Expat Partner and Family
Identifying the issues for families in global transition is key.
- Understanding how to help families cope with moving and living abroad ?
The partner and family are often overlooked in traditional relocation support services. They face probably the BIGGEST challenges including.
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The Spouse’s career is put on hold.
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The Family goes from dual to single income.
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The Spouse becomes a ‘home-maker’ often unwillingly.
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The Children are unsettled by school and culture moves.
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The Spouse and Family receive little or no support from the Assignees company.
Our focus for the Partner and Family is about resilience & happiness. The following modules are examples of specific concerns, or relate to key stages associated with spending a period of your life in a different country and culture.
“My partner only started to work with Alison when the stresses on the children were beyond the level either of us wanted to be at. The difference in confidence and ability to cope, when you understand the processes and what you can do about it, reminds you what matters.” - IT Director, Portugal
Who am I now? – Maintaining your Unique Identity as an Expat Partner.
A coaching-led programme designed to counter the most common problem faced by Spouses who have put their career on hold to make the move work for their partner (and family).
You will:
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Gain an understanding of what is important and achievable at this stage in your life. Set realistic goals for yourself during the assignment.
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Explore and assess all the options available to you for moving forward on your terms.
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Determine your way forward and begin with the support of your coach.
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Access the wider peer support of like-minded expat Spouses who accompany you through the programme and beyond.
Stay or Go ? – Helping you make the decision
Designed to provide the tools and guidance you need to make a good, informed decision for you and your family.
You will:
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Define success – What do you and your family need to make the move happy and fulfilling? Assess if this is achievable.
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Is it worth it? - Understand the challenges and opportunities presented by your relocation.
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Collect the relevant facts, acknowledge how each of you feel and check your gut reactions.
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Make a clear, informed decision to move or stay.
Relocation Ready – Getting your family ready to leave well.
An on-line workshop and workbook that goes beyond traditional practical guides and includes vitally important mental preparation and emotional support checklists and activities.
You will:
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Gain an understanding of how the transition you’re about to go through will impact your resilience. Find out how to reduce this impact.
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Analyse your current and future support networks to find significant gaps and have a plan to strengthen them.
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Take appropriate actions to leave and say “goodbye” positively.
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Have an arrival plan so that you can hit the ground running.
Relocation-proof Relationship –
Survive extra relationship challenges
and come out stronger as a couple.
A workshop programme with coaching, that identifies you and your partners patterns for interacting and coping during stressful situations. Gives you proven strategies for communicating and resolving issues more effectively.
You will both:
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Identify the helpful and unhelpful ways that you communicate with each other.
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Find out how your conflicts escalate and how to resolve them.
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Build empathy by understanding of how to see the situation from the other’s point of view.
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Learn the theories behind effective relationship behaviours and put them into practice.
Going Home – Prepare for a happy repatriation
An on-line workshop designed to prepare you for the commonly overlooked part of most overseas assignments.
You will:
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Learn the typical assumptions expats make about repatriation and how to prepare for the reality of going home.
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Assess how much you’ve changed culturally and the impact this will have on how you ‘fit’ in your home country.
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Reconnect with old support networks and widen them to accommodate your new needs.
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Have an repatriation plan so that you can come home without feeling lost.
Resilient Expat Partner – From surviving through to thriving
A workshop specifically designed to put your personal resilience at the core of your plan for thriving as a successful and happy expatriate partner. This workshop is based on the proven and popular Resilience Doughnut ™ model.
You will:
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Understand what resilience is and how it is impacted by a major move.
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Understand the relationship between resilience, wellbeing, mental health and happiness.
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Recognise the common features of resilient expatriates.
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Assess your current strongest resources using The Resilience Doughnut.
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Understand how maintaining, strengthening and connecting your strongest resources will improve your ability to cope during your relocation overseas.
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Maintain a sense of self as you move from one country to another.
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Create a meaningful life in a new country.
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Build a new support network faster.
Third Culture Kids - Advantages and challenges for Resilient Expat kids
A workshop specifically designed to enhance your child’s resilience during their overseas move and to establish a strengths-based approach to parenting your child going forward. This workshop is based on the proven and popular Resilience Doughnut ™ model.
This will enable you to:
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Understand what resilience is and why it is essential for kids who move country.
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Recognise the common features of resilient and happy expat kids.
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Assess their current strongest resources using The Resilience Doughnut.
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Understand how maintaining, strengthening and connecting their strongest resources will improve their ability to cope during your family’s relocation overseas.
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Help them to strengthen their identity in their cross-cultural world.
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Create an action plan to help them feel at home in the new host country.
In addition to the above examples the majority public events scheduled in the Lisbon area are focussed on themes and issues relevant to the Expat Spouse and Family. They provide a very accessible and low cost way to find out more:
You may be interested in our Executive support or requesting an Organisational Programme:
Executive Assignee Coaching Programmes – Hit the Ground Running, Expat On Track, Hit the Ground Running - Repatriation.
Organisational programmes – Aligned Assignment, Engaged Returnees.