Many of us are lured by the exotic beauty and enchanting landscape of continental China. You could also find yourself traveling here to learn about the traditional culture, the business environment and how people manage to live their daily lives. Starting a new life whether it be teaching English at a local school, start a business enterprise or even study the language. Whatever the reasons there are a few things you should know about the past experiences of individuals just like yourself who have ventured to the middle kingdom.

The Three Options Available to You

Landing a job in China involves three basic options. The first being, come here and look for a job yourself. Secondly, come here as a student or research fellow, work hard and vigorously engage in networking and you may get a job offer. Thirdly, get a job in your home country that will relocate you to China. To succeed in this path, you usually must have previous work experience or education.

The Challenges You Face

The Z-Visa: You’ll most likely find yourself living in either Beijing or Shanghai or perhaps one of the interior cities such as Chongqing or Chengdu. Whichever city you find yourself, it’s imperative to procure your visa and residence permit and avoid having a tourist or non-working visa. If you have one of these visas, you’ll find yourself regularly dealing with visa problems and other paperwork, which is very inconvenient if you have a steady job.

You may have to strike an agreement to have a 30-day visa stay in Shanghai and travel to Hong Kong every month until you manage to get the job you need to stay permanently in the country.

“Eating Bitterness” The ability to make sacrifices in the short term to gain long term success. This is the only way to succeed in getting a job in China. The industrious foreigners who work hard in the short term to gain long-term rewards stay in that country. Others who fail to make sacrifices in the short term often find themselves heading home prematurely and usually find it very difficult to make it back a second time. It’s not just about making sacrifices but making the right sacrifices for the right reasons.

Living It Up Will Cost You: It’s very easy to get carried away by the excitement of social functions that go on in China, and the best of intentions can dissipate into nothing. Many people find themselves adopting unhealthy lifestyles and time will catch up with them. Sometimes it takes people a while to realize how much time and money they wasted on drinking and partying.

The Opportunities That Present Themselves

Taking Part in the Entrepreneurial Ring of Fire: The dynamic entrepreneurial life of the big cities make it likely that you can find employment with a small or medium sized business. It’s even likely that your mastering of the language (Mandarin) will win you credit, but your personal acumen may just win you a place. Learning the language takes a lot of time and patience to master.

Going with the Flow: This may perhaps be your best bet in coming to grips with the issues that you’ll confront. You need to be alert at all times and use your sixth or even your seventh sense to cope with every-day situations, like improvising when you want to eat something but can’t read the menu. You’ll gain respect for your efforts and become more confident.

Tactics to Use to Ensure Success

Stay Clear of the HR Department: You will be doing yourself more harm than good if you make contact with them.

Stay in Contact with Expats: You will get more help from the expat community in the cities than you’ll get anywhere else. They’ve been where you are now and are more willing to help you.

If you keep the above information in mind, you can be assured of a successful stay in any city in China, and you may end up being a success in whatever venture you decide to follow.

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