Limitless Laowai Expat Life, Business Strategy, Personal Development & Cultural Adjustment In China | Learn Chinese

Limitless has teamed up with Epermarket to bring you Allergy Awareness Week, and in this show I speak with two medical doctors practicing in the south of China, Dr. Eric Zhao and Dr. Mingan Pan. Dr. Zhao is a dermatologist, specializing in skin related allergies, such as atopic dermatitis (infantile eczema), urticaria, and cosmetic dermatology. Dr. Pan is a specialist in the related allergies of the respiratory system, such as allergic rhinitis and asthma. Both skin and respiratory allergies can affect our lives as expats in China and I had a great time with both doctors discussing what support is available in China.

Limitless has teamed up with Epermarket to bring you Allergy Awareness Week, and in this episode we're going to tackle household allergens with experts from PureLiving, Kellie Henry and Graeme McLeish. Kellie just celebrated her 6-year China-versary, arriving in Shanghai in April 2009 and has been working with PureLiving for 3 and a half years. Her partner in crime here, Graeme. has been in China for nearly nine years and has experience working in NGOs including an energy consultancy in London and for the Red Cross following the Sichuan Earthquake in 2008. He has been with PureLiving for the past 3 years and has recently become a Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant. In this show, Kellie and Graeme teach us how to prevent and treat household allergens that are common to homes in China—focusing primarily on mold, pollen, dander and–eeeek, my least fav–cockroaches! (Who knew people were allergic to cockroaches!?)

Limitless has teamed up with Epermarket to bring you Allergy Awareness Week, which in China, begs the question: In the land of dumplings and wheat noodles, is living gluten-free attainable or just a pipe dream? Food industry expert, Sanna Luoto, assures us with patience and preparation it's totally possible! Sanna has been living in China since year 2011. For the past two years, she has worked as a consultant at B&B Advisors. Since then she has co-founded and manages Gluten-Free China, an expanding community and network of gluten-free consumers, suppliers and experts. In this episode, Sanna is going to share with us what it's like living gluten-free in China, either due to medical necessity or as a lifestyle choice and how those who do live gluten-free can thrive while abroad.

Jerel is a Tedx speaker and author of Sharpening China's Talent, which will be released in the early summer of 2015. He is the founder and principal consultant of Sharpening Axes, an employer engagement consulting firm and after a 23-year career in IT, Jerel has been advising and coaching senior level executives and managers of employers working for MNCs in China for the past nine years. In this episode, hear Jerel's insider's advice on how to land your dream job in China, specifically: the three books that will revolutionize how to position yourself in the job market; why using job sites and job boards does not cut it for job seekers anymore; what inside knowledge the average expat job seeker is missing and more!

If you've been following the Limitless Journey you may have noticed I've not recorded a Weekly Wrap-up in quite some time! Well, I've heard your feedback (thank you!) and have switched things up a bit. It's been so ridiculously exciting and I needed some time to clearly define and best articulate where we're heading. Tune in to this week's 8-minute Wrapup to hear how we're changing things up to better serve the needs of our awesome Limitless Community (that means YOU)! Enjoy!

If you are concerned about maintaining your health and fitness while abroad or looking for strategies to get back in the game (and stay there!) then this is an episode you must hear! Siri is the co-owner of Z&B Fitness and a fitness instructor. She has been in Shanghai for 4 years and is a new mom to 8-month-old, Sophia. Katherine is a holistic health coach and fitness instructor. She has been in Shanghai for just 8 months and is excited about the growing health and wellness trend in the city. In this show, Siri and Katherine talk through strategies for finding a healthier, fitter, and happier lifestyle in a simple and sustainable manner while living in China.

Katia is driven by the belief that people deserve to live their life to its fullest potential. Ultimately, her passion is to help her clients reach emotional and spiritual balance, reclaim their identity and have the courage to lead by example. When she couldn’t find a firm that offered a service she was looking for, Katia founded Elyts, which offers unique services ranging from Image Consulting, Interior Design and Feng Shui all the way to Creative Coaching. She is helping people dress smart, live in style and make better decisions. In this interview Katia covers what image consultancy is, and why she splits it up in three dimensions; the importance of outer appearance for confidence; tips for creative expats to get and stay motivated in China; how to create meaningful connections instead of superficial networking; and tips for preventing yourself from settling into autopilot.

David is CEO of Dotsub, a New York based online video start-up. He is also a member of the faculty of Singularity University, a joint venture between Google and NASA that studies exponential technologies, and the Founder of Network Society Research, a London based global nonprofit. David does quite a bit of travel and splits his time between New York and his home base in Italy. In this episode, David shares how new technologies will emancipate people who felt powerless before; challenges societies of the past faced when trying enforce a moral compass and how new technology can change that; why wars between nations are going out of fashion; how human creativity differentiates us from computers and machines, and how you can leverage that; why new technologies make social change possible and sustainable; what intrapreneurship is and why organizations can benefit from it; a discussion of whether or not university education is becoming outdated, and the future of education in a fast moving society.

Vitto is the managing Partner of Pacific Prime. She helped bring the company from Hong Kong to Shanghai in 2003 and has been in Shanghai now for 13 years. Under Vitto's lead, Pacific Prime has grown into an international company with five offices in four countries in East Asia and the Middle East. She is joined in Shanghai by her husband and two young children. In this episode Vitto shares her insight into the insurance industry in China and key factors to consider when looking for insurance as expats. In this episode, Vitto shares how an insurance start-up grew into a multinational organizational success story; the differences of direct billing vs. pay and claim in China; when to go to a local, and when to go to an international hospital; a short history of China's insurance industry; life insurance and home insurance options for expats.

Natalie has been working in the HR field for 8 years and is currently HR Manager Asia Pacific for Austrian company, ams. Also an academic, she enjoys providing career coaching for professionals while working on completing her own PhD thesis. The youngest ever member of the Rotary Club in Shanghai, Natalie considers herself a social entrepreneur relentlessly putting energy into various projects supporting the less privileged in China. In this episode, Natalie opens her HR tool kit and shares with us some strategies to successfully land a job as a foreigner in China. Specifically she covers the state of the current packages for expats, the importance of social media in the job search process; how to make sure your networking tactics are welcomed and not annoying; tips for setting up an effective social media profile and how to avoid getting your application stuck on the HR table.

A French architect and interior designer with 12 years of experience in France, Canada, the US and China, Lili can hardly rely anymore on her original culture. 124 concepts, 52 projects, a thousand vortexes of new knowledge, 500 deaf conversations, and millions of food delicacies later, China has become home for Lili and she is thankful for the journey this far. In this episode, Lili shares her experiences working as an architect in China, why understanding the language is important to understanding the culture, wisdom on choosing business partners and, of course, defining success for youself, rather than using the standards and benchmarks of those around you.

Born in the US, Michelle has lived overseas for over 30 years and has worked in the education, global relocation and media industries. An 11-year resident of Shanghai, she is a frequent guest on ICS Culture Matters and most recently went back to her roots in education as the Director of Students for American Baby International English, infusing this China-based English training center with current Western practices in education. Today she's going to share with us how she's building innovative bridges between her local team and international teams.

Driven by purpose, Cindy found her calling and moved from corporate American to the not-for-profit sector just last year, as the CEO for Chunhui Children’s Foundation. Today, Cindy is going to share with us her transition from the executive fast track to leading one of China’s most recognized NGOs, the importance of a personal mission statement and how you can get working on yours today!

Spending most of his days helping small businesses as AmCham SME Center's senior associate, Veli has a unique window to what’s common among start-up owners and how Shanghai is experiencing a wave of innovations driven by the SMEs. Tune in to learn how a small amount of support can produce great success in the SME realm, the importance of not plateauing with your language skills, how to develop a win-win internship program, and how things you might consider ordinary are actually pretty special.

Grace is originally from Shandong province and spent 7 years abroad in the US, Switzerland and London. She has worked an executive in a number of fortune 500 companies and has recently returned to China to start her own entrepreneurial venture called Viva nutritional product. In this episode, Grace shares with us the incredible opportunity for O2O business in China, how to balance building a business while caring for your family, as well as the importance and value of building a value-based organization that supports community growth.

Christina was born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan, and she immigrated to US at the age of ten. For the past 6 years, Christina has been working for her family business in Shanghai and most recently is a full-time MBA student at China Europe International Business School. In this episode, Christina covers: what it's like working for the family business; why she's pursuing an MBA now – the benefits and challenges; a story of a red envelope being slid her way by a vendor... and how she managed it culturally; how 80% of recruiters are looking for English AND Mandarin skills and how CEIBS helps make students competitive; and the importance of mental toughness and flexibility in conducting business in China.

To cap off TOP Week here at Limitless, some serious laughs for you. Ever have one of those gut-wrenching, painfully embarrassing moments? I’ve had my fair share but this week I heard a friend tell a China story that’s for the history books. (Warning – it’s hilarious yet a bit off-color as well. Listener discretion advised!)

To cap off TOP Week here at Limitless is our TOP Mama! If you missed Jodie's interview the first time around, definitely make sure to tune in! Jodie grew up in New Zealand and came to Shanghai eight years ago via London. She and her husband, Joe (nicknamed ‘Fish’), and kids left a fantastic set up as expats in London to leap into the great unknown of China and are now embracing this life with all its opportunities and challenges. Tune in to hear her insights on how and why to stay optimistic while living life in China.

Mike Burns is so passionate about History that he changed careers to be able to teach it. Since he made the switch, Mike has taught students in elementary, middle and high school in the United States, Qatar and for the past eight years, China, nearly six of those at Concordia International School Shanghai. Of all of the classes and grades he has taught, Big History is the only one that allows Mike to collaborate with students discovering 13.6 billion years–all in one school year! If you are up for the challenge of tackling the history of the universe, don’t miss this podcast where Mike shares how the Big History project got started, what it is and how everything is connected! [This podcast is one of ten in the HowTo@ConcordiaShanghai series. For information on how to contract the Limitless platform to benefit your organization, connect with Ally today.]

Rachel Key studied Neuroscience at university and eventually transitioned into teaching Biology, Chemistry and Calculus. She has been a teacher now for seven years and has taught in the U.S., Korea, and China. The Concordia Welfare and Education Foundation awarded Rachel the “Dedication to Service Award" as recognition of her passion for service and public health. In this podcast Rachel takes us on a journey from gaining administrative support to engaging with student practitioners as they touch the lives of the medically disadvantaged in China. [This podcast is one of ten in the HowTo@ConcordiaShanghai series. For information on how to contract the Limitless platform to benefit your organization, connect with Ally today.]