The Swedish Office Code Simplified
Starting a new job in a new country can be tough for even the least fainthearted pirate. The hidden clues that are in plain view for the locals are easily missed by expats. You will notice some things right away while other nuances can go undetected for a long time.
Having relocated to a new destination you are likely to be a pretty ambitious person with something extra to offer. Your new colleagues are thrilled to work with you and everyone, including you, are looking to make this a success.
Expressions like “the writing is on the wall” don’t apply to expats. The signs aren’t obvious, how a decision was made is unclear, the purpose of the endless and plentiful meetings a total mystery. To top it all off Sweden is one of the hardest countries to understand because no one will want to intrude on your space and actually tell you when you are misunderstanding things. You should be able to figure it out on your own. Swedes are peculiar that way, we have a very clear vision on how things should work, yet we are not great at sharing that vision.
In order to be successful you have to know the most important things and the beauty of being an outsider you can use it to your advantage.
* How can you capitalize on being new?
* What opportunities does is present to arrive with a different perspective?
Given the Swedes focusing excessively on personal time and a life/work balance you can just put in a little bit more time and you will be in really good shape for promotion and recognition in the work place.
Getting a legup on what is important and what you can totally ignore in the Swedish work environment can be the key to your career. A small note, there are a ton of great Swedish companies around the world. Language skills don’t need to be perfect, but a basic understanding is great. Today again, I met with an expat that pointed out that he wanted his children to learn Swedish because in his country that would create opportunities. He’s from Brazil and there’s a long tradition of Scandinavian companies located there. While Swedish is a small language the career opportunities shouldn’t be underestimated.
Would you like to learn 3 examples of things that foreign recruits arriving in the Nordics may not notice? If so, read our blog here Obstacles You May Face While Working in Sweden
It’s Easy To Sign-up to our Mojo Program
In our easy to join 4-week Motivational Mojo online program, we cover these and many other topics so new recruits can have a chance to smoothly integrate into the new organization without draining internal resources.
