Expat Women June 2010 Home Page

Hi Everyone, We have just uploaded our Expat Women June 2010 Home Page. Please take a look, share it with your friends and tweet about it for us. Thank you!

Success Story
Wendy Wilson
Co-Founder and Editorial Director, AngloINFO
South African Wendy Wilson left the film industry to move with her British-born husband Mike Hardaker to the French Riviera to start AngloINFO.com in September 2000. Run as a franchise business, AngloINFO now has 50 local websites worldwide, serving over 50 million page views per month...
Read more...

Business Idea
Love Travel Guides
Fiona Caulfield
A self-confessed luxury vagabond, Fiona Caulfield is the creator of Love Travel guidebooks, designed for the discerning traveler. Already, Fiona has sold more than 15,000 books because unlike mass tourist books, her books are written like you are being chaperoned by a good friend...
Read more...

Repatriation
How To Overcome Expat Withdrawal
Heather Carreiro
After living abroad, moving back to your home country can be even more of a shock than learning to live in a new country and culture. So much of how we define ourselves while living and working overseas is wrapped up in being an expat. Our friends back ‘home’ think of us as "Mary in Japan" or "Susan in Dubai." In our host countries, we are always the foreigner – the one who is different. Even the very way we introduce ourselves and think of ourselves tends to be connected with this element of 'otherness'...
Read more...

Global Nomads & University
The Global Nomad's Guide to University Transition
Tina Quick
We talk to Tina Quick about her new book for TCKs transitioning to university. Tina, mother of three college-aged daughters, is an adult Third Culture Kid (ATCK) who, having made 18 moves, understands well the cycle of loss and grief involved in a cross–cultural lifestyle...
Read more...

Expat Confession
A Lonely Affair
Expat Women Girlfriend
My husband’s new role is very demanding and he is frequently travelling away from home. I am embarrassed to confess that my loneliness has led me to start an affair with my neighbor. I feel extremely guilty about what I am doing and know that this is not right. Ironically, I started the affair to ease my loneliness...
Read more...

Job-Seekers
Career Resource Center For Expatriates, Singapore
Alka Chandiramani
The Career Resource Center For Expatriates, Singapore (CRCE) is a unique, not-for-profit initiative run through the American Association of Singapore, offering invaluable services to expatriates seeking job local opportunities. We talked to Alka Chandiramani to learn more about this great concept...
Read more...

Not A Member Yet?

Just a reminder that our blog is separate from our main site, so if you are reading this blog post online or you are only subscribed to our blog, you will not automatically receive our Expat Women monthly newsletters.

To receive our newsletter this month (which will hopefully be sent out this week) and to go in the running to win our monthly prize of a complete set of Explorer Publishing's Mini-Guides, please sign up today to our main site ExpatWomen.com, and also receive your link to our free e-book of Winning Stories!

Thank you very much and have a fantastic June! Andrea

Expat Women Is Getting A Face Lift & We Want Your Ideas!

Hi Everyone, It has been over two years since our Expat Women site has had any cosmetic surgery, so we think it is time again for a little botox.

Hopefully you noticed that earlier this month we increased the font size of all the main text on our site to improve readability. 

Now, thanks to the kind support of our Sponsors, we now have some money put aside to modernize our design a little too.

A special thanks in advance to repat Beth Nori (and a former Expat Women Mentor - when we had Mentors) of Nori Studios for again helping us to liven up our existing website design.

We have given Beth our ideas, but we would love your ideas too.

Do you like the pink?  Do you not like the pink?

What part of the site do you love?  What part really bugs you?

Can you find what you need?  What can't you find easily?

If you had an endless bucket of money, what is the thing that you would most like improved?

We cannot promise what ideas we will use, but we would genuinely like to hear your input, to help us know where best to spend our (modest, but workable) design budget.

We would really appreciate it if you could please email us all of your ideas by the end of the week.

Many, many thanks!  Andrea

Stevie Awards For Women In Business

Hi Everyone, The 2010 Stevie Awards for Women in Business are now accepting entries!

If you are a woman who has achieved amazing things (and I am sure that many of you have), why not consider entering this year to see how you fare.

On Tuesday 20 July at 1pm ET (U.S.), they are running a free webinar entitled "How to Enter the Stevie Awards for Women in Business".  Learn more about the webinar here.

To enter, click here for the entry kit. The early-bird entry deadline is July 28.  Good luck expat women!   Andrea :-)

Missed Some Expat Articles On Twitter?

Hi Everyone, Here are some expat-related articles that I have shouted out about on Twitter recently that might interest you:

Managing Yourself: Making It Overseas: Alan versus Debra - Harvard Business Review http://bit.ly/bCl0g1

Expats: The pros and cons of working and living abroad http://bit.ly/au864J

New Manpower research reveals 31% of employers worldwide are having difficulty finding the right talent http://bit.ly/bx7o9V

Thriving as an expat spouse - Success begins before you leave http://bit.ly/aoRyWk

Expat Life, Expat Death, published in the The Telegraph UK online, by long-term expat and Expat Women supporter Apple Gidley. Sending love to you, Apple. x http://bit.ly/aAmV17

Top 50 Most Influential Expats in the Gulf - not one woman made the list http://bit.ly/9XKzd1

Premium expat packages harder to come by: more companies turn to the local pay scale http://bit.ly/aktYNU

Moving? Recommendations for greening your home from the get-go http://bit.ly/9JQpsa

What happens when expats move on? Repatriation post by Kama Frankling http://bit.ly/chNWeg

When an expat family repatriates or moves on, remember those who stay behind, by Emily Prucha http://bit.ly/dmwqXf

French-speaking expats: check out new French language blog from expat writer Vernonique Martin-Place http://bit.ly/aaKdni

Weichert survey results for mobility programs http://bit.ly/cfDcH4

The Results Are In: 500 Entries Received for the Expat Youth Scholarship! Clements International thanks everyone who participated! http://bit.ly/aDmcwc

Click here if you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter. Thanks. Andrea. :-)

Dads Get Baby Blues

Hi Everyone, I read with interest a story in my local paper (New Sunday Times, Malaysia) last weekend that referred to a recent study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association. 

The JAMA article was entitled Prenatal and Postpartum Depression in Fathers and Its Association With Maternal Depression and was the result of a a very extensive survey of depression in fathers, from January 1980 to October 2009.  It was made up of a total of 43 studies involving 28 004 participants. 

The research concluded that:
"Prenatal and postpartum depression was evident in about 10% of men in the reviewed studies and was relatively higher in the 3- to 6-month postpartum period. Paternal depression also showed a moderate positive correlation with maternal depression."

Very, very interesting.  Andrea

Have You Ever Worked Abroad? Would You Like 3 Free Coaching Sessions & A Free Book?

Hi Everyone, Elizabeth Kruempelmann of Global Citizen Coaching is updating the work abroad section of her 2004 book The Global Citizen: A Guide to Creating an International Life and Career (affiliate link) and she is looking for your story of working abroad.

If you have ever worked abroad (as an employee or as a freelancer), or if you have ever taken part in a work-exchange program, internship or volunteer program abroad, Elizabeth would love to hear from you (about what obstacles you faced, how you overcame them and what tips you could offer others). 

Elizabeth says your story does not need to be long: 50 - 300 words is great.  She is just looking for words of wisdom for others who aspire to work abroad.

In return, for each story included in her updated book, Elizabeth is willing to offer three free coaching sessions (on the subject of your choice) plus a copy of her updated book!  That's pretty impressive as an incentive for writing only 50 - 300 words - so get your thinking caps on and give it a go!
 
Deadline for submissions to Elizabeth is next Monday, 24 May.  The stories selected for inclusion will be announced by Elizabeth (to her network) on 31 May.

Thanks and good luck!  Andrea

Clements International Expat Youth Scholarships Update

Hi Everyone, Thank you very much to all those students who submitted an entry this year to Clements International's Expat Youth Scholarship.

Over 500 entries were received and the winners will be announced on September 13.  In the meantime, you are invited to sign up for updates and information on the Expat Youth Scholarship Facebook and Twitter pages.

Good luck to all who applied!  Andrea

Bought A House Abroad In The Last 3 Years?

Hi Everyone, House Hunters International is still traveling all over the globe to find families for their reality show for the HGTV network (similar to the BBC's "A Place In The Sun"). 

If you bought a home abroad within the past three years, or you are a real estate agency who sold one to a family that is fluent in English and between 30 - 50 years of age, please email Tekella Foster from Leopard Films urgently.  Thanks.

Note: If your family is included in the series, a US$1500 out-of-pocket expenses is applicable.  If you are a real estate agency, a US$500 honorarium applies.

Expat Women May 2010 Newsletter

Hi Everyone, My apologies, I forgot to blog that we sent our Expat Women newsletter in the first week of May (not as bad as forgetting to collect your 75-year-old mother from the grocery store, which happened last week to my friend Anna), so if you were a member then but did not receive your newsletter, please tell us here.

May Newsletter

In addition to our May Expat Women home page features, our newsletter included:

* The name of the winner (Katherine C in China - congratulations Katherine!) of our Amazon Kindle Tell-A-Friend competition.  A big thank you to everyone who supported us by telling their friends about us for that competition!

* The name of our Explorer Publishing mini-guide pack winner;

* Our winning story by Expat Women member Jeanie (a New Zealander in China), entitled Where's My Dessert and Coffee?; and

* A useful article from our Silver Sponsor Clements International..... 10 Things You Need To Know About International Auto Insurance.

If you are not a member of our main site, ExpatWomen.com, please join today to support us (and receive a link to download our free Expat Women e-book "Winning Stories"). This will also mean that next month your newsletter will be delivered directly to your inbox.

Thanks Everyone!  Andrea

Expat Dreams Gone Sour

Hi Everyone, Here is a well-written piece in the UK's Mail Online today about three expat marriages that went sour due to cultural adjustment difficulties, financial woes and the associated relationship stress of moving abroad. (Note This is not an article about infidelity abroad.)

Please click here on the article if you are interested (or if you know someone who might be):

The Expat Dream Killed Our Marriages: Don't Pack Your Bags And Sell Up Until You've Read These Three Salutary Stories

Sending good thoughts and best wishes to Maria-Louse, Sharon and Carol - three British expat women now living alone in France.  Andrea

Writers, Authors & Self-Publishers Be Quick! Online Conference May 12-14

Hi Everyone, I just discovered what looks like a really great online conference, if you are a writer, author and/or a current or wannabe self-publisher... 

It is the Self-Publishers Online Conference and it is being run May 12-14 (US Pacific time).  You can listen 'live' for free, or you can pay US$97 for the downloads (if you have a credit card from one of these countries: United States; Australia; Canada; England/Great Britain; Ireland; New Zealand; or Northern Ireland) as I just did, so you can listen later at your convenience.

But hurry... it is almost May 12, so if this conference sounds like you, check it out quickly.  Best wishes, Andrea.

SUMMARY OF THE AGENDA

Day 1 - May 12 - Writing/Publishing

Keynote: Dan Poynter
Self-Publishing Past, Present, and Future

Marcia Yudkin
Writing Without Angst

Writing & Publishing Roundtable: Q & A

Susan Daffron & James Byrd
Finish Your Book the "Publishize" Way

Mark Levine
How to Avoid Publishing Pitfalls

Hobie Hobart
From Book Cover to Blockbuster Brand: How Choosing the Right Book Cover Can Launch Your Business


Day 2 - May 13 - Promotion

Keynote: Fern Reiss
How Self-Publishers Can Thrive in Today's Publishing Climate

MJ Rose
Buzz Your Book

Promotion Roundtable: Q & A

John Kremer
Book Promotion 101: The Secrets to Book Marketing Success

Kate Bandos
DIY Book Promotion

Internet Publicity: How to Leverage Social Media for Profit


Day 3 - May 14 - Build Your Empire

Keynote: Mark Victor Hansen
How to Become a Wealthy Writer

Peter Bowerman
Build Your Own "Well Fed" Empire

Empire Building Roundtable: Q & A

William Patterson
How to Turn Your Product Line into a Fortune

Janet Goldstein
The Platform Manifesto for Authorpreneurs: Grow Your Visibility and Tribe to Grow Your Sales, Success, and Satisfaction

Peter Winick
Develop and Execute a Strategy to Monetize Your Platform

The £6m Ad That's Got Britain Talking - And Sobbing

Hi Everyone, Here for your pleasure is one of those occasion videos that we give a shout-out to... because we loved it. 

It is only 90 seconds, I know it is only an advert and I did not even know who/what/where John Lewis was until after I watched it and clicked on the John Lewis site... but I found my eyes watering too!  Really well-done 90-second chronicle of the life of a woman. :-)

Read the press page first here then watch the YouTube video below (if you are reading this online) or via the press page link (if you are reading this via an email or RSS feed).

Enjoy and have a great week!  Andrea

New Mobility Magazine Edition Online

Hi Everyone, It has been quite a while since we have given a shout-out to Worldwide ERC®'s Mobility Magazine - designed for professionals (or even those just curious) in the expat, global mobility and relocation industries. 

However, their latest edition is now online, so now is a perfect time to click on some of their great articles below and take a read...

Culture and Communication 101
By Sean Dubberke

Crossroads in the Moving and Storage Industry
By Eric Reed, CRP, GMS

Risk Management for Our Times
By Patrick Moore

Security Impact on the Employee Mobility Industry
By Laura May Carmack

Navigating the Comparable Minefield
By Joseph Palumbo, SRA, and Alvin “Chip” Wagner III, SCRP, SRA

The First Steps in Educating Potential Transferees
By Pamela S. Dunleavy, CRP, and Stefanie R. Schreck, CRP, GMS

Regional Real Estate— Planning for the Year Ahead
By Mike Puckett, CRP, and Renee Carnes-Rook, CRP

How to Maintain Healthy Sleep Patterns: Issues of Civil Liability in Immigration Matters
By Ben Kranc

Managed Care Versus Agent Database: What Works in Relocation?
By Pam O’Connor, SCRP, and Sue Carey, SCRP, GMS

Benchmarking Relocation Policies: The Results Are in—Now What?
By Janet Olkowski, SCRP, GMS

Standing the Test of Time? Protecting REO and Short Sale Investments
By Lindsay Filby

Subpart A and SEVIS II: Will Your J-1 Program Sponsor Be Ready?
By Darra Klein

The Decade in Review: How Technology Has Improved the Mobility Process
By Matthew Dickerson, CRP

Technology and Global Mobility: The Future Is Today
By Michael S. Cadden, GMS

Repatriation— a Stranger at Home
By Rashel Meiworm

Safeguarding the Most Precious of Possessions During a Move: One’s Identity
By Glenn Maykish

Happy reading!  Andrea

Be A Reinvention Queen! In The New Fearless Woman Magazine

Hi Everyone, If you are an expat woman who has lost her career identity abroad and who is looking for ideas and encouragement for the next stage of her career, I invite you to read my guest blog post Be A Reinvention Queen! in the new Fearless Woman Magazine. 

Adrienne Graham, the founder of this new, free, online magazine (available soon for hard-copy-subscribers as well) is an amazing visionary and while you are on her site, I also encourage you to sign up to her magazine - as I am sure it will be great!

Thanks as always for your support, Andrea.

Twitter Updates For Social Media

Hi Everyone, Here are 8 recent 'social media' tweets I have made that might interest you, especially if you are an expat entrepreneur, or anyone helping their company's online strategy...

Facebook Now Commands 41% of Social Media Traffic- http://bit.ly/92J1aw @mashable

Here's what Chris Brogan told ABC news about making money via blogging - http://bit.ly/cW5EmQ @chrisbrogan

Mark Cuban's "Why You Should Never Listen To Your Customers" http://bit.ly/bx1WyD ...interesting Thanks @RachelleGardner's blog

2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report http://bit.ly/SMMIR by @mike_stelzner 1,900 peers surveyed

Very interesting slide about Kavit's 'Blog versus Website' positioning recommendation for all of your social media tools http://bit.ly/dkxT8B

Looking for work? Read Little Pink Book's Social Media Job Hunt article http://dlvra.me/s/3ellT

Mashable’s Weekly Job Listings in Social Media - http://bit.ly/b8ORJw @mashable

Please click here if you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter. 

Many thanks and have a fabulous week!  Andrea

Expat Women May 2010 Home Page

Hi Everyone, We have just uploaded our Expat Women May 2010 home page. Please take a look, share it with your friends and tweet about it for us. Thank you!

Success Story
Lynda Armstrong OBE FEI
Technical VP, Shell International
Lynda Armstrong OBE FEI, awarded an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2003, has worked for Shell for more than 35 years in a variety of assignments around the world. Lynda’s current position is Technical Vice President with Shell International, based in the Netherlands...
Read more…

Business Idea
Masha Malka
Success Coaching
Masha Malka is a former Soviet refugee who has gone from living life with little clarity and focus to becoming a successful entrepreneur, best-selling author, international speaker and a mentor to many. She is a resident coach for the national radio station Talk Radio Europe in Spain and has done over 200 radio interviews...
Read more…

Motivational
Embracing the Pain and Power of Change
Nona Jordan
Living overseas can be a constant barrage of new and exciting experiences. However, even the most savvy and confident of women can get thrown off balance during the unexpected changes that life throws their way, resulting in painful body aches and/or emotions...
Read more…

Expat Confession
My Kids Are My All
Expat Women Girlfriend
I am a lawyer who gave up my own very successful practice to move abroad with my husband over 14 years ago. My husband travels extensively for work and I am worried that I am too attached to my children... my days revolve around my kids entirely and I willingly turn down social functions...
Read more…

Starting A Business
Got A Million Dollar Dream?
Learn From Tamara Monosoff
Former expat Tamara Monosoff is a mother and businesswoman who knows all about making dreams come true. Tamara made her own dreams come true when she invented and successfully sold her product in thousands of stores nationwide. She has also made the dreams of thousands of other mothers come true...
Read more…

Worldwide ERC® Event 
Insights From Asia Pacific Conference
Andrea Martins
Have you ever made a last-minute decision to attend a conference and then found yourself having such a wonderful time you wondered why you had never attended before? Well, that happened to me recently at the Worldwide ERC® conference in Hong Kong...
Read more…

Not A Member Yet?
Just a reminder that our blog is separate from our main site, so if you are reading this blog post online or you are only subscribed to our blog, you will not automatically receive our Expat Women monthly newsletters. To receive our newsletter this month (which will hopefully be sent next week) and to go in the running to win our monthly prize of a complete set of Explorer Publishing's Mini-Guides, please sign up today to our main site ExpatWomen.com, and also receive your link to our free e-book of Winning Stories!

Amazon Kindle Competition
We will be closing this competition today, 5pm NY time.  The winner be announced on this blog next week.

Thank you very much and have a fabulous May!  Andrea

Twitter Updates For Relocation & Conferences: What Have You Missed?

Hi Everyone, If you are interested in conference and/or relocation industry updates, here are some of my recent tweets (nearly all are not already on this blog) that might interest you:

Latest Cartus survey reveals new global relocation trends http://bit.ly/cr6c5v

WITI's Women and Technology Summit, San Jose, CA, 12-14 Sept 2010 http://bit.ly/clxECs

Brookfields' annual Global #Relocation Trends Survey released http://bit.ly/9YKJNL

Top 10 Global #Immigration Mistakes and How Companies Can Avoid Them - Free Webinar http://bit.ly/d6EeDU

43rd Atlas® Corporate Relocation Survey results: Less people willing to relocate. More short-termers http://bit.ly/bMDzqK @Atlas_Van_Lines

Forum for Expatriate Management holding Global Mobility Summit & Awards Dinner, New York, 4 Oct 2010 www.bit.ly/c0xcT7

Forum for Expatriate Management holding Global Mobility Summit & Awards Dinner, London, 15 Nov 2010 http://bit.ly/92ypX2

The sold-out EuRA Conference in Palma this week has been postponed until April due to ash havoc http://bit.ly/aW7w8x

Some of the speakers lined up for the first Fearless #Woman Summit in Atlanta, June 16-17 http://bit.ly/aeupgX

School Choice appoints Global Mobility expert Timothy Dwyer as new COO http://bit.ly/crhoj9 Read our i/v with CEO Liz http://bit.ly/aeaHPX

Did you go to the FIGT Conference in March? If yes, you might yourself in @crossingculture 's photos http://bit.ly/ch0cmZ

Mark your calendar: Next FIGT conference: Mar 17-19, 2011, Washington, DC. Subscribe for updates http://www.figt.org RT @crossingculture

Effective Parenting Conference Dubai 24 April Our friend Becky Grappo speaking: 'How To Get Kids To Think About T'row' http://bit.ly/ab8AfH

PwC's 'Talent mobility 2020: The Next Generation of International Assignments' expects 50% more expats http://bit.ly/aBDZEY RT @expatsguide

Info evening Paris (18 May) http://bit.ly/bB8MHh about Women's International Networking (W.I.N.) conference (6-9 Oct) Paris

Please click here if you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter.  Thanks.  Andrea. :-)

Expat Women: Do You Have A Story To Share?

Hi Everyone, Do you have an expat story to share about an experience you have had abroad?  If so, we would l-o-v-e to hear from you, because every month we select a winning story to showcase in our monthly newsletter and we are always in need of great stories!  See our Read The Stories section here. Submit your story here.  Thank you!  Andrea

Twitter Updates For Writers: What Have You Missed?

Hi Everyone, If you are interested in 'all things writing' but you are not following me on Twitter, here are some writers' tidbits (not mentioned already in this blog) that I have tweeted recently, that you might enjoy...

Are you a mother and a writer? 6 writing opportunities for you http://bit.ly/cAE7jN Thanks to @HOHWWriter

12 steps to your Amazon bestseller - Tips from Stephanie Hale on @JoParfitt's blog http://bit.ly/cVdb4U

Opportunity for writers age 18-34 to be a Glimpse Correspondent for National Geographic http://bit.ly/aaDjiH via @WriterAbroad

London Book Fair went ahead, but attendance down 20%, numerous exhibitor stands empty & Tony Blair event cancelled http://bit.ly/csxF5e

Book Expo America (BEA) coming up next month! May 25 - 27 New York Headlined by Barbra Streisand http://bit.ly/a155b4

2010 Expat & Work Abroad Writing Contest Winners http://bit.ly/bMuwM6 Special congrats: Expat Women member Wendy Hollands (runner-up)!

Want to sell your books? Best 5 tips from book promo seminar in London last weekend thanks to @JoParfitt http://bit.ly/aozFzh (scroll down)

Writing and/or just about to publish a book? Read Anna M.Clark's experience on literary agent blog @rachellegardner http://bit.ly/cMH6hu

Excellent interview with expat author of Career In Your Suitcase @joparfitt about publishing and marketing your books http://bit.ly/bRuBl

Huffington Post List of 50 best book people on Twitter! RT @Thandelike @riverheadbooks http://ow.ly/1wvmV

Writers’ workshops around the world http://bit.ly/ddBcyp RT @Thandelike

How to judge, and sell, a book by its cover http://bit.ly/8YAGGA RT @JoParfitt

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, please click here. Thanks, Andrea.

Got A Million Dollar Dream?

Hi Everyone, Next week we are featuring on our Expat Women May home page an interview with Mom Invented®'s Tamara Monosoff about her new book, Your Million Dollar Dream (affiliate link). 

Interestingly, I have been a fan of Tamara's ever since I went through my 'inventing ideas' stage several years ago.  About a month ago, I came across her name again online and started following her on Twitter.  She followed me back and sent a direct message with some great feedback about ExpatWomen.com and told me that she used to be an expat in Hong Kong.  Then a couple of weeks later when she talked about her upcoming book on Twitter, I asked for a review copy and whallah (!)... Tamara sent me the only PDF copy she has sent to anyone... and it was at that moment that I was thinking that Twitter really was a powerful connecting medium. :-)

Tamara's New Book

In short, Tamara's Your Million Dollar Dream is an excellent book for any new business person.  It talks about finding the 'right' business for you.  It talks about matching your personality with your business.  It covers (US-focused, but useful for any country) funding/financing.  And it spends a few chapters on email marketing, blogs, social media and social networking (aimed at business owners just starting to explore these marketing channels, rather than the already-savvy social media mavens).  It has some wonderful success stories scattered throughout as examples.  Plus, it includes some fabulous motivational quotes (which are now hanging on my wall).

Why Tell You Now?

We are sharing a little of our May feature early because we want to help Tamara to get on the Amazon bestseller list on April 28...

If you are interested in buying her new book, please think about buying it on April 28 US time rather than sometime next month, because April 28 is the day she is celebrating her book launch by giving way lots of bonus extras for anyone who buys the book from Amazon.com, as well as being the day she is trying to get on the Amazon bestseller list.

Many thanks!  Andrea

Tamara's Bio

"Tamara Monosoff is an American mother and businesswoman who knows all about making dreams come true. Tamara made her own dreams come true when she invented and successfully sold her award-winning TP Saver® product in thousands of stores nationwide. She has also made the dreams of thousands of other mothers come true through her company Mom Invented® and her best-selling books The Mom Inventors Handbook: How To Turn Your Great Idea into the Next Big Thing; Secrets of Millionaire Moms: Learn How They Turned Great Ideas into Booming Businesses; and The One Page Business Plan for Women in Business (co-authored with Jim Horan).

Since May 2004, Tamara and her products have been featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today, The New Yorker, Time, People, US News & World Report, Oprah and Fortune Small Business magazines. Tamara has appeared on ABC’s The View, NBC’s Today Show, NBC’s Nightly News, ABC’s Good Morning America Weekend, The Bloomberg Report, BusinessWeek TV, CNN News live, CNNfn, CNNSaturday, CNNMoney, CNBC’s The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, CNBC’s The Wall Street Journal Report, AOL, ABC News Now, The WB Network, Inside Edition as well as over 100 local TV media outlets across America.

Prior to founding Mom Invented®, Tamara worked in Washington D.C. in the Clinton Administration where she served as Senior Communications Associate for the President's Initiative on Race at the White House, Education Director for the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships, and Chief of Staff for the Office of Vocational and Adult Education at the U.S. Department of Education. She also worked as an expat in Hong Kong."

Tamara has received several business awards and is a frequent speaker on Entrepreneurship and Women and Leadership. She has a Masters (MA) and Doctorate Degree (Ed.D.) from the University of San Francisco, and a B.A. from the University of California at Santa Barbara."  ExpatWomen.com

Stay tuned for Tamara's interview on our May home page and in our May newsletter.  (Please sign up here for our newsletters if you are not already a member of our main Expat Women site.  Thanks.)

Expat Parents - Does Your Child Have A Relocation Adjustment Story?

Hi Everyone, One of my favourite Expat Women business entrepreneur interviewees, Rev. Macarena Rose (read her interview with us here) is looking for expat parents to share their child's adjustment stories please, for a book that she is writing...

"Are you willing to share your child's story about what it was like to move abroad?  Did your child have a funny story about how they acclimated to their new home? Was it a tough adjustment?  What was 'new' to them? If yes, I would love to hear from you here.  Many, many thanks!  Macarena"

Hurry... Amazon Kindle Competition Ending

Hi Everyone, Just one final blog reminder that our Amazon Kindle competition (win one for you and one for your friend!) closes April 30.  If you have not told all your expat women friends to join, please do so today.  Thanks for your support!  Andrea

W.I.N. Conference in Paris This October

Hi Everyone, It is very exciting that the 2010 W.I.N. (Women's International Networking) conference will be in Paris, France!

If you have not been to a W.I.N. conference, I can personally attest that they are warm, friendly, open, inviting and full of great networking opportunities with wonderful women from all different countries... although that said, more women based in Europe seem to attend than women based elsewhere, but that is a natural consequence of the conferences always being held in Europe... and as the Seinfeld saying goes... "not that there's anything wrong with that!" :-)

If you are looking for inspiration, I encourage you to consider going this year to W.I.N. in Paris, October 6 - 8 (9).

Registration opens May 1st.

If you are looking to inspire, hurry and submit your proposal to speak at the conference! They typically involve 120 - 150 speakers, workshop leaders and coaches - again testimony to their 'open' philosophy, which I applaud them for. Deadline for speaking proposals is 10 May. Speakers will not be paid, but will only need to pay the discounted price of 795 Euros to attend the conference. To see who spoke last year, just click here.


W.I.N. Conference: Realizing Visions, with Clarity, Enthusiasm and Care

"The W.I.N. 2010 global leadership conference is the 13th in a series of visionary leadership events that inspire thousands of women, enhance their careers and improve business practices. Be a part of it:

Learn- from world-class speakers about current trends, politics, humanity, and work-life balance

Discover- the importance of giving and receiving support to realize your vision

Be Inspired- by stories from successful professional women working around the world

Gain- new personal and professional skills through our 40 outstanding workshops

Create- Business connections and alliances within a dynamic international network

During the three-day interactive forum, we will explore the authentic journey and the importance of how you do all you do as a way towards realizing your vision. As we discover clarity, truth, beauty and how your enthusiasm can help mobilize others. Panel sessions and workshops are complemented by social and professional networking events and free one-on-one coaching sessions."


Super Spring Offer
Save over 200 Euros off regular registration prices from May 1 -10:
Standard Ticket 1000 Euros (Applies to all professional participants (entrepreneurs, consultants, corporations etc).
Subsidized ticket 700 Euros (For women in transition, students, pensioners, NGO members, individuals.)
*No additional discounts apply

Normal Early Bird Discount
11 May – 31 June
Standard Ticket 1295 Euros
Subsidized Ticket 995 Euros
*Ask for a 100 Euro Expat Women discount

Full Rates
1 July – 20 September
Standard Ticket 1595 Euros
Subsidized Ticket 1095 Euros
*Ask for a 100 Euro Expat Women discount

For more details, please click here.

Have fun everyone who goes! Andrea

'I Am Not A Tourist' 2010 Expat Fairs in Madrid, Brussels and Amsterdam

Hi Everyone, If you are an expat (or soon-to-be-expat) in Spain, Belgium or the Netherlands, I encourage you to check out Expatica's 'I Am Not A Tourist' Fairs coming up this year...

The first will be in Brussels, Belgium, on Sunday 6 June at the Espace53 (Autoworld). Free tickets here.

Next, they are running their very first Madrid-based Fair on Saturday 12 June at the Hilton Madrid Airport Hotel. Free tickets here.

Then on Sunday 10 October, they will run their 7th annual 'I Am Not A Tourist' Fair in Amsterdam in the Netherlands, at the Beurs van Berlage. (I went last year and it was lots of fun!) Free tickets will be available in a month or so.

Last but not least, they are running a second Fair in Brussels, Belgium, same venue as in June, on Sunday 17 October. Free tickets.

Expatica, who now cover eight countries (the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, France, the UK, Germany, Switzerland and Luxembourg) on their website - with a ninth on the way soon - know a lot about what it is like to be an expat, so if you are in (or moving to) any of their Fair locations, mark your diaries and go along to see what they have gathered for you!

Looking For Expat Women Entrepreneurs Whose Businesses Turn Over US$1 Million

Hello Everyone, We are on the hunt for more expat women entrepreneurs whose businesses turn over US$1 million or more, to interview in our Success Stories section,

If you can think of anyone who meets the criteria, please drop us a line and point us in the right direction. I am sure there are lots more successful expat women out there and we would love to profile them!

Many thanks in advance for your help, Andrea.

3 Tips for Expat Freelance Work

Hi Everyone, Earlier today I spent a few hours looking for service providers on Elance (a site that I have used successfully in the past) - a highly-reputable site for posting jobs and searching for service providers.

Given how many emails cross my desk and/or how many blogs that come our way that are written by expat women who are freelance writers, freelance designers, freelance photographers, freelance everything, I thought I would start my search today by reviewing the profiles of expats listed.

To my absolute shock, of the 107,640 people listed on Elance as freelancers looking for work, only 84 came up in the search results for the term "expat" and only 73 for the term "expatriate" - and in both cases, many of the people showing in the results were not even expats! (I am thinking that the results grab anyone's record that has the term "expat" or "expatriate" in it, even if the term is listed in their previous work projects completed or similar).

Now, I find this mind-boggling because I am going to bet two things: first, that there are a lot more expats than this who have registered on Elance because they are looking for work; and of the 'invisible' expats looking for work on Elance, a high proportion of them would be very interested in doing work for expat-related sites. Agree?

Tip 1: If you are looking for expat freelance work, take five minutes to go now and update your profile on any freelance site on which you are registered as looking for work. Otherwise, how can expat sites or relocation-related companies find you and learn about your expat/relocation-related experience and expertise?

Tip 2: While you are updating your profile, think not just about what work you have done in the past, think carefully about what work you would like to be 'found' for and make sure these keywords are on your profile as well.

Tip 3: Here are some great links that I dug up on our site that might interest/inspire you as an expat freelancer:

Article: Working Virtually: A Great Way to Earn Additional Income, written for us last year by Jean Stone on behalf of Jobs Online

Interview with Michelle Goodman last year: Author of My So-Called Freelance Life: How To Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire

Some Freelance-Related Links: On our Jobs & Careers page

Here's wishing you success on your freelance job hunt! Andrea

EuRA Conference This Week Postponed

Hi Everyone, After tweeting last week a congratulatory note to EuRA that their conference scheduled for this week in Palma de Mallorca was sold out, I felt really bad for all involved today when they announced that their conference has been postponed now to April 2011 (in Palma), due to the ash havoc disrupting so many flights to/from/within Europe. Our thoughts go out to EuRA and to everyone planning to attend.

To compensate a little, here's a shout-out for EuRA:
"European Relocation Association (EuRA) is an industry body for Relocation Professionals in both Europe and Worldwide. EuRA launched in Brussels in May 1998 in response to the increasing demand for an industry body. The launch was the result of a year of international co-operation. To date EuRA has over 236 members worldwide."

Expat Women April 2010 Newsletter

Hi Everyone, We sent our Expat Women members' newsletter out last week, so if you are a member but did not receive our newsletter, please write to us here.

April Newsletter

In addition to our April Expat Women home page features, our newsletter included:

* The name of our Explorer Publishing mini-guide pack winner;

* Our winning story by Expat Women member Leah (an American in Croatia), entitled Studio-less in Zagreb; and

* Healing Hearts, a wonderful excerpt (thanks to Skyhorse Publishing) from Emily Liebert's new book, Facebook Fairytales.

If you are not a member of our main site, ExpatWomen.com, please join today to support us (and receive a link to download our free Expat Women e-book "Winning Stories"). This will also mean that next month your newsletter will be delivered directly to your inbox.

Thanks and have a fabulous day/evening! Andrea

Just Released: Brookfields' Annual Global Relocation Trends Survey (2010)

Hi Everyone, Hot off the press is today's publication of the annual Brookfield Global Relocation Services' (formerly GMAC Global Relocation Services') 2010 Global Relocation Trends Survey Report, which surveyed 120 multinational firms (which manage a combined worldwide employee population of 5.8 million). Key findings:

46% of multinational companies reported a decrease in the number of international assignments last year (the highest rate in the 15-year history of the survey);

Only 17% of international assignees were women (the lowest percentage in nearly a decade);

Only 47% of international assignees had families with children (an all-time low);

A mere 8% of expatriates were new hires (the lowest in the survey’s 15-year history); and

Interestingly, 35% of companies said they provide media-based or Web-based training, as alternatives to face-to-face cross-cultural training (an all-time high).

Are expatriate partners working abroad? Only 9% percent of expatriate partners were employed both before and during assignments (another all-time low, as the historical average is 14%).

What about 'the family'? Still, the most commonly cited reason for candidates turning down assignments were family concerns, partner’s career, and employee career aspirations. Family concerns also topped the list of reasons for early return from an assignment.

What did they find out about expatriate versus non-expatriate employees? Expatriates received promotions more quickly (33%), but expatriates also changed employers more often (28%).

Where are most people being sent? The United States, China, then the United Kingdom.

Where is it the most challenging? Again, China, India and Russia, for expatriates. India (replacing China this year), for corporate international assignment policy and program managers.

Where do assignments fail the most? China, India and then (yes, this is not a typo) the United States.

What happens to repatriates? "Increasingly, expatriates are leaving companies during the first year after repatriation – 38 percent this year compared to 35 percent in 2009 (the 15-year historical average is 22 percent). This is due to the fact that employees were unable to find jobs at these companies upon their return due to the weak economy and some cases were laid-off."

This report is always an excellent compilation of mobility industry trends. If you work in the mobility industry and you do not already receive a full copy of this annual report, you can request one here.

To register for Brookfield's free webinar presenting their findings of the survey on Tuesday 20 April, please click here. Thanks. Andrea.

Upcoming Worldwide ERC® Events

Hi Everyone, If you work in the mobility field, you might be interested in some of the upcoming Worldwide ERC® Events on offer...

Global Mobility Specialist (GMS™) Training
May 17-19, 2010
Orlando, Florida

National Relocation Conference
May 19-21, 2010
Orlando, Florida

Global Mobility Specialist (GMS™) Training
June 7-9, 2010
Frankfurt, Germany

Global Workforce Summit: Focus on Europe, Middle East & Africa
June 10-11, 2010
Frankfurt, Germany

Global Mobility Specialist (GMS™) Training
October 25-27, 2010
Seattle, Washington

National Relocation Conference
May 18-20, 2011
Las Vegas, Nevada

Global Workforce Symposium
October 12-14, 2011
Denver, Colorado

For more details, please visit the Worldwide ERC® website. Thanks.

7 Habits Of A Happy Expat

Hi Everyone, Margarita Gokun Silver has contributed a new article to our site that might interest you, or someone you know, entitled 7 Habits of a Happy Expat.

Margarita is the Founder of the Global Coach Center, a coaching firm that specializes in Cross-Cultural Coaching and Training for expatriates, multinational managers, global leaders, and those involved in multicultural relationships, either at work or at home. She runs the Ask A Cross-Cultural And Expatriate Coach LinkedIn group and is a regular contributor to a variety of other expat groups and sites.

If you would like to contribute an article to Expat Women, ideally of 1000 words or more, I invite you to please review what we already have on our main site, then to send your great ideas here. Thanks. Andrea.

Great Interview With CRAVE's Melody Biringer

Hi Everyone, I wanted to share with you this great Seattle Woman Magazine interview with the highly personable Melody Biringer, who I had the pleasure of meeting last October when we were both visiting Amsterdam.

Melody started The CRAVE Company, whose catchphrase is "An Urban Girl's Guide To All That You Crave", back in 2001, releasing the first CRAVEguide in Seattle in 2002.

She now has fifteen CRAVEguides on her site, including two for Canada and one for The Netherlands. She runs CRAVEparties and CRAVEbusiness - and knowing Melody, she probably runs a lot more.

Melody is not an expat woman but she is an inspiring one. Read right to the bottom of her interview and you will see her most important entrepreneurial lessons - learned from starting over 20 businesses.

Go Melody!

Interdean's PanEuropean Mobility Challenges Report 2010

Hi Everyone, Relocation company Interdean recently published their commissioned PanEuropean Mobility Challenges Report in which the following five themes emerged from the 137 surveyed companies (operating international relocation programmes out of Europe):

1. Cost control is king;
2. Keeping up to date with tax compliance is a priority;
3. Talent management is of most importance to large relocators;
4. Repatriation management is critical in Scandanavia; and
5. KPIs are still key to relocation programmes.

The 36-page report also provides individual results for: the UK; France; Germany; Switzerland; Benelux; Iberia; Scandanavia; and Central Europe. It also compares large versus small relocators.

To read the full report, please click here. Thanks.

Twitter Updates: What Have You Missed?

Hi Everyone, Here are some of the tidbits (not mentioned in this blog) that I have tweeted about recently, that might be of interest:

Fabulous list of Social Media events coming up! (Multiple countries) Thanks @mashable http://bit.ly/a1vgrT

Gilman Scholarships deadline 6 April! For US undergrad students planning to study abroad http://ow.ly/1uKlU
RT @goinglobal @ConnectStateGov

The 14th annual WebAwards are now open. Awards given in 96 industry categories. Entries close May 25.
http://www.webaward.org/

Hats off to @talentdiva for switching directions at 40. Already her radio show has 5000 listeners and her mag due soon!
http://bit.ly/dCNaDM

1 in 10 British pensioners are #expats? Maybe more?
http://bit.ly/c6fDzo

Travelling in the U.S.? Find wireless options for U.S. airports
http://ow.ly/1uOPA
RT @goinglobal

Loved this cartoon about Twitter on Social Media Examiner
http://bit.ly/9kqT8v

10 Social Media Metrics Your Company Should Monitor
http://bit.ly/aQU6Id
via @addthis

If you would like to follow me in 'real time' on Twitter, please click here. Thanks, Andrea.

Expat Expert Blog: Would You Like To Contribute?

Hi Everyone, An update on our friend and a mentor to many expatriate families, Robin Pascoe, who was recently honoured with Jo Parfitt as a "Trailblazer" at the March FIGT Conference.

Robin has given closure to her piano blog this week, having figured out now the next step in her career/life (...stay tuned...) and she has also put a call out for guest contributors to her Expat Expert blog.

If you are interested, here are Robin's guidelines:

"1. ExpatExpert.com is devoted to the needs of the expat family and in particular the accompanying partner and children. Your content must have some semblence of a family component to it, OK?

2. Postings should be no longer than 500 words tops, shorter would be even better.

3. It's perfectly all right to re-blog (is that like re-gift, or re-tweet?) something you have already written on your own blog...

4.....and absolutely give me the URL of your own blog, website, Facebook fan page, whatever. I am here to promote you as well as your writing so I need all the relevant info in order to do that. If there is a picture, even better! I think even I can manage to upload a photo.

5. It would be super (but not necessary) to conclude your posting with a provocative question or just simple question that might inspire some discussion. I'd like to encourage readers to 'talk amongst themselves.'

6. How-to-do-this: Go to my contact page and write to me about your idea for a submission. Together, we will take it from there."

Robin's site and blog are very well-read and respected in the expat/mobility field. So, if you have something valuable to contribute, you might benefit from some nice exposure. :-)

Survey About Cultural Adaptation: Can You Help Jessie?

Hi Everyone, Jessie Wilson is looking for survey respondents please to her survey about how individuals adapt to living in new cultural environments. If you can help, either click the survey link, email Jessie or email her research supervisor, Professor Colleen Ward.

Many thanks, on behalf of Jessie Wilson, PhD Candidate, Centre for Applied Cross-Cultural Research School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington, PO Box 600, Wellington, NZ.

Expat Women April 2010 Home Page

Hi Everyone, We have just uploaded our Expat Women April 2010 home page. Please take a look, share it with your friends and tweet about it for us. Thanks!

Success Story
Beverly Mayhew
Orientations
Beverly Dwiggins Mayhew is the founder of Orientations and distinguished as a pioneer of destination services in Asia Pacific. A long-time devotee to the field of international human resources, Bev’s company has offices in nine Asian Pacific countries...
Read more…

Business Idea
Francesca Chocolate
Cornelia Francesca Maeder
Swiss Master Chocolatier Cornelia Francesca Maeder is a talented expat entrepreneur with a big vision: she wants to create products (chocolate, seminars, books, CDs and more) that positively contribute to the health, success and happiness of everyone touched by her brand..
Read more…

FIGT Report
Families in Global Transition Conference 2010
Rebecca Grappo
Imagine a huge convergence of people who represent families who are in, or understand, global transition. One cannot measure the level of energy nor the buzz of excitement that filled the air of the conference center as old friends reunited and new friendships were made...
Read more…

Facebook
New Book: Facebook Fairytales
Modern-Day Miracles To Inspire The Human Spirit
Emily Liebert
We talk to Emily Liebert about Facebook Fairytales, which presents twenty-five true, heart-warming stories from the world’s most popular social networking site. Emily shares her inspiration, her favorite stories and her impressions of CEO Mark Zuckerberg...
Read more…

Expat Confession
Not Welcome
Expat Women Girlfriend
Help! My husband’s job has taken us to a small, remote, island community in the middle of nowhere. The population is just over 1,000 people and the locals resent and bully the foreign community. They even chased an expat off the island who blogged about her time here...
Read more…

Expat Divorce Settlements
UK Case Study:
Agbaje v Agbaje (2010)
Carol Barraclough
The newly-reported case of Agbaje v Agbaje (2010) UKSC 13 has raised the issue of entitlement for spouses who have dual nationality in divorce proceedings. This is the first time that the Justices of the Supreme Court have...
Read more…

Not A Member Yet?
Just a reminder that our blog is separate from our main site, so if you are reading this blog post online or you are only subscribed to our blog, you will not automatically receive our Expat Women monthly newsletters. To receive our newsletter this month (which will come out around the middle of April) and to go in the running to win our monthly prize of a complete set of Explorer Publishing's Mini-Guides, please sign up today to our main site, ExpatWomen.com, and receive your free e-book of our Winning Stories!

Reminder
Have you told your friends? Our Amazon Kindle Competition (where you and a friend can both win a Kindle) closes on April 30. So please do encourage your friends to join Expat Women today!

Thank you very much and have a sensational April! Andrea

Expat Women: Got Stories To Tell?

Hi Everyone, Just a quick shout-out asking you to please keep submitting your expat women stories. So far, we have more than 250 kind readers who have generously made a submission, but we are always needing more quality stories for this very well-read section of our site. So please, submit your story here. You'd be surprised how your story might just help someone else and/or make their day!

Thanks in advance for your support and best wishes for your weekend, Andrea.

PS. Not sure what we are looking for in a story? Please read our Story Guidelines here. Thanks.

Report from ERC Global Mobility Conference in Hong Kong, March 10-11

Hi Everyone, I made a last-minute decision to attend the Worldwide ERC Conference (last week in Hong Kong. To my surprise, it was a very warm and friendly conference, I knew more people than I had expected, and the networking was wonderful. If you work in the global mobility and/or relocations industry, it’s a great, fun conference to be involved in and I encourage you to consider attending the upcoming conferences this year in Frankfurt, Germany (June) and Seattle, Washington (October).

Conference Sessions

To get an idea about what transpired at the conference, here is a list of the main sessions held:

• The New China (Opening Plenary)
• Managing Talent in the New Economy
• The HR Discipline of Measuring ROI
• The Effect of Global Economics on Workforce Mobility and Mobility Benefits
• Survive and Thrive in the ‘New Normal’ – Policy Trends Update and Interactive Workshop
• Global Mobility Benchmarking Workshop for Corporate HR Professionals
• Global Thought Leaders: Senior Strategists Dialogue
• Solutions Workshop: Alignment of Talent, Mobility, and Business Strategies
• Focus on Assignments in Indonesia
• Mobility Compensation Issues and Practices in Asia
• Understanding Localization and ‘Local Plus’
• India: Trends in Workforce Mobility
• Exploring Commuter and Short-Term Assignments
• The War for Talent in China: Benefits, Challenges
• Schooling Solutions for the Assignee’s Family
• Legal Update: Labor and Immigration Hot Issues
• Turn Obstacles into Opportunities Through Hope and Humor (Closing Plenary)

Insights

I am going to write up a conference report for our Expat Women April or May newsletter. But in the meantime, here are some interesting insights that I heard during the sessions:

• Last year, US$560 billion of residential property sold in China – which was an 80% increase from the year before – and clearly demonstrates the heightened activity in China at the moment

• The wealth of most of the richest residents in China is property-related, versus only 7 out of 100 on the US’s rich list being property-related.

• Martin Leese, HR manager for Citigroup (48,000 employees), commented that he is seeing a decrease in the acceptance rate of job offers – including for graduate jobs (which he noted was a general financial services trend in the United States right now).

• HR issue regarding expatriates: offering incentives that are ‘sustainable’. Various HR managers commented on their push to make expat job offers more consistent and their need to stop throwing incentives to expatriate employees that are not sustainable in the long-term.

• There was a general trend that ‘local plus’ packages (that is, local packages with some, but not all, extra/expat benefits).

• Brendan Ryan, MD Operations for Fragomen Global, said that in his twenty years of working in the field of immigration law and visas, he had never seen such a worldwide trend to both tighten and enforce immigration policies.

• Tax equalisation: Talk of more and more companies providing expat packages that are ‘tax neutral’ – that is, you don’t lose if you move to a higher-tax country with your employer, but you don’t win either (on the tax aspect... this discussion talked about 'other' benefits separately), if you move to a lower-tax country.

It goes without saying that not everyone agreed with everything (me included), but it was interesting to hear HR trends and listen to the perspectives of HR managers, who, it should be remembered, are constantly under pressure to reduce resource expenditure yet improve their company’s bottom line.

If you are not already an Expat Women member, please sign up so you don’t miss my full report in one of our upcoming newsletters. Thanks for your support, Andrea.

Tune Into Blog Talk Radio: Views From The Top: Friday 19 March,9am EST (US)

Hi Everyone, If you have never tuned into Adrienne Graham's great 'Views From The Top' on Blog Talk Radio, this Friday 19 March (9am EST/6am PST, US) is a great time to start. The topic on Friday's show will be adjusting to and thriving to life abroad including managing your career, business, cultural etiquette etc.

All going well, I'll be on the line with Adrienne, and I invite you to listen in and call in as well. The show goes for 90 minutes so the more questions, insight and stories you can share, the better.

PS. Congratulations also to Adrienne for her 'Views From The Top' (which has over 5,000 listeners) being selected this week as one of the Top 100 Heavy Hitter Shows for small business - and one of only eight shows selected from Blog Talk Radio's roster to have made the list! Full list here. Congrats Adrienne! Andrea

Internet Providers: Losing The Race

Yet again, I have been without Internet at home for nearly a week (hence the lack of blog posts, sorry). I have been calling my provider twice a day: keeping a calm voice; raising my voice; trying to be nice; trying to show my anger; trying any (honest) tactic I can to get a technician to come and fix the problem.

I have been at the wireless café nearby 3-4 times a day: sometimes 7am in the morning; sometimes 11pm at night; sometimes inside; sometimes camped outside like a squatter, trying to tap into their wireless network at odd hours. (Thankfully, so far, none of their employees have been diligent enough to turn off their Internet connection upon leaving at night.) The café is getting sick of seeing me and I’m getting sick of buying Iced Lemon Teas whilst pretending that I’m going to leave soon and/or buy some food.

Every time this happens, I think “why, why, why?” Why is it that we are blessed with such brilliant technology, but at any given point in time, there are thousands if not millions of us unable to partake in our global conversations because our Internet providers can’t keep up in the race? If we can keep up - and learn all the zillions of applications that we need to as users, why can’t the Internet service providers keep up?

Come on service providers: Step up, get fitter, boost your stamina, and don’t (make us all) lose the race.

Andrea

FIGT Conference

Hi Everyone, By all accounts, the Families in Global Transition (FIGT) conference last week in Houston was yet another great gathering of wonderful people in the relocation/global mobility industry. Congratulations to Kimberly Van Cleave Michaels, the FIGT Board and to everyone who had a hand in making this year's conference the annual success that it is.

Honorees

At the conference this year, the FIGT Board (and audience) honored two of our all-time favorites in this field for being "trailblazers" in the arena of support for globally mobile families. Congratulations Robin Pascoe and Jo Parfitt. You most certainly deserved to be honored and we thank you for all of your efforts over the years in helping expatriate families adjust, re-adjust and re-invent themselves abroad.

FIGT Article

Our friend Rebecca Grappo is kindly putting an FIGT conference article together for us for our April newsletter. If you have a few great photos to contribute to the article, please email them here.

FIGT 2011

Breaking recent tradition, the FIGT conference next year will be in Washington DC, not Houston. Mark your calendars now.

2011 Speakers

If you are interested in speaking at the 2011 conference, the request for proposals should be announced in April, with a deadline of September 2010. So start thinking of some fabulous, innovative topics and get ready to nominate yourself as a speaker for next year.

See you there in 2011! Andrea

Re:locate Magazine Gala Awards Dinner, May 2010, London

Hi Everyone, If you are in the relocation/global mobility industry and you either will be (or would like to be) in London on May 6, here is the link to book tickets for this year's annual Re:locate Magazine Gala Awards Dinner at the Institute of Directors in London's Pall Mall.

Individual tickets £150 + £26.25 VAT = £176.25.
Table for 10 people (5% discount) £1,425 + £249.38 VAT = £1,674.38.

This year's celebrity guest speaker will be award-winning author, journalist and broadcaster Libby Purves.

"Now presenter of Radio 4's live talk programme Midweek and its specialist education strand, The Learning Curve, Libby was previously the youngest-ever and first woman presenter of its flagship Today programme. Her writing credits include a weekly column for the Times, plus articles for Woman and Home, Yachting Monthly and numerous other newspapers and magazines. She was awarded the OBE in 1999 for services to journalism, and was Columnist of the Year in the same year.

Libby is the author of 12 successful novels, two autobiographies and a series of books on childcare and family life. One Summer's Grace, her account of a sailing journey around mainland Britain with her husband, Paul Heiney, and their children (then aged three and five), has become a classic travel memoir.

The daughter of a travelling diplomat, Libby has first-hand experience of life as an expatriate in several very different cultures, having been educated in Israel, Bangkok, France and Johannesburg before returning to the UK.

Libby is an extremely entertaining and experienced after-dinner speaker and host, and we are thrilled that she has agreed to participate in this year's Re:locate Awards."

Expat Women March 2010 Newsletter

Hi Everyone, We sent our Expat Women members' newsletter out successfully last week. If you are a member but did not receive our newsletter, please write to us here. If you are not a member of our main site, ExpatWomen.com, please join today to support us, receive your free e-book "Winning Stories" and to ensure you get our April newsletter delivered directly to your inbox. Thanks!

March Newsletter

In addition to our March Expat Women home page features, our March newsletter includes:

• The name of our Explorer Publishing mini-guide pack winner;
• Our winning story by Expat Women member Amanda (a Brit in Spain), entitled How I Learned Spanish;
• Sleep and Your Child - a new article by Deirdre Budd, a UK expat in The Netherlands; and
• Greenback Tax Services' advert for US expat tax preparation - for those of you looking for a helping hand in filing your US taxes.

Click here to read our March Newsletter online and have a great day/evening, Andrea.

Remember: Want to Win an Amazon Kindle for You and a Friend? This month we launched our 'Tell A Friend' competition. Please tell as many friends as you can to join ExpatWomen.com and at the end of April we will randomly select one new member who was referred by a friend and both they and the person who referred them will win a brand new Amazon Kindle. Thank you!

International Women's Days 2010 & 2011

Hi Everyone, International Women's Day (IWD) was celebrated across the globe today (or yesterday, depending on your time zone and depending on when you read this). Hopefully you, your friends, your associations and workplaces did something to make the day special. :-)

Believe it or not, planning has already started for next year, the centenary year (1911-2011) for IWD - to honour 100 years of International Women's Day. (Whilst the first IWD was declared in 1910, the first IWD event was held in 1911.)

To make 2011 extra-special, the official IWD website is launching its 2011 campaign planning now. They want to hear your ideas, visions, challenges in the lead up to the 2011 IWD Centenary. They are also actively looking for global supporters (corporations, charities, media partners, agencies, etc) to assist with their 2011 vision - calling for global partners to support various initiatives and opportunities.

For example:

* Establishment of International Women's Day Foundation
* IWD Centenary global logo competition for girls
* IWD Centenary '100 women, 100 stories' initiative
* IWD Centenary '100 women, 100 pictures' initiative
* Worldwide gender-related "Charity of Choice" for global donations
* Further IWD Centenary opportunities available

If you, your friends, your association and/or workplace can help, please get in touch with the IWD website here. Thanks.