Why should Every Indian Work Abroad once in his life?
I see a new dangerous trend in India where influencers are talking down working abroad based on incomplete information on Purchase Power Parity.
Interestingly, there are many Indian CEOs of leading firms such as Matrix Partners, InMobi, etc. who worked abroad before coming back home.
They wouldn't have become whom they have- had they been mindlessly watching Indian influencers' videos.
And here is why I say so-
Let me share my own experiences.
When I left Boston Consulting Group (BCG) India office in early 2021, I was offered an International Affairs role in Dubai where my new employer gave me a 30% jump over a BCG Dubai consultant salary.
There were 'those' around me who felt even this salary might be less per Dubai's living standards because of 'PPP' reasoning.
As someone who has never made safe decisions, I still went ahead.
As a consultant, I was mainly living in hotels and my expenses were taken care of. I lived very comfortably during my nonclient visit days also.
When I left that role, almost all of my salary was in my savings.
Interestingly, I found that the PPP argument is incomplete as expenses changes based on regions within UAE and India. It is hard to do an apples-to-apples comparison.
But that's not the main point.
Working #abroad opened my thought horizons. Nassim Taleb once said, "Moving to a new place is like a Startup."
You learn to talk to people from new nationalities.
In my case, I was working next to a German, Pakistani, American, and Brit and learning to make my work stand out.
When you work abroad, you learn life skills, languages, and how to make friends and survive. And trust me, this experience is different from being a tourist.
When I moved to the US last year, I managed my work and life side by side.
Living and working abroad tests you, builds you, and brings your true resilience out.
While I'm completely against brain drain. I am bullish on India and work for India myself.
But working abroad helps India more than we realize.
When the Indian brain observes a new way of life and business, she comes back with renewed energy, better skills, and an innovative mind.
I know of friends from Harvard, who left their jobs and are serving 🇮🇳 like never before.
It's unfortunate that most of these influencers who haven't worked abroad or are stuck in their locations are building such half-cooked narratives and people back home get convinced because of #confirmation bias.
IDK if this offends someone but it's plain regressive!
I am raising this topic today because many Indian parents and young India are gullible.
Take your own decisions.
Life is not black or white.
We are homo sapiens. Our biggest strength is hope.
Moving abroad is all about Hope.
Life is more than living in your comfortable home.
Else ships are also safe in harbor, but that is not what ships are built for❤️.
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Author- Shatakshi Sharma, Co-founder Global Governance Initiative & GTI, Ex- BCG, Advisor; Tony Blair Institute