Esquire Magazine: The American Diaspora

and

Harvard Business Review: The Looming American Diaspora

an excerpt:

Willy Tsao, the artistic director of BeijingDance/LDTX, said he had hired Ms. Berman because of her ability to make connections beyond China. “I needed someone who was capable of communicating with the Western world.”

Another dynamic in the hiring process, Mr. Tsao says, is that Westerners can often bring skills that are harder to find among the Chinese.

“Sarabeth is always taking initiative and thinking what we can do,” he said, “while I think the more standard Chinese approach is to take orders.” He says the difference is rooted in the educational system. “In Chinese schools students are encouraged to be quiet and less outspoken; it fosters a culture of listening more than initiating.”

If I was working in the US instead of Sweden I would, at the end of the day, have less money in my pocket to invest and have 4 fewer weeks of vacation. The structure of the work environment in Sweden is supportive competition and not back-stabbing like it is in many companies in the US. They understand that the reason we have create businesses is to make our lives better; they are not just a profit generator. In addition to work, when I start my family, my wife and I will share a year’s worth of maternal/paternal paid leave off work until our child is allowed to enter world class free toddler school. Lastly, in a world that is currently very volatile, it is always reassuring to know that there is a safety net that will continue to provide my family with health care and food.

The second reason I left was for ethical reasons. I want to pay into a system that is acting internally and externally in a manner I agree with (for the most part). I am not willing to continue to fund a war machine and ineffective government services.

But, just like Will, I am unsure if this move is forever. I left because there was nothing I could do to change the US right now. At the end of the day, I am American. I have a strong connection to the country and want to see it succeed. However, right now, I do not know how I can change anything when people still don’t understand the problems. You can work for real change but no one will join you. Unfortunately, life must become bad enough in the US for there to be a significant paradigm shift away from dog-eat-dog capitalism, unquestioning belief in the ‘American Dream’ and the conviction that the American way is the best and only way.

-Lars Olofsson
Lund, Sweden