So, Do You Know Where You’re Going To?

Pangarap: So, Our Journey Begins

How much do you know about the country you are moving to?

What made you decide to choose one country from another? Why Canada? Why not Australia? New Zealand? Or other countries?  What is it about this country that attracted you? Or you have never even thought about asking yourself these questions?

I do not want to think that majority of us are caught in a situation where we will just take off to the first country that will take us. We are not necessarily compelled to jump into a boat because we are refugees or political asylum seekers.

That being said, we have time and the resources to check out what we are going into. Doing that has never been easier with the Internet and all the progress of technology. If you did not do that when you left, do it now.

Where is this place on the map? Who inhabits it? Who rules it? What is the culture? How big is it? How cold is it there? How many people populate it? How do people live?

If there is one thing really necessary, study its economic profile because you are not going there for a vacation, you are going there to build a life. You will need a job, a source of livelihood.

Which industries thrive? Which ones are developing fast? What skills are they looking for? Do you have those skills? Are the people there prosperous or are they poor? Are they complaining or are they happy?

What can the government promise me if I make enough money for them to be able to collect taxes from me? How will my children benefit? How will my old age and my medical needs be provided for?

In what part of this country should I settle? Which province can offer me greater opportunities? Which one needs me and my skills?

I do not know anybody from this country. How do I socialize and network? Or if I have distant relatives or long-lost friends there somewhere, how do I connect or re-connect with them?

To my mind, it will be your own fault if you come here and realize you know nothing. It is not like you were led here by somebody who blindfolded you. You have all the freedom and the chance in the world to know as much as possible about the place. There is not a news blackout or some such thing preventing you from knowing the harsh realities of being able to survive abroad.

Coming is a personal decision. Any decision-making must be an informed one. It was not like you were made to enter your marriage with a shotgun to your head.

I know at least three people who have asked me ten years ago how to migrate. True to form, I patiently explained the process, printed the necessary forms, walked them through the appropriate website. Today, they are still back home figuring out how to migrate.

It takes a decision, a firm decision. If the matter is not simple, then it may have to take a little bit of time to make the final decision, but you will still have to make one. If you cannot do that, then something is not clear that needs to be, or there was really no intention to make a decision in the first place.

Just for an example, it took me only two weeks to decide whether or not to go, then another six weeks to secure all the documents required for the skilled professional category. Then I chose a date, my birth date, on which I would not forget to file my application, so that I would know when my filing anniversary fell every year of waiting.

I should like to understand people who may not find it easy to decide on a big matter like packing up and leaving your country for good. I have two things to discuss here.

First, if the money you will spend for filing the application is spare money or something you really have saved up for this purpose, then file it as soon as you can. Let years pass you by with your application efficiently counting the time for you. It takes an average of three to four years before applications can be approved; five to six years for some, and in rare cases, only one to two years, which might be a little bit too soon for many.  Thus, there is plenty of time to think things over. Consider whatever you pay as an investment that may pay off for you, or money you would spend or depreciate some other way anyway. But the best thing is that time is flying on your side.

Second, leaving is really not a joke, but a very major decision. But to me, no one ever leaves for good. Country will always stay there in your heart, in your whole being. Country will always be there to welcome you back and to enjoy for a visit. Friends will always be there, if you have chosen them well. You cannot choose relatives, but they will also be there when you visit.

How do you make the final decision? I cannot give you a formula. If you have the money, if the reason is compelling, if you had done your research, if you feel good about it, you just know. It is just in you. Even if you do not have the money now but have a way of raising it when you get an approval, then the decision should come along.

How a person makes decisions—how fast or how firm—speaks of how he has made out in his lifetime and how he wants to see his future. Sometimes, the person just needs a little push or encouragement. In the absence of people who will do that for you, make sure you are well informed. An informed decision is a good decision. And only you, can make it for yourself.

Making good decisions does not happen overnight, nor does it have a cut formula. Assuming you meet requirements, it is important to be fully aware or informed. Next to a decision is the action. Do it as soon as possible so that time passes by working for you.

Nobody ever said that our journey, will be easy. But as I write and as you read, we share our strengths and we can hold to the promise that “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them,” Matthew 18:20.

Bolet is a marketing communications practitioner and dabbles in writing as a personal passion. She is author-publisher of the book:  The Most Practical Immigrating and Job Hunting Survival Guide, proven simple steps to success without the fears and the doubts. The book is available in Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo and other online bookshops worldwide, and in National Book Store and Power Books in the Philippines.Please check out  https://www.amazon.com/author/boletarevalo.