Building Professional Networks in Bangkok w/ Pierre-Emmanuel Mol

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:01:15]:
Yeah. Just just about 10 year, in October this year, so it it’s been quite a trip.

Scott Pressimone [00:01:21]:
Nice. Well, for those who don’t know you, can you give kind of a rundown about who you are, what you do, Thai you were doing before coming to Thai, and just in give your, the TLDR of of your story?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:01:34]:
Yeah. I’ll see if I can be sure because it feels like, you know, it’s been a very long trip and, lots of adventures. But to, to sort of start, you know, just before my move to Southeast Asia, I was working in the DC area, working for a marketing strategy consulting firm. And, my girlfriend at the time was now my wife, was also working, in the DC area, kind of doing the the DC lifestyle. We we were having a great, great setup, reverse commuting to Bethesda. Everything was great professionally. And, and anyway, eventually she got the opportunity to, to work in, in a few projects that were based in Vietnam. And so she went there for the first time in April 2012, and she came back and she was like, this is awesome.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:02:33]:
What do you think about moving there? And I was like, wow, I hadn’t thought of that at all, but that sounds pretty awesome. I’ve never been to Vietnam, but I’ve lived in the, in Singapore before when I was a kid. And, this is a part of the world I’d like to go back to. And it felt like, you know, I was ready after being for 5 or so years in the DC area that I was ready to kind of move on and, explore things a bit more professionally and just in in another, region of the world. So, in a nutshell, you know, she kind of said Thai. And then for a very long time, it felt like it was never gonna happen. And then just when we thought it was not gonna happen, last minute, we kind of got the green light to kind of go and move to, to Vietnam for, for her job. And so we just decided to move there.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:03:22]:
I didn’t have a job. It it was like, oh, well I guess I’ll just figure it out when I get there. And Scott, it, you know, there’s a lot of uncertainty about moving to, to Vietnam first and then, figuring things out. But I talked to my company, they took it very well. They understood the opportunity that, I had been a good employee. And so there were no hard feelings about me leaving it that time. We kind of worked out a sort of, remote work arrangement, which lasted for about 6, 4, 6 months. Obviously they wanted to hire someone full time, in, in the US.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:03:56]:
So, unfortunately it couldn’t continue for me. It was like a perfect gig, quite frankly, working remote, like that. Yeah. And so, just Made there. And then, you know, from there you start meeting a lot of people, making new connections and, you know, there’s always a chance to make things happen. But so from Vietnam, and actually, you know, not, not everything worked out right away, either. I couldn’t quite find the right type of job for that I was looking for. And we were based in Hanoi, which I think is in a way similar to Washington, DC.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:04:33]:
It’s very much where the government is. So lots of government related jobs, a lot of law firms and whatnot. And I was more already in the B2B Thai Made. And it was a less international country, especially, you know, think about 10 years ago. 10 years ago, it was mostly motorcycles in the streets. And now when you go back to Hanoi, you can see a lot of cars, a lot of things have changed. They’re now even leading in electric cars, funnily enough. I was seeing that, you know, one of their Vietnamese companies is trying to get started on, thinking the, the New York stock stock exchange, the VinFast company.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:05:09]:
I don’t know if you’ve heard of it. But it’s a, it’s a really happening country, very dynamic, but just like in, in the US with DC and New York, the, the business heart of the, the country is really in the south and in Ho Chi Minh. So, but what we ended up deciding is because we also had a connection with Bangkok. We decided that we would rather move to Bangkok and start looking for a job from there.

Scott Pressimone [00:05:35]:
It sounds like you what you first tried, and I I love the fact that you brought up that you were already working with a company that you liked. So just going to them and saying, hey. How about I work remote? I mean, that that’s an amazing opportunity because a lot of people don’t know that when you come to, like, some a place like Thailand or Vietnam, and if you’re working for, like, a local company, then you’re working in in local currency and, unfortunately, sometimes kind of a Made based around local salary. So if you can you can carry over your US salary or your, salary from your home country, that’s kind of amazing. It sounds like that worked pretty well. Were there any challenges on your end for that? I mean, because Vietnam is in on the other side of the world. So was that challenging for you? Were you staying up late for those 6 months or so that you were working that way?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:06:16]:
The way it worked is, I didn’t actually have to stay up too Made. And so we kinda just did everything remote. I you know what? It’s been such a long time, but I really don’t even really remember getting on phone calls. I think that was pretty unique at the time I was working on doing sort of business analysis, on a new sort of solution that the company had come up with Scott of, analyzing like your social media, your social media IQ. And I was one of the few people that had been trained on how to build that report and analysis. So, and that was something I could do remote. So, over time, like I mentioned, you know, we kind of they wanted to find someone in house and, you know, just the time it took them to train someone in house, you know, is sort of the amount that it took 6 months. And yeah.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:07:09]:
So, you know, I think it can be actually very easy to wrote work remote. You will need to get on the occasional late night call. But it’s not always mandatory. And again, I think that will really depend on the company culture and whether the company already has this sort of global footprint or not.

Scott Pressimone [00:07:29]:
But I just it it’s important to also look at the fact that that was 10 years ago. Right? And, a lot has changed since then in terms of people’s openness to working remote. But, I mean, I I still think it’s really important to do what you did just because sometimes people might say, you know what? I’m gonna take a sabbatical or I’m gonna leave or whatever, and they might kinda cut off ties with their employer at that moment. But even just running that pass as an option, the fact that you thought to do that, is huge because that must have given you a big leg up or at least given you, like, a lot of comfort that you knew for at least a few months. You you were gonna continue to work on that Pronto, so that’s fantastic.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:08:03]:
Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, I think the, you know, keeping a salary, even if it was already, you know, half the salary that I used to get, since I wasn’t for working full time at that point, was highly beneficial. And then as well, I think the company really appreciates it it, you know, you’re not just, leaving overnight that you’re helping them transition. So it ends up being a win win for everyone.

Scott Pressimone [00:08:28]:
That’s awesome. So to go back to your story then, so it sounds like you were in Vietnam. You were in, Hanoi. Right? And and you and your girlfriend at the time, now your wife, decided to move to, Bangkok, and that was now you were still looking for a job as far as I understand at that Pronto, but then your girlfriend, was she able to then transfer, or how did how did that work at the time?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:08:51]:
Yeah. We were a bit in this, you know, unique situation where she was able to just also move to Bangkok and start working remotely, herself. And so, she had another Pronto, I think that was based in Bangkok. That was also one of the reasons, but she had other projects in other places. So she was able to sort of make it work, in general. And, you know, she works in international development. So generally she was already working for a company that’s used to having, global projects, people working out of different offices. So so that helped out a lot.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:09:31]:
Yeah. And when we moved to to Bangkok How’s

Scott Pressimone [00:09:33]:
the transition for you though?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:09:36]:
Yeah. I mean, for me, I had been to Bangkok. The other thing is, my wife’s family, is based out of Bangkok. So we, we also had somewhere to in of land and crash when we arrived. So that was, super helpful. Yeah. And I’d been to Bangkok before now. I didn’t really know Bangkok that well, let’s be honest.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:09:55]:
So there’s still a lot to do and, and figure out building a network, you know, really kind of again, building a network from, from 0 since, even though my wife had a connection to Bangkok, she was, not from Bangkok. She’s not Thai either. So, still a lot to figure out. And, you know, once we once we moved here.

Scott Pressimone [00:10:20]:
How would you compare the job market then? So so when you Thailand, it’s fantastic that you had, like, a place to stay. You weren’t really crashing in hotels and stuff like this. This. Right? So you got here. Did you start looking for a job right away? How was that? What were the differences between, Bangkok, and Vietnam? Or is it a very different type of market? What are your thoughts there?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:10:40]:
Yeah. I had actually started looking for jobs, in Bangkok before I moved here. But you know, what I kind of soon realized as well as to really get a job in Bangkok, you had to be in Bangkok. And I think this is something we still see today, quite frankly. Companies, you know, appreciate people who are willing to move, but there’s a whole big difference between being on the ground and then, actually haven’t done it. And also there’s always, the concern that someone may move over and then realize, Hey, Bangkok is not for me. It’s not a city for everyone. You know, I’ve met a lot of expats that love Bangkok and want to stay here or see themselves, in the future, in Bangkok, but I’ve also met a lot of them who Made like, yeah, this was fun and this in great, but this was good for like 2 or 3 years, or now we want to start a family and we prefer going back to Europe or being closer to, our family for whatever reason.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:11:42]:
So, whereas other people, you know, like myself and my wife were were like, no, we wanna stay here. There’s a ton of benefits in being here. You can get a great lifestyle, that you can get, somewhere else. So So

Scott Pressimone [00:11:55]:
you you got you got down on the ground. You got settled. You were looking for jobs. I I love that you pointed out the fact that a lot of people wanna work in Thailand or in Asia, and they’ll oftentimes be sending their resume from their home country. And it’s not to say that they don’t have the skills needed, but it is a big risk. I mean, there are so many people that come and go, and it’s Yeah. It’s really I mean, the problem is even if someone like yourself who was already acclimated to, Southeast Asia and Vietnam and other things, and you you you were comfortable, it sounds like, kind of being on the ground. So many people it doesn’t last for, and it’s a huge risk for for these companies.

Scott Pressimone [00:12:30]:
And that’s why it’s so important to have maybe 2 years or so of, like, you’ve been in the country, and then you’re a lot more, attractive to these employers.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:12:39]:
Yep.

Scott Pressimone [00:12:40]:
So that first job is sometimes the toughest one to get. So can you walk us through that? How did you end up, landing a job that was, aligned with with your skill

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:12:50]:
set? Yeah. So when I moved to Bangkok and I ended up finding a first job, and let’s be honest, that job did not work out. It, you know, I found it through just submitting resumes and whatnot. And, you know, had a good chat with the owner. It was sort of tied to, the somewhat tied to the type of work I was doing back, in DC where we had started doing some, market research on, IT service providers Marketing with big tech vendors. And essentially the company I was, hired by, they were trying to set up their own, MSPA, business, sort of going from sort of a more traditional break and fix and kind of going more into managed services. And, so in of started there and, and it was just a, just culturally, a very different, way of working. And, without going into all the details, like in was not really my first choice.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:13:56]:
But you know, you have to start somewhere and, you know, sometimes you also need a job to get a job, ironically too. So kind of decided, hey, let’s just give it a go. Let’s see how it goes. And, but I was also lucky that actually through a connection of my wife, actually, I was introduced to another company, Pronto Marketing, where we both met and, started working, you know, over 10 years ago. And so it was actually through, a colleague of my wife who just happened to know, Tim, who, was working at Pronto Thailand that’s how I got connected to Pronto. And I in of submitted my resume, had an informal interview. At the time they were like, Hey, it’s great to meet you, but, you know, we don’t have in a position open right away. I was like, that’s okay.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:14:44]:
Let’s just stay in touch. I kind of followed what the company was doing. They had a few events, that I attended. And so that was a way to, you know, kind of get to know people connect. And, and then eventually I was lucky enough that a position opened and the timing was right. And so I didn’t stay in that first job too long, luckily. And kind of soon after that, I was able to transition to Pronto and, kind of, yeah, got a new job that really kind of was in line with sort of the type of work I was looking for in terms of B2B tech Marketing, having the opportunity to kinda lead my own projects and kinda continue learning and expanding on, a lot of what I’ve been working on in the states.

Scott Pressimone [00:15:27]:
Yeah. That’s really in. And I think it’s another good lesson there of when you’re networking or when you’re talking to people, you’re not always looking for your next employee employer directly. You’re not always looking for the here and now. Like, I need a job right now. Sometimes it is just, like, meet the company, meet a person, meet a person who then knows another person. Right? And I I because, again, I sometimes see people starting with an ask. Right? Where they’re like, can we can can I have a job or whatever? And it’s like sometimes it’s like, just get to know them.

Scott Pressimone [00:15:55]:
Just just like, sometimes their friend’s friends. Sometimes that owner knows another owner who’s starting something that needs your skill set. Right? And and just knowing that that does take Thai, and it goes back to the whole, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Right? So it sounds like you played it patiently. You you started with some level of a connection, but then at the same time, you were patient about it, and then you waited for the right Thai, and then you landed something that you it sounds like you you enjoyed.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:16:22]:
Yeah. And I think it’s also a good testament for the power of attending events. You know, I know we’re, we’re coming out of 2 years of lockdown and, and, and whatnot. And, our companies are all gone working remote full time and don’t hear me wrong. I love working remote. And I still think that most of the time, 80% of the time in remote is the most productive way for me at the very least. And when I go into the office, I love the time in the office, but I also feel like, geez, this is not like I didn’t get any deep work done. And you know, our company is all about online marketing and helping people grow their business online.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:17:03]:
Yet, you know, even if you’re a small business in the US or if you’re a company here in Thailand, you have to go to events, you have to build a network. And that’s, that’s just become very apparent more and more, to me recently. And, you know, when I think of some of the things, maybe I didn’t continue doing enough of is perhaps Thai. So, I think life in Thailand can also get comfortable very quickly. So depending on, you know, what kind of work you want to do and how you want to keep pushing yourself, I think kind of pushing yourself to, attending more of those events and kind of continue to build that network. I think that’s true anywhere. But I think, it’s also very true in Thailand. It’s a very kind of, close knit community here.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:17:50]:
I think it’s, a lot of the business world is, located in Bangkok. Some of it is in Chiang Mai as well, but really most of it happens in Bangkok. So if you start kind of meeting a few people, you can really get to know a lot of people very fast.

Scott Pressimone [00:18:06]:
Yeah. I love I love that you brought up how despite it being, a large area I mean, when you you compare, Bangkok to some other places, like, there are a ton of businesses here, but you said close knit. And I’ve just seen that time and time again where, you know, you’ll you’ll mention something, you know, someone, and they will in fact know that person. They’ll know that business, and that’s why it’s so important to not burn your bridges here because it’s kinda like the 2 or 3 lines away. The people know each other. Like, it’s it’s so, with so that’s for better or for worse. I mean, be be be careful not to burn bridges basically and and attend events like you said. What about cultural, cultural differences? So, again, it sounds like you you you have a background of, you know, living in the US, this you know, traveling.

Scott Pressimone [00:18:51]:
It sounds like you were pretty comfortable even in Vietnam. But was there any sort of culture shock that you experienced, either coming to Southeast Asia or to Thailand specifically, or any challenges that you still face, as cultural differences, being here?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:19:05]:
Yeah. It funny. I think my wife is more concerned about me moving here and just, you know, maybe being a bit emotional and aggressive. I think as, as you know, as a French person, you tend to be a bit more outspoken. You kind of don’t really hide your emotions. You tend to be comfortable with showing them. And that’s definitely the opposite of what things are like in Thailand. But you know, I think I’ve.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:19:33]:
At times I’ve definitely struggled with that, at work where I like to just be a lot more direct and not beat around the bush too much. I think that can be true in the US as well, quite frankly, or I think people are a bit more measured. So, I think sometimes those are things I’ve struggled with a bit. But I would say as well, there, I think plenty of other things that Scott of embrace, like one of the things that’s very culturally different, is that, when you’re driving in Thailand, it may take you some time to realize that, but no one honks, it real, you know, you’ll hear the occasional honk if really something bad is Marketing, or maybe if there’s an angry foreigner driving behind you. But one of the things that, you know, I really embrace and I really truly appreciate is there’s just no honking and you’ll get it this crazy intersections with cars coming from all directions and you go through it. You’re in of like, this is going to be tough and whatnot, but you kind of go through it and you’re like, wow, this is amazing. No one honked and people just kind of took their time and realized that there was sort of a, you know, a more positive way of going through it. You know, and I think again, don’t hear me wrong.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:20:48]:
I definitely had some road rage in the past and, driving in the DC area, there are a lot of frustrating times. I’m sure you can relate to that. But Thailand you know, this was also funny because I was in Vietnam just before that. And in Vietnam, essentially honking is just another language, especially when you’re driving a motorcycle. So, but just the same way, I, I, I really enjoy and appreciate the fact that there’s no honking. And in Thailand, I actually appreciate a lot the, the honking granted once it gets used used to it, in Vietnam and you just realize it’s kind of, Hey, I’m here. Like it not meant to be an aggressive in your face, like long honk, at you. It’s more like, it’s just a signal.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:21:36]:
And I think that’s the kind of thing as well culturally that some people will really struggle with, with like, why is the traffic crazy? And so if you focus too much on why is this place crazy? I think you’re going to miss out or struggle enjoying the place. Cause I think there’s, you’re not going to love everything. There’s There’s some of the things you’re gonna have to let go. And some things you just need to embrace and hopefully enjoy.

Scott Pressimone [00:22:02]:
Yeah. I I love that example. Just the fact that it’s different in the US and it’s different in Vietnam and it’s different in Thailand just in terms it’s the same thing. It’s the honking a horn. In the US, it’s like if you honk the horn, who knows? Someone might be getting out of their car and ready to punch you. Right? I mean, it’s like that is the road rage sort of situation. In in Vietnam, it’s like, hey. I’m here.

Scott Pressimone [00:22:20]:
Just letting you know. Right? Because there’s a little bit of a right of way sort of thing where rather than the whole person who’s in front Thai the right it, it’s the person who kinda goes first has the right it in it’s a little bit different. So I guess there’s a lot of almost sonar going on. It’s like, hey. I’m here. Hey. I’m here. Everyone kinda gets the idea, whereas in Thailand, it’s mostly silence.

Scott Pressimone [00:22:38]:
But but, yeah, it’s that’s it’s a very interesting cultural difference for sure. Now you do you get around primarily through driving, like, your own car? Do you use things like the BTS? I know that you you sometimes use, the motorcycle taxis. I I see you sometimes on the back of those. So, so what’s your rundown of, your preferred way to get Thailand?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:23:01]:
Yeah. Well, I didn’t have a car until, you know, we started, expecting a baby. So, that’s definitely been the driver for that. And, now that we have one, it’s like, oh, it’s it to be really hard to go back to not having a car. But I would still say, you know, you really have to when you’re in a big city like Bangkok. And once you kind of get a sense of where you’re going and how crazy traffic is going to be, you start figuring out, okay, at this time, I’m going this direction. There’s going to be this amount of traffic. If I don’t take a motorcycle, grab, I’m not going to make it on Thai, or it’s just going to take me way more time than I want to spend in traffic.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:23:45]:
So, I I’ve taken tons and tons of motorcycle taxis. And one thing we didn’t have when we first moved here, you and I, it was Grab and, and all those apps that now allow you to kind of, Yeah. Just in of get a motorcycle, just whenever you need it. And that avoids a lot of issues trying to explain where you’re going. Maybe you miss out a little bit on the fun of trying to explain yourself in in Thai or or or in English. So maybe there’s a little bit of a fun loss there, but, that, you know, those motorcycle taxis are super useful. And again, like if you can take the, the BTS, yes, for sure. Take the BTS.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:24:27]:
It’s safer. It’s air condition. Foreigners love that. So, yeah, I mean, for me until today, it’s always been a mix of, either taking motorcycle taxis. I had my own motor, scooter at some point and just in of drove that around. And then, you know, taking taxis as well, all of that. So Scott lots of options.

Scott Pressimone [00:24:52]:
Yeah. It’s interesting. I was just talking with someone else about, motorcycles in in Thai. I didn’t recall that you had a scooter. That’s, that’s good to know. And but one of the things that’s interesting about it is, yes, there’s a lot of accidents. There are a lot of things like this. However, I would say that people go a lot slower, especially in a lot of areas in town, where if you’re taking a motorcycle taxi, you’re not exactly speeding down the road.

Scott Pressimone [00:25:13]:
A lot of Thai, it’s like you’re just going, you know, down the way, down a sawyer road, making a turn, and then getting on a BTS, or something like that. So it’s very it’s not to say that it can’t be dangerous. It’s not to say that you’re having full protective gear on and stuff all the Thai, but, cars are not going crazy, crazy fast, in a lot of those areas. Would you agree with that?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:25:34]:
Yeah. No, exactly. I think if you’re taking a motorcycle taxi to do a short distance trip, then it’s most likely gonna be very fine and safe and whatnot. That said, yeah. One of one of the ex, the newly, the new dads Thai, that, that I play football with, you know, he was sort of, yeah, don’t, don’t take a scooter it and he drives a scooter to, you know, go from one part of town to where we play football. And so it’s actually quite a bit of distance. And for sure, that’s when you start getting into the dangerous situations. Now it kind of the same as well, like what you were talking about in terms of the traffic actually in quite slowed downtown.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:26:18]:
I think the same is true with cars. Right? At first, it’s very intimidating if you’ve never driven in this kind of crazy, rush hour traffic with tons of people coming tons of direction. Plus you’re driving on the left side of the street and that’s new and you’re, you’re still trying to, orient yourself, through the it. It’s, it’s very intimidating, but I do think you’re driving slow. And so actually, you know, you have the time to kind of see what’s going on. You learn to avoid the motorcycles, and the cars. So, it’s, I think a lot of it goes to try to think about what kind of trip you’re doing and what’s going to be the best choice for that kind of trip. If it’s a long trip and you’re going to be going over a highway, I def you know, I wouldn’t Pressimone, getting a motorcycle taxi for Thai, keeping motorcycle taxi trips, short, is for sure the best.

Scott Pressimone [00:27:17]:
Yeah. Now you also just shared something that’s, I think really interesting as well it having a, a child on the way. So that’s a huge con congrats, and, when when again is your, wife expecting?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:27:30]:
Yeah. In just, just a month. So end of September. So End of September.

Scott Pressimone [00:27:35]:
Yeah. Fantastic.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:27:36]:
Very soon.

Scott Pressimone [00:27:37]:
So I think something that that might be surprising to people is just, you know, having having a kid, as you both are not from Thai. Your wife is not Thai. You’re not Thai. Right? And you’re here here. You’ve been here for years, and now you decided to have a child here. I’m assuming that she’s gonna be giving birth here in Bangkok. Right? So, I’d love to hear about that. I mean, are you do you feel confident in the hospitals here? You know, how how is I’m sure a month away, you’re probably doing a lot of baby gear stuff and and going to all that stuff.

Scott Pressimone [00:28:04]:
So how has that experience been for you? Any any surprises, with that process so far?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:28:10]:
Yeah. I mean, it’s been I mean, so far, we’ve been very lucky that, you know, the pregnancy has been going well, and, there’s a lot of very modern hospitals here, that, you know, where you get really good care. So, you know, I think maybe you it Thai, maybe you’ll get more, better care than if you were back in the states or in Europe. And, you know, you don’t have to wait very long to get appointments or to see the doctor. And that’s, that’s always a big plus. We’re lucky enough to get, doctors who can communicate it in English as well, which obviously is a very big thing. My wife speaks better Thai than I do, but, we neither of us are, you know, near fluent enough to to have conversations and tie with a doctor. So, that that’s been great.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:28:59]:
One of the other things that I think people may, appreciate is that there’s also a very big pack community. And among this ex pack community, there are a lot of doulas, and midwives who are here to help you as well through the pregnancy before your child arrive. And, the added benefit of that is that they will help you kind of choose to a certain extent the right it in you don’t know. And if you have questions, you, you know, you can kind of work 1 on 1 with someone to help you with that, kind of help you prepare generally. And, you know, as as you likely know, there’s, there’s a lot of Facebook groups, where people can ask a ton of questions, about, you know, what to expect when you’re expecting essentially. So, did you did you, I I think you were on a on a few Facebook groups, right, when when you were expecting Yeah. Yeah. There there are today.

Scott Pressimone [00:29:54]:
Yeah. You’re right. I mean, it is there are a lot of meetup groups and stuff here, and then Facebook tends to be a good, place for for groups like Bangkok Made and and, you know, Made in Thailand sort of sort of things. And then I’m sure there’s plenty of them to support, wiser or, women that are that are going through this process, with support groups and stuff like that for them as well. So, yeah, there’s a lot of great communities for that. The the point that you noted about the hospitals being quite good here, I think there’s a pretty drastic difference between private and public here. And so I’m assuming that whole short wait line wasn’t coming from a, a public hospital, but the private hospitals, can be quite affordable. And to your point, I’ve noticed that they are are like, even the average private hospital here, I feel is better care Thai I would receive, in in the US.

Scott Pressimone [00:30:39]:
So just from my experience, I’ve been really impressed by, a lot of the hospitals here, and it sounds like you’ve, had a good experience with that as well.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:30:46]:
Yeah. For sure. And the one thing I’d say is one of the things you do learn going through the, you know, this Pronto is you do learn that there are differences in practice in medical practices and that here, for whatever reason, C sections are a very big, part of the medical culture. And so, that’s definitely something you have to know, before you deliver. I think you’ll learn that fairly quickly one way or the other. And again, this is perhaps a good reason as well to work with, someone who has knowledge of kind of the the hospitals and figure that out. Or just speaking with as many friends as possible to in of hear their stories on, how their delivery went, in Thailand. So, I mean, I think I’ve also met people who had a Thailand C section and my buddy was like, you know what? This was like the best it was planned.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:31:43]:
We went there, we were out, everything went great. Their child is doing great. So, you know, it’s not, it’s not all bad and, you know, sometimes you do really need it. But you know, depending on what you really feel strong about, yeah, you’ll need to be ready to advocate. And, there can also be a culture that’s fairly, you know, top down, in terms of, doctor to patient relationship. I don’t know if that’s really too different from anywhere, quite frankly. I think doctors are gonna be highly educated and, but it’s true that in Thai, there is a bit of an expectation to, oh, you should respect the more, you know, the, the, the older, highly educated person. So, you know, taking that into account and again, just something you have to work and and navigate through.

Scott Pressimone [00:32:36]:
Yeah. No. It’s a great point. And like you said, it’s not better or worse. It’s just something to be aware of is that you mentioned c sections being very common here, and, you know, who knows? Maybe it’s, like, almost every if almost everyone is getting a c section, yeah, you have to advocate and say, you know, we might not wanna do Thai, but it’s not even just related to birth. It’s related to other surgeries. I think that, typically, there’s more tendency to to to be prosurgery or pro in sooner in the process here. You know, another thing I know with, with children, again, I’m not saying better or worse, but, you know, in the US, if your child is sick or if you’re sick, it would have to be pretty bad before you say I’m gonna check myself into a hospital.

Scott Pressimone [00:33:15]:
Whereas here, I know my kids go to school and, you know, about every other day, one of the kids didn’t come to school because their parents checked them into the hospital for the cold. You know? So Yeah. So there’s there’s a big tendency to do that, and and and I guess it’s good to play it safe, but just be aware of that. You know, they’re gonna kinda push you towards a surgery most frequently.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:33:34]:
Yeah. And I I think if it gets to getting a, you know, serious surgery, one of the positive things is that, you know, in to the doctors a bit easier and cheaper. Like we, like we mentioned. So getting a second opinion, is also a bit easier to do, to do. And sometimes that may be a good way to go about it. So I know people have done that and, I think that could be one way too as well, make sure you’re making the right decision.

Scott Pressimone [00:34:02]:
Yeah. Now, you had talked about how you go to networking events and how you’re active. You had also mentioned that, you have a father a friend who’s a father, in one of your, groups, or one of your, like, sports sports clubs. Right? So I love to hear more about that because something about you, Pierre, is, you’re quite a modest guy, and I remember seeing you play, football or in America soccer, it the first time, and I was like, oh my gosh. Like, you’re this isn’t something you do just casually. You you’ve got some skills. So, you know, is that, how have you found that transition? Were you able to get right into sports right when you got here? Did it take you a while? Do you have any clubs or anything like that that you, that you recommend for for anyone who’s, really good at football like yourself?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:34:47]:
Yeah. I think that the great thing is that whether you’re in in Vietnam or in Thailand or pretty much anywhere in the world, I think, you know, you’re going to be able to find a football team or a soccer team. And that that’s always been pretty easy. I think, you know, either you go on Facebook and you in of ask Thailand. I think my, my first soccer group that I found in Thailand was through a colleague who was also playing. And then kind of from there, you kind of start Marketing, one person who plays and then, usually, people that are really into it will even play into a few different groups. And so once you start meeting 1 person, you can meet another person and, and Thai you, you know, eventually you can kind of get connected to a team. Our team even has a Facebook and Instagram Made.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:35:37]:
And we use that at Thai to try to recruit new people. We’re, we’re definitely not professionals, but, we play in the Bangkok casuals league. So it’s still a casual league, but, we do try to keep it competitive or, and, you know, balance both the social element of trying to be a team, have some drinks and beers after after the game, but also, compete and, and have fun. Yeah.

Scott Pressimone [00:36:04]:
Nice. So is that the main sport that you play then? You play you play a lot of soccer, or is there anything else that you do for fitness and exercise and stuff here?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:36:12]:
Yeah. These days, soccer is really my, my main sport. I mean, I played a lot of tennis growing up and, a lot of people are getting into tennis as well as, as they’re getting older and pickleball is, is starting to be a big thing. Some of my, even some of my friends who are anti pickleball because they’re tennis players like Made. And, you know, I kind of fall in that category. I know I will end up playing Pickleball at some point. I’m just delaying it. I know that’s becoming a big trend here, in, in Thailand.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:36:42]:
And so, you know, if you want to go rock climbing, I have friends that go rock climbing, which I think would be a ton of fun. It’s you know, Thai you’ve Scott choose what you can do or or not do. But, yeah, Scott lots of options here.

Scott Pressimone [00:36:58]:
For sure. And then what about with leisure? I know you’re you’re quite hard at work most of the time, but then, you know, do you ever get out of the city? And I know it’s harder to do now, obviously, with a child on the way. But prior to that, did you go out of the city a lot? Were there any sort of islands or or, any places that you really like and recommend?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:37:16]:
Yeah. Maybe I’ll start with not an Thailand. So to be, you know, not too cliche. One of, one of the places I, I really like was going all the way north to, to Pai, PAI, and just a bit Northwest of, of Chiang Mai. And we went there actually kind of, when COVID was starting up. So we got really lucky that, it was not too busy. It was also at, around new year’s time. And while Thailand is always, you know, a very warm country, and lots of beaches and, and all Thai, the, the north of the country country can actually get cooler, to the point where you start wearing sweaters.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:37:59]:
You know, I think it can snow potentially at night, maybe somewhere, maybe Made even a bit more north in Chiang Rai. So I don’t expect to see snow in Thai, but you, you know, it can go down to, 15 degrees Celsius. So, you know, 40, 40, 50 Fahrenheit, something like that. And so it, you know, if you’re trying to have a sort of more Christmassy environment, that’s a fine thing to do. It’ll still be 30 degrees during the day. Don’t don’t hear me wrong. But you know, we were there, around New Year’s time, like I said, and just driving a scooter around, just the countryside was amazing and yeah, just a really good way to get away from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. You know, bumped into, a restaurant where this American guy was doing a homestay with his Thai wife and they had a, a garden as well, a little bit outside of the Thailand they’re just, you know, living the life there.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:39:02]:
Yeah. And so just just some really cool little town, but it’s I think it’s been on on the the circuit for a very long time, especially for people who backpack all the way to, to Burma.

Scott Pressimone [00:39:15]:
Oh, absolutely. Yeah. The north can be really beautiful, and farm stays are amazing. I mean, there’s, you know, there are quite a nice quite a few nice farm stays all throughout the country. And, you get a nice compromise where you get to, like, be next to the rice patty fields and all that, but then you still get to go back to your air conditioning, assuming it’s not the cooler weather that you referenced. So, no. That’s really cool. Now what about things that you might miss? Because you had mentioned, you know, that you used to play tennis and things like that.

Scott Pressimone [00:39:40]:
There are probably some sports that are a little bit less common, in Thailand. So for instance, American football. I mean, I would love if people were playing intramural in American football here. Haven’t found that yet. But are there, is there anything else, whether it be sports, foods, anything like that, foods that you can get from France that you certainly can’t get here, anything like that, that you, that you miss.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:40:02]:
I mean, one, one thing I haven’t done a really good job it, that we used to do a lot more of in, in the US is just going to the theater or going to more cultural events. We were also very lucky because we were living in downtown DC and there was like theaters down the street. So going to like the theater was very easy and there were some really good ones going to wooly mammoth and just like fun, fun types of plays as well that are more modern, not just like old school theater. So I think that’s been a little bit harder, I guess, to to find. There are comedy clubs. There is actually one of the pubs that’s pretty nearby my place where they do have a comedy club, that isn’t necessarily as active as a comedy club would be in the US. And, you know, obviously it’s a bit more dependent on the local expat scene. But there, there are, there are sort of bigger bigger names as well that that come, to Bangkok now and then.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:41:04]:
So I think that’s one of the things that I’ve missed and I guess as well, like in you like going to sort of, smaller, more independent concerts and, and see more smaller bands or different types of, of music. Maybe there’s a little bit less of an opportunity to do that, or you just have to be just, you know, looking, for a bit more than, than you would. I do know that, people that are really into music still find a way to kind of do all those things. But then it’s more like, oh, well this is really far away from my house. And then you kind of start getting a bit lazy and you’re like, oh, I’ve got all this work to do. And like now I’ve got to go across town. So just, just the geography of things, as you may know, I mean, living in, in, in North Bangkok is sometimes perhaps a bit challenging too.

Scott Pressimone [00:41:51]:
Yeah. Well, I mean, I think it’s also nice to point out though that you are also in a good location where I guess a lot of those things like the comedy clubs and stuff, army walking distance, or or at least pretty pretty easy to get to whether it be through VTS. So what about the regions? I mean, what area do you live, and what areas do you tend to like, when it comes to to to living or housing or things like that?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:42:11]:
Yeah. I live in the downtown area of Bangkok, where a lot of, foreigners and expats. It’s sort of the the Japanese kind of area, but also a lot of, westerners, live live where I live, which is in Pronto. So, very close to sort of big, BTS stations that do also allow you to go kind of different directions fairly quickly. So yeah, I’ve been based in that area the whole time. Thai again, I think there, there were sort of maybe personal reasons for, for my wife and I to be in that area. And, you know, had we, had different situation, you know, I think that there are a lot of other areas that that are great to live in. And so I think, I wouldn’t say that’s the only one.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:43:01]:
And I think over Thai, as you know, over the past 10 years, more and more foreigners have gone into different, neighborhoods as well. So if you have more, you know, foreign friends then, you know, you can still kind of have that kind of network and, and live in different areas.

Scott Pressimone [00:43:20]:
Yeah. Yeah. For sure. Well, yeah, it’s I think it’s a great area that you live in, in. And and like you say, it’s like, you can kind of find the areas that you like, whether it’s, there’s gonna be bars nearby, there’s gonna be comedy clubs nearby, or you can certainly get a little bit more in the outskirts, if you prefer a more silent area or whatever. Right? So so there’s kind of a something for everyone. And luckily, since the BTS runs through, a lot of good areas, you you can easily, pretty easily, be live a little on the outskirts and get into the city, as well. Now one of the kind of closing questions I have for you, Pierre, in, future plans.

Scott Pressimone [00:43:51]:
So so you’re like you said, like, the 10 year anniversary for being here. You’ve accomplished a lot since you’ve been here. What what are your ideas and and and plans for the

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:43:59]:
future? Yeah. Well, I mean, with a baby, you know, showing up in a month, I think being a dad and being a good dad is definitely gonna be a big part of my focus, for sure. And then, you know, professionally, I think, our company is going through a lot of changes and, kind of trying to continue going to upmarket. And I think that’s a very interesting, opportunity. I mean for the company, but also for myself to kind of push, push myself in instead of, doing more interesting work and creating more partnerships, especially with, different agencies that are located in the US or overseas, continue to build our reseller program with, IT companies that are based out of the US. And I think what we’re seeing is that this is where we’re really good at. And when we work with other, local firm, firms. And so building a reseller and partner program, that, you know, really, enables those different companies to scale and kind of faster, is going to be a big focus of mine.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:45:07]:
And I think that there’s, there’s a lot of opportunity there, that I’m looking to kind of double down on.

Scott Pressimone [00:45:15]:
Oh, fantastic. And, last Pressimone. If there’s, someone let’s say that they’re someone who’s French and they come into Thailand and they say, I don’t know. I need I need to talk to another French person about where I can get a good croissant. Right? Or something like this. Where, what is the best way to get in touch with you or to, or contact you if it’s either about about yourself or or maybe even, on the company side of things professionally like you mentioned in Pronto works in marketing and and and helps a lot of, SMBs, in that area. What are the best ways to get in touch?

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:45:47]:
Yeah. Sure thing. I’d say the best way is just, go on LinkedIn, look up Pierre Emmanuel Mol, and you’ll you’ll easily find me. There’s not a lot of Pierre Emmanuel’s in there. And, you know, I don’t have a very common last name for a French person, so that combination, should show up. Yeah, just feel free to send me a message and and in go from there.

Scott Pressimone [00:46:10]:
Yeah. Fantastic. I I can’t recommend that enough. I mean, I’ve I’ve seen some people reach out to me and and probably you as well, Pierre, on In, where it’s just like, hey. I’m from this area too. It would be great to connect, and sometimes doing that ahead of Thai, sometimes before even moving to Thailand or, it’s just a great way to to get in touch with people, ahead of time. So, anyway, I really appreciate the time, Pierre. I think you’ve accomplished a huge amount here.

Scott Pressimone [00:46:31]:
And not only that, going through the next chapter, as being a dad, here in in Thailand is gonna be a fantastic, fantastic thing for you. So, but thanks so much for taking the time, and, and we’ll chat soon.

Pierre-Emmanuel Mol [00:46:43]:
Yeah. Thanks a lot, Scott. Really enjoyed our Thai. And, yeah, let’s see each other soon.

Scott Pressimone [00:46:49]:
Well, I really hope you enjoyed the interview with Pierre. Pierre emphasized the power of patience and persistence in creating meaningful connections. His success story in Thailand underscores the importance of flexibility and resourcefulness. His strong network and positive mindset has undoubtedly played a pivotal role in his success here in Bangkok.

Scott Pressimone [00:47:10]:
I hope you learned something

Scott Pressimone [00:47:11]:
and I’ll catch you on the next one.