"Everyone here is immensely proud of where they live and believe in a strong and secure future for their nation. It is an attractive feeling (the weather also helps). I decided to move here and gave it six months - that was five years ago."
I was born and raised in North London and went to the University of Bedfordshire to study Broadcast Journalism. When I graduated in 2013, I took five weeks off before flying to New York to complete my Master’s degree in Social Documentary film. I was there until 2016 when I returned to the UK briefly before moving to Startup Nation in 2017.
As mentioned in my previous answer, I moved back to England in 2016 - on June 22, to be exact. That date might not sound familiar to most, but it was the day before Britain decided to leave the EU. The year that followed showed what living in a divided and angry country felt like, and I didn’t want to be a part of it.
I didn’t move to Israel for any particular Zionist reason. I didn’t like the weather in England, I was fed up with taking the Northern Line to work every day, and my contemporaries were showing disdain and dread towards the country we were living in. Coming here on vacation to visit friends and family in 2017 was refreshing: everyone here is immensely proud of where they live and believe in a strong and secure future for their nation. It is an attractive feeling (the weather also helps). I decided to move here and gave it six months - that was five years ago.
Funny, I recently returned to London for both a work commitment and a family engagement and I remember thinking: “I am Israeli in my skin but British in my bones”. I’m still not quite sure what I mean by that, but there is a certain ‘rough around the edges’ that comes with being Israeli and living in Israel. For me, it appears when I leave the country and return home to friends and family who knew me before I moved. I hold a British and Israeli passport, both of which I was born with since I wasn’t required to make ‘Aliyah’ (the formal process of immigrating to Israel).
I was both blessed and cursed with quite a few different roles early in my career. These have varied in positions that focus on marketing, PR, content writing, and social media. Today, I am a journalist and editor at CTech by Calcalist - one of the country’s largest online news sites.
My work generally entails speaking to founders and CEOs of tech companies across the country. I feel blessed to listen to all the things that inspire them to make the world a better place and represent Israel on the global stage. For such a small and young country, it always amazes me what the Israeli entrepreneurial spirit can accomplish. The most rewarding part of my job is when I meet these folks face-to-face at conferences around the world.
I always joke that to be a journalist epitomizes the idiom of ‘Jack of all trades, master of none’. I speak to so many experts about such a wide array of topics that there is only so much that I can absorb over time. This often means I remember only one or two fun facts about a random company or sector of the Israeli tech scene - which makes me quite interesting at dinner parties when I am speaking to new people.
It is no secret that living in Israel brings with it unique challenges. Infrastructure is not as strong as it should or could be, customer service is often lacking in relation to other nations, and Israeli companies have the unfortunate habit of outsourcing their products or services in search of European or American customers.
Regardless, this attitude is precisely what makes it so rewarding. Nothing in life worth having comes easy, and those who can grind and learn to roll with the punches are set to find success anywhere - not just in the Middle East.
Relax. You do ultimately get to the destination, even though the journey might be bumpier than you expect. Nothing will happen on your first attempt, whether that is opening a bank account, getting a new card, or easily finding roommates to live with. Consider it a challenge: one you are indeed strong enough to overcome, and one that makes your move all the more rewarding.
It must feel strange to read this from overseas, but I live life perfectly well without western necessities such as Uber, Paypal, Amazon (let alone Prime), Instacart, Yelp, or any other service. Israel has either its own alternatives or manages to survive without them. I like to think of myself as having escaped the increased reliance that people feel on these kinds of apps. My fiancee and I don’t even have Instagram - much to the horror of our friends.
I’m Israeli-born, Silicon Valley raised. I hold a BSc. in Marketing and Entrepreneurship from the University of Arizona. From my peers, I’m the “jack of all trades” marketer, helping companies scale and go to market.
In my free time, I kick-box, DJ, go to the beach, and do fun passion projects like this. If you’re an Oleh/Olah in tech and would love to be featured, let's connect on LinkedIn!