“I thought I would thrive here. I’ve got an MBA and a Masters...

“I thought I would thrive here. I’ve got an MBA and a Masters in Engineering. I worked for a major real estate developer back in Brazil. I was in charge of land acquisitions. They would tell me: ‘Bruno, go find opportunities for us.’ I’d locate good properties and then negotiate a price. I generated a lot of revenue. I felt powerful. When I spoke to rich people and politicians, I’d feel like their equal. Not in an arrogant way. But I did not feel inferior when I spoke to them. Coming to New York has really challenged my confidence. I applied to over fifty companies when I arrived. Maybe one hundred. But nobody hired me. I have a new daughter coming in August, so now I’m trying to work as a real estate broker. But that has been very difficult too. I’ve only closed one deal so far, and I split that with another broker. Maybe it’s because my English is not perfect. Recently I offended a wealthy lady by suggesting she clean her apartment before showing it. I showed her some dust and she told me to never come back. That was really tough for me because I was really proud of my people skills. And now it seemed that even those had left me. But I think that things are finally beginning to turn around. I have two closings scheduled this month. And yesterday I spent all day with a lady from China, and she barely spoke English, but at the end of the day, she told me: ‘I trust you.’”