N.B. woman working to empower immigrant women to dream big
Newcomers need to change their mindset to thrive in Canada, says Esther Hephzibah
Esther Hephzibah moved to Canada from Nigeria with a goal.
"When I moved halfway across the world from Nigeria, my expectations were different. I thought I was moving into a better life," she said.
Her journey to secure a job in New Brunswick is made up of stories of rejection, defeat, and crushed expectations.
Yet, despite her hardships, she's become the award-winning business owner of Shine Transformation Consulting Solutions, a coaching business to empower immigrant women to live purposeful lives.
But getting to that point wasn't easy.
In 2015, Hephzibah, a mother of two young children, came to Saint John from Lagos, Nigeria, in West Africa.
She had solid credentials. She'd been a project manager for ExxonMobil, one of the world's largest publicly traded oil and gas companies. She had also held positions in leadership support administration and in logistics.
The decision to move to Canada with her children was made to create a better life for her family.
But after spending $40,000 to get her MBA at the University of New Brunswick, and despite her academic achievements and previous global work experience, Hephzibah could not get a job that matched her qualifications.
"I had to do cleaning jobs. I had to do home care. I mean, it's not like there's anything wrong with this job. But that wasn't my expectation." she said.
Hephzibah said she struggled with cultural barriers, subtle discrimination and the harsh reality of the Canadian job market. When it comes to immigrants, she said having Canadian experience often trumps their education and skills.
She was advised to change her surname name, drop Nigeria from her resumé and learn to speak slowly to boost her chances of getting a job interview, suggestions that did not make her feel welcome.
'You need to overcome yourself to go forward'
Hephzibah said she felt alone and isolated while navigating the new culture. She experienced burnout from her struggle to find her place as an immigrant.
She said there is a great deal of unspoken pain when someone moves so far away from family and friends, even when it's in pursuit of a better life. It affected her health, her finances and caused her to sometimes question her decisions.
She decided that she needed to find the version of herself that would fit well into Canadian culture.
In 2016, "I made that game-changing decision that I'm going to look inwards to see who Esther is," she said.
"Let me go find her in this new country."
Hephzibah embarked on a program of self-growth that she says helped her discover values and traits that would help her surpass the barriers she encountered in her new life.
She credits the Maxwell Leadership program for helping her transform her life through new skills, such as emotional intelligence and entrepreneurship.
"It was the best decision ever."
Two years later she secured a managerial job with ExxonMobil in Moncton.
It took her seven years in total to build back her confidence. Hephzibah said that the number one fear of immigrant women is the fear of losing themselves to their new environment.
The Canadian job market is competitive and unfamiliar, she said, which makes many immigrants compromise their qualifications and career expectations.
"I hear women say, 'Am I going to get the same kind of job I have in my home country?'" she said.
Because most immigrant women have to struggle with finding who they are after moving to Canada, this continues to limit their career aspirations.
Shared experiences the key
After a few years in the corporate workforce, Hephzibah decided to use her story and expertise to help other women through coaching.
"I could do something to help women. I like women empowerment," she said. "So I started creating curated programs for immigrant women."
She uses her business to provide various resources, including mentorship programs, workshops and networking events, all geared toward building essential skills, confidence and connections.
She recently received the Most Transformational Business award at the Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards, an inaugural event held in Toronto.
Her future goal for her business is to build a retreat centre for immigrant women. She believes they need a safe place to breathe, pause or recover.
"You're trying to navigate the system. You have kids. You have your family," she said. "They can't even find the time to pause."
Hephzibah said its true that immigrant women speak different languages, but their shared experience connects them.
She says her advice to immigrant women is to rise above themselves and be confident in their journey.
"Embrace who you truly are. Know yourself. Understand yourself and communicate that confidently," she said.
Corrections
- An earlier version of this story said Hester Hephzibah got a job with ExxonMobil in Saint John. In fact, the job was located in Moncton.Aug 08, 2023 12:35 PM EDT
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