How you can overcome career barriers as an immigrant

Are you planning to immigrate to Canada or are you living here and struggling career-wise?

In this article, I want to explain to you why so many immigrants struggle, and why you have way more power than you think over your career outcomes.

Immigrating means stretching far beyond our comfort zones. As a result, our sense of self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-worth are deeply affected.

Then, we look around us, and we hear a lot of people saying that our foreign experience is worthless here and that because we are immigrants, we must be willing to ‘start over from scratch’…that it’s just a part of the process.

Please notice that this shapes our beliefs in terms of what’s possible, which leads to certain behaviors, which in turn, determine our reality.

If you believe you must take many steps back, guess what? You will start applying for low-level, sometimes survival jobs, and that will become your reality. This will then reinforce your original belief - that your foreign experience is worthless - and it becomes your absolute truth. In Psychology, we can this "Self-fulfilling prophecy", in case you want to learn more about it.

Then, we share these beliefs with other immigrants who adopt them as their own, because remember, their sense of self-confidence is deeply impacted. And boom, this becomes the reality for most immigrants.

By no means do I want to ignore the systemic issues we face. I`m fully aware that unemployment rates are higher among immigrants and vary depending on where they come from, that some employers favor those who have Canadian experience, and that things are tough for those in regulated areas.

However, you should know you have the power to overcome the barriers you are facing. I`ve helped clients in challenging situations do so over and over again. For instance, a recent client was able to land a job as a Regulatory Portfolio Manager, without Canadian experience. This seemed impossible at first, but with the right strategies, he did it. Another client was working in a different occupation than her intended one for the past 6 years. She just landed her ideal job with the largest bank in the U.S, despite the huge gap.

I realize it’s a lot for you to take full accountability for your outcomes, especially given all of the changes you are going through in other areas of your life due to the immigration process. Action must be taken to address those systemic barriers. However, I can assure you 100% that if you learn how to articulate your experience in terms of the benefits and the value you have added to previous employers, if you have at least intermediate English, and stop applying online, you can go farther than you think.

Landing a meaningful job that fully aligns with your previous experience and career goals is definitely possible, but you have to be willing to learn how to sell your skillset. I often say that being good at what you do and being good at selling yourself are two different skill sets. Fortunately, the latter is something you can learn quickly. If you are good at your job, don’t sell yourself short, and don’t underestimate your ability to contribute. Look for professional help, learn more effective tactics beyond submitting online applications, and you might be both surprised and pleased with your outcomes.

Feel free to reach out to me if you want to know more about the strategies my clients have been using to land amazing jobs!