Stranger in Dubai

Image via WikipediaYesterday I met a guy who had just arrived in Dubai from Karachi. In fact, we picked him up from the airport. He was a friend of my office colleague.

After talking to him for a while and listening to his thoughts about Dubai, and realizing the fact that he is considering the option to find a job in Dubai and move here, I realized that the poor man was totally naive about Dubai. He had no idea how things work in Dubai and what it takes to move here.

What concerned me the most was that he was not looking for a high paying job. He was looking for something that would “just pay the bills and nothing much”.

That, my friend, is the biggest mistake people make when accepting a job offer in Dubai, and, if you think about it, is the root to most problems in Dubai.

Dubai is no longer a place where you can come empty handed, start with a mediocre job, and work your way up to be a millionaire. No sir. It doesn’t work that way over here. If you come here empty handed you will spend the rest of your life struggling and surviving the ever increasing cost life in Dubai.

Say hello to the 21st century Dubai. If you want to move here, you should already have plenty of money. On top of that, you should have a lucrative job offer. A job offer that not only pays the rent of the apartment you’ll live in, but also covers your monthly car payments, entertainment, shopping, and other expenses. And then you should also be able to save some money for emergencies.

Unfortunately, my new friend was not looking for a job like that. And it’s because of those people that employers offer low salaries. There are countless clueless chaps willing to accept a job at such low payments. If only people stopped accepting a job for less than, say, 10,000 dirhams, then employers will have no choice but to offer that much money to their employees.

Let me repeat. Dubai is for rich people with high paying jobs (or business owners). If you don’t qualify then don’t come to live in Dubai. It’s not worth it.