Limitless Laowai — Expat Life, Business Strategy, Personal Development Cultural Adjustment in China | Learn Chinese

Anthony, a native Brit, teaches Film, English, is a Head of Year at Dulwich College Shanghai. He has lived in Shanghai for 7 years with his wife, Maria. Before coming to China they lived in Maria's home town of Bogota, Colombia. Since being in Shanghai they have had two small children, both of whom were born here. On his radar at the moment, and taking up a good deal of his free time, is the realization of a 13-year dream in the opening of an orphanage in rural Uganda. The Peace Centre opens its doors to 20 orphans on the 2nd of February. Anthony, along with a couple of friends and in conjunction with a dedicated team of students, has built the orphanage in the last year via many fundraising initiatives and through actually visiting Uganda for 3 weeks in the summer of 2014.

Nicolas was born in Strasbourg, France and worked in real estate for 20 years before finding his passion in the science of ice cream. In 2011, Nicholas and his family moved from France to China and in 2014 he became a partner of Maison Delice, a french handmade ice cream company. Today, he is responsible for building the Shanghai market. Maison Delice's ice cream is by far the best ice cream I have ever tasted – no joke! (In fact, as I was writing this Show Notes page, I had to get up and grab one of the little samples Nicolas left in my freezer because my mouth was watering just thinking about it… Come on! Salted Caramel Ice Cream?! Whose wouldn't?)

As a restaurateur and chef, Mike is no stranger to the kitchen; in fact, he has over 20 years experience working primarily in 2 and 3-star Michelin restaurants in France. He came to China in 2006 to open "le Royal Meridien" hotel where stayed for 5 years. After that he had the opportunity to open his first restaurant "Cuivre" then the second, then the third... Today Mike is going to share with us tips, tricks and lessons learned from his entrepreneurial journey thus far.

Ever have one of those gut-wrenching, painfully embarrassing moments? I've had my fair share but this week I heard a friend tell a China story that's for the history books. It's so good that I moved this week's wrap-up from Friday to Wednesday just so we can send you laughing your way through the rest of your week! (Warning – it's hilarious yet a bit off-color as well. Listener discretion advised!)

Audrey spent 1/3 of her life in China, 1/3 in the land of vampires, 1/3 in Manhattan and Sydney. She's privileged with understanding of many cultural differences and similarities as a result of living on four continents. She believes humans are beautiful and amazing, and thus obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design and a Bachelor's degree in art and psychology. The Creative Director at an inspirational company, Audrey strongly believes in her company's motto, which is "Dream it. Live it." When she's not working to help people realize their dreams, you can spot her performing in local comedy clubs, or tucked away in a tea house writing her books.

Mike is an American social media & e-commerce specialist based out of Shenzhen. He came to China in late 2007 to source products for his e-commerce business. In 2012 he founded SocialAgent.me to help Western companies sell in the Chinese market through Social media. Late last year his startup was acquired by an app company Unchained Apps and is now the VP of Marketing and Business Development of a portfolio of apps such as WrittenChinese.com, TaskLabels, and of course Social Agent.

This week was definitely record breaking in terms of numbers (and we made Shanghai Daily Secret's list!) but more importantly, I learned some invaluable lessons on the power of prioritizing people amidst the insanity of life and business building in China. Tune in to hear my favorite 'laowai' moment and why I made people matter first this week.

Originally from the UK, David first arrived in China in 2006. After a couple different entrepreneurial ventures, David, together with his brother, James, began Westwood Ales, bringing the love of British beer to China with the intention of making a national brand. In this episode, David shares how business success happens at the intersection of passion and expertise... Not to mention, it includes probably one of my favorite bloopers reels to date!

For the past seven years, Fred has been a stay at home father of two boys, Zaidan who is 7 and Brexton who is 4. Prior to being a stay at home father he worked as a paralegal. Originally from Southern California, he and his family have been in China for just six months and so the challenges of expatriation are still pretty fresh for them all. In this episode, Fred shares his experiences thus far – some of the challenges and the victories that he's walking through right now.