What do a child from the prairies of Canada and a Brazilian raised on the equator have in common?

At first glance, you might think: not much.

I grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba—a city of 700k smack in the middle of nowhere, with -40°C winters, frozen lakes, and snow as far as the eye could see.

My childhood memories are filled with skiing, snowboarding, and summer camping trips to the lake. The sea? A distant fantasy.

Fast forward to today, and I’m living by the sea in Brazil—practically on the equator—in a city of 4 million people. I grew up looking at the big dipper.

Many of the people I know here have never even seen snow, let alone strapped on a snowboard, and certainly have no idea what Poutine is (fellow Canadians, you know what I mean). And Orion and his belt is what they see when they look up at night.

And yet… we have SO much in common.

We love the same music. Share similar parenting values. Find so much joy in the same kinds of conversations. Our lives, shaped by wildly different landscapes and experiences, are somehow deeply connected.

THIS is the beauty of common humanity.

When we step beyond our borders—geographical, cultural, or otherwise—we discover something remarkable: we’re far more alike than we are different.

These lived experiences with people from other places and backgrounds are absolutely fundamental to creating more human leadership competencies and more cohesive human corporate cultures.

It’s transformative.

You stop seeing “them” and start seeing us.

It’s this sense of shared humanity that unites people, companies and the world.
It helps leaders, teams, and businesses see their work—and themselves—in a different light.

It bridges divides, creates common bonds, and reminds us that we’re all navigating similar challenges, no matter where we’re from.

The more we seek to cross divides like this, the more human the world becomes.

So here’s my challenge: how can you step out of your silo—whether personal or professional—and connect with someone who seems completely different from you?

You might just discover you’re not so different after all.

Keen to know how you can do this for your leaders and teams in 2025 with me and TIE Leadership? Just reach out and I can explain more.