I have established the trade offs of living in Taiwan vs in the states and as what I see it as a sea-saw effect. The obvious is better quality of life as compared to the U.S to downside of low pay and stagnant job market. As time goes by, I realized the better quality of life part is just an illusion and applies mostly to the locals who are living off the wealth of their family. So I compensate this over friendly locals and more attractive females here in Taipei which is also downplayed that the friendly part is just on a superficial level and women are mostly fake and flaky. In conclusion, I finally got Taiwan figured out and gladly realized it as a last attempt of confirmation Taiwan is not a fit for me.
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I’m sure it has lots to do with…
- What is your expectation
- What kind of job you have
- What type of women you are attracted to
- Who you encountered
- How well do you know Asian culture and Taiwanese culture prior to living here
Taiwan is voted as one of the better places to live in the world for many reasons.
People are friendly as always. Superficial or not, it depends on how much you understand Asian cultures. If you find Taiwanese fake, you should see china, Japan and Korea… and the “keeping it real” American culture, is considered rude for Asian. So it’s a culture difference that you need to first understand.
I’ve met many people from all over the world who are loving their jobs, their Taiwanese families and friends, their environments…and living in Taiwan for many years.
Just saying.
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People aren’t that friendly in Taipei. They are too busy running around they don’t even talk to their neighbors.
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I have seen my fair share of countries and societies in the last 25 years (for business and private), and from my perspective, Taiwan is one of the better countries to be.
Yes, it is not perfect, there is way room for improvement, and there are probably better alternatives for every single aspect one can bring up.
However, the total mixture of what this island has to offer is something not many other places can, I am glad to be part of it for the last 20 years, and sad for it uncertain future.
Most important though, you made a thorough choice, and the right decision to follow up on it.
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My background is Interior and architecture design drafting in the U.S. and my expectation is to land a stable job here in this field. The obvious is that I already except the consequence of low salary as what I was told from all the interviews I been on over the quality of life and convenience in Taipei. The result so far is no job offers mainly due to my limited Mandarin ability. So now I am making get by money by wasting my time teaching English.
Yes I do believe it’s the Taiwanese culture which I am not fond of since I myself is a straightforward person and dislike getting “false hopes”. Another words, from job interviews I always get the vibe that my qualifications and skillet are a match for the job and will likely lead to an offer. Because of this “not upfront” culture, I find it misleading and indirectly rude.
As the people you came across who loves their jobs, are they business owners or just company employees ?
I don’t think its just your limited mandarin ability. Your English ability also needs some work. except vs accept, I myself is etc…
I find Taiwan to be very pleasant.
“except vs accept” wtf are you talking about ?
“except vs accept” wtf are you talking about ?
@aNYCtransplant is saying that your English is not very good. They are right.
Compare my quick proof to your original. Except for a couple things, I think I captured what you were trying to write.
My background is Interior and architecture design drafting in the U.S. and my expectation is to land a stable job here in this field. The obvious is that I already except the consequence of low salary as what I was told from all the interviews I been on over the quality of life and convenience in Taipei. The result so far is no job offers mainly due to my limited Mandarin ability. So now I am making get by money by wasting my time teaching English.
Yes I do believe it’s the Taiwanese culture which I am not fond of since I myself is a straightforward person and dislike getting “false hopes”. Another words, from job interviews I always get the vibe that my qualifications and skillet are a match for the job and will likely lead to an offer. Because of this “not upfront” culture, I find it misleading and indirectly rude.
As the people you came across who loves their jobs, are they business owners or just company employees ?
Here is my version
My background in the US was in interior design and architectural drafting. So, I expected to quickly land a stable job in Taiwan in this field. Obviously, I have already accepted that salaries in my field here are low based on what I was told in all the job interviews I have had. By the way, I also asked about the quality of life in general and the convenience of living in Taipei in particular. So far, I have not received any job offers, and I believe this is mainly because of my limited Mandarin ability. Up till now, I have been making “get-by money” by wasting (other people’s) time teaching English.
Yes, I believe I have a problem with Taiwanese culture - I try to be a straightforward person so I dislike feeling like I have been “led on”. In other words, from my job interviews, I always feel that I have the appropriate professional qualifications and the kind of skill-set on paper that should land me a job offer. But because of this “two-faced” culture, I feel misled and (easily-)offended.
Are the people you mentioned who say they love their jobs business owners or mere company employees? (I aspire to be a mere employee)
My two cents? Getting a job anywhere, especially in a country far from home, requires humility and openmindedness. You will get your chance to show the natives how things are done “the right way”, but only if you last long enough. Until then,it helps to try hard to understand why things are done the way they currently are done in the first place. It also takes some luck to find someone to believe in you and your superior ideas and background. I hope you get some.
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Its a smart guy to know a place is not for him. I think he’s right. The place is not right for him.
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It all depends on how good a gig you had in your home country.
People who were unemployed in their home country, on minimum wages, or owing significant debts tend to suit staying in Taiwan. Simply put, they have nothing much to draw them back to their home country. They know they must adjust to living in Taiwan.
In contrast people who may have had good jobs in their home country face a tougher choice. They will constantly be finding themselves comparing life in Taiwan to their old life in their home country. For these people Taiwan will often have a hard time comparing favorably in the long term.
Not saying this applies to everyone, but certainly to the majority.