Leaving home and working abroad? Now? Really?

“We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”

– T. S. Eliot

I think I am fairly confident in saying that 2020 and early 2021 have not been what one might refer to as ‘vintage’ years. The thought of leaving our homes and going abroad to work would seem to be a significant risk and one that many people might think would be crazy to even consider. In fact, when it comes to taking a risk, I think we can all agree that this pandemic has done immeasurable harm to the mental well-being of so many and stymied the desire to broaden our horizons for completely understandable reasons. 

What we seemingly do have now however is a great deal of fear. Fear of the pandemic, fear of the vaccines, fear of the unknown and even fear of others. Leaving what we know seems a ridiculous notion at this time as surely what is important is keeping the familiar close, playing it safe and not taking a risk. Go abroad? To work? Now? Are you crazy?  

As a partial counter to this, it is perhaps worth thinking a little about when one is abroad, what actually happens? Well, most colleagues say that one thing they are certain about are the myriad ways that they have changed and grown when living and working elsewhere. It might be their language skills but more often they talk of the broadening of their mind which encompasses a newfound capacity for a better understanding of the world and their place in it. There is nothing more gratifying to hear than a colleague discussing where they might move to next and whilst being aware of the challenges, yet somehow not phased about how they will cope. How pleasing is it to see such confidence and zest for life which is the very antithesis of the place so many of us are in at present. Psychologists talk about the big five personality traits, and how these shape the types of people that we are. These include Openness to experience (encompassing intellectual curiosity and creative imagination), Conscientiousness, Extroversion (encompassing sociability and assertiveness), Agreeableness (including compassion and respectfulness) and also Neuroticism (with tendencies towards anxiety and depression). A recent study has shown that when we make a conscious decision to move to unfamiliar surroundings, people tend to score higher on the positive elements of the scale as we work hard to fit into a new environment. These include embracing obstacles, new experiences and friends, adopting a different more considered outlook on life and realising that we have more agency in our daily lives and in how we perceive things than we appreciate.  I wonder if that is what is exactly needed as we slowly and imperceptibly move out of the current crisis we are all facing?

Of course, that is not advocating that we all up sticks and head overseas right this minute but what if one of the ways to begin to move away from the difficulties we face is not so much the physical act of moving abroad and going somewhere unfamiliar but rather being consciously open to the possibility of doing so? Think of it as a declaration of intent and a promise to at least keep ourselves alive to the possibility of new horizons and experiences.  This surely is at least one way of saying that we won’t be prisoners to fear and whilst it might not be now, we will look to a future beyond the hardships of the present.

Our capacity for discovery, inquiry and adaptation is far greater than we know and wanting to be in a place that expands and supports not only our careers but also our capacity to grow and develop fundamentally as global citizens and human beings must surely be a positive thing at this time.

Much has been written about how we need to restart our economies to emerge from the pandemic but perhaps there is also a need to restart ourselves and reengage with our desire to want to live and grow rather than simply exist and manage the present. As human beings, we do have the ability to define our own borders and sometimes, just sometimes, it pays to just expand them ever so slightly…