19/12/2025
…you guessed it. I did it anyway.
The thing is, they didn’t just doubt my English…they doubted ME.
And (unfortunately) I know this experience is not limited to me. As migrants, we’ve heard it all before…
👉🏻’Do you have experience working in NZ?’
👉🏻’Do you have any local references’
👉🏻 ‘We’re looking for a native speaker.’
But, like the comment I received from my former boss, we have to keep going anyway. Despite what they may say.
In my case, I made a plan, I built a portfolio, and I pitched myself. A few years later, I was able to quit my job to become a full-time writer. And not just a full-time writer, I eventually built a thriving copywriting business with global clients and a team of writers working for me.
Not bad for someone who was ‘never’ going to become a writer 😆
Was I fuelled by proving her wrong? Well, maybe a little 😉 But mostly, I was fueled by the belief that our stories don’t end when someone else’s vision stops. We can dream bigger than what other people dream for us (and we should!). Our limit is not defined by someone’s idea of what a migrant woman can and can’t do.
You have the power to take the reins and write your own story, no matter where you were born, what your language is or what your past looks like.
Start small, but start anyway. You got this 💪
Have you had a similar experience? Share it in the comments 👇
