Regretting Your Move and Going Back Home | Chiara from England
The New to Canada Podcast
What happens when you move to a new country… and it doesn’t work out? You don’t find the happiness and success that you thought you would. You painfully miss everyone and everything that you left behind and feel like you’ve made a huge mistake. We’ve all gone through times of feeling this way, but it isn’t spoken about enough so you can end up feeling like a failure. Like you’re the only one struggling. This episode’s guest is Chiara from England. She has recently blown up on social media since she started to vulnerably share her story. She moved to Vancouver just last year and...
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LIVE: Speed Immigration Stories | Toronto Newcomer Day - May 23
The New to Canada Podcast
For this special episode, I’m LIVE on the ground at Toronto’s ‘Newcomer Day’ that took place on May 23. Armed with my portable microphone, I wore a t-shirt emblazoned with the words “TALK TO ME: Share your immigration story on the New to Canada podcast” and I was excited to connect with 11 internationals: Sophie from Ireland Johnny from Lebanon Samantha from Malaysia + Australia Joseph from Nigeria Olha from Ukraine Andrey from Israel Leah from Kenya Zahid from Pakistan Wafaa from France + Morocco Enrique from Venezuela Julia from Ukraine In this episode, you can hear a few...
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LIVE: Moving to Canada Party | Career + Social Life
The New to Canada Podcast
Recently, I hosted a live online event, my ‘Moving to Canada’ party! Not only was it SO much fun to meet and get to know you all in person, but it was also PACKED with so much value. It seemed crazy not to publish it here on the show for you all to experience... I’m joined by Career coach, Michelle Ashley, and together we tackle the TWO biggest areas of struggle that I see newcomers to Canada face, again and again: CAREER: Navigating the Canadian job market and rebuilding your success abroad. EMOTIONS: Finding your support network and feeling settled and ‘at home’. If you listen...
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Mental Health After a Move | Gabriela from Chile
The New to Canada Podcast
Let’s dive deep into the darker side of moving abroad… When you move to a new country, your mental health isn’t really your first priority. You’ve got immigration paperwork to complete, accommodation to find, and job searching to do… BUT expat mental health is a topic that, in my opinion, is NOT spoken about enough. The biggest lesson I’ve learnt since starting this podcast is that the majority of us struggle - and the emotional rollercoaster can take us by surprise as we rebuild our lives in a new place. Insecurity, loneliness, shame, regret… These are just some of the...
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British Pensions Abroad | Ian from England
The New to Canada Podcast
If you’ve ever worked in the United Kingdom (no matter what nationality you are), you have paid into the UK State Pension. Once you move away, say to Canada, you might think that those payments are simply lost, or like me, you’re unsure what can even be done from overseas… Good news is, I’m joined in this episode by Ian Andexser, a fellow Brit in Canada and chairman of the Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners (CABP). He’s here to shed light on how you can “buy back” missing years of contributions since moving abroad and still receive a good payout when you reach pension age -...
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Building Wealth in Canada | Tomisin from Nigeria
The New to Canada Podcast
If you’re inspired by “money mindset” podcasts, this is the episode for you! There comes a time in your immigration journey when you’ll start looking to the future and thinking about how to build your wealth in Canada long-term. This episode’s guest, Tomisin Salam, is originally from Lagos, Nigeria, and moved to Canada in 2011 to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams. Together, we chat about the art of taking educated risks and grabbing the endless opportunities that Canada has to offer. Tomisin talks us through his journey from selling clothes out of the trunk of his car to now...
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Indigenous Peoples of Canada | Danielle & Jamie-Leigh from RAVEN Trust
The New to Canada Podcast
As new residents and citizens of Canada, it is so important for us to learn about and become allies for its Indigenous Peoples. First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples have been living in what is now Canada for thousands of years, and they each have unique histories, languages, cultural practices, and spiritual beliefs. We newcomers are now lucky enough to call this beautiful country our home - but we must remind ourselves that we are living on their land. In this episode, I’m joined by Danielle and Jamie-Leigh, who come to us from , a not-for-profit that raises legal defense funds to...
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Canada's Luckiest Newcomer | Hannibal from the Philippines
The New to Canada Podcast
Imagine moving across the world and, on a whim, entering an online contest called Canada’s Luckiest Newcomer… Now imagine getting the phone call that you’ve actually WON, out of thousands of entrants, and a bundle of life-changing prizes is on its way to you… including $20,000, free groceries for a year, 50,000 Air Miles, and more! That’s what happened to this episode’s guest, Hannibal from the Philippines. Tune in to this episode to hear all about Hannibal’s experience arriving in Canada as an international student during the pandemic, how it felt to win BIG, and what...
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Camping Tips | Audrey from Parks Canada
The New to Canada Podcast
Searching for some camping tips as you head out into Canada’s National Parks this summer? Look no further! This episode’s guest, Audrey Levesque, is a Canadian camping expert who has worked with for over 20 years. Canada’s diverse NATURE is one of the main reasons that newcomers give for moving here and Parks Canada manages and protects many of the most special places it has to offer - 171 national historic sites, 47 national parks and 5 national marine conservation areas to be exact! Join us as Audrey shares her experiences working in some of Canada’s most beautiful and interesting...
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My Birth + Postpartum Story | Kate, Your Host
The New to Canada Podcast
I'm back on the mic and officially a MOTHER to 8-week-old Sienna Joy - and what a whirlwind it has been... Tune in to this episode to hear exactly what went down (11 days overdue, multiple induction procedures, failed epidurals, doctor unavailable due to family emergency, the FULL birth story!) As well as my postpartum experience so far including my struggles with guilt and loneliness due to starting a family abroad and my best advice for when you do the same. Links & Resources: Blog Post: My Pregnancy in Canada - Freya: Virtual birth partner app: A...
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This interview was recorded on January 26, 2022 before the Russian invasion of Ukraine was announced to the world. This episode’s guest, Zara Bagramian, was born in Armenia but moved to Kyiv, Ukraine with her family when she was one year old. We discuss both countries at length.
Zara would like to take this opportunity to share an organization with us that she has been supporting since this interview was recorded. Toronto real estate agents Natalia Popovitch and Todor Yordanov dropped everything and, using their personal money and donations from friends, headed to Bulgaria to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war. You can hear more about their story via CBC Listen as well donate to their humanitarian efforts via their Instagram or Facebook.
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Episode summary:
If you have managed to combine your passions with your career, you are truly living the dream. This doesn’t come easy for a lot of us, including this week’s guest, Zara Bagramian. Zara was born in Armenia, grew up in Ukraine, and has now lived in Toronto for the past 8.5 years. In this episode, we chat about what to do when you find yourself unfulfilled by your career, stuck on autopilot, and feeling like something is missing. She shares with us the methods she used to discover her true purpose in life and redirect her career path to bring her more happiness. We also discuss homesickness and ways to overcome it, as well as the immigrant “blip” when trying to understand new cultural references.
You don’t want to miss:
- A Canadian wedding proposal picked up by the media: Her fiancé spelling out “MERRY ME” in the snow and quickly correcting it before she got home!
- All about life in Armenia and Ukraine.
- The kindness of Canadians.
- How long the ‘honeymoon’ phase typically lasts before homesickness can kick in…
- The immigrant “blip”: Feeling behind when not understanding cultural references.
- Some simple tools to help you combine your passions with your career.
- Ikigai: A Japanese concept for finding your sense of purpose and how you can shift your mindset to fill each area with multiple passions instead of striving for a “one fits all” career.
PLUS, find out what an Armenian *really* thinks about the Kardashians…
Links & Resources:
- Follow Zara on Instagram: @the.great.move
- Read more about Natalia & Todor’s humanitarian efforts at the Ukrainian border: CBC News | @uherelief | Facebook
- Download my 50 free tips from newcomers to Canada: What they wish they knew before they moved! thenewcomercollective.com/canada-tips/
- Follow me on Instagram: @TheNewcomerCollective
- For more about us and what we do, check out our website: TheNewcomerCollective.com