About Renae

Have you hit culture shock and feel angry, lonely and confused? Do you feel like you're stuck in your cultural bubble abroad, having a hard time making friends with the locals (or even other expats from different cultures)? Do you feel like you can’t explain why things feel so hard when you're trying so hard?

I help people feeling angry, lonely and confused while living abroad to gain the skills they need to confidently adapt and feel like they belong in any culture.

You might have tried expat coaching or even gotten therapy to cope with the difficult feelings that keep coming up, but you don’t need mindset coaching, you need skills.

I experienced culture shock when I lived in South Korea, and I remember the confusing anger I felt toward South Koreans. I thought I was a good person and I couldn’t understand why I was so angry and frustrated. I had no one to explain why these dark feelings were happening inside me. 

I didn’t get any support or training when I lived abroad, but when I came home, I went through an intense reverse culture shock phase where I questioned my values, my identity, my cultural programming. I started reading books about cultural differences and cultural intelligence (the ability to effectively communicate with people from diverse cultural backgrounds). This changed my perspective of my entire experience in South Korea, and I thought, “You mean, there are ways to explain what I went through?”  It was too late for my time in South Korea, but I immediately took my newfound knowledge about cultural differences out into my daily life and career. This is why I care about belonging and integration. I know what it’s like to be the outsider. I know what it’s like to want to connect and not know how. 

I have spent much of my life since South Korea working or volunteering with people from other cultures and I’ve worked or been friends with people from more than 30 countries.  I’ve seen patterns across many cultures, not just one culture. Misunderstandings repeat themselves, many conflicts are predictable. I have seen first-hand how these cultural clashes play out live. It’s not just theory to me, it’s personal and I’ve lived it.

This is not expat coaching or therapy. What I provide is cultural training and an opportunity to build skills that will help you no matter where you’re from or what country you move to. Some people say this seems impossible, but that’s because they haven’t worked with me or seen how cultural intelligence can predict and solve cultural misunderstandings. 

I am certified by the Cultural Intelligence Center to debrief their cultural intelligence assessments, and I have decades of cross-cultural experience to inform conversations with you. I'm also a PhD student in Communication Studies and study cross-cultural communication deeply.

I experienced culture shock in my nervous system, not just in my head. I didn’t just learn that culture is different, I felt it. I understand that culture shock is not a weakness, it’s a psychological response to constant ambiguity. It created the question that led me to cultural intelligence. I lived something I couldn’t explain, and I went looking for answers. 

While I still have cultural misunderstandings sometimes, I am much more skilled at identifying cultural behaviors in myself and others. These skills mean when I meet someone from another culture, I am able to quickly identify how I can adjust my behaviors to put them at ease and forge a genuine connection and ultimately build trust.

Fun Fact About Me

Every Sunday from 4:00-5:30pm I volunteer my time and play music from all over the world on my community radio show 89.3FM KZUM. You can listen online! I have done this since 2013, and I find that along with my cultural intelligence skills,  my musical knowledge also helps me connect with people from around the world. I can usually share with them a musical artist from their country that I like, and they are immediately impressed that I have taken the time to learn about their country. Listening to and sharing music from all over the world has been a decades-long passion for me, mirroring my growth in cultural intelligence. 

If you are ready to explore building your skills and find the confidence you need as you navigate conversations and unspoken cultural expectations, book a 15 minute discovery call today. We will chat about your specific cultural goals and explore what confidence and growth look like for you, so you can stop second guessing yourself, build trust within your relationships, and feel like you belong, no matter where you live.