‘If you like your field, don’t give up’, says engineer Paul Frasie

“In my life I’ve learned not to have big expectations in the beginning,” says Paul Frasie, a designer engineer from Romania. “Because I don’t want to be disappointed later. So the only thing I thought about on my way to Canada was that since you leave everything in your country [when you emigrate], you have to somehow succeed in the new place. If you come to Canada and in six months return to your country, you will have nothing left – just frustration.”

However, Frasie did have plans – he intended to find a job soon after his arrival to Canada, to work and to buy a house. He had no idea of the challenges internationally trained engineers face when they come to Canada and start searching for professional jobs. Frasie didn’t know anything about the highly competitive job market, the “Canadian experience” requirement and the specifics of applying for jobs in Canada. He had prepared a Curriculum Vitae (which is used more often in Europe) and when he arrived he found some resume templates. So Frasie started sending his resume to companies he assumed would be interested in his qualifications and skills. “The first six months I sent tons of resumes and didn’t receive any feedback form anybody,” he says. “So at this point it was very tough and disappointing.”

To make matters worse, the global recession had impacted Canada as well and many engineers were losing their jobs. Frasie had already felt the recession in Romania, but he didn’t expect to find a similar situation in Canada. It was hard to stay positive and to figure out what the right thing to do was. He didn’t want to change careers or do survival jobs as many professionals did at that time when they faced unemployment. He loved his profession and wanted to work in his field.

What helped him stay optimistic was a meeting with the founder of the Association of Romanian Engineers in Canada (AREC). He introduced him to other engineers from his country and Frasie started building a network of acquaintances and friends with similar backgrounds. “Everybody helped me somehow,” Frasie says. “They didn’t find a job for me, but they gave me some sources, some useful information and shared their experiences with me.”

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Welcome to Canada!

Like You, I came to Canada with my family and with the cultural values from my country of origin, my hopes and my dreams. Same as You, I asked myself: "Is this the right time to be here? Am I doing the right thing? How can I connect with the right people to advance my career and to make friends?"

Newcomers have many challenges to face when they try to find employment in Canada. The impact of cultural differences in recruiting and the misunderstandings can lead immigrants to be unsuccessful in their job search for reasons unrelated to their ability to perform the job in question. One of the biggest challenges is the fact that the majority of the jobs are filled through internal posting and internal referrals. All these are a real issue!


My friends and I, are willing to guide you to become better prepared to overcome the adaptation challenges in Canada, and to achieve your goals. Can you imagine how is it when you feel confident and prepared because you have the "tools"?


I remember, it took me a few months, maybe more than that, to understand the meaning of "Don't take it personally!" in the Canadian reality. Then, I learned about how to become a better communicator by being assertive, and not appearing aggressive when communicating with others. Later on, I learned about the "wrap your feedback in four-layers of paper" concept, and I noticed amazing results when I applied it in my communication . And so on... I became a student of people, psychology, management and change.


Today, I am serving my community... in ways that reflect my commitment to co-workers, customers, and friends; and show my appreciation for the help and support they and the community have given me. My objective is to help, encourage and inspire others to succeed in their undertaking! 

You are in Canada by the "power of your choice", and you have the power to choose whatever your heart wants in Canada. You can choose to continue to work in your field or you can follow some other old or new dream and make it come through. YOU choose what to focus on, and you are what you think about yourself. Your beliefs about the world, make your reality. Your words are your truth.

Choose to become highly successful IEP!!
I recommend you don't skip any of the steps presented here. Each of the steps is essential to developing an action plan that works.During our time together today, naturally, you'll begin experiencing excitement about what the future holds for you as you begin to understand how easily leverageable this information is for you.

Have fun and be happy now! See you next week.
Daniel

"No matter what situation you are in right now, there is a purpose to that situation…. By working with the specific conditions in front of you, you will begin to discover things about yourself that will give you clues to the next step. Your job will be to look, listen, feel, choose, and act." ~ Carol Adrienne

Links:
Failure to tap into immigrants' skills costs billions
Going to Canada
www.canadianimmigrant.ca
Working in Canada
Professional Networks for Immigrants
http://www.arec.ca/links/

http://www.parents-handbook.com/
http://www.live-your-dreams.biz/
http://www.mikelipkin.com/
http://dorin-radu.blogspot.com/
http://mihaescu.blogspot.com/

The First Quality: They are Future-Focused

They let go of who they used to be or what they used to do.
They leverage their past in search of their future.
They know they must reinvent themselves in their adopted country.
They know what they want and they're determined to get it.

Now, please take your time and go through these next five steps. Be clear and specific.

1. What do you need to let go of?
• Status/ Money/ Qualifications
• We hold on to many things that hold us back. If you want to succeed, you must accept that it is totally up to you. Sure, things outside of your control will affect your progress (see recent recession), but you need to accept it and, if possible, use it. One of the techniques that worked for me, it was meditating and Forgiveness. You need to drop your unnecessary baggage (Forgive yourself, forgive someone who's done a great wrong, your social/professional status in the former country, qualifications, money, etc.) Forgiveness is your choice - a very empowering choice - not a feeling, and it is incredibly healing.  Let Go! Breathe and relax. Just forgive and be happy!
2. Who do you want to be?
• Career/ Community
3. How are you going to market yourself?
• What are you going to do to position yourself?
• Are you communicating with influence? Develop resourceful internal states: confidence, curiosity, focus, enthusiasm, passion, openness. Smile!!
• Align yourself with a successful organization.
4. Who can help you?
• Whatever you look for, that's what you'll find!
• This is not a "Secret", it is basic psychology - what you focus on you tend to get more of - so, you need a well-formed, defined and developed outcome of what/who it is you want and focus on it.
5. How can you help them?
• If you want to be successful, be VALUABLE to people that are VALUABLE to you. Simple have a high, unconditional respect for the other person, and be genuinely curious about them and what you can do to help them.

“When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened.” ~ John M. Richardson, Jr. quotes