The aspects of being an expat in a coworking space

Expat is short for expatriate and refers to someone who is living and/or working in another country for a longer period of time. Anthony Beebe is a Canadian business...

Af Christine

Senest redigeret: 30. maj 2023


Expat is short for expatriate and refers to someone who is living and/or working in another country for a longer period of time. Anthony Beebe is a Canadian business counselor and is part of the coworking space at Symbion. His expat adventure started back in 2019, when Anthony and his girlfriend moved to Australia. Unfortunately, because of corona, they decided to move back home in 2020, before the situation got too tricky. They still wanted to keep travelling and in November 2022, they moved to Copenhagen.

Staying in contact

Relocating to a new country means leaving your network and sometimes also your family at home. At times you can feel isolated, especially around the holidays like Christmas. It’s definitely tough, being away from your family, Anthony says. It is one of those parts where once in a while you may be a little down.

Technology makes it easier staying in contact with friends and family at home. It is not perfect, but you can call and facetime people at anytime. Meeting other expats in the coworking community also helps Anthony. When you are missing your family, it is important to have places like here, because there are people to talk to, who are in similar situations.

Coworking space

Having a community is the key, it can really change your experience, Anthony says. For me what really helps is I like to exercise and do sport, and it is a great way to meet people. I would suggest anyone who is decent at sports, join a sports team. Another way to establish a network is through a coworking space:

Everyone is in the same boat as you, everyone just wants to meet new people.

Anthony was sure that when he moved to Denmark, he would find a coworking space to work from. I find it a lot easier if I have a space to go to, where I can really concentrate and have a consistent access to meeting rooms. Anthony quickly became familiar with the people who had work spaces close to him. They encouraged him to go to events such as the Christmas Party, where Anthony met a lot of new people including other expats. Symbion made a huge difference for me, because there are always events like Friday Bar or Ventures and Wine, and there’s always new people to meet, Anthony says.

The first contact

Don’t be afraid to reach out, because I think making the first contact is the hard thing to do. Once it is done, the rest is really straight forward, Anthony says. For Anthony, it helps going to all kind of events and meeting other people through the coworking community. Be curious – people are genuinely happy to talk about what is going on, what they are passionate about. You just have to listen mostly.

To people working with or hiring expats, Anthony’s advice is to help establish this first contact. Some people may be a little closed in and they just need a bit of encouragement to open up their network, Anthony says. Just reaching out to the expats and showing them the little traditions and parts of Danish culture. I really appreciated it even if people just have movie suggestions.

Exploring the culture

The coworking space also allowed me a look into the Danish culture, Anthony says. Overall I found that it is pretty similar. Canadian and Danish culture have a lot in common. You guys just drink a little bit more, Anthony adds with a smile.

Meeting locals can also help expats adapt to living in a new country. Locals can help out with all the little things like ‘how to find a bicycle,’ or if you are trying to find an apartment, you can ask ‘does this seem reasonable? Does this look like it is a fraud?’ It makes it all a little easier, Anthony comments.

Unfortunately, Anthony is going back to Canada at the beginning of May due to work. But they are not ready to leave yet, so Anthony is currently looking for jobs in Denmark. So far, we really like the culture, it is interesting, Anthony says. And we definitely want to see the Danish summer.


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