Women play multiple roles which define and shape their identity – a manager, doctor, teacher, wife, active citizen, sociable person, volunteer, daughter, housewife, full-time mum, an observer of the society, lonely person, American, Polish, good friend, independent person, expat, immigrant, accompanying partner, sister; you name it. Moving abroad very often causes a shift in these roles. Some of the roles are lost, resulting in losing a part of their identity—others need to be redefined. Consciously or not, purposefully or not, expat women are rediscovering and reshaping the sense of who they are while living abroad. Some of them are happy about this process, and some are struggling with it. They need to reflect on issues such as who I am if I am not working, what I want from life. What is my life purpose? What are my real values, what I think about myself? What are my abilities and limitations? How do I want my career to look like? How not to lose the feeling I am still myself. I want to embed my session on the real stories of women whose fate brought them to Poland. Daily I am supporting them in adapting and succeeding in Poland. I can see how challenging this process of redefining identity might be. The participants might be expat women who need comfort and understanding and need to know that they are not alone in the process. It might also be interesting for multinational business or simply anyone working with migrants, expat women or expats who come to Poland with their spouses. The participants will become more aware of the challenges women face as well as how relocation might reshape the identity of expat women. One of my clients said,”I was expected to swim as fast as in my home country, but it was not the same water around me”.
Aleksandra Ośko
Aleksandra Ośko is a Cross-Cultural Trainer and Coach. The main field of her expertise is relocation & cross – cultural training. She’s been working in the field for the last 10 years. She works with adults, youth and kids. She has experience in delivering trainings and workshops for the participants of different backgrounds (managers, executives, teachers, volunteers) from business sector, non-governmental organizations and public institutions. She cooperates as a freelance trainer with global relocation companies. She also runs coaching processes supporting international transitions and intercultural cooperation: individual and in group. She helps her clients to understand the new country and its business culture, to identify the challenges and to understand themselves in the new context. She supports them in building self-confidence, going through the transition process, developing a strategy for adjustment, redefining themselves in a new place, dealing with the feeling of loss, loneliness and lack of belonging, setting new priorities and intentions. She helps them to match their potential with the potential of the new place in the best possible way. She also works with her clients on developing their mental toughness and using it support their expat life, personal and professional growth and wellbeing. She is a member of SIETAR Poland since 2009, she was leading Warsaw local group for a couple of years. Aleksandra is a mother of three, coffee, travel, mountains, music lover, fascinated with Polish Himalayan climbers and hiking.