The Germany Expat Business Show – Details, episodes & analysis

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I've been wowed by DanRam's LinkedIn profile for awhile, so I was delighted when he agreed to be a guest on the podcast last summer.

DanRam travels the globe as an Event MC & Speaker at over 100 events a year. Hosting changemakers like President Barack Obama, billionaire founders Sir Richard Branson and Reid Hoffman, F1 champion Nico Rosberg, Grammy-winning artists and celebrities, he works on 4 continents from college campuses to parliaments to in-house corporate innovation days for Fortune 500 companies to the biggest tech conferences in the world. His passion is to inspire people with his motto 'Start Now Start Simple' in building a future we all want to live in.

In this episode we talked about:

1. A true 4th culture person, DanRam was born in India, grew up all over the world and landed (for now!) in Aachen Germany
2. He's an event MC, speaker, start-up coach and entrepreneur. Which two of these describe what he does the most
3. How he created such an unconventional type of career for himself
4. How he built his massive network and your audience
5. How DanRam created such a distinctive personal brand and whether it evolved organically and what he does to maintain it
6. The pros of working internationally but being based in Germany
7. His experience of starting and growing his team
8. Where he gets all his energy! And how he manages it. 

Tune in to hear about all of this and more!

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Navigating German bureaucracy can be quite challenging, especially when you don’t speak German, are new to the processes and don’t know what support is available to you.

If you’re a new parent in Germany, you’ve probably heard of Elternzeit, Elterngeld and Kindergeld and are totally overwhelmed by everything you need to take care of for your baby. And after Elternzeit, many mothers want to change jobs due to a shift in priorities or the need for more flexibility at work.

Gitanjali More understands all of these challenges because she faced them too and wanted to make sure her research also benefited other parents in a similar situation.

With The Confused Mother, she supports international families to successfully apply for these and other benefits available to them here in Germany. She also offers mothers two job coaching programs when they want to make a shift in their career after their Elternzeit.

She is from India and has been living in Germany for 10 years, speaks fluent German, English, Hindi and Marathi and helps people new to Germany in all of these languages.

In this conversation we covered:

1. How she a long-standing family connection to Germany prompted her to learn German and eventually get a degree in International Politics at the University of Göttingen,
2. How and why she got the idea for The Confused Mother
3. How reach outs and direct emails to her existing network as well as strategic partners helped build her client base.
4. Her business model of coaching, consulting and tutorials
5. The difference in her marketing approach to indviduals vs. organizations
6. What percentage of her business is focused on becoming a mom in Germany vs. rebooting a career after having a child.
7. The biggest challenges she sees expat/immigrant women facing when becoming a parent and restarting their careers afterwards in Germany.
8. How stamina and having a plan are key to running a solopreneur business in Germany.

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Tetyana Pirker came from Ukraine to Munich in 2002. She studied psychology in the university of Munich and afterwards she started a career at Accenture as IT SAP consultant. 

After many years SAP consulting he looked for a ‘soul business’. After the birth of her first child in 2017 she discovered her passion; photography. 

Tetyana works for both business customers but also she loves weddings. She has 2 kids, lives in the north of Munich and still works part time in the consulting while she is developing her photography business.

In this episode Tetyana and I discussed:

🇺🇦 Her experience migrating from Ukraine to Munich as a 19 year old
❤️ Even though she landed a good job at a consulting firm, she was missing work she was passionate about
📷 Turning her passion; photography into a side hustle
🤝 How she got permission from her full-time job to launch her photography business
🤓 How much there is to learn when launching a business (Taxes! SEO, Building a website!)
🎨 Balancing managing your business with also being a creative
🗺️ How Google Maps has been helpful for getting the word out about her business

🚀 Why it’s important to just start and not worry about everything being perfect

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Time for another episode of The Germany Expat Business Show Mailbag!

This time I’m sharing a question from Nutan Jaeger.

Nutan is a trained architect turned writer who moved to Munich with her German husband. She was laid off from her job and has worked as a freelancer in Germany before but always stayed under the mini-job level and making enough to cover taxes and insurance.

Her biggest challenge is figuring out how to start.

Should she exploring business ideas as side hustles and see what takes off? OR Should she create a business right away?

She also asked about working remotely from Germany for clients in the U.S.

It’s so fascinating to hear everyone’s stories.

My advice to Nutan would be to start something as a side-hustle rather than a full on business. For a few reasons.

Listen in to this shorty solo episode to find out more!

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

It was a thrill when John Ismailoglu cheerfully accepted my request for a podcast interview. He is hands down one of my favorite LinkedIn follows, posting about - of all things - Insurance! 

A fellow American born and raised in NYC, John is a ‘4th culture’ person with a family story that spans Turkey, Bulgaria, the U.S. and now Germany.

With close to two decades in the dynamic realm of insurance, John has seen it all. John's story began in New York where he started from the bottom, selling car insurance in a call center. Over time, he climbed the ranks to handling the needs of prominent businesses and the affluent. "From Call Center to Rockefeller Center" will be the title of John's insurance biography - he just needs to put pen to paper and write the thing.

Nowadays, John is venturing into new territory in Berlin and embarking on a fresh chapter with INSRD, an insurance and risk solution provider for startups, scaleups, and tech. 

In this interview we talked about:

•  How the buzz and diversity of Berlin feels similar to being in his hometown of NYC 3.
• How a his experience working at a call center in high school led to INSRD
•  Our shared American respect for the art and talent of selling and customer service (of course!) 
• His German language journey from learning it, forgetting it, then learning it again and then learning ‘Insurance German’ 
• His rule of thumb advice for the basic insurances every business needs
•  Balancing the market opportunities with the bureacratic challenges of setting up and running a business in Germany 
• His excellent, excellent LinkedIn game and how and why he built up a following on the platform

And congrats! INSRD just received €500k in Pre-seed funding!

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Leaving the warm beaches of California for  Munich? Gretchen and her family did just that. The result is an inspiring story of her career evolution from a CMO in the B2B software industry to business founder and entrepreneur.

In this conversation Gretchen and I talk about  the whirlwind of relocation, unexpected career detours and the growth that comes with such a bold move.  We also discuss:

• The decision and backstory on moving to Germany based on a major opportunity for her career (rather than her husbands)
• How her substantial business acumen informs her approach to leadership consulting 
• Why she's passionate about helping leaders become the best versions of themselves so they can lead their teams to do the same
• How and why she transitioned as a successful CMO into a consulting business owner and entrepreneur
• How she developed a proprietary tool and team development method
• How she built up a LinkedIn audience of over 5k followers
• Whether it's better to use accounting apps and services or a professional Steuerberater
• Why sometimes the best thing you can do is just throw some money at a problem!

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

A subscriber to my newsletter asks the eternal question: How do I get more clients? I share my response.

Links mentioned in this episode:
4 Thrilling Things That Suddenly Happened When I Committed to a Niche
How to Find Clients Online with Enjoyment and Ease
How to Grow Your Business Online (newsletter)

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Laila is a Startup Coach from Stuttgart, who wants to create a safe space for migrant founders in Germany through the community empowerment project ‘The Migrant Accelerator’. She loves to talk about lived allyship and inclusion for investors and corporates.

She is also the host of The Migrant Accelerator Podcast.

TMA sounds like a fun place to be, it’s full of founders from: Thailand, Uganda, Russia, Palestine, India, Ukraine, Pakistan and even a few Americans!

In our conversation we discussed:

• How her bachelor thesis formed the basis of  The Migrant Accelerator.
• What The Migrant Accelerator is and how it helps
• The history of migrant entrepreneurship in Germany
• The availability of grants and non-VC sources of funding that aren’t widely known about
• The opportunities (and challenges) to founding a startup in Germany
• ‘Passport privilege’ and the the difference between the terms migrant, immigrant and expat
• Balancing motherhood (of a toddler!) and business leadership

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Imagine uprooting your life and moving to a country where you don't speak the language to chase a dream. That's precisely what Ranjit did when he left India for Germany, and his journey is nothing short of remarkable. In our heart-to-heart, Ranjit, a seasoned entrepreneur, walks us through his challenging yet rewarding path from a language novice to a thriving business owner. Tune in as he shares the pivotal moments, from landing a project with Deutsche Telekom to the strategic pivots of establishing his own company.

Navigating the complex world of business in a country that's not your birthplace requires resilience and a strong network, both of which Ranjit has mastered. His anecdotes about ensuring an employee's residency and the strategic shift to a home office are testaments to his adaptability. For all the freelancers and aspiring business owners out there, Ranjit's insights into the power of past colleagues, professional networks, and agencies can be the key to unlocking new levels of success. His tale is a striking example of how embracing change can forge unexpected opportunities.

Beyond the entrepreneurial grind, Ranjit also underscores the importance of continuous personal development. His involvement with Toastmasters shines a light on the profound impact that honing public speaking and leadership skills can have on professional growth. If you're pondering on how to handle the recurring tasks of business ownership or seeking advice, Ranjit's experiences reveal the strength found in community and mentorship. Embark on this episode for a dose of inspiration, practical advice, and a reminder that no one should navigate the intricacies of business, especially in a foreign land, alone.

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.

Like the show? Have a burning question? Send a text?

Dan's journey of transforming into an entrepreneurial powerhouse is a real inspiration and a living demonstration of the good old American 'Can Do' spirit.

He shares candid tales of his early days grappling with language barriers and the incredible stroke of luck that led him from the doing research at the U.S. consulate with a bag lunch, to the boardrooms of Siemens.

In this episode Dan shares:

• The surprising story of how and why he decided to leave a promising trajectory in Silicon valley and move to Munich (spoiler: it wasn't a relationship!)
• His life philosophy and approach to making decisions
• Living in a WG with roommates disinclined to speak English
• The relatable challenges of navigating German bureaucracy
• How he got started with no connections and no German language skills
• How he identified a gap in the German market and how he could serve it with the skills he already had
• The astonishing story of how he landed his first Fortune 500 client

Dan's story is a masterclass in adaptability and perseverance. His anecdotes about pushing through fear and the humorous realization of operating without proper permits will resonate with anyone who's ever sat dejectedly in the KVR office.

Beyond business stories, Dan also shares a wealth of knowledge on leadership dynamics. With his background in psychology and criminology, he doesn't shy away from getting into the nitty-gritty of executive coaching and the significance of investing in team relationships. 

His transition from running a successful company to focusing on improving team interactions within corporations offers an insider perspective on leadership that's both informative and inspiring. 

You can find this episode and all episodes as well as show notes for each at https://thegermanylist.de/the-germany-expat-business-show-podcast/

Starting or running a business in Germany as a foreigner? Already running an online business in Germany as an expat? Wanting to grow your German-based business? Working as a freelancer in Germany? You'll love my guide with over 30 resources for expat business owners in Germany.