Mijra's Lunch

One year, it’s the time people expect me to be back to Montreal already. Yet, we are still here, and life gives me a surprising side that I never expected to see and feel. Let’s take it to the first time I moved here. It was August 2018, half crying and half excited, I packed two suit cases and flied to Stockholm to join Syed in the new city. Nobody at home took me seriously, colleagues at work all told me that I will be back again. I loved PSP sooo much, I wanted to stay there forever if I could. It was investment management, it was the best company to work for in finance on the Montreal island. 

Stockholm is a beautiful city, I jogged every day around the Lake Mälaren, it was such a nice time break off from work and be able to enjoy life to do something I wished for long time, just do sport everyday, I was conscious that my physics were very weak. Not knowing anyone and anywhere in the new city made me feel lonely. It was the summer when all countries in the world are selling out their air conditioner. I missed home so much, and write to people I knew constantly, posted lots of pictures just to tell them how am I doing, and was scared that they didn’t answer or forget about me. 

Job hunting, without a job, without knowing Swedish, was stressful. I wanted a contract for few months I couldn’t even get it. Nobody or recruiters answered me back at all. 

Nordea, the best financial institution in the Nordic’s to work for replied, and regulatory reporting took me in. I came right at the time when the bank changed from FSA to ECB, the team was recruiting. The office reminded me of of PSP. 

Working in Nordea was a brand new experience, I think the luckiest thing for me to have is a great management team, life would not be the same without them. I started to realize that I’d don’t have to stress when I am off work or at work, everyone takes stress as a transparent topic, and they help to manage and does not put it back to you, or it’s more objective to say, it's a collective effort. One of their goal of performance is whether you are still having fun at work, and if you are supported to improve. 

Syed said, that what I had work was a great thing that happened to me, I started with Pillar 3, the flat structure, a leader who believed that for an international hire, the best thing to start is to give me lots to do. I couldn’t agree more, and I couldn’t kept repeating that I wanted to do more. 

The adventure, as my Canadian friends call it, it started with the work in Nordea. First few months though, I felt like riding a roller coaster in a movie, though the happy part was the tolerant culture and the learning curve, I sometimes took it maybe a bit dramatic, oh well, at times, I felt challenged and depressed about the changes, from work as well as in life. Yet, it does not change the fact that, after 8 months of being here, I told Mirja that this is the happiest work I ever had, though the journey started with part of me being resistant, because I had back in Montreal. But going to work was the happiest thing I felt, I didn’t have problem waking up, I finish work and came back home after another fun day at work. I was impressed by everything here, the automation, the productivity, the people managers, and the flat organization. 

If there is anything I needed to fullfill in the international experience, I’d say having the happiest job would be the best gain among all. It’s typical of Nordic, where people are known to live the happiest life on earth. Other than the social security and high standard of living, what made them living this way is also the mentality, people prioritize life to be happy. Be with family, and have fun at work. 

Hakunamatata, it’s an African expression, it means no worries, all will be good,from the book Lagom, the Swedish way of living. And I d say, be cool, and be ok, you are at the one of the best place probably in your life, and it will change you for better.