Grow Rich By Embracing Cultural Diversity With Nadia Harris

“We will get these authentic experiences if we step back, listen and observe and look at how this can make us richer from the inside.”

Meet the remote work advocate Nadia Harris

Nomadding Nadia grew up moving around a lot and loves traveling. Since 2018 she has been more or less constantly on the go and that’s when her digital nomad journey took off. She calls herself a part-time digital nomad because she has a place Nadia calls home in Poland.
Nadia is a multi-passionate entrepreneur and does various things to make a living. She is mostly known for her work as a remote work consultant, where she works with companies and implements remote work, policies, legal operations and all things you need to scale the company. She also has a side hustle which she has been doing for nine years already! Many people don’t know about her, but Nadia speaks five languages (German, English, Polish, French and Russian) and is a legal and medical live interpreter. We love that Nadia shares this with us because it shows that you can monetize the skills you got and not all side hustles are creative side hustles.

When you don’t feel like you belong anywhere

The digital nomad lifestyle comes with many perks and challenges at the same time. Some of these challenges are small and others are big like Wi-Fi connections. What is interesting about cultural challenges is that they are unique to everyone, but all digital nomads and international teams face them, each human in a unique way.

Nadia knows this all too well because she grew up as a 3rd culture child. She was raised in a Polish/American family in Germany. One of the most challenging things for her was a feeling of belonging as each unique situation, from playing with friends to singing songs with her grandma, has its own language and culture triads. This created a strong urge to explore the world and seek a feeling of belonging, but it wasn’t easy.

Nadia moved to the states and during the first 2-3 months, she loved it, but then she started to neglect things. Her joy transformed into a strong feeling of missing everything she had left behind. Then, she went back to Europe, but the feeling of not belonging creeped back up again. She realized that it’s not just one place, which is why the digital nomad lifestyle is a great fit for her life needs.

Typical cultural challenges digital nomads experience

Many digital nomads are curious and this is a characteristic we often discuss on the podcast. Nadia is also curious-minded and she loves getting out of her comfort zone, although this doesn’t mean it’s flawless. She shares that while she loves it and needs it to feel connected with herself, she also gets scared.

‘‘There is always a moment where I’m like, what the hell am I doing? How is it going to be? Of course, I have this each and every single time, but I still manage to overcome it.’’

The grass is always greener on the other side

One of the biggest challenges Nadia faces as a digital nomad is that the grass is always greener on the other side. Typically, digital nomads always need to adapt to their new surroundings, which taps into the simplest things like how much something costs or the vibes in general.

Don’t be an intruder but an observer.

Another thing Nadia learned is never to be an intruder but an observer instead. By observing people, you can learn about the local habits and treat them respectfully. So digital nomads have the opportunity to understand better that every culture is unique and so are all the people around you. In other words, the place you visit is not your territory and you are the one that’s invited.

‘‘I think that the whole concept of digital nomadding is not about me “look, this is me, I have the money to travel, I have the visa to travel, and I don’t care about you. I’m just going to have tons of fun. But the concept is to broaden your horizons and to get all these experiences.’’

 Nadia shares that you experience this only by simply just to sit back, observing and acknowledging that all this will make us richer from the inside.

Why companies should hire digital nomads

The digital nomad lifestyle isn’t just for solopreneurs and freelancers, many digital nomads have remote jobs. It’s exciting to see that more companies are hiring remotely, but what we love to see is that hiring digital nomads is the new normal. Nadia is a remote work expert and consults with companies and we ask her to take on why companies should hire digital nomads.

It’s not a shocker that Nadia 100% agrees that digital nomads are great assets for an international and/or remote company. Since digital nomads are espoused to many cultures and constantly need to adapt, these skills are great to have in an international team. While companies tend to impose their culture and working systems on others, digital nomads are more experienced with cultural clashes and people from other cultures. They can help increase awareness and create a place where people feel like they belong.

🌟 Set mutual rules and boundaries and encourage people to speak out loud
🌟 Acknowledge that each culture has its habits and embrace the fact that we are different
🌟 Understand and define the communication style and make sure people act on it
🌟 Focus on what people can teach you instead of you imposing your habits on your people

Lastly, numbers are just numbers and companies can only adopt a better inclusion mindset if they think beyond numbers and focus on people feeling they belong.

Connect with our Nienke Nina and our guests

Your host Nienke Nina

More digital nomad tips and life advice via instagram @digitalnomadsdaily

Connect with Nienke Nina on LinkedIn @Nienke Nina Keizer

Find Nienke Nina on Instagram @nienkeninatravels

Meet digital nomad Nadia

Find her on Instagram @remoteworkadvocate

Find her on LinkedIn Nadia Harris 

Check out her website www.remoteworkadvocate.com

Other episodes you might like:

🎧 Episode #67: 7 Digital Nomad Tips For Facing Cultural Challenges with Mirjam

🎧 Episode #69: Making Remote Work Actually Work With Iwo

🎧  Episode #71: Digital Nomads Aka The Early Adopters Of Remote Work With Mitko