“There comes a point when you want to take a wild guess at life- a chance. My office in India offered me a role in Australia that I knew I shouldn’t say no to. I’m someone who gets driven by challenges, so to work outside my comfort zone in a new country sounded exciting to me. I jacked it all in and started on with my voyage to Sydney.

Unlike many people who find it hard to migrate, the process was smoother for me because I arrived with a job in my hand and was given accommodation for the first three weeks. Post that, I had to arrange for a permanent place, which was great learning. Due to no credit history, I had to face a lot of disappointments. Someone in my office was looking for a potential flatmate, and I decided to join him. We found one unfurnished apartment, and our next task was to get all the necessary furniture. It felt sensible to pick old furniture, which we found on Gumtree. In my home country, the delivery charges are nominal, but you could pay a heavy amount in Australia. It was only wise to pick it on our own. We hired a ute which I had to run. I was driving for the first time in Australia, so you can imagine the scare. Gladly, there were no rules or furniture broken.

Another resistance was to unlearn and drop some of the pre-existing views and adapt to the global stage. When you’re in a new country, you get lost for a bit since there’s not a single familiar face around. There’s a transition phase where you’re getting into that habit of being on your own. I missed home on a few days, but I also liked my stay overseas. The first time I took a ferry to the famous Taronga Zoo was so thrilling. It starts from the Circular Quay where you have the magnificent views of Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. It makes you want to freeze the moment. 

After staying in Sydney for two years, I packed my bags to move to Brisbane, where I got exposed to a lot of outdoor adventure. I tried skydiving, scuba diving, rafting. I learned rowing there. While I was travelling and trying different things, I also realised my love for fitness. Australia is high on physical fitness, and it shaped up my perspective. I eventually decided to change my career from purely consulting and analytics-based to health and well-being. I believe my passion was always there, but Australia helped me discover that and overcome stumbling blocks.”