A Reflective Guide for Meaningful and Whole-Life Experience

Migrants are important contributors to the success and growth of many countries. But they face series of challenges before they can fully attain whole-life balance while integrating into their new countries. These challenges are real, and to some, they have become sources of worry and despair.

As such, each migrant needs all the help that he or she can get. This book provides that, and much more. It is a reflective guide about the beneficial aspects of migration, the social, economic and cultural challenges, as well as associated solutions. All these are presented from a migrant’s point of view, and with anecdotes from someone that has walked the path – someone who is keen to share lessons learned so that it will be more comfortable and more rewarding for others, especially those coming behind.

In this book, you will find the following:

Who really is a migrant? The career and business challenges of a migrant; and proposed solutions. The challenges and lessons with regards to family life including raising children and youths. The essential aspects and preparation for aging and retirement. The importance of communities and leadership. The lived experiences of a migrant.

You will find great use for the content of this book if you are:

Intending migrants looking for pre-migration considerations and tips. Migrants looking for guidance in work, families, youths and community engagements. Non-migrants, students, policymakers, service providers and community leaders.

This book also allows you to participate in meaningful conversations on migrant experiences.

Everyone has a story they can share as well. What is your story? We readily want to share some, while we share others with caution or will rather keep secret. Some stories are relatively light, while others involve significant shifts in life’s journey. There are stories about childhood and young adult experiences, marriage and married lives, parenting and family, friendships and communities, first job and career experiences, health challenges and recovery. What if there is a story that incorporates all these aspects in one? This book captures key aspects of my story as a migrant and, more importantly, some lessons learned in my journey so far. They are worth sharing!

This book celebrates the migrant and the migration experience. Migrants were always intended to be part of the solution and not the problem.The growth and wealth of many countries have been largely built on the toils and gainful employment of migrants. Australia is a migrant society, dating back to the 18th Century when the first European migrants arrived in the country. Australia has since depended on migrants to work and help develop its vast resources that have ensured the continuous growth of the economy. Migrants indeed, are part of the solution and should be proud of this good story.

Policymakers, service providers and local residents in the destination country will also find this book useful in helping them understand the typical lived experience of migrants a bit more. Lack of knowledge may be responsible for many actions that are sometimes perceived as racial discrimination. Hopefully, this book can provide enough information to enable entering into the world of the migrant, which in turn can trigger empathy and better intercultural relationships.

Finally, new and emerging migrants do not have to suffer the same sufferings of the past especially those due to lack of guidance. Neither do they need to make the same mistakes. This book is a type of mock mentorship in that regards.