That time I had a worm in my leg
Travel isn’t everything. Sure, it’s one of my favorite hobbies (along with reading, shopping, cooking and, since recently, working out),...
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Feb 25, 2021
The 6-month rule of settling in
After six months of living in a foreign country, you may feel a shift. Suddenly, everything looks and feels a bit different. You worry...
Feb 18, 2021
Just when I thought passports were boring
As I mentioned before, there are many different sides to consular work. I explained in a previous post that I work mostly on...
Feb 7, 2021
How the kids pick up a foreign language
We’ve been posted in Germany for six months now. While life and work have been weird for me under COVID, the kids have a had a fairly...
Feb 1, 2021
International Relations Career Checklist
I often get asked how to get started in the field of international relations. I’ve written many lengthy blogposts—essentially a small...
Jan 26, 2021
FS Career tracks: best & worst
Of the five career tracks within the general Foreign Service I chose consular because I realized it was my best chance of never being...
Jan 25, 2021
Recap 2020
Well. I think we all had more or less the same 2020, didn’t we? We stayed home a lot. We drank more than usual. We explored old and new...
Dec 29, 2020
Rich people, ugh
Today it occurred to me that of all groups of people, I probably like rich people the least. And that rich people behave similarly all...
Dec 7, 2020
Career advice with journalist Aisha Chowdhry
Aisha Chowdhry is my awesome international journalist friend, currently working freelance out of Southern Africa. I met her in Pakistan,...
Nov 24, 2020
Tips for high school students: what to study for the FS?
If you’re in high school right now and you already know you want to be a Foreign Service Officer I say: good for you! Many FSOs will...
Nov 18, 2020
Career Advice with Entrepreneur Gertje Vanhoutte
Gertje is an experienced Human Resources professional who worked in the private sector, public sector, and now as an entrepreneur. She’s...
Nov 12, 2020
You are extraordinary enough to be a FSO!
Yes, you over there! There are many people who read my blog and then email me to say they want an international career but doubt their...
Nov 10, 2020
When your dream job is a nightmare
Some six years ago I thought I’d found my dream job. It had everything I wanted: working on a variety of international issues (migration,...
Nov 7, 2020
It doesn’t have to be this way
As I’m writing this, the presidential election is in full swing. It looks like Biden is going to win but it’s still a nail-biter. Yet all...
Nov 3, 2020
How to ask for career advice
The more people ask me for career advice, the more I realize it’s an art in itself. Or maybe not an art, exactly. Frankly, there’s a...
Nov 2, 2020
The human side of consular work
Before I started, I thought consular work would be first and foremost about applying the law. And that consular officers get their...
Nov 2, 2020
FSOT studying tool podcast!
Two aspiring Foreign Services Officers, one cool podcast. I'm happy to present this new tool to study world history and culture. Even...
Oct 25, 2020
Technology in our office
Anytime you ask a bunch of diplomats what they would like to improve in the State Department the answer includes: technology. We simply...
Oct 23, 2020
Travel by book
Early on in the COVID-19 pandemic I decided that if I couldn’t travel physically, I’d travel with my mind. I started reading books about...
Oct 22, 2020
On dual citizenship and passing the Foreign Service test
Having dual citizenship is not a source of pride in the Foreign Service. How could it be, when patriotism and representing American...
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