Working In A Foreign Country

As a Filipino, I am very much aware of the employment scenario of my country, the Philippines. There might be lots of job in my country but salary is too low that could not even support the basic needs of every family. This is the main reason why many Filipinos go out of the Philippines and apply for jobs abroad.

Yes, working abroad has its financial benefits but there are also challenges that are to be faced. I have experienced working in a foreign country and I would like to share these challenges:

Number 1: HOMESICKNESS

Homesickness is the most difficult thing to face when you are working in a foreign country. You are away from your family, from your friends, from the usual things you do everyday and from your usual surroundings.

I salute those people who survived working in a foreign country. These are the people who are made with the sterner stuff. But I believe those who survived have made God their strength. When one is working in a foreign country , we must cling to our faith and to our belief that there is a God who will never leave us.

How to fight homesickness: Get involve with your church. Join church activities. Join sports activities. Interact with your fellow Filipinos. Be a positive influence because they too are fighting homesickness. Be a moral support for each other. 

Number 2: ADAPTING TO A NEW CULTURE

We always have to remember that we will be working with people whose culture and values are far too different from ours. Before leaving our country we must have the initiative of doing some research of the do's and dont's in the country where we are headed to.

Adapting to a new culture is also a big challenge. People from other countries have different values from ours. There are countries whose people are lazy. Too lazy that they will depend on you doing all the challenging assignments. Another thing, some cultures  do not want pressure from their work. If they are given pressure, they resign. They just want to have a Managerial Position, receiving the salary of a manager but doing nothing. this is just one example. If you value excellent performance in work, there are locals in a foreign country that only values mediocrity in everything.

Punctuality is sometimes a value of a foreign country that don't value this. As a foreign employee one must really be flexible and adaptable.

Number 3: ADAPTING TO FOOD

From ones home country, the usual food that we eat are what we will crave for. Although we are very eager to try new food, but eating these food everyday will always make us miss home. We crave for the food cooked at home and eating with the family and loved ones.

To address the issue of this craving for the usual food we eat back home is to sometimes cook for yourself if you have the time.

THESE are just few of the challenges we face as an OFW. I will come out with part 2.