Grace Yu took a big hit to her career -- and her confidence -- when she first moved to British Columbia from China in 2003.
Her foreign credentials as a mechanical engineer proved of little value to Canadian employers, and a lack of fluency in English a major barrier to landing related professional work.
It would take her another two years of strategic networking, language study and career retraining before she finally found success as a realtor, a job she happily continues today.
"It wasn't easy," Yu said of her immigration experience.
Yet, through it all, she never lost her sense of optimism and an unshakable belief things will work out.
"[You have to] be positive ... that is the most important thing," she said.
Turns out, Yu couldn't be more right.
New research from the University of B.C. has found that a "can-do" attitude is the single biggest factor in a newcomer's ability to achieve career success in Canada -- more influential than a person's professional skills, education and previous work experience.
The findings of the report, entitled Secrets to Success, were released Wednesday by UBC psychology professor Normal Amundson, in partnership with the Vancouverbased immigrant support group SUCCESS.
Yu was among 20 people, all immigrants, interviewed for the project over the last year.
Participants (10 men, 10 women between 20 and 45 years) were split into two groups: those who arrived in Canada within the past one to 10 years and those who've been in Canada more than 10 years.
All were professionally employed within the Metro Vancouver area for at least three months and considered themselves to be successful.
Amundson, an expert in employment-related issues, said the report is not intended as a statistical study.
Rather, it's meant to provide an accurate picture of what it takes to get ahead in a new country.
"It's a valuable approach to study people who have managed somehow, some way to find their way through the [immigration] transition," he said.
Notably, 95 per cent of participants said the starting point for any newcomer is having a strong drive to succeed.
Confidence, persistence, discipline and ability to maintain a good attitude in all situations were repeatedly mentioned throughout the interviews.
This positive approach was enhanced through learning (education), networking within the community and by a willingness to take risks and be flexible.
Many participants said that temporary work -- including internship programs, practicum programs and volunteer jobs with non-profit organizations -- helped them to better understand Canadian work culture, improve their communication skills and gain confidence.
Of those interviewed, most, 85 per cent, also commented on the usefulness of having job skills that are in demand before coming to Canada.
Timothy Chen, an IT technician with Vancity who joined Yu and others on the panel Wednesday, said he quit his managerial job at a computer company in China years before he immigrated in a deliberate effort to develop more transferable skills.
By the time he was ready to move in 2006, he'd already landed a good job in Vancouver.
"Being prepared is very important to surviving," he said.
Thomas Tam, CEO of SUCCESS said the results of the report have broad implications for Canada, which relies heavily on skilled immigrants to fill anticipated labour shortages and sustain productivity.
"New immigrants are not a liability to this country. New immigrants are assets, with their new knowledge, new expertise they bring with them from their original country," Tam said.
Amundson called the report "a good start," adding researchers are keen to expand the study's scope to a larger group of immigrants.
There's interest, too, in examining immigration success from the perspective of employers.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg," he said.
Read more:
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Attitude+everything+immigrant+career+success/3915634/story.html#ixzz16za0ATNM
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