Global Careers

Originally Published: March 8, 2011

This International Women’s Day, I’m looking back on a blog that I wrote 15 years ago, debunking the most common myths about women working abroad. My overseas assignment helped fast track my career, and I’ve coached other women through the experience. As I look back on my career, my time spent working in Hong Kong led to incredible growth in my seniority, compensation, and leadership skills at Burson and then Unilever. The experience also helped me pivot from corporate executive to author and thought leader on the topic ofglobal careers, which found me taking another curve to founder of a nonprofit, Open Mindset Project. It’s been quite a ride.

And yes, my husband moved with me and reinvented himself as a travel writer who, by now, has published more than 500 travel articles on 50+countries.

I’m curious if these myths are still around. If they are, I’m going to continue celebrating women who made the leap, beat the odds, andhave been richly rewarded with a fast-tracked career. Higher pay raises, faster promotions, and increased responsibility are just a few reasons to hop on thenext plane to Santiago, Stockholm, or Shanghai. Plus, it’s a whole lot of fun.

Global Professionals on the Move 2011 surveyed 2,637professional women, and ALL of them said they would recommend working abroad.

Wow — and the research that my co-author, Perry Yeatman, and I conducted in 2007 for our book, Get Ahead By Going Abroad, found similarly strong results. The vastmajority of the globetrotting women we surveyed agreed: 85% stated that goingoverseas accelerated their careers, and 78% saw a significant positive impacton compensation. Going abroad didn’t just contribute to their organizationaladvancement, 95% of women said their experience made them better leaders andmanagers. The vast majority (83%) also said they would advise other women to goabroad to advance their careers.

And it’s not just in traditional careers. In 2025, there wasan increase in women over 40 adopting digital nomadism, combining remote workwith travel and living in different countries. DemandSage’s data shows that 43%of the 40 million global digital nomads are women.

However, when I speak to professional women at all levelsacross various industries, I still hear many reasons why women think they can’twork abroad. I continually advocate to dispel these myths because the evidenceshows that working internationally is probably the single greatest opportunityfor women to fast-track their careers. Going global deserves a serious look.

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In honor of all the women who have seized their own successagainst so many odds over the last 100 years, here are the original ten mythsassociated with why women can’t go abroad – and my rebuttal proving thatthey’re wrong.

Myth #1: Women don’t do as well as men overseas.

Fact: On the contrary, studies indicate that womenpossess traits deemed critical in cross-cultural situations, such as styleflexing, skill at building teams and relationships, communication skills,patience and persistence, and an open-minded approach to diverse and differentcircumstances.

Myth #2: Women aren’t accepted as equals in internationalbusiness circles.

Fact: The international marketplace appreciates top-notch skills; gender doesn’t usually come into play. Some countries, of course, do not treat women as equals; each country must be assessed individually, however, and doing your homework is another critical component tosuccess. The vast majority of women who work abroad agree that if you are goodat what you do, you will be accepted in international business circles as a professional first.

Myth #3: It’s only for young/junior professionals.

Fact: Going abroad works at any stage or age in awoman’s professional’s career — it just does so in different ways. If you arejunior, you may have less ties and therefore more flexibility. If you aremiddle management, you can jumpstart a stalled career or accelerate an alreadybrilliant one. If you are senior, you may have the opportunity to manage alarge-scale P&L or regional team, responsibility you may need to make thelast leap to executive management — or simply round out your career with an internationalassignment.

Myth #4: I can’t go; I’m married.

Fact: While taking a spouse overseas with you undoubtedly complicates matters, it can be done. Of the 200 professionals surveyed, a full 40% were married. Spouses find jobs upon arrival, reinventtheir careers (as my husband did in Hong Kong), do not work, and, a trend we’reseeing on the rise, ask to be transferred by their company as a fellow expat. However, there is no doubt that living abroad can put stress on a marriage. Forboth men and women, an unhappy spouse is cited as the most common reason why internationalassignments fail.

Myth #5: I can’t go; I have children.

Fact: If having children hasn’t stopped your career so far, an international move shouldn’t prove to be any more challenging. In fact, many women who lived overseas with children found maternity leave to be more generous and childcare better and more affordable, thus enabling them to focus more on their jobs. In general, the younger the children, the lesscomplicated and disruptive the move will be. Raising global children in across-cultural environment may be one of the most beneficial things you can dofor them in these increasingly global times.

Myth #6: I don’t speak a second language.

Fact: While language skills significantly enhance theoverall overseas experience, they’re not mandatory in all markets (theexception is English in the United States and the UK). If you don’t speak asecond language, what cross-cultural skills do you have, and what value do youbring to the business? Your technical skills, management experience, orin-depth knowledge of your company or industry should outweigh the need forlanguage skills. With that said, whether you have a working knowledge of thelocal language or not, plan to study once you get there.

Myth #7: My market is the most important, fastest-growingplace for business.

Fact: Whether you are in a sophisticated market like the U.S. or U.K., or in an explosive market like China, India or Brazil, multi-market experience is essential to understanding the global marketplace. Some professionals mistakenly think their market is “it”, but then a few yearspass, currencies devalue and a new sleeping giant begins to wake up. The bottomline: Multi-market experience is critical to global growth.

Myth #8: It’s not necessary in my field or industry.

Fact: The breadth and depth of the global economy isastounding. Previously professionals thought only certain industries orprofessions needed to go global. Not true. Businesses compete at every leveland across various markets. Constant technological advancements coupled withthe booming growth in developing markets demand that almost every professionalunderstands how to tap the global economy for sustained growth – possibly evensurvival 20 years from now.

Myth #9: Out of site, out of mind.

Fact: Perhaps the most compelling of the commonlygiven reasons for staying home is that leaving the center of the action —headquarters — creates a fear of being forgotten. However, opportunities aboundto distinguish yourself for greater recognition and increased responsibilities.Your accomplishments will differentiate you, but you must network and find amentor to help you leverage this success to greater gains back home.

Myth #10: Such transfers are few and far between.

Fact: While international assignments are competitiveand tough to land, there are plenty out there and the numbers are on the rise —just don’t expect the expat packages of the past. Companies recognize theimportance of international experience and realize the best way to get it iscreating a global workforce.

Do you have any more to add?

Originallyappeared on Huffington Post

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