Hello dear listeners, and welcome to Show 317 of Absolutely Intercultural!
Have you ever looked at your desk and wondered: How much of my actual life is allowed to happen here?
Today, we’re diving into a topic that affects almost all of us: Workplace Culture. Specifically, we are looking at where the “employee” ends, and the “human being” begins.
In a globalized world, the rules of the office change dramatically the moment you cross a border. For instance, think about the time. In some cultures, leaving exactly at 5:00 PM is seen as a sign of efficiency and self-respect, while in others, leaving while your boss is still there feels like an unspoken betrayal.
Even the way we disagree tells a story. Does a usual meeting look like a “productive clash” of ideas, or a carefully chosen words where you only say what you really think over a private coffee later?
And finally, do we work to live, or do we live to work?
As always, here on Absolutely Intercultural, everyone is free to think and say absolutely anything. My name is Ahmed, and this episode comes to you from Germany. So, grab a coffee, sit back, and ask yourself: How much of your real self do you bring to work?
Before we begin, a small declaimer. We’re discussing cultural ‘averages’ here, those mythical people who represent a whole society. In reality, no one fits the description perfectly. So, we also celebrate the outliers, the exceptions, and the individuals who do things their own way.
In today’s show, we’ll get to know three guests who have navigated the culture shock of shifting boundaries:
In our first story Absolutely Remote, we hear from Julia, who explores the “new normal” for some employees in German offices, where a tradition of strict presence is clashing with a modern demand for mobile flexibility.
Then, in our second story, Absolutely Divided we meet Ivan, who moved from a socially “warm” workplace in Serbia to the structured environment of Germany and found an unexpected sense of freedom in the rules.
In our last story Absolutely Open-minded, we’ll sit down with Rutchika, who compares the “clean-desk” reality of the West with the beautifully tangled, family-like chaos of Indian workplaces.
Maybe the perfect workplace doesn’t exist. Maybe it’s just about finding a workplace culture that fits the way you want to live.
So, here’s a question for you: If someone looked at your workspace right now, what would it tell them about your private life? We’d love to hear your stories. Leave a comment on our website or reach out if you’d like to be a guest. And don’t forget to find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Facebook.
Our next show will be coming to you on 1st of May 2026 from Anne Fox in Denmark. Until then – Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!
The host of this show is: Ahmed Kebbaoui (Germany).
Chief Editor: Oleksii Tsapenko (Ukrainian).
Assistant Editor: Lorena Peposhi (Albanian).
