As a baby of British immigrants myself, I actually have an innate sympathy for many who are brave or desperate enough to depart their homeland to hunt opportunity in North America. This is considered one of the explanation why I corresponded last 12 months with an interesting blogger and former financial advisor, Alain Guillot. He occasionally republishes his blog posts on my website Finddependence Hub. His own blog is named simply AlainGuillot.com.
Earning, Saving and Spending in Canada: A Guide for New Immigrants
The wealth paradox: Why it’s hard to avoid wasting $100,000
Guillot writes no less than one blog post per week and has 600 subscribers YouTube channel. He recently wrote a brief e-book entitled (self-published, 2024). The subtitle explains more: “How unconventional thinking affects your financial and personal life.”
Guillot first caught my attention after I learned that he had emigrated to Canada from Colombia, a spot I had once visited. He felt he had no selection but to develop into an entrepreneur here, although chapter five of his e-book is titled “Entrepreneurs Are Mentally Unstable People.” He wrote that the film’s director’s intention was to point out the greed and evils of capitalism. However, it “had the opposite effect: more people were drawn to investment banking.” In my chapter about entrepreneurs being mentally unstable people, I had much the identical reverse psychology intentions. I disparaged the mental state of entrepreneurs as a compliment and admiration for what they do.”
If that is not unconventional enough for you, know that he’s an enormous proponent of self-insurance (setting aside money for a rainy day) versus owning speculative assets like gold and cryptocurrencies, and he advocates that the primary $100,000 of wealth these are essentially the most difficult to build up.
From side hustles to financial experts
At first, Guillot tried out various part-time jobs in Canada. He was a salsa and tango teacher, photographer and skilled best man. Actually, he’s still coping with all of this stuff. He desired to develop into a financial advisor in Canada, but felt he could only serve clients if he was a fee-only planner, and he learned that it was difficult to get business value from that model. He next positioned himself as a private financial coach, but eventually quit because he realized “no one wants to listen.”
However, he’s personally obsessive about money, so he tries to put in writing blogs about personal finance and publish video podcasts about it.
In a lengthy email interview, Guillot says he left Colombia because he wanted more opportunities. If you’re lucky enough to have been born in Canada or the United States, you’re a blessing for him: “I was greatly influenced by films in which I often saw normal families who owned a house, owned a car and their disposable Enjoyed income. You could go out to restaurants, have a few drinks at a cool bar, and go on vacation at least once a year. For me in Colombia it was a fictional world. In my environment, people have always struggled with scarcity and poverty.”
In search of a more prosperous country, he considered Spain, England, Australia, the United States and Canada. He preferred North America since it was in the identical time zone as Colombia and communication together with his family was easier. “I ended up choosing Canada over the US because I believed immigration to Canada would be easier. I chose Quebec because I was curious to learn both French and English.”
