Traveling the world has a tremendous impact on who you are as a business professional and how you interact with your coworkers in the office. Being able to adapt to various cultures, understand their specificities and relate to people that are completely different than you is a tremendous asset in a business setting.
My first meaningful experience was during my year long internship at the US Embassy in Paris. The staff in the office was half French and half American. As soon as I started working there, I realized that there were two distinct business cultures at place:
The french - going in and out of the building 2 or 3 out a times for cigarette breaks through the various security portals and metal detectors, chatting over a cup of expresso after lunch, visiting each other's cubicles to deliver various messages.
I, in the opposite, did not affiliate to a particular group. I managed to adapt and in the end, I belonged to both! I quickly figured that the French staff expected me to address them in French, while I always talked to the Americans in English, but that everyone used English in emails. However, even though everyone in the office was perfectly bilingual, the language that people picked always depended on the context and the social situation.
Whenever I get a new job, I use the skills I gathered traveling to analyze my work environment and relate to each and everyone of my new co-workers as if they came from a different country. The key is to never be judgmental. It is not because some people work differently that they are necessarily bad. Always remember to give them a chance!
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