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Muriel-Jacques-graphic<\/span><\/span>Another difficulty for me was to understand that the teachers will never tell you that \u201cyou are wrong\u201d.\u00a0 Instead, they will say \u201cThis is an interesting mistake. Let\u2019s try to understand why you made it in order for you not to do it again\u201d.\u00a0 A French friend of mine tried to become a lecturer at a renowned London university only to be told a couple of years later that she was too blunt with her students. In short, she was sacked for\u2026being too French!<\/p>\n As you may guess, it was, and still is, a steep learning curve for me. I am not sure that I will get there eventually but I can assure you that I am working hard at it. This is because my brain is wired in a different way. To make matters even worse a long time ago I decided to always be brutally honest with myself, even if it was tough.\u00a0 This meant that I had to deal with some not-so-nice home truths.<\/p>\n Over here I have to learn to think and speak in a different way. It is hard work. It is all about being positive and trying to connect with others. But guess what: an unexpected side effect is that I am happier. \u00a0For some unknown reason, I have more fun.<\/p>\n And I love it!<\/span><\/p>\n Bio:<\/p>\n Muriel Demarcus Jacques is a French engineer and a lawyer by training.<\/p>\n Born and bred in France, she discovered at 32 years that life outside of France was possible and -shock horror!- even enjoyable when her husband found a job in London and all the family joined him.<\/p>\n However, even after a few years, she struggles to understand the Brits: what do they really mean? How do you speak proper English? How do you know whether your children’s school is good?<\/p>\n She decided to write about her journey to understand this whole new world on her blog:<\/p>\n