At the age of 18, a young boy who never lived away from home left his country to move to a very cold Switzerland. The flight from New Delhi delayed due to fog and I missed the connecting flight from Jordan. After spending a night close to the airport, I was given a flight to Rome and then finally to Zurich. Upon landing it took 3 hours and further 4 train and bus connections to finally get to my destination at midnight. I had never seen snow in my life and here I was standing in minus 25 degrees Celsius with snow up to my knees. I was surrounded by people who spoke in language I couldn't understand. The world seemed different. Everything in it seemed challenging and difficult. I did not knew how to cope in this new environment and where to start. I was confused. At that moment I realized that diversity can bring challenging situations. That was my first ever travel experience of any kind as an International Citizen.
Prior to leaving India, I grew up in different states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and West Bengal. Each state is abundantly different and has its own cultural identity. From the mountains of Kashmir (Northernmost point) to the beaches of Kanyakumari (Southernmost point). A land with more than 1,000 dialects and where major world religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism all live in harmony. From spices to festivals of Holi, Diwali and Durga Puja, India is a celebration of one of the oldest civilizations and great things brought to this land by immigrants, travellers, traders and conquerors from different parts of the world.
Having left India in 2003, I went on to live, work and study in Switzerland, England, United Arab Emirates and The Netherlands. Having spent the last ten years in five different countries I have learned to be culturally intelligent and have demonstrated strong intercultural understanding in multicultural environments. In today's global economy, it is key to understand the demographics of doing business in different cultures.
International diversity leads in many cases to exciting and challenging situations. During my time in Abu Dhabi I experienced how a person's nationality could decide their destination in the work field. Europeans and Americans mostly conquered the management positions whereas Philippinos and Indians were mainly involved in the operational tasks. It was there I realized that this was not going to be my destiny, I wanted to capitalize on my multicultural background to grow in an international company. It was also in Abu Dhabi that I met my Dutch girlfriend and we both decided to continue our lives in The Netherlands.
My current role at Stenden university of applied sciences marks the next chapter in my cultural journey. As tutor in international Hospitality Management I have seen first-hand how peers within a group from very diverse cultural backgrounds learn from each other. From Beijing to Moscow, from Budapest to Hanoi, cultural values, beliefs and behaviours bridge interesting knowledge gaps in a classroom environment.
It is the blend of my personal and professional experiences that I will bring to the classroom of TiasNimbas. Being slightly older than the average full-time student in combination with the aspects I learned in my career so far, I hope to be the link between theory and practice.
A Masters degree from TiasNimbas will help me re-launch my career at a corporate level in the Hospitality Industry. I have seen former managers making a shift from operational to corporate after pursuing a Masters degree.
I strongly believe that learning is a lifelong process. One can never have enough experiences. At the age of 29, I am certain that a Master from TiasNimbas will provide me with the platform to begin a new era of my international experience. There are many more countries to visit and there are many new cultures to embrace. I think it is fair to say that this is the start of a new beginning.
Prior to leaving India, I grew up in different states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and West Bengal. Each state is abundantly different and has its own cultural identity. From the mountains of Kashmir (Northernmost point) to the beaches of Kanyakumari (Southernmost point). A land with more than 1,000 dialects and where major world religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism all live in harmony. From spices to festivals of Holi, Diwali and Durga Puja, India is a celebration of one of the oldest civilizations and great things brought to this land by immigrants, travellers, traders and conquerors from different parts of the world.
Having left India in 2003, I went on to live, work and study in Switzerland, England, United Arab Emirates and The Netherlands. Having spent the last ten years in five different countries I have learned to be culturally intelligent and have demonstrated strong intercultural understanding in multicultural environments. In today's global economy, it is key to understand the demographics of doing business in different cultures.
International diversity leads in many cases to exciting and challenging situations. During my time in Abu Dhabi I experienced how a person's nationality could decide their destination in the work field. Europeans and Americans mostly conquered the management positions whereas Philippinos and Indians were mainly involved in the operational tasks. It was there I realized that this was not going to be my destiny, I wanted to capitalize on my multicultural background to grow in an international company. It was also in Abu Dhabi that I met my Dutch girlfriend and we both decided to continue our lives in The Netherlands.
My current role at Stenden university of applied sciences marks the next chapter in my cultural journey. As tutor in international Hospitality Management I have seen first-hand how peers within a group from very diverse cultural backgrounds learn from each other. From Beijing to Moscow, from Budapest to Hanoi, cultural values, beliefs and behaviours bridge interesting knowledge gaps in a classroom environment.
It is the blend of my personal and professional experiences that I will bring to the classroom of TiasNimbas. Being slightly older than the average full-time student in combination with the aspects I learned in my career so far, I hope to be the link between theory and practice.
A Masters degree from TiasNimbas will help me re-launch my career at a corporate level in the Hospitality Industry. I have seen former managers making a shift from operational to corporate after pursuing a Masters degree.
I strongly believe that learning is a lifelong process. One can never have enough experiences. At the age of 29, I am certain that a Master from TiasNimbas will provide me with the platform to begin a new era of my international experience. There are many more countries to visit and there are many new cultures to embrace. I think it is fair to say that this is the start of a new beginning.