Moving to America - Essay Example

Growing up, I always knew I wanted to work in business.  We were a poor family and my little brothers and sisters were always involved in activities that needed to be coordinated, paid for and all the uniforms, etc. acquired.  I often worked as the family administrator for them, attempting to make sure everyone was dropped off and picked up on time, properly outfitted and someone was there to cheer them on at the big events.  However, once I grew up and finished my basic educational training at home, I discovered that it would be very difficult for me to get into any kind of significant business setting nearby.  That was when I made my life-changing decision to leave everything I knew behind me and set off for the city, where education could be had by anyone willing to put in the effort.  Through moving, I have learned various ways in which my personal, professional, and academic life can help me in a business setting.

When I moved from my home, I didn’t know anyone and had no one to depend on but myself.  I went to the hotel where I had reserved a room for a week and then went to the church.  I’m not entirely sure why I did this, but I think I had some idea in my head that the church would help me find my way as it had always done back home.  However, I discovered that city churches have far too many members to be concerned about one lonely young person walking in their midst.  There was no one there ready and happy to take on what they saw as a ‘free-loading’ college student no matter how much I insisted that I intended to contribute.  My next stop was the college, where I learned what I would need to do to gain entrance to the classes I would need.  The lady in the financial aid office was very kind and gave me a sort of blueprint to follow regarding how to get started in my new life.  She helped me find a home with a room to lease and showed me how to look for jobs.  From the business sense I had gained organizing the kids back home, I quickly learned how to earn money, pay my own way and fend for myself in the concrete jungle.

Part of learning to fend for myself depended on another new skill I developed which was making friends or networking.  Making friends in a new place wasn’t the same as making friends in a place where everyone knows everyone else.  Like getting settled, I wasn’t really sure how to go about doing this in my new home.  Where I came from, you usually waited for an introduction to someone new from someone you’ve known before you can start talking to strangers.  I didn’t know anyone, though, so there could be no one to offer the first introduction but myself.  I started slowly, by talking with people who were in the offices I went to for help – the lady at the financial aid office at the college, the man at the church office, etc.  Eventually, I discovered I had no problem starting up a conversation with someone standing in front of me in line at the grocery store or at the post office.  Now, making friends is as easy as opening my mouth.

One of the biggest problems I had when I first moved here, though, was learning how to deal with my loneliness which has actually served to help fill in the gaps in my educational experience.  Before coming to the city, I had never even had my own room since I had shared my room back home with two siblings.  There had never been a point in my day when I was totally alone.  Although we’d have our quiet times and would usually respect each others’ need for privacy, we were never actually without someone to talk to when we wanted it, even in the middle of the night.  Now, there were whole evenings that could go by without my having talked to a single person.  This was nerve-wracking at first, but then I finally learned the wonders of the History Channel and discovered that I could read whole chapters of my book without anyone interrupting me.  I learned how to study more effectively, retain information more completely and research the answers to my questions on my own. 

Through my experience of changing my living quarters to somewhere far away from where I grew up and where my family lives, I have grown up a great deal.  I have learned how to be self-sufficient and creatively problem-solve, how to network to help solve problems, and how to effectively research and problem-solve on my own.  Things aren’t always perfect or easy and there are often times when I wish my family was close by, but I feel better about myself and more confident in my decisions knowing that I can depend on just myself to get through.  These skills of being able to work alone as well as work with others in a variety of ways will serve me well in putting forth my best efforts for whatever business I go into.