that is on a trajectory to be different. The UAE has been on the trajectory for the past 15 years. Singapore has been on a trajectory for the past 20 years.

We have a variety of countries on the continent of Africa.

Are boosting their trajectories right now. You've had the central European bloc that have been boosting their trajectory for the past 15 to 20 years as well, so you could end up in those regions, but you could also end up in places like the UK, depending on what the UK is looking for or Australia, depending on what Australia is looking for.

So it just varies based on your skill type, your what assets, what expertise you are bringing to the table and those those are the folks that I I tend to work with.

I I have a thought about, you know, people that move from the United States to places like the UK or Australia and that just because they speak the same language as you or even Canada, it doesn't mean that things are going to be just the same as they are in the United States.

No, and I actually have a true story. Uh, one of my closest friends. She's like a sister to me. She left the United States, moved to Australia and.

I know that I had been an expat much longer and been in the the field to put it that way longer and she would call me she's like.

What is this? What's going on here? This isn't and she's like the language. This. This is not what this word means. They're saying this, but it really means this.

Or why do they say brekky? Because it's really breakfast and I was like, exactly. So while it may be English or the customs are different or yes, and I always love people who say I just want to go to another English speaking country. I was like, yes, that other English speaking country.

Is going to be still very different, and you're still going to.

Have to adjust.

And they're they're.

Cultural things that they do are very different. I mean, you just.

So.

Yes.

Just because they speak a similar language and it is not the same language I I went the International School, we spoke English.

Right.

But it was, you know, we had Australian teachers and we had British teachers and we had American teachers and we had a few other languages teachers that spoke different languages but spoke English to us as students. But I, yeah, I I can remember, you know, fringe and rubbers.

And getting on things meant, you know you were.

Supposed to go sit at.

Just they're little things, but when they're when it's coming at you fast. You're like, whoa, whoa. Translate here.

Right, you, you. You.

Are going through a translation process and people don't realize that yes, so.

I do say that just understand that while you may choose to go into a English speaking country that would be Australian English, British English, Singapore, English and we can go on because each version of English in each country has its own nuance.

M.

And as as the countries like Japan, for instance, everybody's taught English in Japan. But.

As it it actually evolves, the languages evolve in different areas, so while they they might have learned in a certain way.

30 years ago.

Today it's different and it's not necessarily like where it was when they were first learning because they they evolved it to being because a lot of people in other countries transact.

Daily in.

In other languages and English is one of them.

Right.

Yes.

Whereas people from America tend to think, you know, I don't have to learn another language, everybody speaks English well.

Yes and no.

Everybody speaks. Everybody except Americans generally tend to speak more than one language.

Right.

Three or four is like the starting point.

Yes.

Yes.

Very true.

Very, very true.

So, Carla, how would people get in touch with you and what is the best way to get in touch with you?

OK, the best way couple ways to find me. The quick ways to find me are on LinkedIn and on my Instagram. The best way to reach out and learn about us, the career expat by Rose Apple Global is to go to our website www.the.

For expat.com and out there you will find a variety of information from our coaching services. I promote health and Wellness and self-care for expats. I also promote travel because I love to.

Do that. But that's, you know, we try to service as well-rounded as possible in the expat space. And then I also have an ongoing blog that I write in regards to higher Ed perspectives for my higher Ed folks and then definitely for my ex fat.

Notes I write more.

Pieces that kind of give you the underground realities of living as an expat, the day-to-day frustration. So I have to write about the celebrations too and the fun things like I love to go to the spa, so I write a lot about if you're a spa person, some of the best spas that I've been to and and taking advantage of that.

That's wonderful. So what's the one thing that you hope the audience takes away from?

Our conversation today.

One is that take the opportunity to explore whether or not this is for you. Is part of your purpose moving abroad? It's not for everyone.

But if it is, explore it to its fullest, you can go down that path and decide not to go and decide that it's not for you. I had a client that did that. She's gone through the entire program with me. She got a job interview. Was.

Flown to the location for an interview and then at the end of.

It she because this is not true.

And she's like I I I prefer to be stateside, but she would have never known that if she hadn't explored it to its full potential. And I think that's what I really want to leave someone with. If you're thinking about it, explore it.

To its full potential.

Yeah, that's awesome advice. Thank you so much for joining me today.

Well, thank you, Joe.