How to Land 4 Jobs in 3 Years as a Newcomer with Maria Becerra (NOF#12)

00:00
Miguel Abascal
Welcome to another episode of Newcomers on Fire. Now we are at 2.0 podcast. To truly enjoy the full 2.0 podcast experience, we recommend downloading the Fountain FM app at the end of the show. I will walk you through on how to do this because we have some pretty cool rewards for you. Before we dive into today’s discussion, I have a quick request. If you have been enjoying our show and finding value in the stories and advice we share, please consider supporting the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Your feedback means the world to us, and it helps us better serve you. So drop us a review and let us know what you love the most about this episode.

00:41
Miguel Abascal
Doing this also help other newcomers discover our podcast, making it a valuable resource for more people on their journey to making their dreams a reality. Thank you for being a part of our community and for your continued support. Maria moved from Colombia to Canada just four years ago, and since then she has gotten four jobs at big companies. So the question is, how did she do that? In this episode, Maria shares step-by-step tips to help you improve your LinkedIn profile so recruiters notice you. Her unique way of reaching out to hiring managers about jobs, how she prepares to ace every job interview tips for success once you start your new job, the power of volunteering to build your network, and how to stay positive when progress feels slow. If you want to fast-track your career in Canada like Maria did, this episode is for you.

01:37
Intro/Outro
Welcome to the Newcomers ON FIRE! show with your host, Miguel Abascal. Listen to people like you sharing their journeys, struggles, and their breakthroughs. Be ready to be inspired to take control of your time, career, finances, and future. Fulfill your potential. Become the person you’re meant to be and make your dreams a reality.

02:06
Miguel Abascal
Welcome back to another episode of Newcomers on Fire. I’m super excited because today we have Maria. Maria, how are you?

02:13
Maria Becerra
Hi, Miguel. I’m very happy to be here today. Thank you so much for inviting me to this episode.

02:19
Miguel Abascal
Well, I’m more than excited because I’ve been following you on LinkedIn, and, oh boy, we can talk for a lot of different things. I see that you love traveling, you are giving AI speeches, and you are everywhere.

02:32
Maria Becerra
How you do that, I don’t know. I think it’s time management and a little secret. I’m married, so my husband is also my greatest support. He helps me a lot to be able to manage all the different activities that I do. So it’s great to have a partner that can support you. But again, time management in addition to that.

02:53
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. And of course, if you’re living what you are passionate, you find the energy and you find the time. That’s amazing. So tell us more about yourself. I’m very intrigued. Who is Maria? What happened? Now you are here. Tell us more.

03:07
Maria Becerra
Okay, how can I say everything in a few minutes? Let me get started by sharing that by training. I’m an engineer. I was born and grew up in Colombia, moved here to Canada about four years ago and found that my real passion lies in business analysis. And that role didn’t even exist in Colombia. So I came here to Canada and realized that I have been a business analyst for so many years. So it’s a very interesting field that I’m very passionate about. And then I found more about data and AI, and that’s another passion that I have in my life. But more than my professional side, I’m also a resilient woman. I am a person who is passionate to help others succeed. And that’s what I’ve been trying to do during my whole career, not only growing, but helping other grows.

03:58
Maria Becerra
Because I think that when everyone grows, I don’t know, the society grows, you have well being, and those who are around you are also supporting you in some ways. So, yes, that’s a little bit about what are my passions and how I try to spend my time here.

04:18
Miguel Abascal
That’s amazing. And I knew that I like you so much because we have the same values. I also believe a lot in helping as much as possible, everybody, because everything always comes around. So that’s why it’s important. Tell us more about your decision to move to a new country and if everything got to according to plan.

04:36
Maria Becerra
Absolutely. Well, when I was 18 years old, I went to the US. There was this program called Opair that allows you to live in this country and live with an american family and then study in your free time, per se. So I did that program for two years. I really like the american culture. I like how organized these countries are and how safe they feel. So when I went back home, I made it my mission to migrate. And I had different countries in mind. One of those was Germany, actually. I applied for a scholarship, but unfortunately I didn’t get it. So my husband, who was my boyfriend at the time, suggested, why don’t we go to Canada, look these options and so on, and something very interesting. So I dig a little bit more and I really like it.

05:33
Maria Becerra
I like the country, I like the culture, I like all the diversity that I could see. So we decided to come here to Canada. And not everything worked as planned. There were so many things that, I don’t know, maybe Internet tells you that everything is so easy, but that’s not a reality, right? So that’s why I’m so happy that you’re doing this podcast, to show people what are all the challenges that you might encounter and how to solve them.

06:04
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. To come prepare. Because you’re right. I remember going to Expos Canada, expo in Mexico, and it’s like, everybody, you can earn $100,000 by working in this job, and they are looking for all the Mexicans they can find, and it’s like, wow, this is just so easy. It’s so amazing. Right? But to your point, the intention of this podcast is to share all the information, all the practical advice for people to say, okay, now I know how to better prepare and to align my expectations more closely with reality and also to connect with people that have done it already.

06:39
Maria Becerra
Exactly. And simple things like finding your first apartment, finding where you’re going to live, little things like that. I don’t know how it’s in Mexico, but in Colombia, you would go out with your notebook with your pen in hand, and then you would start looking around and see the big signs telling you, oh, this is for rent. This is for rent. So you would note down the numbers and then call. But here that doesn’t happen. You have to go online, contact realtors. And I mean, I didn’t know that before coming here. So those little things, if you happen to know it before coming here, would make the whole difference, 100%.

07:17
Miguel Abascal
Because sometimes they ask you for references. I have a friend that came recently. He’s living in the other side of Canada, and he asked me, he’s like, hey, I know that we haven’t talked in a long time, but can you be my reference on somebody calling for my department? And it’s like, for sure. And you’re right. As simple as that is, like, I don’t know anyone. I just arrived and I need a house. How can I have a reference?

07:41
Maria Becerra
Yes, I was asked for two cosigners. To your point, I didn’t know anyone, so it was challenging. But yes, you get to the point.

07:52
Miguel Abascal
So tell me more about those early months. New culture, new beginnings. What happened with your professional life, how you adapt your resume.

08:04
Maria Becerra
Perfect. Well, even before coming here to Canada, I thought that getting a job would be super easy. I was used to the colombian market where I would send my resume, and I would get a lot of calls for interviews. So I was like, oh, this is going to be easy. I’m going to get a job even before landing in Canada, and that never happened. I started sending my same resume, the one that I used in Colombia. Big mistake, because you have to adapt to the market where you’re going, regardless whether it’s Canada, UK, I don’t know. Wherever you go, you have to understand how the market works and adapt to it. You cannot pretend and assume that it’s the same where you grew up. So that was my first and biggest mistake.

08:49
Maria Becerra
I pretended I was still in Colombia, sending the same resume and didn’t get any calls. So I went to the career center because I came as an international student. They gave me some advice, very valuable advice. I tailored my resume a little bit, but after the first call, I wasn’t moving to the next stages. So something was definitely wrong. So I didn’t know someone who could help me. So I started reading online. I watched a lot of videos of coaches that helped me understand how the market work, to adapt the resume, to adapt my interviews, to get to the point. And that helped me a lot. So it was a lot of research. Then I also found that LinkedIn is such a powerful platform here in Canada and the US, and I had opened LinkedIn back in Colombia, but I never really used it.

09:48
Maria Becerra
So it was my first step into that platform. I don’t even have Instagram or Facebook, so imagine dealing with another social media was challenging at first, but something that has helped me a lot in my professional career now that I look back.

10:06
Miguel Abascal
Wow, that’s incredible, because you’re so right. I remember LinkedIn was okay in Mexico, but in Canada, it’s a must. It’s a tool that really helps you. And today see you. And you’re very active on social media, especially on LinkedIn. When did you decide to become more active or what happened? If you can share.

10:24
Maria Becerra
Yes. As I was saying that I was doing a lot of research, all these coaches were suggesting that by showing your thoughts, by providing your value through LinkedIn, you could get attention from a lot of recruiters. And instead of you going and applying for jobs, the recruiters would get to you. And I was like, oh, wow, that can really happen. I have never seen that. So I gave it a try. I started posting, I started making new connections, making new friends eventually. And a few years later, I started receiving a lot of messages from recruiters asking me if I wanted to apply for different jobs. And it was kind of fun and interesting to see how a platform can bring you so much benefit to your life.

11:13
Maria Becerra
And nowadays I keep getting still a lot of calls and messages for also jobs, but also now for organizations who want me to join them and speak at some of their sessions. So it’s a great opportunity for anyone to start showing their skills to the world, basically. So, yes, it’s a great platform to showcase your skills.

11:36
Miguel Abascal
I’m just so curious to know, were you always that social or extrovert? Were you always like that kind of person, or did you learn how to be?

11:47
Maria Becerra
I think it’s been a mix. I was like that, but only with my circle of friends. And then I came here to Canada. And during my program at like, I’ve always been a great student, but I was a little bit shy. And the thing is that I found the language barrier was my biggest challenge. I was so afraid of speaking up because I was thinking, okay, what if I say something wrong? What if people cannot understand me? What if my accent is so thick? I was so concerned about all these things about my language that I didn’t have the freedom to speak up. And I think, I don’t know yet. I have never asked my professor. She put me in situations where I pushed myself to speak up in front of the class.

12:37
Maria Becerra
She gave me leadership roles during my program, and I think it helped me a lot. Later on, I asked her if we could create a chapter of business analysts in Hamilton where I was living at the moment. And she was like, oh, another of your former classmates had the same idea, why don’t you connect with her and start this together? So eventually I connected with a couple of people, and we started the chapter. And having these volunteer opportunities gave me also the leverage to practice my leadership skills and then eventually lose that fear and become more confident in another country.

13:16
Miguel Abascal
Oh, wow. The reason I’m loving your story so much is because it’s like, if you were telling my story as well, I was also very shy, and I will always have this impostor syndrome of like, I want to say this, but it’s like, oh, somebody said already, much better. I don’t know if my English is that well, sometimes I make mistakes with the tenses, my grammar. You know what? Maybe not. And then the next day, it’s like, oh, I would like to share this. And I was always limiting myself just because of that. And it took so many years. In fact, this podcast has been in the making in my mind for many years until I heard a story of similar to your story of somebody sharing it on a podcast. And it’s like, wow. Yeah, totally. I should do it. I should start.

14:02
Miguel Abascal
And that’s why we’re here today, so I’m excited that you’re sharing that. If I’m a newcomer that is starting, that I just arrived to Canada, I’m playing around with LinkedIn. What would you recommend this person to start doing online? Especially if my confidence level might not be that high because I just arrived. I don’t know a lot of people. I’ve been applying online and nothing is happening. So how would you say or recommend to that person to say, like, okay, start with this thing or do that? Or what would be.

14:35
Maria Becerra
Yes, I would recommend two things. Well, actually three. First of all, check your profile, right? Because if you’re going to start posting or commenting or reaching out to people, the first thing they’re going to notice is your profile. So make sure that your profile is up to date. Do you have a good picture? Not a selfie, not a picture from ten years ago, a recent picture where you’re happy. And it doesn’t have to be like in a studio, it can be in your house. Nowadays there are so many tools to help you with that. So make sure your profile section is up to date, that you are reflecting where you want to go. What’s your current goal? That your work experience is up to date. Volunteering experience, certifications, studies, et cetera. That’s first, check your profile.

15:21
Maria Becerra
Second, start reaching out to other people through messages and say, for example, you have few contacts. Start getting more and you don’t have to reach out to strange people right away. You can reach out to people that you studied with, people that you work with, people that you might have met at volunteering activities. That would be second. And third, if you’re not ready yet to start posting, start commenting on other people’s post. That would also help you be more visible to other people. Say, for example, someone posted something about risk and that’s your passion. Comment your thoughts, provide your ideas. What do you think about that post? That would also help show people that you know about the topic and that you are an expert in that area. And then whenever you are ready, then you can start posting and providing your ideas.

16:16
Maria Becerra
It can be challenging and it can be a big step, but you will eventually get there.

16:24
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. And I will just add that once you do, consistency is king because the more you do it, that builds momentum. And to your point, opportunities, speaking engagement, everything just comes to your oh, Maria, this is incredible. So much more to talk. You mentioned also that your professor invited you into more leadership activities and that you started volunteering. Can you tell us more about that? And if volunteering was something being in Colombia.

16:56
Maria Becerra
In Colombia, I tried to volunteer, but I don’t know how it’s in Mexico, Miguel, but in basically, your life basically evolves around work. So you wake up very early because you have to take the bus and get on time to work, but there’s a lot of traffic and then we work a few more hours than here in Canada, and then you have to go back home. And, I mean, I never had the time or never made the time to volunteer. So I did it a few times that it would be on Saturdays, but not so much. So when I came here in Canada and I found that I had so much time after work, I was like, oh, wow, I can do a lot of things here. I started volunteering, and as I said, business analysis became a passion of mine.

17:42
Maria Becerra
So volunteering has helped me in so many ways. I haven’t found a job through volunteering, but volunteering has helped me make good connections. I have met people who have also become my friends, people who have become my mentors. Volunteering also has helped me to become more confident in my skills. When I joined this chapter that I was mentioning, I was the youngest ba there, and like the newest ba, actually. So the one who knew the less about business analysis. So it was very intimidating to get here, be the president of the chapter, and I don’t know, like leading these people with 1520 years of experience and this girl doesn’t even know what she’s doing here. That was very challenging. But I started reading, I started checking, how can I be a better leader of non for profit and things like that?

18:38
Maria Becerra
So as you said, I started breaking those barriers, those mental barriers, and empowering in myself and starting to put things into action. So those activities helped me become more confident, as I was saying, and that was my stepping stone to start reaching out to other recruiters, feeling more confident at work as well, providing more insights. I think that when you are putting these situations, you have to learn, you have to adapt very quickly, and your learning curve goes very high.

19:12
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. So the benefits of volunteering are just incredible, right?

19:15
Maria Becerra
Yes.

19:16
Miguel Abascal
It’s exposure, it’s confidence boost, it’s connections, it’s networking, you name it. So thank you so much for sharing. This is awesome.

19:23
Maria Becerra
Yeah, no, and in addition to that, you also feel the feeling of gratitude for helping other people, because, as you were saying, the idea here is to help others succeed as well. And I had the opportunity to see that during my volunteering activities, other people are growing in their career and it’s nice to see how they are transitioning from newcomers to feeling more confident to being in their careers and in a place where they want to be.

19:53
Miguel Abascal
So true, Maria. Because I’m addicted to that, by the way. I’m addicted to the transformation stories of somebody that was here and then they wanted to go there, like, struggling, and now they’re super happy. Like that transformation. I’m all over it. I read one post on LinkedIn that you said, I’ve been in Canada for three years and I got four jobs. Something like that. And here’s the secret. Could you please share the secret?

20:18
Maria Becerra
The secret is that there’s no secret.

20:21
Miguel Abascal
Exactly.

20:23
Maria Becerra
Oh, my gosh, yes. So there are so many things that have helped me to get those jobs. As you’re saying, volunteer is one of those for sure. Because as I was saying, that help boost my confidence in my skills, in how I feel and how I present myself to others. Another one has been reaching out to recruiters and hiring managers. And I think here sometimes can be very disappointing because some recruiters or hiring managers won’t reply back to you, but you at least are trying. And even if they don’t reply, I mean, you don’t have anything to lose. But that has been how I landed my first two jobs here in Canada, by reaching out to recruiters. So what I would do is to check the role that I’m applying to and add what I think is the next level.

21:14
Maria Becerra
Say, for example, I’m applying to a business analyst role. I would write something like senior business analyst or business analyst manager. I have no idea who is the hiring manager, but I would try to check their current work experience and see if that matches what I’m applying to. If that kind of matches, I send them a quick message on LinkedIn. Hi, Miguel. This is Maria. I’m, I don’t know, an engineer. I just applied to this role id, and I would like to express my interest in the role just in case my resume gets lost. I would be happy to set a call with you. Please contact me at blah blah. Thank you. A message like that was the one who got me a job at two companies and some big companies.

22:00
Maria Becerra
If you can see in my profile, it’s not that you got a role right away, but at least you get the opportunity to interview and showcase your skills, your attitude, your knowledge. That’s a great win. If you start waiting for someone to call you and reviewing hundreds of applications, sometimes you might still be there waiting for a call. So take action and start reaching out to recruiters and hiring managers. I think those two are the main secret that have helped me.

22:37
Miguel Abascal
No. And I can see it because you’re so right. When I hire people, the first thing I do is I go on LinkedIn and say, like, okay, who is this person? And then if they have a profile like yours, which is very well balanced with, this is Maria. This is Maria, professional. This is Maria. How she thinks about the future. And it’s like, oh, you know what I like a lot? How she thinks. Let’s call her for an interview. So I’m pretty sure that works your way really well because you have an amazing profile. And I invite everybody listening to this to visit. Maria’s profile is pretty awesome.

23:12
Maria Becerra
And something to note, Miguel here is that I think it was this year I posted a post where I was showing that when I came here to Canada, I only have like a hundred connections, so don’t think that this happened overnight. It took time. Right. It’s been four years in the go. A lot of practice, a lot of trial and error. But as you said, consistency has been the key. So I also invite everyone. If you’re interested in posting on LinkedIn, be consistent. At the beginning, it might feel a little bit lonely, it might feel that you’re not getting traction, but it’s okay. At least you’re trying. And as you keep posting and posting, more people will notice you and that’s when you will start seeing the value of your efforts.

23:59
Miguel Abascal
Yeah, that’s amazing. And I think right now you have 5000 people, like, following everything. Yeah. That’s insane.

24:05
Maria Becerra
Right?

24:06
Miguel Abascal
So from 100 to 5000 in four years, that’s a huge accomplishment, too.

24:10
Maria Becerra
Yes. For someone who doesn’t have social. Yes.

24:15
Miguel Abascal
If Maria can do it, everybody can do. Right?

24:18
Maria Becerra
Exactly.

24:18
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. I’m so good. Okay, so tell me more about those opportunities because, okay, you get the job and then what?

24:27
Maria Becerra
Okay, once I get the job, I think that one of the key things that I do is to connect with people. I believe that people are the ones who make a job, like a very successful experience or a negative experience. And if you’re able to connect with people in a genuine manner, they will help you a lot, especially when you are new. People are so willing to help you, provide you a lot of information. So whenever you join a new company, try to connect with those key stakeholders, key partners, key colleagues. Set up like 1520 minutes and get to know them in a personal level, in a professional level. Take notes also, because then you’re going to forget who is, who has a dog, who has a cat. Things like that in the future will help you make that meaningful connection.

25:15
Maria Becerra
And then when you are working in a project, if you feel comfortable working with someone, you’ll feel more, I don’t know, unease. To work together, to work towards the same goal. It will be smooth. Also draft your 3016 id plan even if your manager doesn’t ask you for it, because that will help you keep accountable of the upcoming milestone, upcoming deliverables. And yes, that will help you succeed in your role. Showing that, yes, you just have 30 days. But see, this is what I had planned. This is what I’m delivering that will keep everyone accountable and show your value. What else can I tell you? One of my managers always suggests to report as much as you can, even if people are not asking you, because people like to be informed, even if they’re not micromanager.

26:04
Maria Becerra
They like to know what are your results, what are you delivering? You don’t have to tell, okay, I’m doing this from six to seven or seven to eight. But you need to show what is your outcome, your value. And if you don’t advocate for yourself, no one will go and ask you, hey, are you ready for a promotion? No. You have to start showing from day one that you are ready for that next promotion, for that next step. So show your value, your outcome, and things will eventually work.

26:31
Miguel Abascal
Wow. Have you ever read the book the first 90 days?

26:35
Maria Becerra
No, but someone recently recommended it to me, so I recently ordered it on Amazon.

26:41
Miguel Abascal
That’s incredible because you are following the exact, almost the blueprint that book recommends. So it’s like, wow, I’m just impressed that you are able to do exactly the same even without reading it. And you’re right. One of the things I also recommend, too is to create a networking map in a way that, okay, who is who and who knows whom and the political environment and who has the most power, who is the most informed, where are the issues, the mind, things like that. So, yeah, that helps a lot.

27:15
Maria Becerra
That’s very important. And Miguel, now that you mentioned the networking map, it also came to my know those enterprise resource groups where you can also volunteer because as were saying, networking is so important. And someone once told me in companies where you have like 20,000 people, how you’re going to stand out if you are not meeting other people. So if you have the time, try to join those enterprise groups, get to know other people while you are doing something that you really enjoy, like helping the community, helping some cultural groups, et cetera. So yes, I invite everyone to join a community like this. And if that community doesn’t exist. Create your own. So that’s my advice.

28:00
Miguel Abascal
True. So true. When I was working at TD Bank, I was also in an enterprise employee resource group. We call them, too. And, wow, it was incredible because you get exposed to so many different executives now that I’m a Scotiabank, the exact same. Like, it’s amazing. The opportunity is just like, they’re blown away. Wow. Do you do anything in specific to prepare for the interviews? Because you get a lot of visibility and you get invited to interviews. But how did you land those interviews?

28:38
Maria Becerra
Okay, so for the work interviews, as I was sharing, yes, I reach out to managers, but once you get the interview, it’s time for you to prepare. And I feel that sometimes I overprepare, but it’s because of an experience that I had, and I’m going to share here very quickly. One of my dream companies has always been Siemens, and I had the opportunity to land an interview with them back in 2020, and I messed it up. I passed the first interview with a recruiter. That went well, and I felt that I’m ready. I’m ready for the next interview. I don’t have anything to lose. I checked my resume, all good, but never prepared officially, never had the opportunity to rehearse, and I just went there, messed it up completely, never got the job.

29:32
Maria Becerra
It was very sad because, as I said, it was my dream company. And, yeah, it was painful, but that served as a lesson that I should never do the same. So now, for every interview that I had, I over prepared. And when I say over prepare, I mean I have a bank of stories. So for every job that I’ve had, I’ve noted all my different key outcomes, my key deliverables that are aligned to my career, and I broke them down into the star method, the situation, task, action results. So when I’m applying or I’m interviewing for a role, I take a few of those stories from my bank, and I check which ones align more to the job that I’m applying to, and those are the ones that I practice the most.

30:20
Maria Becerra
Another thing that I do is I have a bank of questions that are very similar between jobs, like, tell me about yourself, or questions that maybe are not asking the same way, but perhaps are the same. Like, what are some of your opportunities for improvement? People ask it in different ways, but usually they ask that one, what are your strengths? Why should we hire you? How you see yourself in a few years? What are your goals? Why this company? Why this role? Questions like that. So I prepare them as well. I type them down. And then I have a good friend of mine who has been key in my job experience here in Canada, and she helps me rehearse. So we set up a Zoom call. She asks me questions, I reply, and then she gives me advice or feedback.

31:13
Maria Becerra
But if you don’t have a friend like her, you can also rehearse and practice with yourself through a Zoom call. Record yourself or practice in front of the mirror. In that way you can see how is your body language? What are your words? What are the most repetitive words? Are you actually delivering the message? And things like that would help you feel more confident and ready for that interview.

31:38
Miguel Abascal
Oh, wow, Maria. It’s exactly how I do it, too. I’m so blown away because it’s like, yeah, I have an inventory of stories, and stories are more powerful because I learned that you can always say, like, yes, I increased 300% productivity and I double sales and I reduced cost by 50%. And it’s like, okay, so what?

31:59
Maria Becerra
Right? Yes.

32:01
Miguel Abascal
But if you share a story, and I remember sharing one story about my grandma and I got hired on the spot because the story of my grandma. And since then I was like, oh, stories work. They are very sticky. They make you very memorable. And then, of course, I created so many different stories about projects, situations, difficult conversations and things like that. But you are right, you need to prepare and you need to go over and I write down my answers because again, my English is not my first language, so you just need to prepare that I’m not making a mistake and not to memorize it, but just like, okay, this is my general outline.

32:38
Maria Becerra
I think it was on the first podcast. On the first episode of your podcast, someone was mentioning how her communication skills and her transferable skills helped her land a job. And I invite everyone to look at that episode because it’s also good to hear how your communication can impact the way that you are delivering the message and whether you get the job. So it’s very important.

33:05
Miguel Abascal
Exactly, because you could be the best at the job. But if you cannot communicate that, the person that communicates the better gets a job.

33:14
Maria Becerra
Yes.

33:15
Miguel Abascal
Isn’t that crazy?

33:16
Maria Becerra
I know, but it’s true. You will get a lot of resume, a lot of applicants with same skills. Like everyone is an engineer, everyone is a business analyst. They have all work and deliver a lot of outcomes. But what makes you different from them? That’s where your value and your opportunity will come.

33:37
Miguel Abascal
Exactly. Share the story of your grandma.

33:41
Maria Becerra
You have to tell us that story.

33:43
Miguel Abascal
Yes. You’re going to love it. You are going to love it. We need to do another episode about storytelling because I think you and I, we’re going to have a lot of really good stories.

33:51
Maria Becerra
Yes, for sure.

33:54
Miguel Abascal
Very quickly, if you could send a tweet to yourself before taking the plane to come to Canada, what would you say? What would you send?

34:03
Maria Becerra
Oh, my Gosh. I would say, maria, please be patient. Things doesn’t happen overnight, right? Oh, wow. Yes. It took me a while to understand that, miguel, I came here to Canada and I wanted to have the same life that I had in Colombia in the sense that I wanted to have that great job right away. I wanted to have my pr right away. I wanted everything. Now, as were discussing today, things take time and you have to work for them. And if you don’t think that you are seeing results, you might be wrong. Like having one more connection on LinkedIn, having one call for an interview, those are big wins and you have to value them as much as you would celebrate a big win. So I would tell myself, Maria, please be patient. Remember, things take time.

34:56
Miguel Abascal
Wow. Because that happened to me was I had so much high expectation that I will be so critical of myself. It’s like, oh, you’re so slow. Oh, you mess it up again. Oh, you did it again, Miguel. And that will also impact my confidence and that will impact my mental health. So what was the secret for you? How do you kept so positive and how do you keep moving forward?

35:22
Maria Becerra
I think that a supporting network is what helps you a lot. So when I came here, I didn’t know a lot of Latinos, and my social circle was minimum. I didn’t know many people. And eventually I met this friend I was telling you, the one who helped me practice. I met her at one workshop from YMCA at Moha College. And we connected. And I don’t know, you know, that sense of, you know, that person for many years. Well, that’s how I felt with her. And then she told me, why don’t we have a monthly call and we just check in on each one?

35:59
Maria Becerra
And then she invited someone else, and then I invited someone else, and eventually it was a group of eight people talking once a month just to kind of vent, kind of talk about life, talk about next steps and support each other. So I would say having a group of friends who can support you, it’s instrumental for your mental health to feel that you are not alone in this process, that sometimes can feel lonely, especially if you come here alone. So I invite you that to rely on your friends in your group of friends. Yes. And if you don’t find a community. As I was saying before, start creating and start creating this group that we created.

36:43
Maria Becerra
Reach out to one person and eventually the person will bring someone else and so on and have those calls so that you feel that you are not alone.

36:53
Miguel Abascal
Yeah, you’re so right. In fact, for anybody feeling like that, we invite you to reach out because we are a show, we’re a podcast, but also a community, and we’re here to help. So definitely, Maria, very quickly, if you had a billboard accessible and visible to all newcomers in Canada and in the world, what would you say to everybody?

37:16
Maria Becerra
Don’t lose sight of your goal. Don’t lose sight of your big. You know, sometimes we come here and we think, as I was saying, that if I don’t see a result right away, I’m going to feel that things are not working out. But in reality, we are working toward that big goal. So what is your big goal? Why you really came here to Canada? And remember that wherever you are, this is momentarily, that things will happen whether they are good or bad. So if they are good, enjoy them. If they are bad, remember, it’s not going to be forever. So I would say that don’t lose sight of your big goal.

37:57
Miguel Abascal
I love it. I’m so excited. Yeah. How can people reach out to learn more about you, what you are doing? I’m encouraging everybody to connect with you as well, or at least to follow you on LinkedIn, because every day you post something super amazing.

38:14
Maria Becerra
Yeah, LinkedIn is the only way where I’m really active. I don’t have Facebook or Instagram, but yes, LinkedIn is the right place to go. Now that I recently finished my master’s, I will have more time to do some coffee chats and help as much as I can with your resume reviews or just having another pair of eyes or having these mock up interviews for you to land your next.

38:40
Miguel Abascal
That’s incredible. Maria, any. Any last thoughts? Anything that we forgot to mention?

38:47
Maria Becerra
No. I think that I would just say to everyone, remember that you are so valuable that everything you did in your home countries is as valuable as it was there. So don’t feel discouraged because you are in a new country, because you are an international student. All that experience that you had previously used or gained, you can use it here as well. Don’t think that you are starting here from zero. You are starting here. Yes, new and fresh. But all your experience come with you. So keep that in mind and start feeling more confident about yourself.

39:24
Miguel Abascal
I love that. Do you want to hear my biggest mistake? Related to a business analyst.

39:29
Maria Becerra
I want to hear it.

39:30
Miguel Abascal
Of course.

39:32
Maria Becerra
Let’s learn about it.

39:34
Miguel Abascal
Yeah, exactly. Because you know what, sometimes you learn a lot about success, but I think you learn even twice as more from mistakes.

39:40
Maria Becerra
Oh, yes.

39:42
Miguel Abascal
And I’ve seen that you have been posting some. Here’s the mistake I made. And it’s like, oh, it’s very refreshing too. So my mistake in Mexico, business analyst is not a thing. It’s like it’s not a specific role. So when I came to Canada, I was, you know, I like crunching numbers. I’m pretty good at doing financial projections. Yeah, I really like to analyze businesses because that’s the thing I do know. So I went to online and it’s like, oh, University of Toronto, they are doing a certification of business analysis. Yeah, I would like to learn how to analyze businesses. So I took the certification, I took the first, I guess, semester and it’s like, wow, it’s like I learned a lot. But I’m wondering when I’m going to start analyzing businesses.

40:31
Miguel Abascal
I took the second semester, the same thing, and by the end of the third I was like, okay, I finished the certification and I still don’t know how to analyze businesses. And then long story short, I was like, oh, I feel so dumb because business analyst is no other thing that just like, well, of course they do a lot of things, but I guess the biggest one is to be a bridge between business and technology and it’s more about gathering requirements and illicit requirements and understanding requirements. So I learned a lot about that, but I never learned about how to analyze a.

41:06
Maria Becerra
So, yeah, it’s different. Business analysis is such a big field that you get to do a lot of things there. But very interesting. Miguel, I didn’t know you had studied that.

41:16
Miguel Abascal
Yeah, I have my certification and everything because I started, it’s like I’m going to finish it, but at some point I was like, yeah, I don’t think this is for me because I don’t do this, but I have it.

41:27
Maria Becerra
Yeah, good to know.

41:29
Miguel Abascal
But my recommendation to everybody is that before you go and do what I did, trial and error, and just jump on it and take it’s good. I connected with a lot of people. I got mentors. That was great. But of course, if money is tight, just ask somebody. And it’s like, is this exactly what I’m thinking it is because it might be completely different.

41:51
Maria Becerra
Yeah, it’s all about networking, right. That connection will help you understand if that is the right path or not for you.

41:59
Miguel Abascal
Yeah, completely well Maria, it has been a pleasure talking to you today. I knew that it was going to be amazing. I’m hoping that we can do this again because there is so much more that we can go and talk. But I appreciate your time. I appreciate so much how you give so much advice and your tips and all the insights for everybody to share. So thanks so much for that.

42:21
Maria Becerra
Thank you so much Miguel.

42:23
Miguel Abascal
I wish you all the best.

42:25
Maria Becerra
Thank you and thank you for the invitation. Have a great day.

42:29
Miguel Abascal
Thank you.

42:29
Miguel Abascal
A newcomer came to study his MBA with only twelve weeks left before his work permit expired and after 500 job applications that failed. The question is, will he finally make it in Canada? In the next episode you are going to find out. Hey, thank you so much for listening to the show. Now we’re excited to take your podcast experience to the next level. But what is exactly podcasting 20? Well, let me tell you, it is the evolution of podcasting with Fountain. You are not just a listener, you’re an active participant who can earn money by engaging with your favorite shows. It is a game changer. Getting started is very simple. In the show notes you will find the link to download the Fountain app once installed on your phone and your account is set up.

43:17
Miguel Abascal
Search for newcomers on fire and hit the follow button. Don’t forget to do the same for all your favorite shows. Now here is where it gets exciting. As you listen to our episodes, you will earn Sats which is real money. Keep an eye on Fountain’s homepage for promoted episode where you can earn up to hundred sats just for listening to newcomers on fire. When you like our episodes and you create a clip for a limited time, we will send you 200 sats. And guess what? If the community likes them, you will receive even more sats. It’s amazing you can use the sats you have earned to send us a boost which is like a mini payment with a message. We are super active and responsive and we make sure to respond to almost every boost we receive.

44:04
Miguel Abascal
Plus we give a shout out to our top boosters from previous episodes. If you are feeling extra generous, you can top up your fountain wallet with a bank card or a lining transfer from a lining app. Supporting your favorite podcasters has never been this easy. The easiest way to learn is just to get started. If you have any trouble or questions, just go to support at Fountain. The team is amazing, extremely helpful and responsive and that’s it. You are now fully quip for podcasting 20 on Fountain. Happy listening, engaging and earning.

44:42
Intro/Outro
We hope you enjoyed this show and that it helps you to find your way or make your way. If you found value, share it with someone who needs it. Until next time. To your success.