TN47: Blending your skills to find your zone of genius, Part 1 with Marilyn Gardner.
Marilyn Gardner is an American third culture kid who grew up in Pakistan. Currently she lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As she says, her claim of fame is that she gave birth to 5 kids on 3 continents, and went on to raise them in Pakistan and Egypt before moving to the United States.
Marilyn is an author, speaker, trainer and consultant. In fact, along the years she has found a unique way to combine her experience in healthcare as a nurse with her journey navigating across cultures. She for instance began blogging in 2011 following a trip to Pakistan where she worked as a nurse with internally displaced people. The blog turned into a book called Between Worlds: Essays on Culture and Belonging
This is the first part of my interview with the wonderful Marilyn Gardner she shares with us how she managed to blend her multicultural background and nursing skills to find her zone of genius and build a portable career.
Glimpse on Marilyn’s insights in this episode:
- What she learned about herself while living abroad.
- How she capitalized on her skills and learn to use them to create a portable career.
- How being involved in various communities has helped propel her career.
- Her advice to expats and expat spouses who travel the world.
In the next episode of this interview, we will focus on her insights and tips that led her to also become a successful blogger and writer. She will also share the struggles she had with repatriation and how she coped with it. Click here to listen to this 2nd part.
Check out Marilyn’s:
- Blog post that started her writing journey: Saudade – A word for the third culture kids.
- And the book she wrote after she started blogging:
“In the hall of an old Inn by the ocean is a sign that reads ‘Home is Where Our Story Begins.’ But if home is where our story begins, what happens when we can’t go back?” Marilyn Gardner was raised in Pakistan and went on to raise her own five children in Pakistan and Egypt before moving to small town New England. Between Worlds will resonate with those who have lived outside of their passport country, as well as those who have not. These essays explore the rootlessness and grief as well as the unexpected moments of humor and joy that are a part of living between two worlds. Between Worlds charts a journey between the cultures of East and West, the comfort of being surrounded by loved ones and familiar places, and the loneliness of not belonging. “Every one of us has been at some point between two worlds, be they faith and loss of faith, joy and sorrow, birth and death. Between Worlds is a luminous guide for connecting—and healing—worlds.” – Cathy Romeo, co-author, Ended Beginnings: Healing Childbearing Losses