Lost in Translation: How Language Barriers, Failed Interviews, and Echo Chambers Taught Me Real Leadership

Why Being Lost in Translation Made Me a Better Leader

A note to my readers:

As we enter 2025, I've been reflecting not just on my journey through 2024, but on how I share these insights with you. My initial reflection on 2024 sparked deeper realizations about leadership, culture, and finding authentic voice. This expanded version represents that growth.

This piece also marks the launch of my premium content. While I'll continue offering key insights to all readers, premium subscribers will get access to deeper analysis, personal reflections, and leadership insights. It's part of my commitment to providing more value while maintaining authentic connections with this community.

The journey from reactive to conscious leadership that I describe in this piece mirrors my own evolution as a writer. Sometimes, growth means having the courage to revisit, rethink, and reshape our narratives.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

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Views of Lisbon

Sometimes the deepest insights come from moments of discomfort. In 2024, I learned this lesson over and over – in cities where I didn’t speak the language, in leadership roles where I didn’t have all the answers, in spaces between certainty and doubt.

Lisbon was my first teacher. Armed with just a handful of Portuguese phrases, I found myself navigating a city where English wasn’t a given. Every interaction required courage – the willingness to try, to make mistakes, to show I was making an effort. Something shifted when I stopped expecting perfect communication and started embracing the vulnerability of trying. Shop owners’, cashiers, and restaurant staff would light up when I attempted my limited Portuguese. Staff became more patient, more willing to help. Local residents would go out of their way to guide us, appreciating the effort to connect in their language. Maybe the 5% Portuguese that I have according to my Ancestry DNA results permitted my ability to speak the language.

Between Lisbon’s graffiti-covered Comboios stations and colonial architecture, I saw how cities hold multiple truths. Tourist crowds at Time Out Market (which we happily avoided) and the Baixa District sought one version of the city, while real life pulsed in neighbourhood squares like Cais do Sodre. The bike lanes running down the middle of roads weren’t just about traffic flow – they showed how cities adapt, sometimes awkwardly, to new needs. Each observation, each stumbled conversation, taught me something about leadership: sometimes the best solutions come from embracing imperfection.