Natalie: Welcome to the Get a Better Job in 30 Days podcast. I’m your host Natalie Fisher. I’m a certified career mindset coach who also happens to love dogs, lattes, and most importantly skipping the small talk and getting right to the conversations that matter. On this podcast, I will coach you on how to use your brain to build a wildly successful career and make a real impact in your industry. If you want to do more than just work for a living, you’ve got to start by making the right decisions now. Are you ready? Let’s go.
 

Welcome to today’s episode. So, this is another episode where I’m interviewing one of my dearest clients, her name is Bea. She’s originally from Spain, moved to Chicago with her husband. She was an e-learning specialist and now turned learning engineer for Northwestern. I’m so proud of her and her journey.
 

Today we’re talking all about what it took for her to get there and the challenges that she faced and hopefully this is going to inspire you if you’re in a place right now where you’re having a tough time getting out of. Basically, everybody suffers from the same self-doubt. It’s a normal that we all have when we’re up-leveling, doing something new. We want to make more money, we want to take on a bigger challenge we know we’re capable of and so my goal is just to show you success after success of my best clients who get in there and face the work and do the work.
 

Yeah, sometimes it’s uncomfortable, sometimes it takes a while, sometimes it doesn’t. When it happens it happens in a minute. It doesn’t take very long once you find that opportunity, but the more that you go through the process and the faster and better that you get at it the faster you can make it happen for yourself.
 

Again, everyone with their own unique challenges. The only thing that they all have in common, what makes them successful is that they faced those challenges head-on and they keep coming back for more beatdowns from me, loving beatdowns where we coach through the things that are stopping them from taking the action because ultimately you need to take that action in order to get to where you want to go, right?
 

So, if you know that you could be taking some more action right now, but you’re not, there’s a reason why and it’s because of what you’re thinking. Today we’re going to dig into Bea’s journey and how she did it and how she was able to confront her discomfort and one of the things that led her to become more relaxed in interviews, how she was able to go from feeling nervous to feeling relaxed. And one of the things that she was able to that will really help you as well and is part of the process that I teach, so without further ado here’s that interview with Bea.

 

 

All right, I’m so excited. We are here with my former client who is super, super successful now. She has gone on this journey to go from an e-learning coordinator to now a learning engineer at Northwestern and she’s going to talk to us about her journey from where she was as to how she got here and I’m going to ask her a few questions and we’re going to start by getting her to introduce herself. So, Bea, why don’t you let us know a little bit about yourself and give us some more detail about what you do.
 

Bea: Sure, thank you very much, Natalie. My name is Bea, I’m originally from Spain. I moved to Chicago to the States two years ago and before I was working in Spain in a private university and I had different roles, but I started to work as an instructional designer/e-learning coordinator and then I got promoted and I was managing master programs. I was an associate director and then when I moved to Chicago, I started to look into the higher eds to continue my career there and I got a job as an e-learning coordinator which was fine.
 

I enjoyed my time, but a year ago I decided to start looking for better opportunities and next week I will start a new role as a learning engineer at Northwestern University. So, that’s a little bit about me. I’m very excited and I’m very excited about sharing my journey with Natalie and with all of you.
 

Natalie: All right. So, would you mind talking a little bit about – because I know have a lot of clients who are in a similar position as you that they’ve come Spain or another country to the US and they feel a bit nervous about their ability to navigate in English and do interviews in English. Would you talk a little bit about how you got through that? Because I know it was a bit of something that we coached on as well, but obviously something that you got through really successfully.
 

Bea: Yeah, it’s a challenge when you have to interview in another language. So, for me, it was kind of trauma, a traumatic thing that I had to get over it. I would say that what really helped me was the ability to do a lot of interviews and to prepare very well for those.
 

I mean, I realize that part of the situation, at least in my case, it was lack of confidence and sometimes not having the right mindset thinking because I’m not from this country the company is not going to hire me or is going to just go for another candidate, etc. So, at the end what I realized is that if you are very well prepared and if you – or at least in my case, if I’m not very nervous I’m able to do interviews successfully.
 

At some point after probably five, six, seven interviews I started to feel more and more confident and I think it’s just a learning process and you just have to go through it. At the beginning it really sucks, but at the end I’d realized that, “Wait a minute, most of the companies are asking me the same questions, so if I’m able to prepare very well I can run an interview.”
 

Natalie: Yeah, so what was the shift in your mindset that got you – you went from thinking, “Oh, they’re going to hire another candidate because of my English,” to, “They must see the value in me because they want to interview me in the first place,” kind of thing. Because you have to have a conflicting belief there to even go on all those interviews to make it happen.
 

Bea: Yes, I think at some point, I saw that, first of all I saw that I was able to get interviews. So, that reinforced the message of, “Okay, you are capable and companies are interested in you.
 

Natalie: Yeah, focusing on what’s working.
 

Bea: Yes, exactly. Obviously another positive, and then a few companies – because at the beginning usually after the first phone call I was discarded in the process, but then I started to saw the opposite, that I was passing to the next interviews. So, I was like, “Yeah, if I can pass the first interview, I can pass the second one.” Really focusing on the positive of practicing and also I realize that when I wasn’t very into the position – when I was thinking, “Oh maybe this is not the job I want to do,” or I wasn’t very interested in the role I was feeling less nervous so I was able to perform better during the interviews.
 

So, at the end it’s like, “Okay, Bea, it’s your mindset.” Lack of confidence because actually when you don’t care much is when you have better results. That was funny to experiment.
 

Natalie: Yeah, that was something to really be aware of there, too, and then even being able to apply that mindset, too, when you really did care about it.
 

Bea: Yeah.
 

Natalie: So, I think that’s something that listeners can really benefit from hearing is how you were able to really just focus on what was working because in this journey lots of things don’t work a lot of the time, right?
 

Bea: Right.
 

Natalie: It’s easy to get sucked down and get frustrated by what isn’t working but something you did really, really well was focusing on, “Okay, I’m getting interviews. I am getting responses. These are the things that are working.” I believe that’s one of the main things that successful people do is they are able to focus their mind on those more positive, more effective things that are happening. Because what’s working is always available and what’s not working is always available and it’s just a matter of where you choose to focus.
 

So, I think you did an outstanding job of that in order to keep in it and keep going and get where you got.
 

Bea: Yeah, it takes time though.
 

Natalie: Yeah, it can take time, but then when it happens it happens in a minute, right?
 

Bea: For sure. Yeah, it happened quickly and it was like, “Wow.”
 

Natalie: And it’s all the work that you put in up until then that got you to the point. It seems like when you’re in it you’re in it, but then it’s like, “Oh.” All of sudden it happens and it happens fast. So, tell us how you got the job. Was it through an online posting or was it through a connection? Tell us how this one actually came about?
 

Bea: Sure. First of all, your templates really helped because I was always trying to – your process, the process that you taught me during our coaching sessions. So, I was sending a lot of emails and LinkedIn messages to hiring managers and to companies that were hiring. Well, I think it was a combination of different things.
 

For me, the COVID situation, the pandemic situation really helped me because companies and universities are looking into doing everything online and do all the learning and all the courses online. So, for my field that was something beneficial. Then also I remember that I sent an email when I saw the job posting in LinkedIn, I sent an email to the hiring manager, or one of the directors of the team introducing myself. I think that really helped. Also, I applied online and then they called me. I’m not sure, I think it was the combination of my online application plus being very proactive and sending emails to the team. Yay, I’m here.
 

Natalie: You can be that person who stands out and isn’t just another resume in the pile. You’re somebody who also made the effort to reach out separately as well.
 

Bea: Exactly.
 

Natalie: So, a lot of people listening to this probably have different thoughts about COVID as well and I always try to flip it and say there are some industries that are going to be doing better and that are going to need more and they’re going to want to hire more. So, can you talk about how you originally reacted to COVID and how you originally thought it would affect your job search or did you kind of immediately already know that it was going to be beneficial to you?
 

Bea: Well, at the beginning when COVID hit here in the States I thought, “Oh my God, now companies are not going to hire anyone,” and actually it happened because I was in different processes that got cancelled. So, they told me, “We are very sorry, but we will call whenever we hire again.” So, it’s like, “Aw, this is going to take a while again.”
 

At the beginning it more depressing, but quickly I realized the companies were posting, especially in my field, I saw a peak of opportunities there. So, after a month or two is when I started to have interviews again.
 

Natalie: That wasn’t too long at all.
 

Bea: Yeah, it was quick because most of the companies realized that at least for either HR or big companies with a lot of training programs they had to offer those learning opportunities online, obviously. So, I saw a peak and I was like, “Well, this is my opportunity.”
 

Natalie: So, for those listening, COVID doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It wasn’t a bad thing for everybody and this is an industry that ended up requiring more people to help and there were more opportunities opening up. So, I don’t know if we actually did talk about that in the beginning, but you were an e-learning coordinator and now your new role is learning engineer. I think we did talk about it, but anyway I’ll just remind people of that.
 

I just like to highlight those situations where COVID actually helped an industry get more people required to be hired and I always like to say it’s like you’re switching. Everything didn’t go away, it just switched where the supply and demand was and it just rearranged everything, but it didn’t actually make everything go away because that’s what initially people thought. That’s another good example of an industry that needed more help, so awesome.
 

All right, can you talk a little bit about what you were doing before we started working together and before you started trying the different things in the process that we worked together on and what was happening there?
 

Bea: Yeah, that was this year, I was applying online. That’s all. A little bit of networking, but not much because I’m shy. I don’t like to talk to strangers and also my country in Spain the networking is not as common as here or at least you really need to know the person or the person who knows that person in order to reach. Usually if it’s a cold email or a cold call nobody is going to pay attention to you and I felt that here in the States it’s opposite. People are very open minded and very open to talk to people even if they don’t know them at all.
 

Natalie: So, how did you get past that? Because I remember we were coaching on that and you were a little bit nervous about reaching out to people or talking to strangers. So, what was the shift that you made in order to start doing that?
 

Bea: Well, you, you really helped me and having those templates. So, at the beginning I was like, I don’t like phone calls or phone interviews, so I’m going to start sending a lot of emails. I’m going to start using LinkedIn more and trying to start there. So, I was sending a lot of LinkedIn messages, a lot of emails to see their response. Obviously, most of the times you don’t get any response, but I saw that whenever – I was sending a lot of emails after applying online, so I was applying online and then trying to get the email of the hiring manager or the recruiter to send an email and stand out.
 

That really helped, I think. I was getting a lot of responses. Link in the email with the job posting like, “Hey, I’m very interested in this role. I saw that your company is looking for this role and I have this expertise,” blah, blah, blah. So, “Are you willing to have a phone call with me for 15 minutes?” That really helped.
 

Natalie: Perfect. So, taking the initiative to reach out separately from the job postings was the main strategy that worked for you would you say?
 

Bea: Yes.
 

Natalie: Awesome. So, I mean, I don’t want people to think that it was the templates that did it. The templates that I provide are helpful and they support, but really it was you who made that happen. So, you created those opportunities for yourself by taking those actions and you had to have a certain shift to get yourself to do that consistently. I just want to point that out to people because a lot of the times, “Just give me the templates and I’ll be able to do it.” Then they send them out and then it doesn’t work and they’re like, “It’s not working.”
 

Bea: For sure, and it takes a lot of time. I mean, I was doing it daily, so I was looking for a job daily basically except the weekend, so from Monday to Friday almost every week. I probably was spending minimum 10, 15 hours per week.
 

Natalie: Yeah, and that’s the thing. So, people often underestimate what it takes to actually do it. What do you think it was that kept you in that consistency? Kept you continuously spending that time and continuing to do it even before you had the result? What was your thought process there?
 

Bea: My thought process was, “I know I can do it.” I think that’s also something that you told me. Like, “Well, you got a job when you moved here, so you can get another one.” I was like, “That’s true. I know I can do it. I know it’s going to take a while. I know it’s going to be a hard process and I feel very uncomfortable.” Also, I was feeling uncomfortable and feeling guilty for leaving my job because I was the only person doing what I do there.
 

So, at the beginning I knew it’s going to be hard and it’s going to feel uncomfortable, but I know I can get there.
 

Natalie: Yeah, we’re really selling people on this process, aren’t we?
 

Bea: Yeah.
 

Natalie: But that is the truth and I’m sure that it got easier for you once you started to see some responses and started to get some momentum and stuff.
 

Bea: For sure, because at least in Spain it’s very difficult to get a job. You don’t see many opportunities. You don’t see many postings, but here in the States you see jobs. So, I was thinking, “At least I could see that almost every day or every week I see new jobs out there so I just need to get one of those.”
 

Natalie: Again, focusing on what is working. Being like, “Yeah, I can see that there’s jobs that my skills are needed. What I do is demand.” All those kind of thoughts that you saw when you saw the job postings.
 

So, when you looked at the job descriptions did you ever think that you didn’t check all the boxes or did you kind of have all the skills on that job description that was needed?
 

Bea: Yeah, that’s a good question. I think it depends. Sometimes I was applying even though I wasn’t the right – maybe they were requiring more experience. In my case what happened to me is that a lot of companies were not confident in my skills or discarding me because I was coming from higher ed. That was a kind of red flag for a lot of companies because they were looking for people with more corporate experience.
 

So, that was a challenge for me. A lot of cases a lot of companies told me, “You have the skills, you have the qualifications, but we are looking for somebody with more experience in corporate.” Their belief was that I wasn’t the right fit just because my experience is more focused on education.
 

Natalie: Okay, when that happened what did you make that mean? How did you move forward from that and continue to where you are now? Because that’s something that happens with a lot of people that get rejected for one reason or another and it’ll be for them to get back to continue to going. So, how did you do that?
 

Bea: I mean, it’s very unfair, I think. I think your past experience shouldn’t define what you are capable of.
 

Natalie: No, and of course, it doesn’t, right?
 

Bea: Yeah. So, I mean, I tried to flip the situation and tried to convince them that I was the right fit. I think it’s just a matter of trying to get the right information. Like, why do you think I’m not capable of doing this job? Sometimes it was because their belief is that you are not used to working in a fast-paced environment. So, talking about how you are able to move fast and to be able to work in a fast-paced environment, talking about those experiences because sometimes they think you are not able to work with clients, whatever.
 

So, talking about your clients and how do you manage those relationships, so trying to fill those gaps and to convince them that although they might think that you don’t have that experience. You have it, but it’s in a different field, but it’s related to the role that you will be doing in that company.
 

Natalie: Yeah, and I think you nailed it there when you were like trying to figure out why they don’t think that I’m capable of it, and that’s called getting curious instead of getting frustrated and all the other options that we have. You decided to get really curious and be like, “Well, I wonder why. Then you got this information which was helpful for you, so that’s another thing I want to point out to people is we also have a choice to get curious or get frustrated. That’s another thing that you did there that was helpful, useful in your search instead of detrimental.
 

So, what would you say the main thing is that you’ve learned from this journey from point A to point B where you are now?
 

Bea: I would say that one of my main learning experiences that it’s okay to feel guilty or uncomfortable. Change is always uncomfortable and in order to grow you need to feel that. You need the uncomfortable thing. The second thing I would say, it takes time. It takes a lot of time, so I think that’s why it’s important to have a strategy and don’t give up. Also, I’m more capable than I think sometimes. I’m stronger. Sometimes I think I’m not strong enough but actually I always demonstrate to myself that I’m capable of progressing, doing new things.
 

Natalie: Absolutely. What would you say were your main lightbulb moments that you had along the way that ultimately led you to the success you have now?
 

Bea: One of the main lightbulb moments it’s when I realized that actually my accent or being from another country is an impediment for finding a job. So, that was, I think, one of the main mindsets that I had before and that was stopping from getting a new job. So, that was a moment that I had.
 

Natalie: So, what do you believe about your accent now?
 

Bea: I mean, I know I have an accent and sometimes I try to be funny about it and I say, “I’m like Sofia Vergara but more clever,” I don’t know, with glasses, I don’t like animal print dresses. Yeah, just being funny, I know I have an accent and most of the people get curious. Like, you do have an accent but I’m not very sure where you’re from because like here at least in Chicago most of the Latino community comes from Mexico or Colombia, Guatemala, etc., but not from Spain. Spanish people here in the States, generally speaking, we are a small community, not so many of us here.
 

So, people get curious like, “I’m not sure where you’re from so let me know. I want to know.” I think that’s good. That’s something I really like from here it’s just people, it’s very open.
 

Natalie: It sounds like your main thought was, “Yeah, I have an accent but I can have fun with my accent.”
 

Bea: Yeah, sure.
 

Natalie: Because I know a lot of people struggle with this, too, and something that a lot of my clients sometimes do is they start to kind of try to predict what other people are thinking about them. So, I know you had some thoughts about what other people might think about your accent when we didn’t really know for sure. Can you remember what those thoughts were?
 

Bea: Yeah, it was especially, they are going to think I’m not clever enough because English is not my first language or I’m making mistakes, especially in academia people is very picky, especially working for professors. I remember when once one professor sending me an email, “Oh, you made a mistake here in this email.” It was a super small thing, but the fact that he was pointing out what the mistake instead of the message I was sending out I was like, “Oh.”
 

Natalie: That experience kind of added on to this underlying belief that you had. “People are going to think I’m not clever because of my accent.”
 

Bea: Yeah.
 

Natalie: But now we can prove that that’s not – it’s also an optional thing to think that, but we don’t know that because we think that’s just true. Right? You’re probably like, that’s just true.
 

Bea: Yeah, and also, I have to say that most of the people were very welcoming and obviously I had very small bad experiences, but those were very small compared to the rest of the good experiences. Everybody was very helpful, my supervisor was understanding my situation. That also reinforced the positive message. I mean, obviously, I found more good people than bad people who’s looking for your mistakes.
 

Natalie: Also, just that was your focus, too. You were like, most people are nice about it, most people are curious, most people understand that my accent doesn’t mean anything about my capability there’s just a couple of people who – or a couple situations right? That’s again you directing your mind and I think that’s what I want to point out is your mind has always been directed on what is working, what is positive, what is going to help you instead of what isn’t which is one of the main keys to why you were able to where you got to. Because you had been focusing on the opposite you wouldn’t have been able to get yourself to take that consistent action every single day. Another example of why that was so effective for you. Awesome.
 

So, what do you think that you were avoiding that kept you, in the beginning, from moving through this process before we started working together?
 

Bea: Well, the lack of confidence was the main thing and also the networking piece, and doing my homework, being more prepared for the interviews and doing more networking. That was something that I wasn’t doing properly before, and the mindset, the lack of confidence and all the negative feelings there are and beliefs that were holding me back from taking actions.
 

Natalie: As far as the shifts that you made, what would you say the main mindset shifts that you made were? Thinking differently about how people would respond to your accent, doing the networking even though it was uncomfortable. Was there anything you had to shift in order to do it?
 

Bea: Yes, I would say that I was feeling kind of guilty for leaving my job and actually, I still feel guilty sometimes because I left them in the middle of the pandemic which is not the perfect moment, but feeling uncomfortable is part of the process and well, I thought my company is fine where I’m working everybody is nice, but the salary is not enough, and I need to keep moving. I need to find something else and I know I can do it. So, stop feeling guilty about –
 

Natalie: Yeah, stop putting their needs before your needs.
 

Bea: Exactly.
 

Natalie: And they’re fine, right? They’re going to be fine.
 

Bea: I hope.
 

Natalie: What was their reaction when you said you were leaving?
 

Bea: I mean, everybody was nice about it, obviously they understood because Northwestern is one of the top universities here in the States, so everybody would be kind of jealous of my situation. Everybody like, “Aww.” They tried to counteroffer me, but I –
 

Natalie: Oh, they tried to keep you?
 

Bea: They tried, yeah. Usually they don’t do that, so I was very shocked, because the first reaction was most likely – my supervisor told me, “Most likely there is no way we can match what you are getting there, but let me try.” So, I thought, “Okay, there is no way they will try to keep me, but they tried.” I felt very flattered. Wow, but also the pandemic situation helped my situation. I was leaving in the middle – not the middle, but right before the beginning of the new semester, everything was falling into my role, all the courses and all the faculty were – there I go. Sorry, I’m explaining myself very poorly.
 

Natalie: No worries.
 

Bea: I was the e-learning person, everybody started in a month to be online, so I was like an important – I was having an important within the university at this exact moment, but you have to be selfish sometimes and think about you and your family and what’s best for you. The job offer I got from Northwestern, better, better conditions, more flexibility, working within a team that was something I was missing in my current role and I was weighing the options.
 

Natalie: I think this is something that my other clients, some of them have gone through as well or will be going through where they have to leave and they’re going to feel really guilty about it, and that is in the end, it’s like, “Well, you could stay there and just do it for them and hold yourself back, and hold your own life back.” Ultimately, you’re not going to do that, so it’s kind of thinking – I like to think of as they will understand. If they were in your position, obviously, they would take this new opportunity because they’re human.
 

Bea: If not, what? I mean, work isn’t a scenario where they can do voodoo to you.
 

Natalie: Exactly, that’s what I say. I’m like, what’s the worst that could happen? They’re going to get really mad at you and then it’s like, well, they’re adults. They shouldn’t be getting mad, they should be like, “Well, obviously, if there’s a better opportunity anybody would want to take that better opportunity for themselves, right?”
 

Bea: Yeah. Some people take it personally, but yeah, at the end it’s like, “Well, I will try to leave in a good situation,” like trying to get everything done, trying to make everything look good for them. There was sharing my responsibilities with other people, sharing all my tasks and all the documentation I had with them, making sure everything was ready for the new person when the new person is coming, etc.
 

Natalie: Yeah, like setting them up as best you could.
 

Bea: Exactly.
 

Natalie: That’s stuff that’s all within your control that you can do and that I’m sure that they really appreciate and also probably made you feel better for leaving them and be like, “Okay, I’m going to do everything I can.” But yeah, ultimately, it’s the best way to do it, it is what it is and it’s happening anyway.
 

So, what do you think you would tell your past self now if you were to look back in one of those situations where you hadn’t gotten your result yet? What would you tell your past self now?
 

Bea: It’s a matter of time, keep going.
 

Natalie: Yeah, just keep going. So, from the time where you interviewed with Northwestern till you got the offer, how long did that take?
 

Bea: It took a month probably. Yeah, it was like a month.
 

Natalie: How many interviews did you have to go through with Northwestern?
 

Bea: Oh my God, not many, but the main interview was for three hours. So, they just put all the interviews in the same interview. Basically, three hours with different folks, professors, the team, the director, like everybody was interviewing me, so it was a very long interview. But I had three interviews at the end.
 

Natalie: What were your thoughts about this interview and this role before you went in that you think led you to show up confidently and get the job, ultimately? What do you think were your predominant thoughts about this interview?
 

Bea: “I got this. It’s the same field.” Actually, I was trying to move from higher ed to corporate and at the end I got a job in the higher ed again, but I thought, “I have the experience, I have the background. I’m the type of person they are looking for and I’m very nice.” I know this. The interview went fine. I was very relaxed during the whole process because actually I was having – at that moment at the beginning I was in probably three, four other processes so because I had a variety of opportunities I was like, “Well, if this one doesn’t work out, it’s fine because –“
 

Natalie: Exactly. That’s the trick. That’s what I keep trying to tell people. It’s like, “Would you be feeling so disappointment if you had three other interviews going on?” That’s the mistake people make is they don’t put in the effort to lay the groundwork to make that happen. That actually allows you to be more relaxed in the interview and show up more confidently.
 

I’m really glad you mentioned that because you did put in the work to have all that stuff always happening and that’s the secret. Yeah, what it does for your confidence that’s crazy. Amazing.
 

So, what advice would you give to somebody in your position where you started?
 

Bea: I would say that it takes time, never give up, keep trying. Sometimes I was feeling like an actress going for auditions. You know?
 

Natalie: Yeah, it could be considered that for sure. It’s the same process, right?
 

Bea: Exactly. It’s the same process. People will discard for small reasons, for I don’t know, “Your voice is not good enough.” Stupid things that you might think are unfair, but you have to keep going because it’s a learning experience you just need to – at the end they are looking for the perfect fit, so trying to accommodate yourself to that as well, like try to be flexible really helps and making sure that you know what they are looking and highlighting those experiences that are more aligned to the company values or the role itself really helps and you get better. It’s a matter of time and practice.
 

Natalie: What do you think you would do to – if you were to look back at all that you’ve done now, is there anything that you would do that could speed up the process for you?
 

Bea: Probably more networking and being more proactive in that area, I would say.
 

Natalie: Once you found the role that you ultimately got it took a month to get it, right?
 

Bea: Yeah.
 

Natalie: So, it’s kind of like once you find the right match and you align yourself with it and you’re in the interview, all these pieces are working together, you’ve got other opportunities lined up. You’re feeling relaxed, your thoughts are in line. You’re like, “I got this. I know how to do this,” then it can happen really quickly, but it does feel like it takes a long time up until that happens, right?
 

Bea: Oh yeah, you are right.
 

Natalie: Awesome. So, how do you think this experience has helped you – or will help you in your current job and how you’ll move forward in your career? How do you think this experience will set you up for being able to achieve any other goal that you have after this?
 

Bea: I feel more confident. I feel it really helped me to better understand the job market in the States and to find that validation that I can thrive professionally even in another country. So, feeling more confident and feeling the validation that I’m capable of achieving more.
 

Natalie: Also, the confidence is within yourself to be able to keep going at something.
 

Bea: Yeah, for sure.
 

Natalie: I just wanted to ask you one more thing. You mentioned a lot of times like, “Don’t give up. Keep going.” What were the thoughts that got you to do that? Was it you were just telling yourself, “Don’t give up, keep going”? Because I believe it had to be the belief somewhere that you know it was happening for you, you just had to keep taking the steps. Can you talk a little bit more about that?
 

Bea: Yes, I knew that it would happen. I’m not sure why I knew it. I just knew it. Like, “It’s going to happen. I know it’s going to happen. I know I can do it,” because at the end you see people with less experience or less skills or qualifications out there doing your job or the job that you want and it’s like, “Why not me? I know I can do this.” I’m not sure how to explain, but I knew it.
 

Natalie: No, that’s a great way.
 

Bea: I knew that I needed help and I needed some guidance and I needed the help, but I know I can do it.
 

Natalie: Yes, well you took some really smart steps and you kept yourself in it every day, consistency. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us today. I think it will be really helpful for a lot of listeners in your situation. I know a lot of my clients have had the exact same struggles that you have and it’s inspiring to watch how you went through them and how you’ve gotten to the other side. So, thank you so much for sharing your story.
 

Bea: Thank you.
 

Natalie: Is there anything else you wanted to add or anything else you wanted to say to everybody?
 

Bea: Not really. I think that was all. I don’t think my experience is very different from the rest of the experiences out there, but yeah, it’s a –
 

Natalie: It’s different in that you made it to the finish line.
 

Bea: Oh yeah, well, sure.
 

Natalie: Yes, you’re right. That’s why it’s so, I think, powerful to share it because it’s so relatable and people can understand it on such a common level. So, it’s very relatable, but the different thing about you was that you focused on what was working, you made it happen, and you kept until it happened. So, yeah, not everybody does get to that point, so that’s why it’s different and inspiring. So, thank you so much for sharing.
 

Bea: Thank you, Natalie. Thank you for this and I just hope I can help other people.
 

Natalie: Absolutely, it will for sure. All right.
 

So, there’s just one more thing you wanted to add, so through the process, I guess it started to work really well because you started to get even more interview requests. Why don’t you talk about that?
 

Bea: For sure, yeah. It’s amazing, when you don’t give up and you keep going, at the end you keep on getting more interviews even nowadays. So, next week I will have another phone call.
 

Natalie: So, you’re going to do the other phone call?
 

Bea: I will just in case, because it’s a big company and a company that I really admire, so why not? I think it’s worth it to try. I am very happy with my new role, my new position, so I’m not sure if this opportunity will line up.
 

Natalie: I mean, if it doesn’t it doesn’t, but it’s a great opportunity and just the proof that you can create those opportunities for yourself. So, for this one, how did you get this one? Was it from something that you did previously or was it something that you recently applied for?
 

Bea: Yeah, it’s something that I applied for. I mean, I have a few friends who work in this company, but yeah, it just happened. I wasn’t very proactive, I just applied and they sent me an email for a phone call interview.
 

Natalie: All that work paid off.
 

Bea: Yeah.
 

Natalie: Awesome.

 

To celebrate the launch of the show, I’m going to be giving away an amazing surprise gift basket with all my favorite things in it. It will have some headphones, some books that I love, and some other fun things that I know you will love, too. And I’m going to go all out on this one, so you’ll want to get in on this.
 

I’ll be giving away three of these to three lucky listeners. To get a chance to win one of these surprise gift baskets all you need to do is rate and review the show on iTunes. I want to create an awesome show that provides a ton of value so please let me know if it’s resonating with you. To learn more about the contest and how to enter go to nataliefisher.ca/podcastlaunch. I’ll be announcing the winners on some upcoming episodes.
 

Thank you so much for listening. I look forward to talking to you next week. Bye.
 

Thanks for listening to this episode of Get a Better Job in 30 Days. If you’re ready to dive deeper into your career mindset and start making a serious impact in your industry, join me at nataliefisher.ca/getstarted. I will see you over there.