March 2024 | Written by – Ariel Slaughter
What do marketing, architecture, copy writing, and design all have in common? They are all creative fields where fluency in Dutch is preferred. When you come from abroad with these backgrounds it can feel like an uphill climb with no end in sight to reach the Dutch labour market. Sonal Joshi from Talent100 Edition III knows that all too well. Her story is one where networking, positivity, and tenacity paid off.
Expectation vs Reality
When Sonal, an accessory, textile, and fashion designer from India, first moved to Eindhoven she didn’t really think she’d had trouble landing something in her field. Afterall, her creations have walked the runways of New York Fashion Week, and she had years of freelance experience under her belt. “Before coming to the Netherlands, I thought that ‘oh, I have been freelancing for two years, so it wouldn’t be very difficult to find a job.’ But the reality hit quite soon, in like two weeks after I moved.”
Undeterred, Sonal had already started building her up her personal network both inside and outside the creative world. It was a time when she was trying new things and connecting with as many people as possible:
“One of the groups I met in my field was the International Creative Women. I also used to go to the improv [night], and they used to have games. I did not make any friends over there, but the two hours I spent at the improv were amazing. I was a very shy person, but then when I came here, nobody knew me, so I kind of had to open up.”
No Time to Settle In
During this time is also when she first encountered the Expat Spouses Initiative (ESI).
“I was just saying hi to everyone who had a stall [at an event] and ESI [was there] …What I liked about ESI was how focused they are about the career of internationals, especially spouses. Many internationals are like my partner. He came to the Netherlands and then he had two years to settle in. That was not the case for me and for many other spouses. We don’t have the time to settle in.”
Being financial independent was very important to Sonal, so she took a job at Primark on a whim. “I walked into Primark and there was a table with a box [to put applications in]. I didn’t think about it all. So, when they called me back, I thought, ‘why not?’” Gaining financial independence is a huge motivation for many other spouses who left their careers to facilitate the international move and career of their partners.
Career Building with ESI and Talent100
Between joining the Talent100 program, working at Primark, her freelance jobs, she also found time to volunteer and network with other creatives. “I like being busy or I feel more channelized when I am busy. That is why when I was volunteering with ESI or working at Primark and doing my freelance, that that was a very comfortable busyness for me.”
Talent100 is a program combines years of knowledge and know-how of the Expat Spouses Initiative, the Living In program of the Holland Expat Center South and Huis Naar Werk to accelerate internationals towards meaningful work in the Dutch labour market. Over the course of three months and through variety of workshops including goal setting, personal branding, and CV writing taught by experts, Talent100 program participants emerge from the program with all the skills they need to reach their professional goals.
Talent100 helped Sonal in so many ways! “It helped me a lot with my resume and writing motivation letters. And it wasn’t only helpful because what the coaches said, but also the experiences of my peers helped me a lot.”
Success At Last
After months of juggling multiple commitments, it all paid off when Sonal landed a job as a Design and Sales Engineer for a small company in Beek! “The first interview was in mid-December, and the second interview happened after a trial assignment in January. In the middle of the second interview, they offered me a job.”
Sonal credits the Expat Spouses Initiative for helping her get there:
“ESI gave me confidence and a path. I was pretty much lost on which direction to [take]. It showed me the right direction. But if I had any doubts or any questions about any process, then I could ask you guys. You were always very helpful and there. Also, the community itself. When I meet other internationals, it gives me someone to share my story with or someone to boost my confidence.”
Career Building Tips for Creatives
Sonal recommends other in creative fields take similar steps to build their profiles in the Netherlands.
Find Other Creatives
“It is good to join as many creative clubs around as possible. There are things like Creative Breakfast, the Urban Sketchers groups. Facebook is full of groups for creatives. It helps you expand your network of people who are working in a creative field and those who aren’t in a creative field, but who know people.”
Volunteer
“Volunteering is a very great option. Whenever I would go to an interview, and say I was contributing to the ESI Instagram account or when I showed them the ESI t-shirts [I designed for the 2023 ASML Marathon Eindhoven], then [the interviewers] could feel a certain confidence about me.”
Get Involved in City Events
“There are a lot of events also specific to internationals pieces for creative internationals. And there are museums and clubs. Join them as much as possible. It is difficult to break into the creative field and to start your chain, but it will eventually happen.”
With the right amount of determination, and a pinch of luck any professional with a creative background can continue their professional journey in the Netherlands. Of course, the Expat Spouses Initiative is always on hand to guide internationals on their road to meaningful employment.
Author Profile
A natural storyteller and aficionado of the written word, Ariel Slaughter works as a freelance writer and editor. She has a dual Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Rhetoric and Japanese Literature and Language from the University of Pittsburgh as well as a Master’s of Arts in International Relations from the International University of Japan.