The Relocation Coach

Our local beach

I popped into Staples yesterday for some paper and noticed the Back to School signs were up. They had all the local elementary school stationery lists there too, so that you can buy everything that your child needs.

It was a not very welcome, and rather premature, reminder that summer is going to end. There was one little girl waiting in line with her mother who certainly did not seem to be enjoying this shopping trip – far too early to be thinking about school!

But there is still a lot of time and good reason to enjoy the rest of the summer. After all the weather is great, with every day seeming to be a perfect one to spend on the beach. The local beaches are popular with kids of all ages, and adults too of course.

Summer nights in July are when the skies around English Bay in Vancouver light up with our annual fireworks celebrations: the Festival of Light. If you want to get into the heart of it then head down to English Bay for Saturday’s finale. The crowds are good natured but if you prefer to watch from somewhere less packed then there are plenty of places around Vancouver where you can watch in comfort. Our favourite spots are with friends on their roof top deck!

Summer is also a good time to take in some culture. The Bard on the Beach festival showcases Shakespeare against the backdrop of Vancouver and the northshore mountains. Not a bad way to spend a balmy summer evening under the tents at Vanier Park.

Summer is certainly a great time to eat outdoors. You can picnic on the beach of course but a BBQ in the back yard is likely to be what most folks do just about every day. We most enjoy buying fresh corn on the cob and grilling it, perhaps along with other fresh veggies. And this summer we have been lucky enough to be given freshly caught salmon. Our daughter’s boyfriend is a keen fisherman and a generous one too!

I hope you find your own ways to make the most of this summer.

Skiing on Cypress Mountain

Relocating often seems to be more about waiting than moving doesn’t it? For us that was true. We waited for visas. We waited to sell our house. We waited for the removal men. We waited at the airport. We waited at immigration and we waited at customs.

It can be pretty frustrating can’t it? So how do you stay positive throughout this whole process?

One good idea is to keep your goals in mind. Why do you want to move to Canada? What do you see yourself doing in Canada? What will it feel like there? What is most important about your new life?

I bet that we all have different answers to these questions. Probably even in the same family there will be different things that you want to do, see or feel when you get to your new life. So it can be helpful for you all to talk about what you see your lives being like in Canada.

We would have these kinds of chats over dinner. And we got all the kids to talk about this too. So when they were worrying about leaving their friends behind they could begin to imagine playing in the snow or on the beach – or going to a school without wearing a uniform.

If your kids are older, then you can get them to write about what they want their life to be like. Sue and I did this for ourselves too. We tried to be as specific as we could. We imagined what a day would be like. What would we see, hear and feel throughout the day?

For us we found that this helped us because suddenly the hassles of  moving became smaller in relation to the big things we were going for. We could put them into perspective and focus on the bright future ahead of us.

We also found that talking to people who had moved ahead of us was useful. One of my pet themes is research – be prepared and build realistic expectations of what life could be like for you. So finding out more about your new home is a good thing and goes well with the whole idea of imagining your future in Canada.

When you do get to Canada, your imagined life may well begin to become real. Especially if you have done a good job of researching. At this time your flexibility becomes important. We have noticed that people who are most successful at making a new life in Canada are the ones who are flexible.

Flexibility might mean changing how you act. For instance, looking for work is about networking. This may not be the way that you normally look for a job so being flexible will definitely help. And when a job comes along it may not be exactly what you wanted – but taking a lower grade post might be the best way to start out. Just keep your goals in mind and be prepared to adapt.

OK, I’m beginning to sound like a motivational speaker! So let me just finish by saying “Go for it”!