Breaking into Brussels
Moving to a new city can be challenging. Proactivity, mindfulness, and developing routines can make the process easier.
Welcome to this week’s edition of Breaking into the Bubble!
This edition was written with Pol Koopman. Having lived abroad, one topic I absolutely wanted to cover was the challenges of moving to a new city (i.e. Brussels). However, being Belgian, I felt I wasn’t the most qualified to speak about expat issues.
That’s why Pol and I teamed up! He recently moved to Brussels and has, therefore, tons of fresh tips and anecdotes to share!
Pol also has his own personal blog where he analyses EU foreign policy developments! Check his work here 👇
You might have sighed in relief when you got that email a few days ago. Perhaps you even did a little happy dance to celebrate the occasion. The most difficult part is now behind you, you think, as you read those sweet first few lines again:
“Congratulations, you’re hired!”
A whole new world of possibilities is opening before your eyes, and you start making plans to move to that new city.
For those pursuing a career in the EU Bubble, this often means moving to rainy - but full of surprises - Brussels. No matter how rewarding the experience is, it’s a big step; moving to a new place brings its own set of challenges and may lead to stress and frustration.
To render your move as smooth as possible, Pol and I compiled a list of best practices based on our own personal experiences. We hope that this advice will make the process (and your life as a whole) a bit easier!
ROI: Return on Initiative
When you arrive in a new city, one of the worst things you can do is wait for things to come your way. Unless you’re extremely lucky, this won’t happen: You must take matters into your own hands - for example, when it comes to making friends or building a social life as a whole.
Did you find a bookstore you really like and want to discover it with people? → Invite your housemates or coworkers.
Do you like going to the movies? → Decide to try out all the cinemas in Brussels (there are a lot, and some are thematic!).
Did you find a cool place you want to visit? → See who else is interested and organise a little day trip!
The possibilities are endless if you actively get out there!
To add to this, though it might sound a bit more abstract, is that usually you get back the energy you put into something – especially when it comes to activities with others. Want to get invited to more parties? Organise a party and invite people. Want to get a group of people to do sports with but can’t find an existing group? Create one.
These things might take some effort and trial and error in the beginning, but they’re hugely rewarding in the end.
Collective investment: You’re not alone
Brussels welcomes new expats constantly. This means you’re not the only one trying to build a new life here. There are tons of initiatives for newcomers, and you don’t have to do it all by yourself.
If you’re coming to Brussels as part of a traineeship programme (Schuman, Blue Book, etc.), you’ll get access to WhatsApp groups with people in the same situation as you. These groups are generally divided by activities (football, board games, running). It’s the perfect place to start!
Listen to your heart
Of course, even though we recommend being proactive, engaging with people, saying yes to parties, doing activities, and discovering the city, you should be mindful of your own limits.
At the beginning, you might want to say “Yes” to everything - parties, day-trips, new activities, extra work. However, make sure you keep free time to rest. Settling into a new city takes a lot of effort, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of your well-being.
Equally, having just moved to this new metropolis, you might feel like Emily in Paris: expecting great parties, drinks at sunset with friends and other near-perfect activities. Reality, however, is often quite dull and things like these take time and effort to grow.
With this, I don’t mean that you shouldn’t expect these, only that you shouldn’t be too hard on yourself if your life in the first few weeks isn’t as you had expected it to be.
Sometimes you just have those weeks where the plans you were looking forward to get cancelled, or maybe work was just difficult. It’s more than fine to just sit back and relax with your favourite show and do nothing. You’ll often see that it makes for new energy the next day!
Make your new house a home
Whether you choose to live with flatmates or by yourself, making your new accommodation feel like home is a small but impactful step you can take to make the settling-in process a little bit easier.
In my experience, having a place you’re happy to come home to helps to deal with the chaos of the outside world.
Small actions we recommend are hanging posters and pictures of people/things you like on your wall. If you can, bring your favourite items with you, such as your favourite books, or your coffeemaker (trust us you’ll need one). Pol also brought a chair in which he likes to read!
This might sound trivial, but it immediately renders the place more personal (+ pictures often remind you of good memories).
Develop routines
One of my favourite things to do when I move into a new city is to develop small daily or weekly routines.
In my head, having this “structure” for my early days keeps me from feeling overwhelmed by all the new things I’m experiencing. New job, new friends, new home: all this is counterbalanced by my fixed routines.
For instance, when I moved to Leiden, I set up a routine of waking up at a fixed hour during weekdays, dedicated my day to my studies until 5 p.m., and then I would go to the gym or do my groceries depending on the day.
This might sound very boring, but, at the beginning at least, it helped me cope with the chaos of settling into a new place!
Settling in takes time
Moving to Brussels is a big step, and it’s completely normal if it feels overwhelming from time to time.
But each small action helps you adapt and make for a smooth transition:
being proactive while listening to your limits
building small routines
and making your new city feel like home
And one last thing: Adapting to a new place takes patience, curiosity, and a bit of self-compassion. So, if you’re not instantly thriving, if you feel overwhelmed and lost at the beginning, it’s ok: don’t worry. (and remember you’re not alone!)
Thanks for reading!
– Pol & Mattia
P.S. Don’t forget to check out more of Pol’s work here:
P.P.S. If you liked the post, please share it with your friends, and don’t forget to like the post! Knowing I’m not writing into the void helps me stay motivated!
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