‘Desi Girl’ Making New Immigrants Journey Easier in America

May 11, 2021

Los Angeles, California (The Hollywood Times) 5/11/2021 – Anjali Nair moved to the US after getting married and started her new life from scratch. She wants to help other immigrants to make a smooth transition to the US. She founded an e-learning platform called ‘Desi Girl in US’ in 2020.”Desi Girl. It offers resources to kick-start immigrants to a career. The online learning programs are tailored to provide solutions and direction to new immigrants in the US. The 12-week group coaching program, ‘Foreigner to Local in 80 days’ is for new immigrants will help to develop new skills. Popular workshops include,· ‘5 ways to succeed and thrive in America’ and ‘How to land a job in the US as a first-time job seeker.

You’re a lifestyle blogger who came to the US. Tell us about your journey.

I moved to the US for the first time in 2017 after getting married. My life took a 180-degree turn as I struggled to adapt from the big-city busy life in India to a far more relaxed, touristy vibe of Florida. My initial few months were all about admiring and exploring the new city. The first 18 months in the US, I went through all the phases a new immigrant faces – I became a homemaker by default, had to pick up some essential life skills, find new friends, drive a car, make small talk after quite a few embarrassing situations. As I sat unemployed, watching Netflix and scrolling thru job portals, I realized I’m not alone.

I started microblogging on Instagram to share the ups and downs as a new immigrant woman. Soon, women started reaching out to me, sharing their stories about navigating life in the US. I started getting requests to write blog topics that have helped +350 immigrants improve their English communication and restart their careers. ‘Desi Girl in US’ website has +25 articles to help new immigrants get familiar with USA life and prepare folks who are planning to move to the States. After helping +200 women through pro bono consultations in 2020, I officially started coaching immigrant women with skills and knowledge that helps them restart their careers, communicate confidently, build a network and acclimatize with American culture.

Why was it important to launch your blog and company, Desi Girl in the US?

The first few years in a new country are the toughest as a new Immigrant. Initially, I was in the honeymoon bubble where I found all new things exciting in the US, but when you have to start doing real-life stuff you feel intimidated and out of place. I’m lucky to have a super supportive life partner who pushed me to learn new things and encouraged me to do what made me happy.

Most new immigrants start clueless and figure things out after years of making mistakes. Instead of reinventing the wheel, I started looking for resources or role models to guide me but there were none! But I was determined to learn quickly and started sharing with fellow immigrant women through my blog.

It was important to start ‘Desi Girl in US’ because there was no platform or person that onboarded new immigrants to give them a head start in a new foreign country. I wanted to make this transition by being the one-stop platform for all new immigrants in the US.

How has this been an outlet for you to connect with so many other immigrant women? Did you know America gets 1 million immigrants every year? Skilled professional immigrants from different ethnicities and backgrounds move to the US and many end up doing odd jobs or stay at home. Why? Because they lack access and skills that are mandatory to succeed in America. With ‘Desi Girl in US’ platform, I connected with 7k immigrant women in 18 months. It’s been the most fulfilling experience to guide and coach new immigrants because I’ve been in those uncomfortable shoes and I know it’s a painful transition without genuine support and guidance.

What challenges did you face when you first came to the US?

When I first moved to the US, I was confident and naïve to think I’d land a job in a couple of months because I had an MBA with 4 years of work ex in a multinational firm. 8 months of rigorous job search and +250 job applications later my confidence was at its lowest. I struggled to converse properly, couldn’t drive myself anywhere, depended on my spouse for every little thing, and went to bed questioning my future in the land of opportunities.

– I did not have a community of women to cheer me up or offer solutions.

– I did not have a platform where I could get a stepwise roadmap and tools to restart my career.

– I did not have a coach or role model who shared their learnings and understands an immigrant woman’s POV

An immigrant woman’s journey is long and lonely until they get physically, emotionally, and financially independent. And that was the gap in the system that I’m determined to fill.

How is Desi Girl in US offering resources and helping immigrant women make a smooth transition to kick start their career?

After interviewing 100 women and validating the immigrant challenges, I created online learning programs tailored to provide solutions and direction to new immigrants in the US. The 12-week group coaching program ‘Foreigner to Local in 80 days’ is for new immigrants to develop new skills and restart their careers.

Aside from landing a job, the other 3 problem areas are:

– Communicating in American English

– Adapting to American culture and etiquette

– Regaining confidence and finding new friends

For immigrants who want to learn at their own pace, can download toolkits from ‘The American Dream Toolkit’ which includes Career, Communication, Confidence, and Get Social toolkits.

With these toolkits and coaching, we are making immigrants ready to adapt to American life and get financially independent.

Have you built friendships with women looking for guidance on your site?

YES! Over the last year, I’ve spoken to +100 women over the phone and made at least 10 great friends all through my IG and FB channels. I also love connecting women with each other to foster friendships. One of the initiatives I run on my IG page ‘Desi Girl in US’ is called the ‘Wednesday Weekly Feature’ where I introduce 1 amazing woman I met through IG to my audience. Each month the topic differs from stay-at-home moms with side hustles to career experts to fitness experts. Through this IG story swap, I get to make new friends by sharing my story and my audience gets to meet a new person whose story may interest them to go have a chat. We’ve had 40 women so far in the first season and all of their stories are saved on @desigilrinus IG highlights.

Tell us about your Live Workshops

‘Desi Girl in US’ conducts quarterly live workshops worth $75 for new immigrants on topics that are relevant to them.

Women who sign up for my signature coaching program ‘Foreigner to Local in 80 Days’ or download the self-paced online course ‘The American Dream Toolkit’ get to attend the workshop of that quarter for free.

2 popular workshops attended by +140 women were:

‘5 ways to succeed and thrive in America’
‘How to land a job in US as first-time job seeker’

The best part of the 60-minute workshops is that people can ask questions at the end of the workshop and I provide solutions to all. Our next Live workshop will be on ‘How to correctly use LinkedIn to land a job’ and it will be first open to the subscribers of ‘Desi Girl in US’.

You offer a FB group, Desi Girl in US. What can we find here?

I started my FB group ‘Desi Girls in US’ amidst the pandemic in 2020. It started as a social experiment to see if there are immigrant women like me who are looking to make friends and have a supportive community. Within 8 months, we’ve grown to ~500 members from +20 states who’ve joined purely thru referrals and invites. Desi Girls in US FB group is a safe place for immigrants to share their struggles, stories, and insight.

In this group you’ll get:

First access to immigrant-friendly free resources, tickets to live workshops, online courses, and group coaching.
A supportive community to ask questions, get recommendations, advice, and feedback.
New friends spread out all over the US, eager to learn, happy to support and connect
Monthly zoom calls
Quarterly meetups in person

Are you looking to expand Desi Girl in 2021?

In 2021, My goal is to help up to 100 immigrants in their journey to achieve their goals with ‘The American Dream Toolkit’.

Training skilled immigrants with essential soft skills accelerate their American dream by 5x. Thru my workshops, live training, and online courses I help them to –