Expat Interview With Alex Mills

Meet Alex Mills. He took the leap of faith and moved to Sydney, Australia on the Working Holiday Visa just seven weeks ago. Speaking to him in our latest expat interview, it’s clear that he’s already making the city his home with new friends, job opportunities and even supporting the local footy team. To inform and inspire anyone else thinking about moving to Australia, we chatted to him about his big move.

Where are you originally from?
Ipswich, Suffolk but I lived in North London for 8 years.

Where are you currently living?
Sydney (specifically Bondi Beach – like all the Brits!) in a flat share halfway between the beach and the junction, so the best of both worlds.

What inspired you to come to Australia?
Australia was always on the bucket list of places I needed to visit, but I always wanted to go long term rather than a 2-week holiday. However, there was always a reason not to – I was either in a band about to release a record, had a relationship commitment, studying a masters – many reasons which were legitimate ones at the time.

This year I turned 30, and a few things happened to me to review my life situation. I was falling further and further out of love with London and felt a bit stuck in a rut having been there for so long. I had changed career paths away from music and stopped playing in bands (something I put my heart and soul into). Whilst i was deeply passionate about my new role and learning new skills, I did miss having a creative outlet as such.

A friend of mine in Sydney recommended I applied for his old record label job and I thought ‘why not?’ As the Skype interviews progressed, I grew more and more interested in the idea of relocating…but fell short at the final hurdle. When this happened, I was really disappointed – more than I thought I would be – and that’s when I started to think more seriously about it. I had a great career and was very proud of my achievements, but felt I needed to do something truly inspiring in order to gain more personal development (something I am a huge advocate of) and the idea of moving to the other side of the world and testing myself in a new continent felt like a great challenge. I’d have more success and learn more by just coming out here, get amongst everything and ‘hustle’ as opposed to trying to plan it all via Skype calling and get something lined up, and it felt like more of a challenge whereby I could gain some amazing life skills.

I love the Sydney lifestyle – I’m very much a summer person, take my fitness and physique seriously and love the beach – my friends out here were always telling me how I’d be in my element here and from the pictures they’d send I would agree with them.

I lost a good friend in a tragic accident and I also had a cancer scare myself. These both reminded me how short life was and I reached a point where I knew it was now or never due to the restrictions of getting a Working Holiday Visa after you turn 31. So I decided to take a leap of faith, get out of my comfort zone, live and work abroad and see what happens’. Scary, reckless, illogical but the best decision I ever made.

Did you arrive with a plan?
To an extent. I booked a few nights’ accommodation in different parts of Sydney to get a feel for each area and where I felt I would like to live. I also had Skype calls with recruiters in my industry so that I could hit the ground running and get networking immediately, but I wanted to maintain a level of flexibility and challenge myself to find my feet rather than have everything lined up for me.

So you are you looking for work; what job did you do back home and are you planning on doing it in Oz?
My background is in digital marketing – content strategy, project management and social media. Previously I managed music services for Xbox and HMV and then moved to BT to manage campaigns for BT Mobile, BT Sport, their TV and broadband packages as well as their online publishing platform. Content Marketing is something I well and truly believe in and I love it when brands use creative storytelling to bring their products to life.

I am looking to remain in the digital marketing industry – a field where British candidates are highly sought after and this should hopefully get me a more senior role than I might have got back home. I have fortunately landed a short term contract at an agency for the next few weeks and we’ll see what happens longer term, I’m keeping myself flexible as I’m still so new here. The market is really starting to grow in Australia and it’s a really exciting time to be here.

Are you planning on living here permanently?
It’s too early to tell. I’ve loved my experience so far, that’s all I will say.

Will you travel?
Yes, but not backpacking as such, just ad-hoc trips – much like the way Londoners may book a few mini breaks in other European cities.

I am attending a hardcore punk and metal festival in Melbourne and plan to do the East Coast in the late summer/autumn and want to visit Northern Territory in the winter. I have two close friends who live in Japan and I also want to visit them whilst I’m in this part of the world. A lot of it depends on my work situation however – I am here for career progression as well as travel and quality of life, so finding the right job is key. If that side doesn’t work out, I’ll review more travel options.

What experiences have you had in Oz so far?
The biggest was having a summer Christmas and New Year. Spending Christmas Day on the beach was unbelievable fun – it felt like a big music festival! My birthday is 1st January so I had to make sure New Year’s was unforgettable – this meant going to Luna Park, which was immense fun and the fireworks were indescribable. On New Year’s Day itself, I managed to round up a large group of friends to party on the beach with me, and a friend sorted me out with a pass to Field Day that evening as well, followed by more drinks in Newtown. The fact I got to go to the beach and attend a music festival in the same day – on my birthday – was amazing. Most years it’s nursing a hangover on a cold, rainy day! The whole concept of spending Christmas and New Year in the sun was incredible.

I’ve already mastered surfing too! Well not quite, but I can stand on a board already and I’m bodyboarding when I’m not having surf lessons. I love the sport so much already.

I have also been to see Sydney FC twice already, which is filling a big Ipswich Town shaped hole in my life. In the winter, I’ll be an avid Sydney Swans (Aussie Rules) and Sydney Roosters (Rugby League) supporter.

I’ve seen the main tourist spots in Sydney but also the Blue Mountains, Royal National Park and Palm Beach (which was amazing surf). I want to see more national parks whilst I’m here – being so close to nature is amazing.

What’s really important is I have already got a pretty good social circle – a mixture of locals, backpackers, Brits in a similar position to me and musicians. As such, I’m exceptionally grateful for my experiences so far.

Where are you most interested in visiting?
Byron Bay. My favourite band is a hardcore band called Parkway Drive and they’re named after a street there. I want to visit the town that nurtured one of the best bands in the world and see the practise space they used to play in and then see the most beautiful beaches and surf spots.

I also want to try and see Aurora Australia or some similar sights of the stars. I went to Iceland earlier this year but we couldn’t see the Northern Lights as it was too cloudy, so if I get to see some similar beautiful skylines I’ll be happy.

Keep up with Alex and his new life in Australia at ladsontourblog.wordpress.com

Thinking of moving to Australia yourself? Get all the information you need at The Moving Down Under Event in London on 30th January. Meet with migration experts, find our about skills assessments and see whether you could start a new life Oz.

Book your ticket to The Moving Down Under Event