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GCC: Andrea, expat women are your business. What do they tell you are their biggest challenges, fears and obstacles of living abroad?
AM: The two key areas that I receive emails about from expatriate women around the world are: practical issues about their relocation or settling-in process (such as where to find resources on X, Y, Z); and issues around their loss of identity when they moved abroad.
To give up your career, job title, position of authority and work status, really does impact on your self-esteem, your confidence, how you are perceived by others and how you perceive yourself. Working through this new mix of emotions and recreating a new identity abroad consumes the energy of so many expat women.
GCC: What have you noticed are the keys to expat women succeeding at creating a fulfilling and success international life and career?
AM: It sounds cliché but from my experience and observations, a lot of how a woman succeeds abroad comes down to her mindset, as well as how much support she is receiving (either mental, physical and/or financial) abroad.
GCC: Andrea, as we both know, a support network is particularly important for women who live abroad. What kind of support do the women at expatwomen really want? Where do they get this support from?
AM: Ideally, an expat woman is supported in her home (by her partner and/or children - if she has a partner and/or family, and in some countries by a reliable, employed helper at home), in her workplace (if she is working), in her circle of friends, and financially (either by her own efforts or via her partner's).
Some of these support systems take a while to develop and also take some concerted effort to maintain, so any extra physical and/or emotional support via networking with relevant groups in her expat location (such as expatriate clubs, international associations, business gatherings, sports or hobby groups and so on) usually only helps - so I definitely encourage expatriate women to network whilst abroad - and as soon as possible after arrival.
Read the rest of my interview with Andrea here >>>>> | 
