Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Asia Exchange went to Balangan beach in Bali to meet the charismatic digital nomad Bianca Fesenbeckh. We were curious to find out how her years as an exchange student helped her score her dream job. Asia Exchange found Bianca sitting with her computer, working in a small Balinese restaurant on the beach. “I love to sit here and work because whenever I take a break, I can jump in the water and surf!” Not bad at all!
Bianca is a digital nomad, which means she can work from wherever she is. All she needs is Internet and a laptop.
Ok, Bianca! Can you please tell our readers a short background of yourself?
I was born in Munich and I am 25 years old. During my time in high school, I had the chance to go to the States. I did my first year abroad in Mount Union in Pennsylvania at the age of 16. Later on, I studied business administration at the University and I did my second exchange experience in Brussel, where I did an internship in sales and marketing. Also, I went as an exchange student to California during 6 months and attended the University in Barcelona for my Masters degree.
So, what are you doing now?
Now I work as a global account manager for a company called Yoga Design Lab. I handle the whole sale for Europe, Australia and other random countries. I work fully online. The whole world is my office, as long as I have my computer with me. It is indeed my dream job. What is pretty cool is the fact that we have meetings all over the world. Our last meeting was in South Africa and our upcoming meeting will be here in Bali. That is one of the reasons I am here, on the island of every surfer’s dream.
Click here to visit Yoga Design Lab
What are the other reasons why you ended up in bali?
Bali has a great digital community. This Island is full of like-minded people, inspiring people and you can surf! The Internet is even better than in Australia and it is cheap. I love the beach culture and the people around that. However, Bali is based around tourism. It is not an island to fully get connected with the Indonesian culture. If you want to get to know a culture then you have to live close to the people. If you want to improve the local language and get to know the daily habits, you need to have the locals constantly around you.
The experience I got from being away from my family and having to figure out life by myself, helped me to mature a lot.
You have a lot experience being an exchange student. Why did you choose to study abroad from the first place?
Well, first of all to improve my language skills. Second of all, to grow! The experience I got from being away from my family and having to figure out life by myself, helped me to mature a lot. To start totally from zero in a new country where they speak a foreign language can be frustrating but it makes your confidence grow.
I totally agree. How did you score your dream job?
I was living in Ecuador for 8 months and I met my boss at a friend’s house. We later went surfing together and when we were in the water I told her I was looking for a new job. She offered me the chance to start at her company but not fulltime. I worked hard to make a good job and I went fulltime digital after 3 months.
The bigger your network is, the higher is the possibility that someone knows someone who can recommend you. The most inspiring people who make you rethink about life are the ones you meet out there in the world.
How did your time as an exchange student help you to get your dream job?
Being an exchange student helped me build up a network. The more I travelled or went to another country to study, the more my network grew. One person introduces you to another. You walk on a tortuous path to meet people and the more you travel the wider your network gets. The bigger your network is, the higher is the possibility that someone knows someone who can recommend you. The most inspiring people who make you rethink about life are the ones you meet out there in the world.
Why is it important to explore the world?
If you want to work on a global level then you need to actually get familiar with different cultures. For example, how do you speak with someone who has an Asian background? Also, the younger you learn a new language the easier it is. Speaking several languages are essential right now because we all are connected through Internet. To be able to write or speak in three or four languages makes you more valuable on the job market. I do a lot of hiring to our sales team. A person who has more experience of traveling and can speak many different languages will more likely get the job! Going to another country makes you learn a lot faster and on a higher level. It is really beneficial to have many languages in your luggage. People like you more when you can approach them in their own language.
What is your best advice to score the dream job?
Be open-minded! Your dream job might not be something that you know exists. Nowadays, due to technology, there are so many jobs developing and appearing everyday that have not existed before. So, to score the dream job you should not be close-minded. You have to look around and see what the possibilities are around you. Whenever you have figured out what your dream job is then you have to work hard in order to get it. No matter what it is in life, you always have to work hard to prove that you can do it!
So, do you have anything else you want to say to our readers?
Yes! Join the group Digital Nomads around the World on Facebook. It is a huge community and there is a lot of valuable information about the countries you might want to go to.
