New Horizons: Budgeting, Wealth & People Skills in Australia

In this insightful episode, TFS founder Pramu Rodrigo sits down with his longtime friend Arjuna Rajawasan. an HR leader who recently migrated to Australia in his early forties to explore what it takes to build a new life down under. They discuss the importance of planning your move: research shows that potential migrants should carefully assess the cost of housing and transport, establish a contingency fund and set aside three to six months of living expenses. Arjuna explains how he applied the 50/30/20 budgeting rule 50 % of income for essentials, 30 % for lifestyle and 20 % for savings to manage higher rents and living costs while still investing in his family’s future. 

As an experienced peoplemanager, Arjuna highlights why engaging qualified professionals can be a game changer. Mortgage brokers, for example, must act in your best interests and can help you understand your borrowing capacity, compare loan options and manage the application process. He also shares leadership lessons from his HR career particularly the value of working with diverse teams and investing in staff development and draws parallels between nurturing talent and building wealth. 

Whether you’re preparing to migrate, navigating your first years in Australia or simply looking for budgeting and investment tips, this episode offers practical advice and inspiration to help you thrive. 

Any information discussed or provided in this podcast is general advice and has been provided without taking account of your objectives, financial situation or needs, you should consider the appropriateness of this advice before acting on it. If this general advice relates to acquiring a financial product, you should obtain a Product Disclosure Statement before deciding to acquire the product.

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Transcript

dream big plan smart build wealth
this is the TFS podcast where money talk gets real
and financial freedom is more than just a goal
without further ado let's dive in
welcome to another episode with TFS Wealth cast
today I've got a special guest and a dear friend
um so we thought we bring Arjuna Rajawasan
who has been a friend of mine since bonkers years
I would say  grade 1 I would say grade 1 um
and a dear friend
who recently moved from beautiful Sri Lanka to Australia
so one of our episodes we did
migrating in your late 30s
so I thought why not let's bring Arjuna Rajawasan
ask some questions about his move
and also this episode we're gonna talk about his experience in HR
and how he's navigating different kinds of individuals for uh
better performance or high performance
I would say so Arjuna yeah welcome thanks
thanks Pramu thanks a lot for having me as well
I think 36 years of friendship and it continues to grow
so pleasure to be here Arjuna
now a lot of us know you from from school days
you you you have captain uh
cricket from
from young from junior cricket to 1st 11 cricket as well and
and beyond uh
when you were playing corporate levels you have captain there as well
so your leadership skills is
is in you now
apart from these leadership skills that you have now gone into the HR
people management and you have gone to the top level as well
so I want to ask you before I get to uh
too much about your uh migration
let's talk about your your experience and your past
your what you have done
sure so I think uh Pramu it's been uh
so I think after we
I after I left school that was 2003 or 2004
I think we all finished up playing cricket and then we left school
uh so I wanted to continue with playing a bit of cricket
so I tried to play uh or rather played for SSC for  few years and um
then obviously I was studying as well while doing that
and then I did management and marketing in terms of studies
but then um
I always wanted to be in a corporate uh sort of environment
that was my goal at the time
so
there was an opportunity that opened up as a Management Trainee in HR
uh at Ceylon Tobacco so that was um one of the
it still is one of the primary sort of uh
companies in the in the country
so how how
how old you were 23
okay yeah
so I was 23 at the time um
and that gave me sort of uh
even though it wasn't management and marketing
but I wanted to join and I thought it's a good challenge
um it's a controversial industry
so that was also a factor that drew to me yeah
and I joined in
I had no clue about human resources and so on and so forth but um
with some great sort of mentors and bosses along the way um
I think I managed to sort of gain a lot of understanding
knowledge and experience in the sort of uh sphere of uh
human resources while being at uh
tobacco and during that sort of journey I was very fortunate
um to get some opportunities to work not only in Sri Lanka
but also outside so I spent a few months in Pakistan in Islamabad
in Dhaka then also a few years in South Korea in Seoul
and also a few years in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia
so okay working with different types of people different cultures um
it really was an very immersive sort of experience
and then post sort of uh
covid about 4
5 years back I got a really good break at um Fonterra in Sri Lanka
so I joined um over there
and also right now I moved here very recently as you mentioned
and I'm still with them here in
in a different capacity as well
so it's been a sort of great journey for me and um
through those phases
I have applied sort of what I Learned from school
what I Learned from friendships and when it comes to HR
it's all about sort of people management and also being very genuine
loyal and straightforward
so I think those things that we learn from our school
also from sports
have come a long way in helping me to sort of get to where I am
okay so
speaking of migrating
late 30s or for us early 40s right
yeah so we are in that big fours yeah
um
what was your experience so far
um before we get to the experience why
yeah so I think uh
Pramu 
I think I had a few conversations with you also in the past and um
amongst my sort of family as well
um I've always maintained that I want to be in Sri Lanka
that was something which um
was very fundamental to me
yeah and my sister moved to Australia in 2000
so that's 26 years back and I was the only other sibling
so I made it a point that I had to take care of my family
um along the way
however of course
as we know circumstances change
yeah and at a certain point around 2020
2021 when the situation was not looking so good
um me and my wife had a conversation
just to see if we can explore other opportunities
yeah and um
that's when we thought we'll try
and it made sense to sort of come here
yeah um
for a few reasons one was obviously family
um my sister is here
plus sort of it brings her closer to her family as well
many of her siblings are here
um also primarily my network of friends that I can always fall back on
and more than anything
from the experiences that they had shared about how life is here
what opportunities it gives me and my family sort of to grow
and also for the kids um
what opportunities it gives from a schooling
plus also from a growth and quality of life perspective
so those were the factors that I considered
when choosing to try for here
we were fortunate to get whatever requirements passed through
yeah and um
now we're here so yeah
okay so
so when you guys are making
I mean obviously when you're making that decision
I remember you and I had quite a number of conversations about
you know certain things such as finances
finding the properties etc etc
so more than me explaining why
why don't you share some insights to our listeners and
and to me
what was it like at the beginning when
when the conversation happened between you and your wife and children
obviously yeah
um and how was it structured
the the planning was structured then
how did you guys manage to execute it at the right
right time I would say sure
so I think uh
Pramu one key factor when we consider this was obviously cost and
um sort of what we need when we come here
because if the numbers don't work
then there's no point in us sort of making the effort to come here
because um
like you said we are in our early 40s
so I've lived a certain life until now
I think I've gone through the stage where you start off
you're very raw and you scramble
I think we are just
sorry past that stage and back home and wherever I was
we managed to maintain a certain level and a quality to sort of
life in our family yeah
so one principle was
I want to maintain that or better when I come here
then you come to finances in terms of one
exchange rates because whatever that we have earned is back home
and when we come here um
at the time versus when you compare before
rates have fluctuated significantly
so that was a key factor in looking at
how much do we really have as a pot of money
you need some back home what can we bring
and does that then allow us to finance ourself
from a housing perspective
from vehicles from schooling and daily sort of expenses
rentals and so on so
those were some of the factors
beyond sort of the other factors that I mentioned
that went into sort of the planning of
of how we can make it through
and then also um
sort of getting a bit further down the line
um we planned it out
I believe quite well
because thanks to many friends and network that I have here
um we planned out sort of where we want to reside
which schools we want to get the kids into
in alignment with our values
and sort of my kids uh
we come from a mixed background in terms of religions
but they're both sort of baptized and yup
we wanted them to go to a good Christian school
be close to family and friends
and then we see if the numbers work based on all that
so that's and we mapped out a few options
made the early sort of calls
and I was very fortunate to get confirmations for both my kids
quite early in the play way before I moved here
yep and then
I made sort of the decision to have a conversation with my employer
um to see once I move here if there's any opportunities for me
cause I wanted to secure something in my hand before coming in
if possible cause otherwise it's a bit of a rougher road
that's sort of how how I looked at it
yeah so
so so
you manage to plan and have certain things in place before you
make that actual
the big move thankfully with the visa that I had
there was a window or a Grace period prior to me having to come here
yeah so we used that period to secure sort of I employment in my case
which was very fortunate yeah
plus schooling and even where we want to stay
potentially looking at what's the cost of rentals and houses
and so on and then to see if that all works out for us
so that phase we did I would say a good
six months in advance yeah
and back home I sort of sold my house 10 months before I came
so I assumed things would go my way yeah
and then I made certain decisions with vehicles and other
stuff as well to be ready to go
so I did all that in not me
me and my wife
did all that in the background to ensure that it's smooth
once we come here yeah
so so you would have started this process
once we actually make the decision okay
we are moving definitely going
then this whole process roughly how long so take for you
we took the call to come here
maybe a good 18 months before I actually came yeah
and I would say ever since we worked on in terms of what plans
but execution of that probably a good
eight months prior to me coming is when we really got down to it yeah
and I would say three months before I left most of it was in place
okay okay
so so when you make the move right
so you come here you've done the I mean
obviously you did the plan and you execute it you stuck to the plan
right so that's one of the key things correct
now
how is it for you guys now from you know
living such a long time in Sri Lanka
different culture different ways of working um
and I I would imagine the
even the schooling system is different
yup how was the change and how are you guys coping this change
yeah so I think we came
we also planned it in such a way
that we came around the end of the year
cause schooling starts in around Feb
in Jan so I came around October
just a couple of months before
my kids and family and wife came around mid December
so they had a month and a half to settle in before school starts
that was critical for us because it's a big shift for the kids
and they feel it so we wanted some time for them to ease in here
so that was a big part of it
and that's what we sort of did by coming at that point
it also gave us some good weather in December
which is not too cold which we are not used to
and also it gave us also the time as a family to settle in
I mean go into a house
and then furnish it and sort of get ready for the real battle
which starts when the schooling and the rest of it all starts
so we looked at it in that manner
and for us it's been a big shift
huge shift for us um
like any person who migrates
you'll have teething issues
so your kids will say look
they want to do this and that which they did back home
but it might not be relevant here
they wanna go to a school that they went back home
but it might not work out here
so it takes time as adults
we can adjust faster but for them takes a bit more time
but I think since we are
keen and clear that this is the path we want to go
we have will work around it
so there are few teething issues which we are working on
yeah but I wouldn't say that they are significant
yeah so that's one
and then also
it really helped for me in terms of from a financial perspective
the fact that I did have employment
gave me a fixed amount that I know I'll get
yeah
and planning my sort of rentals and whatever other expenses based on
on that has really sort of helped me
so I have um
to be very honest from what I have back home
I haven't brought much yet because I managed to secure employment
and I've been running with that for these few yup
few months um
and it's so far been very positive in terms of the move
and also
I think the change the kids will probably take another month or two
but I think we're getting there
yeah so
so so
pre migrate migrating to Australia
there's planning after there's planning yes so during this planning
uh your income
so net income yes
household income yeah
um that's a crucial part here
correct right
as you mentioned expenses
some expenses pops up yeah
some don't
um how important it is for you
having that right budget that fits your family and your lifestyle
and what are the things that you do
to make sure that you stick with it
yeah so I think first what we sort of myself and my wife
 what we discussed was
what would we bring in net at the end of the month right
so then you've got your rental
you've got your groceries
you've got your school fees
you've got your expenses that have to be done without any question
then you'll have certain other extras or wants that you might call it
so I mean what I adopted is something very similar to what
you have been speaking about previously as well
from a sort of 50 30
20 concept to keep some aside for later
yup and then sort of keep half of it for your must haves
mm hmm and then another percentage of about 30% for like to have yup
right so that's how I have sort of looked at it
and that has been sort of my model so far
of course there has been a few expenses which are one off
which come upfront at the initial part I
 buying a vehicle or paying your bond and so on and so forth
which are not really monthly
but keeping those aside this principle is sort of what I've
or what we have adopted and so far it has sort of worked very well
yeah um
but obviously since I'm quite new here
it'll take some time for me to regulate into that absolutely
and yeah keep going
but that's a sort of principle that I've been adopting yeah okay
so yeah
so so folks it's
it's very important just because I give a theory or just because TFS
any any
any of our guys gives a theory doesn't mean it's gonna work uh
next 24 hours
um as we
you know Arjuna
uh and I played cricket a lot um
as we all have been um
Learned and experienced in our in that sport
practicing the right thing makes you perfect
not practicing it every day
right practicing your
your training in a correct way yeah
will make you better yeah
not just for the sake of it training yeah
so so especially this
this 50
uh 50 30
20 rule you gotta start doing yeah
once you start doing you will figure it out yeah
it might shift vary a bit
but that's the principle there's always gonna be variables alright
life is a variable thing itself so
but just having a little guidance and a guideline to stick so
so so that
that's amazing to see that you're
you're doing that way
um alright so
I'm gonna I'm gonna go to a different area now
this is something I always come to you as a as a friend
I come and ask you so
so many things about people management because for me
you have been in the people management game way before they start
recruitment or whatever
your employ employment that you started yeah right
so when you captained under thirteens first 11
when you were head prefect at college
you were in the game you were doing it right
and you did it very well too so I wanna ask you
how are you finding the shift from countries
like managing people in Sri Lanka
Malaysia um you know
Pakistan
and a few other countries that you went there to manage people um
how is it in Australia yeah
are these guys too lazy or
I wouldn't say they're lazy
but I think uh Pramu
it's a few things
sort of like in my sort of experience so far in my journey um
and it's been mainly Asia
Australasia sort of
I've not worked in Europe and wherever that side of the world
I've see some distinct similarities and differences across
so when you take your South Asian sort of countries
uh Sri Lanka
Pakistan Bangladesh that's mainly what I worked with um
there's a certain way of doing things
and you take your Southeast Asian
which is your Malaysia Singapore
Vietnam Thailand
Philippines Indonesia sort of area is
similar but slightly different OK
you take your North Asia which is your Japan
Korea quite different and then Australia
New Zealand is probably the other segment
which is also quite different
so I've been fortunate to be able to sort of
wrangle with all of these folks uh
in these different areas but to the question that you sort of asked me
I would say principally
a significant difference from South Asia to Australia is hierarchy
okay
so that's something that I've noticed significantly here since I moved
um
whilst of course respect and respect for the office and the title is
I think a prevalent factor across um
how it manifests is different over there versus over here yeah
I see people CEOs coming to work on a bike
I don't see that back home
no right
it never happens no chance right
I'm not saying it's right or wrong yeah
but you would have a
a luxury probably you might get run over by the janitor
exactly right but you'd have a luxury vehicle
and a driver bringing you in to office over there right
that's generally how it works yeah
but over here you'll have a
a random guy riding a bike with a bag on his back
yup and he changes clothes in the locker room and comes into work
and he sits on a hot desk
he doesn't have a room yup right
um and it's
if you didn't know he's the CEO
you probably will never know
you will never know yeah
so that for me is a significant difference that I have noticed okay
um so that's hierarchy but of course um
how it manifest
like how decisions are taken and how directives are given
I think it's very similar you
you know what to do and you have to do it
but there's a lot of openness and challenge that I think happens here
a lot more than what I've noticed back home okay
back home if there's a directive given
it's more you get it done here
you might actually question as to
is there a better way of getting it done
and bring that challenge up in a logical
diplomatic
professional manner and you'd get a response in that manner as well
of course in from what I've noticed it all depends on people as well
there might be people who don't operate in that way
so then
you'll find there are very autocratic or different types of leaders
but I'm talking in a generic sort of segment
I think it's a lot more open and challenging here yeah
compared to back home and also less hierarchical overall yeah
also another significant difference I've seen is sort of back home
sort of the work culture is different in a sense
where not only back home but South Asia
South East Asia and even North Asia
where the hours you spend are significantly more in the office
and I'm talking in a corporate yeah environment yeah
these are large corporations
large corporations right
it's significantly different
whereas here it is sort of a a given and a sort of
natural thing
where you would need to sort of clock off at a certain point yeah
and you'll have to probably pick up your kids from daycare
yeah or sort of
you know do A B C yeah um
and you don't have generally domestic support or drivers
and so on here so yeah
your life
is structured in a slightly different manner to those countries yeah
and that for me moving from that side to this side is
I would say another significant difference that I've seen
so hierarchy sort of openness and also work culture would be the three
yeah
things that I've seen but otherwise if you take it just a step back
I think in terms of capability and also in terms of delivery
I think it's got its different ways of doing things
the distinct South Asian culture would be to do in a certain manner
the distinct Australian
or this side of the world culture would be to do in a single
in a single certain manner
but I think we all get to the same outcome
but probably get there in a slightly different way yeah yeah yeah
that's that's um
that's spot on so
now this is some of the things that I have faced in my career here um
I hear what you guys have done in Sri Lanka and certain things
I love it it's brilliant working culture
but then there are certain things I don't as you mentioned very
very different cultures now
one of the things that I like to know from you
when it comes to the management of specific skill set
specific professionals within a a a large corporation
now for for us I see a lot of uh uh
investors or or individuals who wants to create wealth
now for them to create wealth in in Australia
you need to have space different types of professionals around you
so pretty much you are hiring them for yourself
so so you are the CEO you're giving the directions uh
for these guys what to do and expect them to deliver
in situations like yours
where you manage CEOs or you're the HR head of a HR manage CEO CFO
other board of uh directors stakeholders
how do you guys or how do you manage these skill sets for
for a common goal which is the you know
achieving the uh
profit margins that you are the corporate world you looking for
what are the things that you guys do to make sure that you all
stick with the same same goal
sure
so I think like in any it's all the way that I look at it is Pramu  
it's all I mean you have friendships and loyalties and so on
but it's all end of the day it's a transaction
so you need to figure out how best to go about that transaction
be it in your profession where you're
you could be trying to get a client to buy a property or loan
sort of service a loan for a different purpose yeah
and then you have to work with various different people
it could be builders to designers to architects and so on the way
similarly
we would have different stakeholders in my sort of environment as well
if there is no win for any one of those stakeholders
the interest and the commitment is lost yeah
so if it's two people it's a win win if it's 10
it's gonna be a win win win win win yeah
up to 10 all 10 has to win yeah
so in it might be in different levels
it might be in different percentages yeah
but end of the day what I have seen is
someone has to see what benefit they get out of it
there has to be it could be financial
it could be gratification from a self perspective
it could be just happiness
whatever it is right
you've got to find out
what is that touch point that that stakeholder needs
that's how I look at it at least yeah
and in my world
I would get maybe five different people all senior corporate heads
but they might be five distinct personalities
a win for one might not be the same for another
so what I try to do is understand what's the deep rooted sort of um
requirement or need that they have
and they'll also be certain things which they have to deliver
which is sort of uh
mandates given yeah
so delivering the mandate they have to
but then what will really give them that motivation
and that's a factor of okay
I I want
so if I can figure that out
then catering to that at multiple levels would be sort of
what I tried to do from the middle
maneuvering all of them yeah
similarly I think for you as well
it's about how I think
we're having a few conversations during the past few days as well
how you can really get someone genuinely yeah
a win yeah
otherwise what's the point in us correct
doing this so for me
it's one is like
stakeholders need to see what benefits or wins that they would get
that's one critical factor that I would sort of
okay the other thing is also you need to see the way I see it
any transaction again
personalities and the way people work are different okay
so you might find some people to be very introverted
um closed and quiet and some to be more open
externally sort of extroverted and so on um
so it's again how you handle mm right
so again like I said
we all want to give them a
they want to win we want to give them a win
if you want to get a win for us absolutely
so how do you then manoeuvre to cause a win for some person
might not be the same for another yeah
so it needs to be an understanding of like I always say
what is really the requirement and the deep rooted sort of uh
let's say
compass or what they are looking for
if that can be figured out
I think that's 70 80% of the battle
the rest is what we are really good at
which is executing and yeah
sort of making it happen so that's never the challenge
it's always figuring out what yeah
if that can be done in my view
um your three quarter way there
three quarter way there
the last part is the relationship that you build
I think again that's very critical in your industry as well yeah
because it doesn't end a client
doesn't end with you giving him the capability to do one property yeah
for you success means he keeps coming back to you
yup he keeps referring others to you
correct and he sells you in a positive and a
um a
a great manner to his network
that's really your win
that is the that is where you actual success multiply your success
absolutely so similarly in my field as well
it's how it's not how I manage one
but if that one can go and say to someone else look
hey this guy supported me in this manner
he's professional he understands how things work
and I would recommend you to sort of work with him
that's a win yup for me yup
so the way you manage people's personalities
and their sort of engagement
and the way that you navigate that relationship
yeah is critical
I think that's where you excel as well obviously
getting to where you have and in my field
I think that's been a critical factor for me as well
which people have given me openly feedback on as well yeah
as being one of my strengths in terms of how I can when required
go down to a certain level when required push up to a certain level
so I would say those are the sort of factors Pramu 
that in my experience
have sort of been the critical elements of building these
bonds and relationships which get you results that so
so basically folks what Arjun was explaining
if you're if you're getting professionals for yourself to
to create wealth
such as a mortgage broker
property advisor buyer's agent accountant lawyer
List goes on you gotta have the relationship built up first
understand the wins for that particular individual
and then find that middle ground that they both achieve
what they decide to achieve correct
there'll be a sweet spot for each person it's yeah
trying to figure out what that is correct correct
once you do that then even if you get maybe 70% 80% there
you're there that's cause yeah
no one else would get that far
yeah yeah
that's that's amazing
that's amazing alright
so I think this is a brilliant brilliant
brilliant an episode
especially coming after an episode that we did migrating in late 30s
right so
and having a a
you know actual person who actually migrated in early 40s
with a full fledged family here
yeah and and and
and navigating through uh
certain budgeting tools
uh having certain goals to achieve
uh it's amazing to our listeners
um so before we wrap up this
this episode
uh
let's let's
let's let's go to a little bit of a uh
a humour side of it sure
what has been the biggest surprise
in terms of culture and workplace dynamics
for you
in Australia okay
compared to compared to Sri Lanka
let's make it interesting okay
um
you do also need to understand I work for a listed company
so what I say uh yeah
yeah exactly
hahaha
however I think what I mentioned before uh
we are basically it's
I think the biggest sort of change and from a humourous perspective
if we were looking at that sort of would be
um
it's well
humor might not hundred percent be the case
but it's just how people are very different
a few things I see right
yeah I see in my workplace
which I really really value
and yeah it's extremely positive
I see kids all the time inside
okay right
um simply because I don't know
daycare wasn't working or
you know they couldn't go to school for some other reason
and the partner or the the spouse is also employed yeah
and I see them sort of sitting in having lunch
sitting by the person while they work yeah
and everyone's very welcoming and also positive about it yeah
I'm not saying it's not the case back home
but that's yeah unheard of yeah
it it
it sort of doesn't happen yeah
so I wouldn't say it's really humorous in that sense
but it's something which
sort of open my eyes to see sort of how different the you
you get surprised to see it's very surprising for me
that was something which honestly I've
I've traveled here quite a bit but I haven't worked here so yeah
that was a huge I
open up more than what I mentioned earlier about CEOs coming
in a very simple manner that I've seen yeah
right but this was something which was very yeah
new okay
um to me and playing around having a chat with the guys
you know yeah
and um
and you know it's
it's very nice but also something which was a big eye opener for me
because it's not something I've been sort of used to yeah
that I would say
is one of the single biggest things that have sort of opened my eyes
okay okay
so if if
if there's a um
cricket match happening against Sri Lanka and Australia which
which which uh
which which colour you would you be wearing
so I'll tell you something that happened um
last week okay
so Sri Lanka lost to Zimbabwe yeah
um Australia got knocked out of the World Cup yeah
so I was on a call with one of my senior stakeholders
who works in New Zealand okay
he's a Kiwi
so he asked me hey Arjuna
you must be feeling really bad
I said why no
your home country lost
and your home country lost and one home country is out
one home country lost yeah
I said
okay fine
um but um
then I got to thinking oh
now I need to decide which side I sort of go to right
so I think if it's at this stage
I'm very new so it's still one foot here
one foot there so obviously
I have to support Sri Lanka as my home country
if there's a tussle between the two teams
but I've always respected the Australian team in any sport
because of the
the push and the sort of intensity that they play the game with
that's something which I think any sport yeah
they relate to and that's something I really
really yeah
like to see yeah
but if you ask me it's probably my heart is back home
heart is back home yeah
yeah that's
I think most of the Sri Lankans who live in Australia will agree
heart is always back home yeah
something about it's not that you don't support Australia like for me
I've been living here 20 years by the way
yeah so I live
I actually live more in Australia than Sri Lanka yeah
so for me if I ask what's your home country
automatically it's Australia to me yeah
but yeah there
there's little something in
in in
in there yeah
and Sri Lanka is always there for
for whatever that reason yeah
so I don't think it it's
it's going to be for you yeah
oh I'm an Aussie now so that yeah
I don't think it will work
have you picked up any Australian slang yet
uh well
thanks to you guys I have a few uh
and my other friends here uh
what's your favourite slang
don't ask me that don't
I don't think I should be saying why
uh it's just a few slang that I picked up from you guys
but I usually don't talk in yeah
in that manner in that manner yeah
my friends would know back home yeah
uh but uh yeah
I mean I have picked up a bit yes
OK good
good good
alright so
so folks if you're planning to come to Australia
if you're if you're living in Sri Lanka or any other country any
any part of the world um
important things plan yep
um talk to your partner
that is also important I think we
we did we did touch base uh
in the in the last episode we
Vishi did brought it
out and then should we some people don't speak to their partner
this is plan but make sure you do talk to your partner yeah
very important very important
um
have a budget
yeah um
understand where what you are looking to get out of this yeah
this this big move yeah
don't just come for the sake of it and hope for the best right
correct correct
plan it correct because the way I see it from in our age in 40s
like you said earlier we are established right at in different levels
if you're making a move at this stage
it's not like you're 25 or you're 20
you're coming in as a student
and you're hoping to make things happen the way you want
I know you came in your circumstances
and you made it to a superb level
that's a different story in my case
it's not I cannot take a risk with my family
and I need to make sure it's ironclad concrete
rock solid yeah
so planning talking to your partner
budgeting is critical because you only have so much
it's not unlimited that you have yeah
so that's critical
plus also one other factor I would sort of put in is in my case
I'm fortunate to have you and a few other friends here
and you especially being in this industry
and having the know how and the experience
have helped me significantly
on the Assumption that someone doesn't have that
it would be preferable to have a conversation with someone like
absolutely you or in a similar capacity because absolutely
that really helps to understand sort of some of the
the nuances and the and the intricacies
which are alien to us
who migrate from a totally different environment
from taxes to rental yup
uh processors and so on yup
I mean even going
getting the house for me on rent
was a significantly different process to what you would do back home
yes significant
so knowing it and being given a heads up on it
and understanding it prior helped me a lot to sort of do it smooth
then understand what I'm getting into
yeah and I understood there is no hidden fees or no hidden
let's say loopholes yeah
that are there which I'm not saying it's the case back home
but it's not as structured as it is here
so someone needs to help you and guide you through the process
so speaking to whoever who can yeah
and ideally someone of your nature and your industry
is something I would recommend to anyone who's sort of coming here
because that'll help you a lot to be having peace of mind yeah
but more than that
also understand how you can go about it in a smooth manner
yep yep
especially for us at this age
oh yeah absolutely
I I always uh
it it's
it's not a
we we
we run a business right
so it it end of the day when we're running a business
doesn't mean everything that we do is a transactional correct
if you do what we believe in our business
in our our
our Brand TFS
what we believe is if you do the right thing to the customer
or anybody it may not be a customer yeah
uh
that uh
good karma of course
would come around in whatever the form right so
so we believe in that so
I'm pretty sure there's a hell of a lot of other people in Australia
uh who would do the same correct to
to to anybody
so like you said absolutely yes
ask the question plan it well before you make the move right
so let's finish it off sure
before I finish it off can you give me three most important things
if someone in Sri Lanka or any other country
who are thinking to migrate to Australia
first three things
or the most important three things that they should do sure
um
I'll keep it very generic Pramu
not to people of my age segment and what not yeah
one is
you need to be clear in your mind that this is what you want to do
and not look back okay
cause I have as well my options were many back home as well
but we took a call based on a rational
so you need to figure that out
cause it might not be for you otherwise
so figure it out as to what's your rationale
and how do you want to make it work
are you clear
step forward from there I would say that's first step yup
being clear in your mind that you want to hundred percent do this
second thing is planning um
it might vary if you're young
if you're old it might vary
but you need to plan financially
it's extremely critical because it's
it's not it is significant cost you're talking about
and in a minute or in a month
you can wipe out 50 60% of what you've saved back home
if you don't plan properly before you come
yeah you need to be aware of whatever the integrity  and plan
so in that I think you spoke about talking to your spouse
talking to your friends talking to others
do whatever
but make sure that you're clear on how you want to go about it
in terms of planning No. 3 support
I feel that support on the ground is critical
especially for Australians who are very used to that
if you're looking at Australian going to maybe the USA
they might not have anyone over there
but still they'll be fine because it's all process oriented
and that's how they are used to it
yup we are not the case
people in Sri Lanka depend a lot on networks
friends
and getting things done off the radar rather than in the process
so it won't happen the same here
but you need to touch base or liaise with someone here
who can help you through that
that is where I would strongly sort of again
recommend you or tomorrow
Financial Solutions and any other entity of that nature
who you might know or might not know to help you through that
because ultimately
your numbers and your finances are critical in you getting
the rest of it in terms of
like you said the family and all that yes
you have to work it out I agree
but if you don't make this right
you won't be able to give the best for them
so that's the most three
most critical things that I would see for anyone coming here
at any stage of their sort of
career or life yeah
in that sense okay
Arjuna thank you
thanks I hope you enjoyed the single malt
I did as always and thanks a lot Pramu to you as well
I think um uh
not because I'm your friend
but it's been a significant journey for you
I've told this to you many times
yeah right
yeah uh
and as someone who has been always having your back and yup likewise
uh very happy to see sort of how things have progressed for you
thank you uh
professionally and personally
and our friendship continues to absolutely
you know um
and also it's just you know
happy days you know
happy days having a happy conversation with you
having this chat
and being able to professionally have a discussion of this nature
is not something I would have dreamed of
no way when we were in school
this is actually very fun
and thank you so much for giving me the opportunity
thank you Arjuna
so there you go folks
if you need more information
don't hesitate
come to the website make an appointment speak to any of our team
we will help you what you should be doing
what you should not be doing as well
but end of the day I hope that you enjoyed this episode
and Arjun and I managed to share a
a a good set of information
for you to make the next choice in the right way
take care
thank you for tuning in to another episode of the TFS Podcast
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