Never let yourself be limited because you think something is too hard to get.

When I moved to Sweden, I didn’t let all the things that I knew about how hard it could be to immigrate to a new country hold me from giving it a real shot and try to get a job and settle in the capital of Scandinavia.

The idea of moving to Sweden sounded impossible. Finding a job will be extremely hard because I don’t speak the language, I can’t compete with the Swedish high standards in the Design and Marketing industry, and why would someone want to higher me and sponsor me instead of recruiting a local? And If I manage to find work, what will be my chances to get a resident permit approved by the government?

Well, I end up finding a job, working in the best workplace of Sweden, recruiting designers and photographers, and delivering an excellent piece of work with wonderful colleagues.

How did I do that?

1- Perseverance
I couldn’t accept the idea of giving up.

2- Believing in myself
Even though the Swedes have high standards, I said to myself that I can have a different style and that my way of working and rigor could be my added value.

3- Questioning everything
I revalue my portfolio, my letter and the way I am presenting myself.

4- Rebuilding everything
To adapt to the market, I had to redo my presentation in a way that speaks to the local system. For example, my letters were too formal because I learned to write motivation letters in French. In Sweden they want them to be more straightforward.

5- Networking
Going out, socializing, reaching people on Linkedin and social media… I did it all.

6- Staying positive
That was quite a hard one with the cold dark -15C Winter… brrr

7- Willing to downgrade to upgrade later
I started with a simple photography job, then some graphic design things that opened the doors to an Art Director position.

8- Keeping myself healthy
One of the first things I did was to take a subscription to the gym – “Mens sana in corpore sano”

9- Learning to adapt
In each new situation, you will have to learn something. Be flexible.

10- Staying focused
Between the thoughts of failure, missing my family, the nightlife temptations, I could easily drift to a different scenario…

11 – Being determined
I said to myself that I had only one option: Make it happen.

12- Having a plan but also following my intuition
Daily goals, weekly schedule, monthly plans… From an intention to a detailed action plan. Writing down everything, and staying open for plan B and C…

13- Doing one step at the time
Breaking down the huge challenging mountain to small easy steps.

14- Being consistent
I kept doing the same thing over and over, on a regular basis with the same frequency.

15- Not giving up

—-

I hope that by now you can see the underlying advice in these points. You can use each one of the points in any situation where there is a challenge. When it’s difficult, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

“You can get everything when you are persistent, but you can keep it only when you are consistent.”

Any question about this article? Book a free 30min session and let’s talk.