Keep in mind there are almost no jobs!

[wxyz123]

Many good points were made. I am not going to argue with them.

Ruka, you are asking me almost personal questions. If I replied to them you may have advice for me, which, I have no doubt will be good. But I already know the pitfalls of my situation. Most engineering jobs are in Ontario and I moved out of there. Currently I am in a small community will little opportunities in the best of times and right now high unemployment. This does not mean what I have been writing about is not true, though. Before I moved, I had almost a year, during which I had a number of interviews. Sometimes I would go through two interviews for the same job, without getting an offer. It was really odd, considering that my first engineering job in Canada came after my very first interview and at the time I had no professional Canadian experience.

To the guy who asked about the cost of starting a business: There are government programs that can assist you in starting a business. Please keep this in mind. There may be some requirements though, like having worked in the past and having either an active EI claim or an EI claim made in the past 3 years. Those programs are really good, as they will teach you a few things you may not know, plus you will get some money regardless of how much your business makes. To start a business right away you must have very good information on the local competitors, customers, rates and where you stand in all of this. The cost, as it was said, would depend on the type of business and how you would like to start - as home based or renting a store front. Incorporating a business in Canada would cost you about $500. To register a name you pay about $30 and to register the business under this name you pay another $40. If you stop at this point, you will have a sole proprietorship for $70. You will get a lot of tax advantages by having a business.

Trinatocanada, your post and ideas are good. However, Canada is supposedly proud with its multiculturalism. If that is the case, I see no reason why I have to change the way I say "Hi" just to make somebody like me better. If we are so eager to accept the culture (or the lack of it), bit by bit there will be nothing left of us.

from this post i see you are not a failure. you are out of work temporarily but you have all options open. you can look for a better job if you move to a new area or start your own business. am i right??

 

[Second_angle]

Info-gc wrote : "There was an interesting case in Canada a few years ago. A Chinese immigrant beheaded a passenger on a bus. If you read the guy's biography you may get a good idea of what may have caused him to flip."

You are justifying the action of the mentally unstable person, Vince Weiguang Li, who beheaded his fellow passenger, cut and eat the flesh with lack of opportunities in Canada. It would be a good idea for you to move somewhere before you become another Vince Weiguang Li.

 

[kathe]

Hi Info-GC

You are not a loser, you are a Winner indeed. I noticed somewhere in your post, you have kids schooling in Canada, right? If so you are real winner since you could provide quality education to your next generation by suffering yourself. You are going through the struggling sea here and now for your family, for your next generation. But don’t miss out one crucial and invaluable fact. Everything you suffer now is worth as in future, even you are now an immigrant but your first, second, third..... xxxx generation will certainly become Native-born Canadians whilst Canada will become their mother country, they will carve the future of Canada together with their fellow Canadians to turn out to be the prosperous Canada. Your next generations will have their ups and downs there like other fellow Canadians, like you, like us, like everybody around the world. But your next generations will have better and quality education, healthcare, better living standards compare with billions of people who would have immersed in the deep poverty around the world. Recently, 925 million hungry people in the world in 2010.

So Never disdain yourself, as you are a dutiful father for your children, for your family. Your next great grand children will remember your struggling time for them and they would be grateful to you.

For you!

"If I find 10,000 ways something won't work, I haven't failed. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward".

Thomas Edison

 

[ufo]

Dear info-gc
you are really impressing me . u live in a civilised country I am sure your family are very happy being there , but the problem is with you.... the pessimism is tying ..... you should open your mind and your heart and be relax .. life is going on as I understand before any action you anticipate the negative scenario and that makes you depressing . think positively
Hope you best success

 

[trinatocanada]

What is happening to info-gc in Canada, can also happen to anyone anywhere else in the world and I appreciate his inputs.
Back home I wouldn't have been given employment insurance.
OHIP may not cover everything, but at least it helps.
My neighbor had a heart attack the other day and I called 911... am ambulance and two police cruisers came in less than five minutes.
Yes it is hard. Times are hard and that's a fact. But I'd rather be here where my kids can still have an education despite the hardships.

Yes, Canada boasts of its multiculturalism but all I am saying is not to forget the importance of your ability to blend in. I am merely sharing what I have observed.

 

[qwerbilzak]

Trinatocanada, your post and ideas are good. However, Canada is supposedly proud with its multiculturalism. If that is the case, I see no reason why I have to change the way I say "Hi" just to make somebody like me better. If we are so eager to accept the culture (or the lack of it), bit by bit there will be nothing left of us.

It has nothing to do with "Canada", "multiculturalism" or any of that. It has to do with interpersonal relations. If you want people to feel comfortable with you, it's helpful to take steps to make them feel comfortable.

If you refuse to participate in that most basic of human behaviors, you will have trouble indeed. And deservedly.

It's perfectly possible to look and sound very different from someone, and yet have that person still feel comfortable with you. It happens every second all over the world.

But to equate simple measures to increase mutual human understanding with "changing the culture" is nonsense, and sounds like just another excuse on your part.

 

[trinatocanada]

It has nothing to do with "Canada", "multiculturalism" or any of that. It has to do with interpersonal relations. If you want people to feel comfortable with you, it's helpful to take steps to make them feel comfortable.

If you refuse to participate in that most basic of human behaviors, you will have trouble indeed. And deservedly.

It's perfectly possible to look and sound very different from someone, and yet have that person still feel comfortable with you. It happens every second all over the world.

But to equate simple measures to increase mutual human understanding with "changing the culture" is nonsense, and sounds like just another excuse on your part.

thanks qwerbilzak, you have put into words exactly what i had intended to say

 

[info-gc]

But to equate simple measures to increase mutual human understanding with "changing the culture" is nonsense, and sounds like just another excuse on your part.

Your logic is almost correct. I can say a few things that can make a difference in your perception, but what is the point?

I made post #1 and I never thought I will have to go down to post #28 to further explain why I felt that way.

A positive attitude is important, no doubt, without it, no progress can be made. It is just that at times it is not enough. I am rather inclined to look at the numbers when guessing the future, rather than relying on personal qualities. Yes, I can make an effort and move myself from position 99 to position 27 up the ladder, but the job may be just 1. Regardless of how you look at it and who exactly gets hired there will be just 1 hired person and 98 unemployed.

 

[qwerbilzak]

thanks qwerbilzak, you have put into words exactly what i had intended to say

Lol, I thought you were most eloquent. But thanks in any case!

 

[fromdubai]

Dear info-gc - let these guys come to Canada and experience it themselves what you are saying. Just imagine, someone paid over 7000USD and is waiting for PR several years (plus all efforts in collecting documents etc), one fine day someone comes up and says Canada is no good, practically it is not easy to accept.

I meet one guy from Nigeria and another one from Bangladesh in Toronto - they said me that they were happy to be in Canada when they compared their home country situation (like no corruption, strong judiciary, better infrastructure, political stability etc) . On other hand I met so many Indian, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Lebaneses, Dubai based South Asians (including Bangladeshis) etc all regretted coming to Canada as they left better opportunity (like lesser or no tax systems, better infrastructure & services in Middle East, luxury life etc). I saw many professionals including University professors and doctors etc working as care giving, serving in McDonald's, taxi drivers and house keeping at the hotels. I cannot even write what some others were doing ...

After all this is life, ups and downs are part of it. I wish all the best for all of us.

Your logic is almost correct. I can say a few things that can make a difference in your perception, but what is the point?

I made post #1 and I never thought I will have to go down to post #28 to further explain why I felt that way.

A positive attitude is important, no doubt, without it, no progress can be made. It is just that at times it is not enough. I am rather inclined to look at the numbers when guessing the future, rather than relying on personal qualities. Yes, I can make an effort and move myself from position 99 to position 27 up the ladder, but the job may be just 1. Regardless of how you look at it and who exactly gets hired there will be just 1 hired person and 98 unemployed.

 

[qwerbilzak]

Your logic is almost correct. I can say a few things that can make a difference in your perception, but what is the point?

I made post #1 and I never thought I will have to go down to post #28 to further explain why I felt that way.

A positive attitude is important, no doubt, without it, no progress can be made. It is just that at times it is not enough. I am rather inclined to look at the numbers when guessing the future, rather than relying on personal qualities. Yes, I can make an effort and move myself from position 99 to position 27 up the ladder, but the job may be just 1. Regardless of how you look at it and who exactly gets hired there will be just 1 hired person and 98 unemployed.

You're right about the 1 and 98. That's a very difficult situation for 97 people, for sure.

I just think where the issue gets clouded is in the thinking we need to give up our identity, or "sense of self" in order to fit into other social or work situations (and I'd argue that most work situations are also largely social situations).

As a person who has hired many people, I can tell you that I will go for the person I think I can work with over the person who has greater skills but will be more difficult to work with 7 days of the week. And "difficult" doesn't in any way mean to imply that the person is doing anything wrong. There are a hundred things that make a person "difficult". It could be language, it could be habits, it could be inflexibility, it could be distractions, it could be odor! In all those cases, there's nothing "wrong" with the person.

The reason is simple: almost always, it's much easier to teach person skills than it is to change work habits, language, personality, etc. Because a person with the right attitude can do anything, and will learn whatever (s)he need to know to do the job right.

That's why demonstrating a "can-do" spirit and a "will-do" attitude will take you miles further than particular skillset, in my humble opinion.

Part of that spirit and attitude is showing that you'll take the steps you need to to fit in to that work environment.

Does that mean anyone's expecting you to give up your sense of culture or self? Not at all. They just want to be able to work with you.

 

[qwerbilzak]

On other hand I met so many Indian, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Lebaneses, Dubai based South Asians (including Bangladeshis) etc all regretted coming to Canada as they left better opportunity (like lesser or no tax systems, better infrastructure & services in Middle East, luxury life etc). I saw many professionals including University professors and doctors etc working as care giving, serving in McDonald's, taxi drivers and house keeping at the hotels. I cannot even write what some others were doing ...

If it's so much worse in Canada, why do these people come? No one's promised them a Canadian paradise. If it's so terrible, why come?

 

[fromdubai]

If it's so much worse in Canada, why do these people come? No one's promised them a Canadian paradise. If it's so terrible, why come?

You are correct, I asked the same question from them - different people were still staying for different reason, Lebanese guys were staying until they get citizenship (Lebanon is having high risk of war, and during war time in such place, all commercial planes halts, NATO country can easily take their citizens by military plane to safer place, so basically they wanted for this), the doctor who was taxi driver was waiting for his exams so he can get Canadian registration (he has been driver since 3 years), the care giver is nurse - caregiver program it is most easy way to come to Canada so she had to stick to conditional temporary residency and then meanwhile wait to get her qualification for registration, met one young girl doing PhD and working part time as house keep in hotel (so she could earn as cost of living was higher than her parents expected), one University professor was just waiting (unemployed for 3 years) to get Canadian citizenship so he could move to USA for working in Florida another guy sold his home in India and moved to Canada one year ago from Middle East, he did not have enough money to reallocate back in middle east stating that he did not have enough saving to get return ticket.

The list is long ...... everyone had some story. As I told earlier, grass looks greener on other side. Outside Canada I see people eager to migrate to Canada. Inside Canada I saw people eager to migrate somewhere else. Maybe its human psychology to desire what they do not have and not appreciate what they have in hand.

 

[qwerbilzak]

You are correct, I asked the same question from them - different people were still staying for different reason, Lebanese guys were staying until they get citizenship (Lebanon is having high risk of war, and during war time in such place, all commercial planes halts, NATO country can easily take their citizens by military plane to safer place, so basically they wanted for this), the doctor who was taxi driver was waiting for his exams so he can get Canadian registration (he has been driver since 3 years), the care giver is nurse - caregiver program it is most easy way to come to Canada so she had to stick to conditional temporary residency and then meanwhile wait to get her qualification for registration, met one young girl doing PhD and working part time as house keep in hotel (so she could earn as cost of living was higher than her parents expected), one University professor was just waiting (unemployed for 3 years) to get Canadian citizenship so he could move to USA for working in Florida another guy sold his home in India and moved to Canada one year ago from Middle East, he did not have enough money to reallocate back in middle east stating that he did not have enough saving to get return ticket.

The list is long ...... everyone had some story. As I told earlier, grass looks greener on other side. Outside Canada I see people eager to migrate to Canada. Inside Canada I saw people eager to migrate somewhere else. Maybe its human psychology to desire what they do not have and not appreciate what they have in hand.

Fascinating.

Thanks.

 

[BobbyB]

(not Maybe) It is human psychology to desire what they do not have and not appreciate what they have in hand. (until otherwise..... However, having said that, it is also human nature and normal to see people trying to seek betterment too, and that involves taking risks. )