Skills to learn BEFORE moving to Canada
Are you moving to Canada? First of all, Congratulations
Before you make the move, you need to be prepared. And in this video, we’re talking about essential skills that you have to learn before moving to Canada. Let’s go!
In the era of AI and digital everything 🤖
It is really important to know how to search for things, especially if you move into another country. How do you get your social insurance number? What kind of visa can I get? What do I do if I want to get a job in that country? But what if I need to renew my work permit?
And if you move into Canada for studying, trust me, self-study plays a major role in your whole academic success. So you will need to search for many different things, searching for information and then working with it. Meaning. Analyzing. Presenting even is really important.
Presenting things 🎤
If you’re planning to move to Canada, and speaking of presenting things, the next skillless presentation. It doesn’t matter if you move into Canada for studying, for work, or just for life, you need to be able to present things, including yourself.
Presenting is not only speaking to a person, it’s also presenting your ideas, convincing people maybe, but also it’s crucial for effective communication. Being able to articulate your thoughts ensures that the message is understood and well received, reducing the chances of misunderstanding.
If you’re looking for a job in Canada, you will need to present yourself. You need to be able to sell yourself because nobody cares about your job experience, about anything, if you cannot sell yourself, and that is really important. But if you’re studying in Canada again, presentations play a big role in the curriculum. When I was in college, we would have presentations in every class. So this skill you might want to practice before moving to Canada.
Networking opportunities 🤝
Whether you’re attending conferences, events, or job markets again, you will need to be able to present yourself and sell yourself to potential employers.
Canada is a bilingual country! 🇨🇦
So you might as well want to speak one of the official languages, which are English and French. If you’re planning to live in Quebec, French—just focus on French, trust me. But even if you’re not planning to live in Quebec, if you’re planning to come to Canada and stay, learn French. You’ll get those extra points in your express entry profile.
Shoutout to Lingua 💻
And if you are not new to this site, you know I’m big friends with Lingua, and it’s Black Friday, guys! Lingua is having a sale, and if I were you, I would use that chance to brush up on my language skills. Lingua is an online school that teaches you how to actually speak the language. The classes are flexible and convenient. You can pick topics of your classes. You can choose time and place. If you want to learn English from your bedroom, sure, go for it. Lingua is home to more than 1500 certified teachers, meaning those people have some qualifications, they are not just native speakers.
What I really love about Lingua is that the classes are really small—up to five people—and you actually have a chance to learn the language, not just passively listen to the rest of the group talking, but actively participate in the class. Lingua teaches English, Business English, French, German, Spanish. So if you move into Canada, you can take the English or French classes. Happy Learning!
Learn how to drive 🚗
Another skill to learn before moving to Canada is learning how to drive. Depending on where you decide to move in Canada, it might be actually crucial to have a driver’s license. While public transport is available in the majority of places in Canada, if you decide to live in rural Canada, you might need a car to move yourself around.
Again, depending on the job that you are doing, you might need the driver’s license, but also, you might get access to more opportunities because you have the driver’s license. If you want to get like an extra job, some extra money before the holidays, you can always work for Uber, Lyft, Doordash. I’m not sure if we have Doordash in Canada anyway—deliveries, like anything. I feel like with the driver’s license you can easily find a job.
But also, if you have a family or you’re moving to Canada with your partner, a driver’s license and a car can be really beneficial for you because you can drive to places, go on teeny tiny road trips, go hiking and stuff like that. And the best part is that you can get your driver’s license from your country, come to Canada, and exchange it. But for that, you will need skill number one, which is research. Googling things—you need to Google which countries have agreements with Canada so you can actually come and exchange it.
My experience 🛣️
That’s what I did because when I moved to Canada, I had already had four or five years of driving experience. So I just exchanged my driver’s license for one in Ontario. And this is very important—they might ask you to take the road test because they cannot just like blindly exchange your license.
In Ontario, I had to take the road test, but then I moved to Quebec, and in Quebec, we have only one type of license: learners and the actual one. So they just exchanged it for the normal one, and that’s it.
But you also have an option of going to a driving school in Canada when you move. If let’s say you move in—I don’t know, next month, maybe in two months—you don’t have time to get a driver’s license in your home country. You can always take classes in Canada and then get your driver’s license.
Small talk is important ☕
The next skill is super important, especially if you’re moving to North America, especially if you’re moving to Canada, and it is small talk. Some people love it, some people hate it, but the thing is you have to master small talk because, well, if you want to live in Canada, you need to small talk with people.
Small talk is literally used everywhere—at your workplace, in college, at home, anywhere you go. Even if you go to Starbucks to get that Pumpkin Spice Latte, there’s gonna be small talk. The barista is going to ask you, “Hey, how’s it going? How’s your day?” and you have to reply back, you know? So, you can’t escape the small talk.
I feel like small talk contributes to a positive environment. It’s super nice to be nice to people, I guess. Even in a professional field, it’s really important to small talk because you never know who the person you’re talking to is. Whether you’re attending a conference, a work event again, small talk can help you meet people, and those people—you never know—maybe they’ll help you find a job.
Financial literacy 💵
The next skill that you absolutely need to master is financial literacy. And it doesn’t matter if you’re moving to Canada, or if you’re not moving to Canada, that’s a skill everybody should learn. If you move into Canada, you need to understand how banking works, how your credit score works, how you can get a mortgage, how to save money, you know, all that kind of stuff. This will help you manage your finances effectively, especially in a new country.
Financial literacy equips people with the knowledge and skills needed to manage personal finance, and that includes budgeting, saving, investing, making decisions on this or that matter, and much more, especially if you’re planning to stay in Canada long term.
Cultural awareness 🌍
The next skill might take some time to get used to, and it is cultural awareness. Canada is a very diverse country with people from all around the world. Honestly, Canada is the land of immigrants. There are so many people from so many different backgrounds, and you’re becoming a part of it.
You need to be polite, and you need to be aware of people around you. If you want to learn more about Canadian culture, you can always participate in local events. You can read some literature. You can talk to your neighbors and be like, “Hey, how’s it going? I just moved here.”
Final thoughts ✨
My piece of advice would be: approach new experiences with an open mind. If you move into Canada, you need to be willing to learn and adapt and avoid any assumptions or judgment. By learning these skills before you move to Canada, I guarantee you success in this country. If you’re planning to move to Canada, I am wishing you all the best of luck! I hope the move goes smoothly and I’ll see you guys next day.
Bye!!!
