4 Practical Steps to Develop a Global Mindset

A recent report based on a study by Gallup in Southeast Asia showed that C-suite executives attributed early international assignments as a critical factor that impacted their development and growth as leaders.  But at this moment in time when international travel is restricted, the following steps are ways in which you can develop your own global mindset.

1. Some self-reflection to recognise your own values and preferences.  (For a more comprehensive free intercultural competence self-reflection questionnaire please contact us). 

Ask yourself:

• How truly open am I to people from different cultural, socioeconomic and religious backgrounds?
• Do I make quick assumptions about a colleague? Do I prejudge colleagues or situations, or do I withhold judgement while I explore the multi-facets of the situation?
• Do I measure a colleague's behaviour based on my own culturally conditioned background or do I try to understand their behaviour based on theirs?
• Do I value those from different backgrounds, and how do I demonstrate this even if I disagree with their beliefs and opinions?
• How would I describe my worldview? How would I describe my colleagues' or clients' worldviews? How might they be different from my own?
• How much do I know about my colleagues' or clients' cultural backgrounds? What information am I missing and how can I get it?

Developing a strong self-awareness is a recognised part of improving your global mindset.  If you haven’t done so already, also learn more about your personality traits - try the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, Belbin, online personality tools etc.

Ask yourself:

• What is your normal style for interacting with different people?
• Are you able to adapt your behaviour and communication style?
• Are you naturally curious to chat with a colleague about their experiences in their part of the world?

Being curious can go a long way towards understanding and resolving any cultural differences you may be experiencing.

2.  Learn as much as you can about relevant countries and international markets.  Make a habit of reading foreign news sources, articles from Harvard Business Review, the monthly newsletter from Babel.  I can also recommend the blogs by BBC Travel Why We Are What We Are team.  Immerse yourself in a new class that can expose yourself to new cultures - Vietnamese cooking, Japanese origami, Salsa dancing or language courses anyone?

3.  Consciously build your global network.  Discussing cultural differences with your global colleagues, associates or friends is a great way to build up your knowledge and develop personal strategies for success.  Explicitly ask team members how they would like to be addressed and treated.  Be tactful or discreet if you are not sure about areas or issues that may be particularly sensitive, given a team member’s cultural and/or individual values.

4.  Develop your active listening skills especially if you are not a very attentive listener by nature.  Communicating well across different cultures requires listening closely enough to not only hear the words but to grasp their true meaning.  Consciously observe interactions around you.  At meetings, does everyone introduce themselves with their full name and job title? As the conversation continues, do they continue to refer to each other by their surnames? With that as a cue, it is safe to assume the people at the meeting are more formal and perhaps more hierarchical. As such, you can start to adjust your behaviour to act accordingly.

As global connectedness continues, organisations need executives at all levels of seniority to develop their understanding and appreciation of the diverse markets and partners that they work with.  The demand for a global mindset will therefore continue to grow.  The executives who can build and sustain successful relationships across different countries will create real value for their organisations.

Want to learn more? For tips on a country’s business and cultural etiquette visit our resources section and our Blog section for articles on international working.  Alternatively, you can subscribe to our free monthly cultural newsletter which highlights different national holidays that are celebrated around the world, a good talking point for you and your international colleagues and clients.

How can Babel support you?  We provide tailored, live online cross-cultural, personal impact and foreign language training for individuals and global teams.