Global Culture

Need help settling in a brand new city and don’t know where to start? While it is one of the reasons this project got started (read participate), long before this blog started I was already volunteering time to help the ocassional friend of a friend find its way in Toronto by sharing stories about my own experiences. To this day I’ve lost track of how many people I’ve influenced, but judging by the flourishing Mexican community around me, there must’ve been quite a few.

Last week, once again, I was having beers with a couple of Mexicans. One of them had just arrived to the city, while the other had been here for over 10 years. They had been friends since high school. In an interesting twist of networking, it turns out the new guy was opening the doors for the one that had been here for a really long time. Before coming to Canada, the new guy had done his research, identifying any people and organizations that could possibly help him find a job. This is how he found me. The other guy, having been here for such a long time had lost any instinct to seek for his own people. He had found the rhythm of life on his own.

While it is commonly known that networking is likely the most effective way to connect with potential employers and professional associations, one aspect that is often not considered is that the agent of networking, that is, the new guy who has nothing to loose and will not be afraid to knock on as many doors as needed to find a job, will act as a bridge between two social networks that were independent. This feedback mechanism is a fundamental force in the shaping of immigrant communities and over time creates very strong ties among its members.

I must emphasize that all these mechanisms can take place without the aid of social networking tools such as Linkedin, but the crowds are getting smarter and will explore the benefits of new technologies to aid them in this process.

As most other immigrants I’ve met this new guy will likely do very well. He is a professional with strong skills and an important drive to make it in this place. He is willing to sacrifice in the short term for the long term benefit of his family. Furthermore, I’m very certain the other guy will also become quite active in the Mexican community. He is already well connected and will be seen as some kind of authority by those who have been just a short time frame.