How to Italy

Revealed: my students on the Sardegna Speaks English course

10 of my 14 students on one of our pizza nights.

These are the words that caught me off-guard last week in the restaurant (note, I'm leaving them in Italian):

“Emma, oltre che un’ottima insegnante d’inglese, sei veramente una bellissima persona. Averti conosciuto è stato molto bello, di te ho apprezzato il fatto che sai rendere le lezioni divertenti e piacevoli. Le tue lezioni già mi mancano e mi consola il fatto di sapere che, anche se non con tutto il gruppo, comunque proseguiranno. Grazie davvero di tutto.” - Giuliana Peddis

“Ognuno di noi ha diverse capacità di apprendimento, differenti basi di partenza…ma stessi obbiettivi! Imparare!!!!! Questa è una scuola dinamica di importante rapporto umano. L’approccio con essa è un’eccellente combinazione di capacità organizzative. Emma, l’insegnante, è attenta alle esigenze di ciascuno. Sono soddisfatta della sue costante dedizione. Questo è determinante per la crescita dello studente. Lei rispetta i tuoi impegni…ma…seguendo i tuoi progressi. Imparare con Emma è facile. Possiede gli strumenti giusti. Ti guida verso l’importante obbiettivo…imparare l’inglese” - Maddalena Demuro

“Onorati di averti conosciuta!” - Francesco Giorgioni e Maria Franca Linaldeddu

“Cara Emma, ti ringrazio per tutto quello che mi hai insegnato e che mi insegnerai. Sei una persona speciale, anzi unica, la tua spontaneità e la tua allegria sono contagiose. Insomma, non so se l’hai capito ma per me questo corso è stato un’esperienza meravigliosa.”  - Maria Antonietta Tonola

“Sono felice di averti conosciuta. Grazie” - Adriana Chiodino

“Grazie di tutto quello che hai saputo darci! E’ stata una bella esperienza e non avrei mai pensato di riuscire a impare una nuova lingua. Siamo divertiti!” - Maria Meloni

“Emma, sei una teacher proprio speciale per me, anzi unica - non ne ho mai avuto un’altra. Grazie per la pazienza.” - Maria Bonanno

“Cara professoressa, sei stata bravissima, ma nel mio caso il tuo sforzo è stato quasi vano (per colpa mia). Comunque, ciò che ricordo meglio è nice to meet you.”  - Matteo Filigheddu

“Rientrare a scuola e riprendere i libri in mano è stato un’esperienza davvero bella, anche perché mi sono trovata molto bene con te e con il tuo insegnamento. Ti ringrazio. Ci vediamo presto alle nuove lezioni.” - Elisabetta Scampuddu

Working in Italy if you have Italian blood

Do you have Italian ancestors but unable to claim Italian citizenship? If so, don't despair.

Even if you don't have the right to an EU passport, proof of your Italian heritage puts you top of the pecking order when it comes to dishing out those valuable work visas. You must be able to trace your Italian blood back three generations (art.21 testo unico).

Here's the actual text in Italian:

Art. 21 L’ingresso nel territorio dello Stato per motivi di lavoro subordinato, anche stagionale, e di lavoro autonomo, avviene nell’ambito delle quote di ingresso stabilite nei decreti di cui all’articolo 3, comma 4. Nello stabilire le quote i decreti prevedono restrizioni numeriche all’ingresso di lavoratori di Stati che non collaborano adeguatamente nel contrasto all’immigrazione clandestina o nella riammissione di propri cittadini destinatari di provvedimenti di rimpatrio. Con tali decreti sono altresì assegnate in via preferenziale quote riservate ai lavoratori di origine italiana per parte di almeno uno dei genitori fino al terzo grado in linea retta di ascendenza, residenti in Paesi non comunitari, che chiedano di essere inseriti in un apposito elenco, costituito presso le rappresentanze diplomatiche o consolari, contenente le qualifiche professionali dei lavoratori stessi, nonché agli Stati non appartenenti all’Unione europea, con i quali il Ministro degli affari esteri, di concerto con il Ministro dell’interno e con il Ministro del lavoro e della previdenza sociale, abbia concluso accordi finalizzati alla regolamentazione dei flussi d’ingresso e delle procedure di riammissione. Nell’ambito di tali intese possono essere definiti appositi accordi in materia di flussi per lavoro stagionale, con le corrispondenti autorità nazionali responsabili delle politiche del mercato del lavoro dei paesi di provenienza.

More testimonials

"Working with Emma and Mario has been an exceptional experience. They are engaging, thorough and extremely professional. I consider them a valuable business consulting resource and look forward to working with them again in the future. Complimenti" - Roberto Marinelli Mischak, www.tsirigosorbit.com

"You guys have been awesome to work with and talk with. I cannot tell you how much i appreciate the support knowing that you get me and share my passion for Sardegna. In terms of effective communication, it just doesn't get any better that this. So thanks for everything. I look forward to having you and Mario as a part of my new life." - Nehal Mehta, NJ

"I just read the report you did that you did for us and it looks like all the information we will need to get started. You do a fabulous job." - Deaunne Zasasdny, Veneto

"It was a pleasure to talk to you. We found the consultation extremely helpful and are both very much looking forward to meeting you in May." - Michelle O'Malley and Ben Smith, East Yorkshire

"Hi Emma, I just got off the phone with you and I wanted to thank you once again for sharing your wealth of knowledge on the Move-to-Italy project. I really think finding you and contacting you was a fate thing and I know it is significant in my life. I hope one day to meet you...in Italy." - Silvana Longo, Toronto

"Today was quite remarkable for me as days go. Lucky for me and my daughter, Lauren, who is searching for a position as a teacher in Northern Italy, that we found Emma. Emma gave us immeasurable guidance in addition to all the information posted on the web and Lauren now has all she needs to get settled in the great country of Italy. Thank you Emma." - Laurence Egerton, IN

"You were both such a great help and motivator for me. The written report is also unbelievably valuable. Sometimes when things are written on paper they seem to take more of a direction. I am using it for the next one-and-a-half years and I thank you so much." - Laura Buonanno, TS (now working with us because she impressed us so much - go Laura!)

Woohoo. Another happy client

Wow. I've just got another lovely testimonial to share with you all.

"When I happened across HowToItaly, I wasn't sure if it would be of any help to me. I had some vague idea about living and working in Italy and that's all. After an initial exchange of emails, I saw at once that Emma had a lot to offer, so decided to go ahead with full consultation and email support. I have to say she has been a rock for me in helping me to explore my options and generating ideas and helping me feel at ease about making the move. Things are still in a state of flux for me due to my circumstances but I am truly grateful to Emma for helping me see things more clearly - and things I didn't even know were there. I also have the comfort of knowing I have someone to turn to when I need it. Grazie mille, Emma." - Martin Brackstone, Bournemouth, UK

It's a lovely testimonial. And it's put another smile on my face. Motivating people, getting them to Italy and seeing them happy as a result is definitely the best part about my job.

Another Howtoitaly testimonial

Oooh. I got a lovely 'update email' yesterday from our client Jon Smart who's now in Italy.

We did a consultation with him back in January. He made the move from London from to Novara a month later. He had several job offers and is now teaching English with Berlitz.

Anyway, this is part of his lovely email that he's letting me share with you.

"Would just like to say once again, thanks for the service you provided. I know I paid for it, but I thought it was excellent value for money and would recommend it to anyone else thinking of making the move! It certainly gave me the reassurance I needed and a lot of ideas I may not have thought of myself. I would like to stay in touch and if ever I am in Sardinia or you are in Milan maybe we should hook up for a cappuccio!!!"

Now, I don't know about you but I hate paying out money for a service that I'm not sure I'm going to get value from or I'm not sure what the outcome will be. I like to have some kind of guarantee.

Starting a Business in Italy - amazing book reviews

I've just realised I haven't ever posted the reviews of our book Starting a Business in Italy: how to set up and run a successful business in the Bel Paese on here. So, excuse me for a while, but I'm just going to blow our own trumpet for a bit:

Last week I decided to buy your book. What can I say...?? I can't put it down!! I wish I would have had it a couple of years ago when I began some business projects...which at the end never really worked out. I don't know you, but reading your book is like having a friend talk to me about the real situation here in Italy...it's fantastic. At the moment I'm not working, but your book is helping me clear my mind of what I would like to do in the near future. - Martina Criscaut, Grado, IT

It is estimated that 1,000 new businesses are launched in Italy every day: but be warned it is also estimated that at least all new businesses fold within a year. This book will provide a good starting point to ensure that you are not one of the casualties. In this essential reference book for all budding Italian entrepreneurs, the authors offer clear, honest and practical advice with lots of personal experience detailed as well as a plethora of real life case studies. This is a well-written, well-structured guide to the subject.- Italy Magazine

And there's more. Find out what everyone else is saying.

Short and sweet...

"Emma, thanks for the report. I found it to be helpful, and very well done. I found your advice priceless. My first steps are under way!!"

Lance Read, Utah, US

Some nice words about How To Italy...

“I feel I have come such a long way since seeing the article about How to Italy in the local press. Before I met you, I didn't have any idea about how to approach moving to Sardinia but after meeting with you for just an hour, I had a much more focussed idea about where to base myself. You gave me some very helpful information on how to look for work and how to find accommodation. When I met with you and Mario in Olbia, Sardinia, you both gave me invaluable information about the northeast coastal area. Sardinia will always mean a lot to me. Thank you again to both of you.”

Jacqui Nicol, Bournemouth, UK. 

HowToItaly.com Workshop - more than just practical advice

“When I got back [from Italy] everyone told me I was looking really well, and I think they meant I was looking happier! I certainly feel really positive about my move to Italy now. I felt quite emotional about it all, both before I went with friends expressing doubts, and while I was there, with people throwing up all kinds of problems I would have to face. But two days with you and Mario changed all of that, and I now talk about 'when' I live in Italy. I think the workshop was quite a cathartic experience all around. It was more than just practical advice, but emotional support as well. I know I have come away with the ideas I had firmed up into definite plans. I no longer tell people that I want to live in Florence, I tell them that I am going to live there.”

Gin Wilcox, Cheltenham, UK