The Newcomers Podcast

“I thought it would take 3 - 4 months to get a job when I started applying. But I got my first offer within two weeks and the second offer by the third week.”This episode with Tosin Thomas, Head of Marketing at Financial Cents, was a masterclass on getting hired as an immigrant before you set foot on Canadian soil.We talk about:* Getting the first job offer (she thought it was

Former elementary ESL teacher, college instructor, mother, and founder of the handcrafted decorative pillow company Smithy Home Couture, Smithe Sodine is an Amazon. And she reminds me so much of my Mom, who passed away five years ago. Smithe moved to Florida from Haiti as a 16 yo. She couldn’t really speak English at the time, and she remembers sleeping off in class because there

Imagine for a moment you are on the metro headed to work. Suddenly, the bus lurches to a stop, and the driver makes an announcement in Dutch. And everyone hurriedly gets down. You try to ask them, but everyone seems to be in a hurry to get off the bus.What would you do? I would probably get off the bus scared and all. Nkechi Runsewe was no different. “They say everyone in The Net

And I agree. The journey changes you, so I like to call immigrants “the in-betweeners.” You are in between cultures. I wonder what I would call Kateryna Makysmenko, who’s lived in four countries since she turned 16. On this episode of The Newcomers Podcast, Kateryna and I explore:* The legendary Canadian kindness* Moving as a tourist vs. moving as an immigrant* How moving oft

Ann shares her experience of moving to Finland and the challenges she faced in integrating into Finnish society. She discusses the overwhelm that led her to start a YouTube channel and the reasons she chose Finland as her destination. Ann talks about the culture shock she experienced and the difficulties in making Finnish friends. She also highlights the importance of learning the

I had goosebumps listening to Ayo Owodunni as he told me the story of Election Day…Gosh. Yes, it was an experiment. Yes, he didn’t expect to win. Yes, they had no idea what they were doing. But listening to his backstory, this win was years in the making. He joined me on The Newcomers Podcast to chat about:* Overcoming his fear of knocking on doors* The power of systems* The va

The Canadian wait time for almost anything is the stuff of legends. But despite how frustrating it can be, I love how Anna Otroshchenko, COO of Orofy Inc., deals with hiccups like this. Talking to her felt like I had booked a session with a therapist on the mindset an immigrant needs to adopt when trying to settle into a new country.She joined me on The Newcomers Podcast to chat ab

There are a ton of reasons we, as immigrants, feel compelled to work all the time.* You just spent all your savings moving to a new country* You probably took a couple of steps down the career ladder* You’ve got black tax to remit every other month.Lola, the Afroedmontonian, is on a mission to change that. She joined me on The Newcomers Podcast to chat about:* The ‘Deadmonton M

Siamak Riahi, Founder and CEO of Riahi Patents, likens the early days of his immigration journey to standing in the middle of a tornado and being thrown from one place to another by the strong winds. Despite feeling that way in the early days, Siamak has gone on to move a whopping 14 times across different cities and from the United States to Canada.He joins me on The Newcomers Pod

Dotun Bamisaiye moved to Canada long before moving to the Great White North became a thing. Back then, he would be the only one speaking Yoruba on his train ride to work. Today, he says the train ride hosts a medley of Pidgin, Yoruba, Igbo, and other African languages. He joined me on The Newcomers Podcast to chat about:* Leaving Nigeria reluctantly* The black nod* The danger of a