This is a big issue for lots of people who try and live and work in Finland and consequently we become frustrated and angry. I am not sure who we are angry with ourselves or Finnish society itself. However, when I speak to new arrivals I hear the same argument, that everyone speaks good English, but I can’t get a job in English apart from crappy cleaning jobs in Helsinki. The reason for this is that the likelihood you are living in Helsinki or another major Finnish city where English is used more often for tourism and international business. So, unless you are in one of these professions you are going to end up struggling to find employment.
One option that many foreigners use to get their foot in the door of earning a living is starting their own business. Often they start pizza kebab restaurants which is a lot of work and very long hours. The main issue with this business model is like any traditional business model which is the high financial commitment in loans. In addition, the failure rate of these businesses are massive. For example, in my small town in the south of Finland in the main center there is about ten pizza kebab restaurants which seems to be empty most evenings.
Arguably the language is an issue, but also racism, not fully understanding their business model and not seeing that so many similar businesses in one area. The supply outweighs the demand by a massive amount and so the only winners are the property renters and the banks and not the business owners.
Finally, the financial outlay and commitment is so stressful for many when they realize that once their business has failed they will still need to repay the loans and debts created during the operation of their business. Sadly, there are too many ex foreign business owner doing dishwashing jobs in Helsinki wishing they had tried something more affordable such as freelance jobs online.
About fifteen years ago after a failed attempt at running a traditional business I decided to try an alternative route to business success. I had begun to learn Finnish and was starting to cope with everyday situations and doing small jobs in Helsinki for English speakers here and there, however for me it was not enough. In fact, I can remember my wife telling me to stop complaining about everything and do something about it.
In general, I know that our partners give us all the support they can, but really in my mind I just didn't want someone else paying the bills for me. Yes, we have all been there and most of us hate it, because we want our own money, so we don't need to ask for a sub every time we want or need to buy something for ourselves.
One day I had had enough, I needed to find a solution to my financial situation and find work in Finland. However, it was so frustrating, my Finnish skills were just not good enough even though I had been attending Finnish language classes at the local Folk school and moving forward nicely.
Understanding that learning Finnish was going to be a long term project I began to realize that I needed an alternative way of earning a living, even if it meant thinking out of the box. My past disaster of running a business has put me off of investing large amounts of money, so I started to consider a low cost business model and if it was even possible.
I had thought about home based work in Finland for foreigners, because I had all the tools at home such as a PC and a small office, but I needed to find the right business that would work for me which meant an opportunity that I could trust and share globally as well as in Finland.
In my mind the global aspect was going to be the key and since the internet had become the doorway to the work I was sure that I could create a business at a very low cost. At the time, my frustration with using Finnish had made it clear to me that Finland itself was not going to bring in enough money. However, the English was the language of the internet and international business and much of the world use it as a first, second or even third language. In addition, rich western countries were already accustomed to using and buying products and building relationships online, such as the US, Canada, the UK and Australia.
I was surprised how much is available in Finland and relatively cheap to start, which got me wondering why more Finnish people were not involved. The reason seems to return to the difference between speaking English is social situations and speaking English at work or in business. This is a real advantage for the English speaking foreigners wanting to make a success of living in Finland.
After days of researching hundreds of home based work in Finland for foreigners businesses on the internet, I found what I was looking for. There were only a few major things I felt were a must and that was:
The best freelance work from home jobs for those serious about working and creating your own success story as a entrepreneur and doing freelancing online work from home in Finland it is possible to start from as little as 20€.
Here is what you get for your money:
Nobody is saying that running a business in Finland is easy, but if you have been here a while you already know that. However, the ability to create your own wealth is empowering. and will give you the freedom to choose where and how you live your lives. In addition, your family and friend will see you so differently you can not believe it.
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