Advance.org, which helps to connect the global Australian community and Australian expatriates working abroad, recently interviewed Australian Gina McLellan who, after having lived the expatriate life in Asia for almost a decade, decided to return home to her native Australia. The following advice she gives for Australians looking to repatriate home would still be relevant for Asian expatriates thinking of returning home to Asia:
Be brave and prepared to re-establish your local credibility. Re-articulate what you are offering from a ‘global’ setting to a ‘local’ one. Make sure you are having the appropriate conversations for the right time and place. There will be people interested in what you have to share and there will be those who don’t want to know. Tell your story to the right people, at the right level and have realistic expectations, especially with timeframes, Australia Time is not Asia Time. Most importantly don’t lose sight of the reasons you returned in the first place… and when you’re missing the dim sum…. head to China Town for yum cha.
