Traveling is one of my favorite ways to spend time. I travel a lot as
part of being a Managing Partner at Chalak Mitra Group of Companies,
visiting restaurants that we own, checking out other restaurants to
learn from what they do and assessing new business opportunities.
I also enjoy experiencing how other people around the world live. Africa, Central and South America, Europe, India, Dubai… I’ve been fortunate to see a lot of the world and I’ve learned a lot from my travels. I think that visiting other cultures can really help you develop your business skills. Here’s how:
It’s a good way to get out of your established routines.
Traveling and having new experiences breaks up the monotony of your typical schedule. Maybe you’re sleeping at different times, eating at different times, talking to more people about different things than you would do at your 9-to-5 job. Breaking up your regular routine makes your brain work harder and encourages you to be more creative.
Being in new situations helps you learn to trust yourself.
Ever get a gut feeling about the right way to go or the people to avoid? Honing those instincts can help you in the business world, too. Traveling helps you rely on yourself and your ability to figure out a situation, which is enormously beneficial when you’re running a company.
Flexibility is key to surviving.
Can’t find your way to the hotel you were planning to stay at? Find out that the restaurant you wanted to visit is closed for the week? Instead of lamenting what you can’t do, learn to go with whatever works best for your current situation. You can end up finding some hidden gems when you travel, and you can end up finding some great solutions for issues in business.
You have to rely on more than spoken words.
In other countries where you don’t speak the language, you have to rely on gestures, phrase books and doing whatever it takes to be understood. You also have to learn how to understand other people without language. This is important in business because you can learn a lot about other people by their non-verbal cues and their actions.
Meeting people is an important part of the experience.
When you travel, you come to value the small moments with other people whom you may not have known before and may not come into contact with again. You learn how to be respectful of all types of people. That’s vital in the business world, where making connections and earning goodwill — even from someone you may not plan to see again — can pay off down the road in the form of referrals and networking.
You understand cultural differences and similarities in ways you never could before.
Whether you are in a global business or not, you run across a number of different types of people every day. In your business life, knowing how to be sensitive to cultural differences and help understand the values that different people hold dear can help you with your communication skills. The ways you learn to observe cultural differences without passing judgment at you travel can benefit at home in the meeting room, too.
You can make a difference.
I went to Africa with my nephew’s charity organization, PovSolve. We worked for a small community in Zambia, helping set up a school, planting a garden and installing mosquito nets. When you actually get to be a part of the giving process, it’s life changing. Other Managing Directors at Chalak Mitra Group of Companies have gone on trips where they’ve been able to give back, too, and it’s been incredibly important in shaping their views of the world and looking at what’s really important in life.
I encourage everyone who wants to be in business to expand what you know through travel. Be open to new experiences, meet as many people as you can, and learn from the good and the bad. These skills will make you a more valuable team member in your business and give you confidence in your abilities.
Al Bhakta
I also enjoy experiencing how other people around the world live. Africa, Central and South America, Europe, India, Dubai… I’ve been fortunate to see a lot of the world and I’ve learned a lot from my travels. I think that visiting other cultures can really help you develop your business skills. Here’s how:
It’s a good way to get out of your established routines.
Traveling and having new experiences breaks up the monotony of your typical schedule. Maybe you’re sleeping at different times, eating at different times, talking to more people about different things than you would do at your 9-to-5 job. Breaking up your regular routine makes your brain work harder and encourages you to be more creative.
Being in new situations helps you learn to trust yourself.
Ever get a gut feeling about the right way to go or the people to avoid? Honing those instincts can help you in the business world, too. Traveling helps you rely on yourself and your ability to figure out a situation, which is enormously beneficial when you’re running a company.
Flexibility is key to surviving.
Can’t find your way to the hotel you were planning to stay at? Find out that the restaurant you wanted to visit is closed for the week? Instead of lamenting what you can’t do, learn to go with whatever works best for your current situation. You can end up finding some hidden gems when you travel, and you can end up finding some great solutions for issues in business.
You have to rely on more than spoken words.
In other countries where you don’t speak the language, you have to rely on gestures, phrase books and doing whatever it takes to be understood. You also have to learn how to understand other people without language. This is important in business because you can learn a lot about other people by their non-verbal cues and their actions.
Meeting people is an important part of the experience.
When you travel, you come to value the small moments with other people whom you may not have known before and may not come into contact with again. You learn how to be respectful of all types of people. That’s vital in the business world, where making connections and earning goodwill — even from someone you may not plan to see again — can pay off down the road in the form of referrals and networking.
You understand cultural differences and similarities in ways you never could before.
Whether you are in a global business or not, you run across a number of different types of people every day. In your business life, knowing how to be sensitive to cultural differences and help understand the values that different people hold dear can help you with your communication skills. The ways you learn to observe cultural differences without passing judgment at you travel can benefit at home in the meeting room, too.
You can make a difference.
I went to Africa with my nephew’s charity organization, PovSolve. We worked for a small community in Zambia, helping set up a school, planting a garden and installing mosquito nets. When you actually get to be a part of the giving process, it’s life changing. Other Managing Directors at Chalak Mitra Group of Companies have gone on trips where they’ve been able to give back, too, and it’s been incredibly important in shaping their views of the world and looking at what’s really important in life.
I encourage everyone who wants to be in business to expand what you know through travel. Be open to new experiences, meet as many people as you can, and learn from the good and the bad. These skills will make you a more valuable team member in your business and give you confidence in your abilities.
Al Bhakta
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