Don't be afraid to be a risk taker!

I am sure that at some point in our lives, we have all been presented with an opportunity that required some level of risk in order to reach the end goal, right? Something came to mind for you just now, didn't it?

Well let me tell you all, my wonderful readers, of how when presented with an opportunity to make a HUGE turnaround of my life, how I did whatever was necessary to make it happen. Risks? What risks? Sometimes you have to just bite the bullet, give yourself a little pep talk, and make things happen.

Now, I don't quite remember when exactly I had started looking at jobs in Canada. Remember I had mentioned in one of my previous posts that I moved back home when I was about four months pregnant? Well, I was living in Toronto with Sapphyre's dad, things didn't work out, I moved back home, gave birth to Sapphyre and then I began feeling stuck. I felt stuck because I wasn't happy in my place of employment and I began to feel as if I had wasted $100,000 (the cost of my university education as an international student).

Upon graduating from Acadia, I made sure to apply for my post-graduate work permit. The work permit was valid for three years and once the time had passed, you either needed to move into permanent resident status or return home to your home country.

So let's just say it was August 2013 when I really started considering moving back to Canada. My work permit was set to expire in 18 months and so I needed to act quickly if I wanted to really relocate. I posted my resume' on this website called Indeed and waited for some company, ANY company, to take the bait so I could get an interview.

Now, what I did with my resume' was I placed a Canadian address and phone number on there and made sure to note that I was legally able to work in Canada. The number I used belonged to my friend Renee (I still so appreciate you for doing this for me!). So over the course of the next few weeks, the fish began to take the bait and employers would call Renee's phone (of course thinking it was my number) to schedule a call back as the first part of the interview process.

And so, of course I am not in Canada, I am in the Bahamas, so what Renee would do is let the calls go to voicemail, or sometimes she would answer and tell them I was not there at the moment, and then she would call me and give me the phone number and details of the person to contact to get things going. It was a crazy time! There were companies who saw that I had experience in sales who were really interested in talking to me and so I spent LOTS of time from that point having telephone interviews.

I remember quite vividly, the day I had my phone interview with HR personnel from TD insurance. I was super nervous, but the interview went so well that I was offered an in-person interview right then, that would take place in the about two weeks. Now, the problem here was, where was I going to find the money to go to Canada for an interview?What if I didn't get the job? I was a single mother and the thought of "wasting" money without the expected outcome of why I was spending the money in the first place, was frightening.

But, I decided this was the first step I needed to take and that I shouldn't let the enemy place thoughts of self-doubt in my mind. Do you guys know what I did to pay for my ticket to go for my interview? I sold my Macbook Pro that I had just purchased a year prior. And, because I couldn't get the exact price I wanted for it (you know, with bargaining with Bahamians and all), I had to settle for about $200 less than what I wanted, and make do. This meant, I was going to Canada for about a week, with $100 of spending money and that was about it. This all happened in November.

One thing I did though that I am proud of, is that I scheduled two in-person interviews within the same week, with two different companies I decided I would enjoy working for if I was offered the job. So the time came for me to leave, and my sister (thank goodness for you, for real!) took care of Sapphyre for me while I was gone; I wasn't able to leave her with any money either for Sapphyre as I was already strapped for cash.

This is why I opened this blog stating that sometimes there are so many things we have to consider before we make any decision, so many risks we must take and we wonder if in the long run it'll be worth the sacrifice; but, let me tell you that if you decide to dwell on it for too long, you would say to yourself "Oh, well there's next time" and you miss out on so many opportunities and so many blessings from God.

Anyways, let's continue...sorry for going off track there!

Alright, so both interviews went well and I was offered the job by both companies but decided to go with TD insurance!

Now, between that moment and the moment I left The Bahamas in January, I had to secure an apartment, via e-mail, and ensure I had funds for our airline ticket to get to Canada, and funds to get our life started. I am still surprised to this day that I was able to get everything put in place!

In January 2014, Sapphyre and I was packed up and ready to move to Canada, and as you guys have already read, it wasn't an easy beginning for us, but today, we are both permanent residents of Canada and will be eligible for citizenship in 2018!

God has been so good to us and he continues to show up for us when we need Him the most. Now, had I become accustomed to the feeling of being "stuck", had I let self-doubt dictate my next move, I would not have taken the first steps of applying for a job and making the necessary sacrifices I needed to in order to come for my interview and change mine and Sapphyre's life around!

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