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I took jobs around the globe in my early years. Here’s how those experiences prepared me to lead

Serial entrepreneur Riddhiman Das worked in Europe, Asia, and North America. He’s now a tech CEO in Kansas City and credits cross-cultural collaboration for his success.

I took jobs around the globe in my early years. Here’s how those experiences prepared me to lead

[Source images: Rawpixel (globe, airplane]

BY John Oswald4 minute read

Mark Twain once said: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”

I couldn’t agree more. My early experiences living and working across the globe taught me critical lessons about the importance of human connection, driving collaboration and communication across cultures, and thinking outside of the box. 

Being the largest technology market, many startups begin in the US but then lose sight of the bigger, global opportunity—especially early stage companies. But keeping your nose to the ground at a global scale is essential for realizing the largest potential vision for the problem you’re setting out to solve.

When you operate globally, you have a clearer picture of what excellence looks like. You’re not subjecting yourself to a glass ceiling of innovation because you’ve seen what’s possible, and what people have achieved with a lot less. This leads you to set higher expectations for both yourself and your team.

But regardless of the degree to which a company branches out into the global market, there are still important lessons everyone can take from these experiences. Here’s what I’ve learned.

Prioritize written communication

One of the greatest perks of being in technology is the opportunity to work with people from all over the world. According to a 2018 report, more than 70% of tech workers in Silicon Valley are immigrants.

Over the years, I’ve observed native English speakers and English as a Second Language (ESL) folks get tripped up in their communications with each other. Prioritizing written communication is a helpful best practice for eliminating this barrier. For ESL people, it’s often easier to digest information in written versus spoken form, so when in doubt, opt to write things out in an email instead of (or in addition to) a Zoom call. 

Consider your channels of communication

Preferred channels of communication vary widely from culture to culture. When I worked throughout Asia, most people used WeChat, DingTalk, or another form of instant messaging, placing little emphasis on email. But in Israel, the preference was a combination of WhatsApp and email. In the US, we generally stick to email and Slack, reserving apps like WhatsApp for friends and close contacts.

Whether you’re working with clients, prospects, or colleagues, ask about their preferred channels of communication and accommodate them. When people use the communication channels that are easiest and most natural for them, friction lessens and collaboration flourishes.

Get to know who you’re working with

In the U.S. especially, I’ve found that people tend to jump straight into business at the top of meetings. Clearly we’re all here to talk work, but we also share something important in common: We’re all humans with different goals, challenges, and things that drive us. 

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Spending a few extra minutes at the beginning of a meeting, for example, to ask someone a couple questions about themself is beneficial for everyone. It’s a powerful way to build relationships, empathy, and establish common ground. This in turn enhances the quality of the work you do together. 

Don’t put too much trust in third parties

Most U.S. institutions put way too much trust in third parties. There: I said it. Billions of people use apps like Gmail, Google Docs, and Zoom every day without giving much thought to the fact that those companies now host their (sometimes highly sensitive) data.

In contrast, European countries more often operate on a zero-trust framework. Data breaches and misuse of data are always a lurking threat, and many of the highly publicized violations of privacy we see in the headlines could be avoided if U.S.-based companies were more discerning about who they trust with their data. There’s a big opportunity for U.S. companies to take a page from European institutions by implementing better cybersecurity tools, protocols, and practices. 

Take a novice approach to problems

Novices have an advantage over experts when it comes to one critical skill: They have the ability to see problems through a lens in which anything is possible. Whereas experts are often trapped by linear thinking regarding what’s possible and what isn’t, novices are open to trying different things—including things others think won’t work—and that’s where breakthroughs happen.

Working in different cultures forces you to re-think your intuition and take a novice approach, because the way things have always been done in your world isn’t necessarily how it’s done elsewhere. This requires you to use higher order thinking to re-derive some of your most fundamental beliefs about how the world works.

When I started my company, most of us weren’t cryptographers or healthcare experts, yet we were able to develop privacy technology that is now used in some of the most reputable healthcare institutions in the world. We didn’t start off as experts in our field, but by keeping an open mind and having a willingness to try different things, we made significant breakthroughs. 

Taking it back to the top, Twain’s quote ends with this: “Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” These days, we’re fortunate enough to live in a time where technology has the power to bring people from all corners of the world together to collaborate. It’s our ongoing duty to uncover ways to better communicate, understand, and learn from one another. 


Riddhiman Das is cofounder and CEO of privacy-enhancing tech company TripleBlind, a leader in automated, real-time data de-identification. Previously, Das worked in corporate venture capital and M&A for Ant Financial, a financial services arm of the Alibaba Group.


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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John Oswald is a contributing editor for Fast Company’s Work Life section, where he helps select, edit, and produce contributed content from thought leaders. Previously, he held senior management positions in news and features at the New York Daily News and New York Post. More


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