“We don’t receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us.” — Marcel Proust
Perspectives and lessons based on lived experiences and trial & error across countries for an international career:
Global Context
Location and delivery – the city you live in influences your quality of life, encounters, job opportunities, and horizons
US is <5% of world population and there are nearly 200 countries with dynamic growth trends
Expansive opportunity sets beyond traditional “developed market” choices of Europe and the US (e.g., Asia is 50% of world population, Africa will account for the majority of the world’s youth / labour force in decades to come)
Being on-the-ground in-country can’t be replaced and is the signal of seriousness and no amount of calls can replace in-person presence
Worth visiting for a while where you want to live — getting a “vibe” check upfront before a significant move
Cash runway for 6-9/12 months — hope for the best, but expect the worst
Scenario planning “if, then…” — play out what are potential range of outcomes and implied consequences
Internal move vs net new job search — trade-offs but internal moves can facilitate admin (I’ve done both)
Sometimes it’s a 2-step process — getting a job in the country for a closer fit with a second job afterwards (I’ve learned the hard way by overly fixating on specifics that closed myself off)
Taking bold yet calculated risks — dependent on risk profile and tolerance for uncertainty
International experiences are a differentiator — well-regarded by employers and additive to profile (e.g., exchange programs are a “win-win-win” for personal fulfillment/enjoyment, employers, and exploration)
Do your research and talk to people who have succeeded in the geographies and/or parallel moves (“believability-weighted decision-making”)
Unknown unknowns — you don’t know what you don’t know; you may fall in love with another country or the experience in a particular country may prove vastly different than anticipated (studying as exchange student ≠ working in a company in Korea for instance)
The Pitch
Make others care about your story sooner than later based on your signature strengths
Developing a logical and compelling story that resonates and makes sense for audiences
Why the move, why now, and why you for an opportunity? (Figure out your “product-market fit”)
“TLDR” (too long, don’t read) is real — explain the “so what” early and make the person care in a few seconds or you risk losing them
Show, don’t tell — more convincing to demonstrate effectiveness through direct actions or observable results than describing them
Create several versions of your personal pitch to experiment and iterate to determine what lands — keep what works, discard what doesn’t
Rapid experimentation and iteration/updates from feedback loops — test and learn from mistakes to improve and seek outside counsel to inform landscape
Addressing issues transparently and upfront if/as needed with humble confidence — “not fluent in language yet but plan on continuing to study”
Don’t chase or spread too thin — it’s sometimes better to concentrate on a short-list than a long-list
Play to your strengths and limit weaknesses — we are all world-class at least on 1 thing, great at several, and fairly good at others
Balance of exploitation (double down on comfortable excellence) vs. exploration (venture beyond comfort zone) — T-shaped to be across issue areas and geographies with deep expertise and signature strengths
Positioning and leverage from putting yourself out there to increase “luck surface area” to seize the moment of preparation x opportunity
Situational and self-awareness — know thyself and the terrain
Networking
High aspiration and high integrity for moral ambition – surround yourself with long-term people with values
“Win-win” values-driven networking that isn’t transactional — people can sense when you are overly self-oriented [trust = (credibility x reliability x intimacy) / self-orientation]
Authenticity, sincerity and curiosity is eventually the optimal strategy over expediency and self-serving behavior
Reaching out early and consistently — initiate and sustain momentum
You will be ghosted and ignored — it’s a given and shouldn’t be discouraging
Reputation precedes you — generosity and kindness are thus the optimal strategy as you help others, feel good, and the goodwill comes back full circle
People prefer collaborating with warm and incompetent over cold and competent
Credibility can be earned individually as well as given via warm introductions
Organic vs inorganic — past relationships are a powerful enabler especially in workplace setting as based on evidence and execution
Power of staying top of mind and referrals from long-term relationship investment
Connections on network edges (e.g., acquaintances, 2nd & 3rd degree contacts) can be among most effective channels for job-hunting
Those with whom we may share the least in common can shed light on novel openings
Actions
Flexibility, resilience, creativity, and adaptability are key — why investors often invest in the team over idea as pivots happen
You have agency and can just do stuff — don’t need permission and it’s your life (assuming “do no harm principle”)
Build on “small wins” — one step leads to the next no matter where you go
Optimism bias is real — we underestimate time and costs of our endeavors
Things take longer and are more expensive to materialize than we assume in plans
Your chances for success increase when you are feeling prepared and confident
It shows and is felt
Ideas are easy, execution is hard — bringing plans to life is an art and science especially across borders and time zones
Opportunistic yet principled — can do anything but not everything
Fail short term, succeed long term; don’t fail long-term
“Hell yes” and commit or it may be better to walk away sometimes
Patience, enthusiasm and perseverance — seldom an overnight success, it can and usually is a medium/long term game with stages
Think in portfolios and grey areas — not always binary black & white nor one-off
Trial and error with guidance to apply lessons as an effective learning mechanism (“if you aren’t embarrassed by what you did in the past then you’re not growing”)
Listen to your instincts and gut feeling — most neurotransmitters are in our gut (i.e., we think through our stomach) to guide orientation towards opportunities from intuition and “channel checks” (i.e., due diligence)
Reflections
The world needs more leaders who understand countries, cultures, and context
Life is what happens when you’re busy making plans
Often best things happen when least expected (e.g., met my partner on sabbatical)
“Spotlight effect”: we tend to overestimate how much people notice us so no need to worry too much what others think
Everyone’s mostly focused on themselves and absorbed in their own personal circumstances (and increasingly addicted to screens, myself included)
It’s the people that make an experience, not necessarily the place
Memories are formed in the company of others
No regrets as guiding principle even if you “fail” to avoid the imaginary “what if’s…” later
We regret more non-action with unanswered questions than in taking action to achieve clarity
Season for everything and priorities shift
Heuristic is that when we are younger there are less dependencies and thus we can take more risks and accept conditions that we wouldn’t when older / are more experienced
“The map is not the territory:” what’s on paper may differ from reality
Lived experience trumps hypotheticals and promises in interviews (firsthand situations for me where dream job ≠ dream reality)
Global careers aren’t linear
They zig and they zag
Journey, not the destination
Life is ultimately a constant stream of solving problems
