How to Forgive Yourself for Life-Abroad 'Failures'

I still remember the sting of that email rejection. After months of preparation, cultural research, and practicing my responses, I didn't get the job I desperately wanted. The feedback was polite but clear: they chose someone who "fit better with the team culture."

I sat in the kitchen and let the familiar shame wash over me. I should have understood their communication style better. I should have researched more. I should have been smarter about this whole thing. That night, I made a list of everything I'd done wrong since moving abroad. The cultural mistakes. The networking events where I felt awkward. The opportunities I'd missed because I misunderstood the process.

It was a long list. And it was crushing my spirit.

The Weight of International Mistakes

When you're building self-trust abroad, every mistake feels magnified. Back home, a missed opportunity was not a big deal. Here, it becomes evidence that you don't belong, that you made a terrible decision, that you're not smart enough to succeed in this new place.

We carry these "failures" like stones in our backpack, growing heavier with each cultural misstep, each misunderstood conversation, each door that closes. We tell ourselves we should know better by now, should adapt faster, should stop making these mistakes.

But here's what I've learned through my own journey and working with women around the world: failing is not the same as being a failure.

Why We're So Hard on Ourselves

Oscar Wilde said that experience is just the name we give to our mistakes. But when you're living abroad, mistakes feel more personal, more threatening to your sense of identity.

Every error becomes a reflection of your decision to leave everything familiar behind. That job rejection isn't just about this position—it's about whether you were right to believe you could build a successful career in a new country. That social misunderstanding isn't just awkward—it's proof you might never truly fit in.

We forget that everyone makes mistakes. The difference is that our mistakes happen in public, in languages that aren't our first, in cultures we're still learning to navigate.

The Truth About Learning and Growing

Here's something I wish someone had told me during those dark nights of self-doubt: you are supposed to make mistakes when you're learning something new.

Think about learning to drive. Did you expect to be perfect on your first day? Did you call yourself a failure when you stalled the car or missed a turn? No. You understood that mistakes were part of learning.

Building self-trust abroad requires the same patience with yourself.

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

After that job rejection, I created a story about what it meant. I decided it proved I wasn't good enough, smart enough, or adaptable enough to succeed internationally. I let one disappointment define my entire journey.

But stories are just stories. They're not facts.

The fact was: I didn't get that particular job. The story I created was: I'm a failure who made a mistake moving abroad.

Learning to separate facts from the stories we tell ourselves about those facts is crucial for maintaining self-trust. Yes, you made a mistake in that presentation. Yes, you misunderstood that cultural norm. Yes, you said the wrong thing in that important meeting.

These are facts. They are not proof that you're incompetent.

The Power of Self-Forgiveness

Forgiveness isn't about pretending mistakes didn't happen or that they don't matter. It's about refusing to let them define your worth or derail your journey.

I had to learn to talk to myself the way I'd talk to a dear friend who was struggling. Would I tell her she was stupid for making that cultural mistake? Would I say she should give up because she didn't understand the hiring process perfectly?

Never.

So why was I saying these things to myself?

Self-forgiveness means treating yourself with the same kindness you'd show someone you love.

Making Promises You Can Keep

One reason many of us struggle with self-trust is that we've broken too many promises to ourselves. We said we'd learn the language faster, adapt more quickly, make friends more easily. When we don't meet these impossible standards, we lose faith in our own reliability.

The solution isn't to stop making commitments to yourself. It's to make promises you can actually keep.

Instead of "I'll never make another cultural mistake," try "I'll learn something from this experience."

Instead of "I should already understand everything about this culture," try "I'm still learning, and that's okay."

Instead of "I'll be fluent in six months," try "I'll practice a little each day."

When you keep small, realistic promises to yourself, you rebuild the trust that mistakes may have shaken.

Surrounding Yourself with Growth-Minded People

The people around you shape how you see yourself. If you're surrounded by others who view mistakes as learning opportunities, you'll start to see your own challenges differently.

Seek out communities of people who are also building lives in new places. Join groups where vulnerability is welcomed and growth is celebrated. Distance yourself from anyone who makes you feel small for being in a learning process.

When you surround yourself with people who understand that adaptation takes time, you give yourself permission to be imperfect while you grow.

Your Mistakes Are Not Your Identity

That job I didn't get? Three months later, I landed something even better with a company that appreciated my international perspective. The skills I thought were weaknesses—my different viewpoint, my careful approach to communication, my awareness of cultural differences—became strengths in the right environment.

Your mistakes while building self-trust abroad are not character flaws. They're not proof you don't belong. They're not evidence you made the wrong choice.

They're simply part of the process of becoming who you're meant to be in this new place.

What's Coming Next

In our next piece, we'll explore how to keep promises to yourself when everything feels uncertain—a crucial skill for maintaining self-trust while navigating the ups and downs of international life.

Because forgiveness is just the beginning. True self-trust comes from proving to yourself, day by day, that you're someone you can count on.

Struggling to forgive yourself for the mistakes you've made since moving abroad? If you're carrying the weight of cultural missteps and missed opportunities, you don't have to bear this burden alone. Book a Pathfinding Session with me, and let's create a roadmap to transform those "failures" into the building blocks of your success in all areas of your life.

Because every mistake is just practice for getting it right.