FAQ
I'm moving to a new country or starting a new life project (expat move, retirement, career change), how do I prepare before I leave?
The programme covers concrete cultural codes (what gets said, what doesn't), language for everyday situations and admin, and a clear sense of direction for the first few months — anticipating the friction points typical of your situation. You arrive already oriented, with practical bearings you can use from day one.
I've settled in, but nothing's going as planned, or it's moving slower than I hoped, why?
That's the norm, not a failure: real integration almost always takes longer than expected, and language alone isn't enough, it's often the cultural unspoken that trigger people. We pin down exactly what's not working in your daily life (an email that goes unanswered, a meeting that goes sideways) and fix what's holding you back: the code, the wording, or both.
I followed my partner abroad, how do I not just go along for the ride, and how do I find my place once I'm there?
Before departure, we build your own project inside theirs: what you want to do, learn, develop once you're there. You leave with a plan that's yours, not just a suitcase. Once you've arrived, the support starts from what you have - skills, ambitions, energy - to help you rebuild a network and a sense of legitimacy that are genuinely your own in this new country.
I've lived in my partner's country for years, but I never quite feel at home , is that normal?
Yes, and there's a reason for it. We work through the specific situations where you get stuck such as in-laws, everyday habits, the way things are said, to understand the cultural mechanism behind it. Once you can name it, it stops being vague and stops weighing on you.
How do you figure out what I need, and is the diagnostic an extra cost on top of the programme?
The diagnostic happens in two stages: a CultureConnector profiling questionnaire from Argonaut, followed by an interview to pin down your real needs. The programme is then custom-built from those results, not drawn from a standard package. This diagnostic is billed separately, but the full amount is deducted if you sign on for a programme within 30 days, so there's no extra cost if you confirm within that window.
How long does support last, and in what format?
The format adapts to your situation: one-on-one sessions, in person or remote, alone or as a couple, at a tighter pace before departure or spread over several months during integration. Sessions run 1h30. As a rough guide: one-on-one intercultural coaching averages 10 hours; a full intercultural training programme runs 6 to 10 hours; moving up one CEFR language level takes a minimum of 30 hours.
