From Love Refugee to Local: Finding Your Voice in a Foreign Land

How Do You Lead and Thrive in a Multicultural Workplace?

In this episode of Your Last Potato, host Abda Rothman explores what it really takes to succeed—and lead—with cultural sensitivity in today’s global workplaces. She’s joined by Craig Livingstone, a British professional who moved to Finland for love and ended up building a decades-long career navigating cultural integration, language learning, and leadership across borders. Craig shares heartfelt reflections, practical tools, and hilarious missteps from his immersive journey into Finnish society and beyond.

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🔹 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Culture Is Not Nationality: Understand why culture is less about your passport and more about behavior, context, and shared expectations.
• The Power of Language and Silence: Discover why silence is the most important sound in the Finnish language—and how learning even a few words can unlock belonging.
• From Outsider to Insider: Hear Craig’s story of moving from the UK to Finland without a job, and how deep cultural immersion led to professional and personal growth.
• Leadership in Diverse Teams: Learn how to lead inclusively when your team spans multiple countries, time zones, and cultures.
• Communication Missteps and Insights: Why intent, implementation, and interpretation matter more than ever in multicultural settings.
• Creating Aspirational Culture: How teams can co-create shared values while still respecting individual identity and communication styles.
• Building Psychological Safety: Why vulnerability, active listening, and small acts of empathy are vital for collaboration.
• Navigating Language Gaps: Tips for managers and team members to handle language diversity in meetings, social settings, and everyday communication.

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💡 Coffee Confessions Segment:

Abda and Craig unpack a real-life team dilemma: how can managers foster inclusivity when local employees default to speaking a native language, excluding international team members? Craig offers practical tips—from addressing it head-on to creating intentional language norms—with humility, honesty, and humor.

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📌 Actionable Takeaways & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Language Learning Tools: Try Duolingo, BBC Languages, or language exchange apps to build confidence.
• Cultural Competency Courses: Platforms like Udemy and LinkedIn Learning offer training in cross-cultural teamwork.
• Three I’s Framework (Intent, Implementation, Interpretation): Use this mindset to reframe cross-cultural misunderstandings.
• Behavioral Leadership Practices: How to embed respect, inclusion, and psychological safety into everyday team dynamics.

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Craig’s story is a vibrant reminder that true leadership is about adaptation, not authority. Whether you're navigating a multicultural team or stepping into a new country and culture, this episode is full of real-world wisdom—and plenty of laughs—for building workplaces that thrive on diversity.