What You Need to Learn To Succeed in North America As A Leader
From my experience of working with high performance talent from Asia who came to the U.S. to advance their careers, they tend to share a few traits that can impede their success in the U.S. society - where the culture is quite the opposite from theirs in many ways.
One day my colleague was sharing with me his experience of working with a CEO at a large international company. The CEO was doing so well in one of the company’s offices in Asia and promoted to the highest corporate officer position of the entire company. As a result of the promotion, the CEO had to move to North America where the company’s headquarter office was located, from Asia where he was raised and worked his entire career up till then. Soon after the CEO started his new position, the company was shocked by how awkwardly he conducted himself in social situations - a jarring aspect of his professional persona that did not fit the typical profile of a senior, successful executives in North America. The company was baffled - how did the person rise to the CEO position without having developed even a basic set of social skills?
What my colleague shared actually did not surprise me.
From my experience of working with high performance talent from Asia who came to the U.S. to advance their careers, they tend to share a few traits that can impede their success in the U.S. society - where the culture is quite the opposite from theirs in many ways.
What do these high performance talent from Asia need to learn in order to succeed in North America as leaders?
1 | Rethink the success formula.
Intelligence + hard work “behind the scenes” may have gotten many Asian talent success and helped them get to where they are in their lives, but they should think twice about their success formula when they come in contact with the culture in North America.
In certain Asian cultures, hard work is considered a very positive quality and very critical to one’s success in life. It is often an indication of how disciplined and dedicated an individual is to their work. There is this belief in these cultures that one can even overcome any personal deficits or shortcomings (e.g., not being “super” intelligent or not coming from a background with resources), if the person works hard “enough.” On the other hand, if someone is very good at talking or savvy in their social skills, there tends to be an implicit assumption that the person may not be trustworthy, may not be down-to-earth, or may appear good on the outside but lack substance on the inside. With such values and implicit assumptions, there is relatively little emphasis on communication and social skills. Instead, there is a strong focus on “getting work done” and not “fooling around.” There is a very defined way to understand the concept of “work.” Anything that is not directly linked to the work outcome would be considered as unimportant, a distraction, or even a waste of time. So going to “happy hour” with colleagues after work, an important workplace activity in North America, may be seen as something not helpful to get the “work” done.
How one succeeds in North America can look quite different. While intelligence and hard work are also important, one’s ability to make positive connections with people is particularly vital in how fast and how far the person climbs the career ladder. On a micro level, it can be about an individual’s ability to make small talk with people they come in contact with, and how they engage in conversations where there is a natural and easy flow of information sharing from both sides. On a macro level, it can be about how one grabs people’s attention and present themselves or their work in public settings, before a group of people. Specifically, in the U.S. culture, the ability for high performance talent to tell their personal story is a useful tool to help them stand out from their peers, leave a lasting impression on people, and make people relate better to them.
So intelligence + hard work “behind the scenes” can probably still get one somewhere in North America but is likely not going to make them fly high.
2 | Throw out the window the “need” to be perfect!
Another trait that I often see in high performance talent from Asia is that they would not feel comfortable presenting their work until they have it all figured out - anything less than that often makes them feel inadequate and sometimes ashamed.
In part rooted in how education and feedback are delivered in certain Asian cultures, this “need” to be perfect impacts many Asian talent’s capacity to actively participate in their professional activities in North America and significantly decreases the possibility for them to be seen and recognized in the workplace. Making comments or raising questions in meetings that are not well thought out is often challenging to them. They may need to follow closely the scripts they have prepared during presentations or public speaking in fear of any moments when they appear “not good enough,” “disqualified,” or “imperfect.” With hyperfocus on themselves and constant scrutiny of their own performance, many Asian talent can become “absent” when delivering their work or speech, making it difficult for them to engage their audience and getting their messages across.
3 | Keep the tiger parents at home!
High performance Asian talent may have a tendency to act out the role of tiger parents when managing their staff. While having a tiger parent in their lives may have worked for their benefit personally, it is a different case when managing staff and leading teams in the workplace in North America. The expectation for staff to be “perfect” in everything they do and to closely follow directions from their bosses can often produce a micromanaged, highly critical, and sometimes harsh environment that does not allow staff adequate space to develop and implement creative ideas. It may convey a sense of mistrust toward the staff, jeopardize employee morale, lead to inefficiency and ineffectiveness in the workflow, and ultimately harm the business of the company.
The points raised in this article are to highlight certain cultural and psychological barriers many Asian high performance talent tend to face as they seek to advance their careers and succeed as leaders in North America. There is no intention to devalue or promote any cultural beliefs, assumptions, or practices.
About The Author
Fourteen years ago I came to the U.S. from Taiwan and studied in a field that rarely accepted “fresh off the boat” international students from non-English speaking countries. I’m Dr. Vivi Hua, Psy. D. and I help international students learn how to navigate the U.S. educational system and assimilate into American culture so they can succeed academically and socially in their lives and careers!