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

This week, I had to ask myself some tough questions after many sleepless nights up with sick babies. As the week went on, my fuse got shorter than short. I complained behind closed doors almost as badly as my flu-ridden loved ones cried. Any yet, I totally missed it. I had the opportunity to give my girls exactly what they needed: a loving mama who cared about them so much that I put everything aside to focus on their needs. And yet, I royally blew it. In the process of blowing it, I learned an invaluable lesson that hopefully will keep me from missing my shot next time and hopefully will encourage you to tackle whatever is on your plate today with purpose and self-less intent.

Vanessa has global experience spanning over three continents in event management for a range of companies. She currently heads the Operations division of China Sports Promotions, organizers of high-end boxing events across Asia, most famously know in Shanghai as, "Brawl on the Bund." Vanessa has been in Shanghai for over three years and is joined by her husband. Today, she's going to give a little insight into her China experience and how defied the odds to land her dream job.

Ashley received her Bachelors degree in Psychology and Business from Brigham Young University where she met and fell in love with her husband, Dallas. Together they have two energetic young boys that add laughter and fun to their family. She currently finds great joy in meeting the people of China and learning their fascinating stories. She intentionally has set aside her professional career during this season of life to nurture her young family and take time to enjoy the exciting adventures that life in China provides. Ashley has been in China for less than a year and yet she has incredible insight and wisdom to share with our listeners – no matter what stage of the process you’re in!

Brent came to China after studying Chinese and graduating from Michigan State University. He ended up founding and running ShenzhenParty.com and for the last 14 years he has built it into a pillar of expat life in Shenzhen. Last year over 600,000 people visited the site and through it they found apartments, jobs, language tutors and more. China has given Brent the opportunity to learn things he never would have thought to learn back in the USA such Online Marketing, Human Resources, and negotiation skills and we're going to talk about some of those things today.

Anthony, a native Brit, teaches Film, English, is a Head of Year at Dulwich College Shanghai. He has lived in Shanghai for 7 years with his wife, Maria. Before coming to China they lived in Maria's home town of Bogota, Colombia. Since being in Shanghai they have had two small children, both of whom were born here. On his radar at the moment, and taking up a good deal of his free time, is the realization of a 13-year dream in the opening of an orphanage in rural Uganda. The Peace Centre opens its doors to 20 orphans on the 2nd of February. Anthony, along with a couple of friends and in conjunction with a dedicated team of students, has built the orphanage in the last year via many fundraising initiatives and through actually visiting Uganda for 3 weeks in the summer of 2014.

Nicolas was born in Strasbourg, France and worked in real estate for 20 years before finding his passion in the science of ice cream. In 2011, Nicholas and his family moved from France to China and in 2014 he became a partner of Maison Delice, a french handmade ice cream company. Today, he is responsible for building the Shanghai market. Maison Delice's ice cream is by far the best ice cream I have ever tasted – no joke! (In fact, as I was writing this Show Notes page, I had to get up and grab one of the little samples Nicolas left in my freezer because my mouth was watering just thinking about it… Come on! Salted Caramel Ice Cream?! Whose wouldn't?)

As a restaurateur and chef, Mike is no stranger to the kitchen; in fact, he has over 20 years experience working primarily in 2 and 3-star Michelin restaurants in France. He came to China in 2006 to open "le Royal Meridien" hotel where stayed for 5 years. After that he had the opportunity to open his first restaurant "Cuivre" then the second, then the third... Today Mike is going to share with us tips, tricks and lessons learned from his entrepreneurial journey thus far.

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. It's so good that I moved this week's wrap-up from Friday to Wednesday just so we can send you laughing your way through the rest of your week! (Warning – it's hilarious yet a bit off-color as well. Listener discretion advised!)

Audrey spent 1/3 of her life in China, 1/3 in the land of vampires, 1/3 in Manhattan and Sydney. She's privileged with understanding of many cultural differences and similarities as a result of living on four continents. She believes humans are beautiful and amazing, and thus obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design and a Bachelor's degree in art and psychology. The Creative Director at an inspirational company, Audrey strongly believes in her company's motto, which is "Dream it. Live it." When she's not working to help people realize their dreams, you can spot her performing in local comedy clubs, or tucked away in a tea house writing her books.

Mike is an American social media & e-commerce specialist based out of Shenzhen. He came to China in late 2007 to source products for his e-commerce business. In 2012 he founded SocialAgent.me to help Western companies sell in the Chinese market through Social media. Late last year his startup was acquired by an app company Unchained Apps and is now the VP of Marketing and Business Development of a portfolio of apps such as WrittenChinese.com, TaskLabels, and of course Social Agent.

This week was definitely record breaking in terms of numbers (and we made Shanghai Daily Secret's list!) but more importantly, I learned some invaluable lessons on the power of prioritizing people amidst the insanity of life and business building in China. Tune in to hear my favorite 'laowai' moment and why I made people matter first this week.

Originally from the UK, David first arrived in China in 2006. After a couple different entrepreneurial ventures, David, together with his brother, James, began Westwood Ales, bringing the love of British beer to China with the intention of making a national brand. In this episode, David shares how business success happens at the intersection of passion and expertise... Not to mention, it includes probably one of my favorite bloopers reels to date!

For the past seven years, Fred has been a stay at home father of two boys, Zaidan who is 7 and Brexton who is 4. Prior to being a stay at home father he worked as a paralegal. Originally from Southern California, he and his family have been in China for just six months and so the challenges of expatriation are still pretty fresh for them all. In this episode, Fred shares his experiences thus far – some of the challenges and the victories that he's walking through right now.

Rose moved to Shenzhen, China from New York City in 2009. She teaches Business English at Shenzhen Polytechnic College and runs Love, Shenzhen, a company that makes maps and runs tours and events in Shenzhen, along with a really cool website. In this episode, she shares with us how organically businesses can grow in China and how to succeed in your own niche market.

Tom is currently the Vice President, Emerging Channels, for Owens & Minor, a Fortune 300 multinational company specializing in healthcare logistics. The company is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, USA. He and his wife Jamie have been married for more than 20 years, and have two teenage boys, Jackson and Buck. They were in Shanghai for almost three years and repatriated in June of 2014, which was about 6 months ago at the time of this recording. Today Tom is going to share with us his experience closing out his expatriate assignment and how he and his family are adjusting back home in the US.

This week, I was plagued by self-doubt and wracked by insecurity in almost every area of my life (down to something as inconsequential as my baking skills even...). Finally, I had had enough! Let's be honest, focusing so much energy inward can be draining, and quite frankly I think my husband had had enough taking phone calls at work from a weepy, purposeless wife. It was time for a radical switch in mindset and miraculously I believe I've conquered the self-doubt that, for too long, had been granted permission to loom around my every corner, and today I want to share with you how I did it... just in case you've got some doubts of your own to sort out!

Damon was born in Silicon Valley California, and graduated from California State University, Chico in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Shortly after that he ended up working in Japan for 6 years and to add another country to his repertoire, he later moved to Australia to manage a rainforest and beach tour company. He met his wife there and returned to Japan where he earned his MBA at one of Japan's top ten national universities, Tsukuba University.  While at Tsukuba he discovered that the school did not have any real official alumni group and actually did not assist MBA graduates in their job search process. This was his catalyst to launch his business catalyst4mbas.com, which connects organizations to top-level, experienced talent and acts as a platform for MBAs to exchange opportunities and ideas in order to promote life-long-learning. Tune in to hear how Damon has brought catalyst4mbas.com to China.  

Senior wine consultant, Lionel Le Gal, was born in Paris and first arrived in Shanghai in 2001 as a student at the Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade, learning Chinese, trade, sales and marketing. Armed with this new knowledge, he quickly joined the French Wine Paradox team as a part-time wine promoter. Since then he has spent most of his career dealing with the On Trade wine business for key importers such as Torres China and ASC Fine Wines, working primarily in China and Vietnam. Most recently he teamed up with Italian sommelier Michele (Mikele) Muraro under a new venture called The Wine Guy. Lionel is married and has been in Shanghai for the last 7 years. Today Lionel is on a mission: to share some insights on the Chinese wine trade and also debunk some popular myths!

Originally from France, Fred's career began first in retail management and then key account management for an multinational company. He and his wife landed in Shanghai in 2006 and for a number of years, Fred worked for a Chinese company and dramatically impacted their international business development. It was through that success that he created his own consulting company, Aim Result, in 2012. Additionally, two years later, he co-founded www.shanghaicontactme.com where people can inquire their needs like real estate, office space, company incorporation...etc, and then Fred and his team guides them to the best price and the best value service providers.

Long-time China executive, Bhasker Jaiswal works as Managing Partner of OMD China, a leading advertising media agency in Shanghai. His career spans over 16 years, and included 4 years in Malaysia before coming to China. He has been in China for past 8 years and worked in Guangzhou and Shanghai. He likes to play tennis and badminton and is always looking for a game. He currently lives in Shanghai with his wife and 4-year-old daughter.