How are foreigners living in Beijing now?

Every year after the Chinese New Year, a group of people who are disappointed in Beijing will pack their bags and leave this sad city that was once full of hope but eventually had to leave. And every June, a batch of fresh blood will be injected into the city, and it will start again and again. So whether you come or go, Beijing is here.

What kind of magic does Beijing have that so many people yearn for? I think besides convenient transportation, advanced ideas and many development opportunities, the most irreplaceable thing is that no matter who you are, you can find a glimmer of hope about your future and dreams in this city. In recent years, I have met many foreigners who have drifted to Beijing. Like the people who have drifted from Qian Qian to the North, they all regard Beijing as their second hometown. Many people even get married, have children, buy houses and settle down here. It is true that Beijing is an extremely realistic city, so every year people complain about high housing prices, fierce competition and cruel living conditions, but if you only see these negative news, it can only show that this city is not suitable for you. And more foreigners around me are full of gratitude and awe for this city, because it gives us infinite hope and possibility, and makes us truly feel the meaning of struggle.

I interviewed two foreigners who have been drifting in Beijing for more than three years. I hope their stories can give you inspiration and hope and let some confused people see some light.

First place: Yao, 32, from Shaanxi. Occupation: Finance in foreign enterprises.

I didn't come to Beijing until one year after graduation. At first, I worked as an accountant in a company in Shaanxi. Later, I met my husband at a classmate's wedding. He worked in Beijing Financial Street and described too many good things in Beijing to me. So I came to Beijing for love six months later.

It wasn't smooth to find a job at first, because although I had a bachelor's degree, I only had experience in small companies in the past, so it was too difficult to go to a big company. I am very lucky. My husband's classmate happened to be doing hr in a foreign company, so he pushed a resume with a try. It happened that one of their departments was recruiting a financial specialist, so I went for an interview.

Later, I found that the finance of big companies is only more formal in all aspects of the process, and the tools used are the same that I have never touched before, but they are all the same. With the similarity in work and the fact that I look down-to-earth, the interview went smoothly.

The probation period is 3 months, and I am afraid of doing something wrong every day. Continue to make up lessons every day when you come home from work, and basically stay up until evening 1 o'clock every day. Tools and processes are just like practice makes perfect. It's too hard when you can't do it. When you can, you will find it so simple.

At first, the monthly salary was 4,000 yuan, but foreign companies had one advantage: many benefits, Chinese New Year holidays, and year-end bonuses were better than ordinary companies, and there was basically a certain increase in salary increase twice a year. I'm 32 years old, and my salary is 12000, which is not as good as that of internet companies, but it's already very good for me.

My husband and I bought the first suite on 20 14, a small two-bedroom apartment in Chaoyang District. Last year, for the convenience of my husband's work, we bought a one-bedroom apartment of less than 50 square meters near Chongwenmen. The eldest daughter is over 3 years old, and her in-laws are taking care of her. At present, she plans to have a second child, not to have a son, but because she thinks she can afford it, and they can have a companion with each other in the future. There are pressures in life. After all, a big family needs our support, but we don't feel out of breath.

Finally, to say something that may be scolded, when choosing a marriage partner, girls should not only look at feelings, but also look at whether boys are capable, because choosing a person is to choose a life. Imagine that I didn't meet my husband, but another incompetent person, then I probably wouldn't have today's life. At present, I also talk about going back to my hometown and coming to Beijing, because for me, these two places are both home.

Second place: Cai Cai, 28 years old, Tangshan native occupation: beauty salon owner.

Many people who are familiar with Lantian probably know who I am. It's wonderful to have this opportunity to talk to you about drifting north for the first time. Everyone is typical of drifting north, and I may be the most vacillating one here. Finally, I returned to Beijing and decided to stay in Beijing.

20 12 when I graduated from Beijing, I threatened to start a foreign trade company in the future. However, two years later, because I couldn't keep going, I chose to leave, but my life was very dramatic. Five years later, I opened a beauty salon instead of a foreign trade company.

I worked as a purchasing agent when I first came to Beijing, and it didn't go well. I have changed three companies, but I can't find a stable job. After two years of persistence, I chose to escape from Beijing. In that year, Lantian switched to the Internet, and we originally went the same way and instantly "parted ways".

The hard life in Beijing makes me feel that it is better to go home and do anything than in Beijing, but when I get back, I find that I don't belong to my hometown anymore. I can't stand the slow pace of ordering food for half an hour, and I can't adapt to the life of going home from work and meeting my classmates about mahjong. Three months later, I finally decided to go back to Beijing.

At that time, I heard Lantian say that many people switched to the Internet, so I decided to give it a try. After a series of preparations, I quickly joined an Internet company. Like all people who change careers, I found that working in a high place is not as difficult as I thought. Later, I changed several companies, all engaged in activities and operations, and changed jobs without changing industries. The companies I have stayed in are basically doing medical beauty. By chance, I met my husband now. After two years in the medical and beauty industry, I decided to open a beauty salon with my friends.

Speaking of which, it suddenly occurred to me that I once said that I would open a foreign trade company in Beijing. In the end, the foreign trade company failed to open, but I registered a beauty company, which was half my dream!

The beauty salon is in Sanlitun. The monthly rent is 40,000 yuan, and the salary of employees is not low. At first, they lost money every month. Many times, they want to give up and return to the workplace to start over. But there is a word called sunk cost. Suppose I gave up at that time, our previous money was doomed to lose. So we gritted our teeth for more than half a year, tried our best to provide good service, give enough discounts to old customers, encourage old customers to bring new ones, and so on. Finally, in the eighth month, we gradually broke even.

Opening your own shop and working in a company are two completely different life experiences. In the company, as long as you do the work assigned by the leaders well, you won't feel too tired if you work overtime occasionally, but now you wake up with various bills every day, so you learn to make accounts and budgets.

In addition to managing the store, I will also attend some industry conferences to learn about cutting-edge technologies. I hope to do better and better, and I will do better and better!

My husband and I only got the license this year. At the beginning of 20 15, I bought a two-bedroom apartment in Yanjiao (average price 15000, not the lowest point, but not the highest point). Because the store is in Chaoyang, it is convenient to stay in the future.

As for buying a house in Beijing, I haven't considered it for the time being, because business is different from work, and you must never put money in the house. However, influenced by people around me, I have begun to be interested in Beijing real estate. I don't have to buy it, but at least I should pay attention to it, because observing the people around me, all good things are to seize opportunities, whether it is job opportunities or investment opportunities. Every foreigner living in Beijing is a soldier who is not afraid of hardship and fatigue. In fact, in the three North drifters interviewed today, everyone has had such setbacks and hardships, but they all tacitly chose to avoid talking about it. But think about it carefully, it's not that they don't want to recall those bad years, but that they finally tasted the sweetness through hard work, so everything in the past is worth it. Compared with everything they have gained now, those sufferings are nothing.

Beijing is such a city, what you pay and what you get. Some people say that my pay is not proportional to my return, and I want to leave Beijing every day. Through these northern drifts and those we have not interviewed, I think everyone should understand that if your life is not what you want, it means that you haven't worked hard enough, or that you haven't persisted long enough, because all success is not achieved overnight, and all happiness is not sudden, but you have come out step by step.

Come on, Beipiao! Everyone who works hard, come on! ?