The Second

The event Four days later: In Altea ( a seaside town regarded as the Spanish Santorini) I gathered up eight chums of five nationalities and went to the best and oldest Paella restaurant on the sea front. An old favourite for celebrating my birthday mainly with the same people, for many years  and sharing the same three paellas-for-two as last time. Then, off to another café for coffee as a good friend is a waiter there.  And this time it was great to be taken out by the British majority.  Presents ranging from a box of cereal, a tin of anchovies, a challenging book, and a bottle of Cava. – all special according to the nationality of the giver.

Both events we great in their own ways. The adventure of the posh Madrid restaurant and the familiar Paella.  And the best factor – knowing the intercultural pleasures as well as pitfalls– celebrating with people you love to be with.

Happy Birthday to me!

Feliz cumpleaños a mí

SIETAR Intercultural Congress Valencia 25 June

Smart Coaching & Training works with over 30 associates, in four continents speaking 14 languages. Most raised and working in a wide range of cultures and living in a different place than where they were born . See our associates here.

Many of our associates learned how to speak via Toastmasters and Professional Speakers Association Read more

Many of our associates are specialists in Diversity , Interculturality and related topics Read more here and here.

Written by David Rigby © 2026 Smart Coaching & Training Ltd

Who goes to these events?

The event creators are from Brazil and Portugal. There were around 10 presenters mainly from the Americas (north and south) and often just one removed from me on LinkedIn . Within the 100 attendees there were many coaches from Europe, and many folk from the University. So an excellent group to get to know people. Most have got the years of experience necessary to appreciate the nuances and make contributions, and be socially competent so the networking breaks were also enjoyable and I have many new chums to develop relationships with.

My Meaning and Purpose analysis

So – who am I?
Who am I?
• Talents: What are my natural strengths? I learnt to be a natural communicator, I combine Maths and Logic with Intuition
• Passions: what really energizes and excites me? Love karaoke, singing and lots of music, meeting people especially face to face, good arguments
• Values: What principles guide my decisions. Trust first, regret later
What am I giving?
• Vision: What future do I want to help create? Where people share wisdom
• Message: What wisdom am I here to share? Listen first and decide who you want to get to know
• Legacy: What mark will I leave behind? A group of people who help each other because they knew me

Impossible to pick out other best bits, so when the next one comes along- just go!

SIETAR Intercultural Congress

Smart Coaching & Training works with over 30 associates, in four continents speaking 14 languages. Most raised and working in a wide range of cultures and living in a different place than where they were born . See our associates here.

Many of our associates learned how to speak via Toastmasters and Professional Speakers Association Read more

Many of our associates are specialists in Diversity , Interculturality and related topics Read more here and here.

Written by David Rigby © 2026 Smart Coaching & Training Ltd

‘Class’ is one of the most important and generally overlooked of the Diversities

Here are a few examples of the British Class system in action

• Historically it was the class system which determined what you were not allowed to read . In the obscenity trial in 1960 following the publication of D. H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover (in 1928). The judge’s much quoted remark in his opening statement as to whether the novel was something “you would even wish your wife or servants to read”.
• For decades, Lowry was dismissed by the art establishment as a “naive Sunday painter” because he worked full-time as a rent collector and clerk until his retirement at 65. Not the least because his pictures represented working class life in Salford near Manchester.
• In 1967, the ruling class at the BBC was forced to concede that working class pop music could be publicly broadcast on its new radio station, after years of everyone under 20 listening to illegal Pirate radio and a full five years since The Beatles first hit.
• Which British Poet sold the most books in the UK in the 20th Century? Pam Ayers! where is she in the AI list of top 20 British Poets of 20th Century? Not a mention
• “There Will Be No Beryl Cooks in Tate Modern,’ Says Sir Nicholas Serota, director of Tate modern, The Cultural Elite vs Britain’s Working Class Painter” The refusal of Tate Modern, in 2026, to collect or display the work of Beryl Cook is not a matter of taste, nor a neutral curatorial decision. It is ideological. Cook’s exclusion exposes a deep and enduring fault line in British cultural life: the discomfort of the cultural elite when confronted with the working classes not as objects of study, pity, or abstraction, but as active creators of culture.

Working class kids are very actively discouraged from studying the arts as, as described above, they are unemployable because they don’t have the right connections or the right accents. Sometimes the “Careers Officers” maybe being cruel to be kind. Not allowing working class kids to study the arts because they will never get a job. Or at the opposite end of the scale – allowing them to go to study arts at college and then not able to get a job.
My school careers officer recommended I become a Gas Fitter. As I don’t have a practical bone in my body I wonder how many houses I would have blown up

Further opportunities to watch

David Rigby’s recent PodCast conversation with Vince Stevenson , In two parts

• “I didn’t get where I am today”
• “Including ALL your audience “

Smart Coaching & Training works with over 30 associates, in four continents speaking 14 languages. Most raised and working in a wide range of cultures and living in a different place than where they were born . See our associates here.

Many of our associates learned how to speak via Toastmasters and Professional Speakers Association Read more

Many of our associates are specialists in Diversity , Interculturality and related topics Read more here and here.

Written by David Rigby © 2026 Smart Coaching & Training Ltd

Training the Trainer Podcast Vince Stevenson with David Rigby Sunday 22 February 1700 CET

People & Purpose Podcast in December with Tarja Takko – summary

In December’s episode of the ‘People & Purpose’ podcast, Tarja Takko sat down with David Rigby, intercultural leadership expert, mentor, coach, and founding director of Smart Coaching & Training, to explore why the ability to connect across cultures has become a strategic superpower for modern leaders. With experience working in 22 countries and building teams across four continents, David brings decades of insight into how leaders can navigate cultural complexity with empathy, clarity, and impact.

David’s journey -from a mathematics degree at London University to a global career focused on people, leadership, and communication- has shaped a practical and deeply human approach to leadership. His reflections offer a roadmap for leaders and organisations operating in increasingly global, diverse, and interconnected environments.

A Lifelong Curiosity for Cultures

David’s interest in intercultural leadership didn’t begin in a boardroom—it started early, through friendships, languages, and a genuine curiosity about people’s backgrounds. From spending time with international peers at university to learning Italian and Spanish, his path has been shaped by an instinctive openness to cultures beyond his own.

That curiosity evolved into a professional focus as he began working across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. Over time, David observed that leadership assumptions that work in one context can fail completely in another.

“If you’re leading people only in one country, you tend to operate in the culture of that country,” David explains. “Intercultural leadership means dealing with totally different and sometimes conflicting ways of working at the same time.”

Understanding Cultural Differences in Leadership

A recurring theme in the conversation is the danger of assuming that leadership looks the same everywhere. David contrasts leadership norms in Northern Europe, where autonomy and individual decision-making are expected, with cultures in the Far East, where hierarchy and top-down decision-making remain the norm.

The challenge for leaders is not choosing one style over another, but learning how to navigate both simultaneously without imposing their own cultural defaults.

“The biggest blind spot is expecting people all to behave the same way,” David notes. “They just don’t.”

Recognising these differences allows leaders to avoid misinterpretation and frustration, and instead respond with cultural intelligence.

Communication Beyond Words

Effective communication, David argues, is not about speaking more, it’s about ensuring shared understanding. Even when people technically speak the same language, meaning can shift dramatically depending on cultural context.

He illustrates this through familiar examples: how phrases like ‘that’s quite nice’ can mean very different things depending on whether you’re British or US American, or how indirect communication styles can mask disagreement in some cultures.

“Successful communication is when both people understand the same thing,” David reflects, “even if they’re coming from totally different viewpoints.”

This requires leaders to listen carefully, avoid assumptions, and actively confirm understanding especially in cross-cultural and remote settings.

Connection, Belonging, and Trust

In global and hybrid teams, creating a sense of belonging doesn’t happen by accident. David emphasises that connection requires intention, sincerity, and effort particularly when teams rarely meet face-to-face.

Rather than relying on surface-level checklists, leaders must invest time in understanding people as individuals, beyond their professional roles. Knowing personal context -interests, backgrounds, experiences- builds trust and strengthens collaboration.

“Ticking all the boxes doesn’t work,” David observes. “People have to know you’re being sincere about what you’re doing.”

Humility as a Leadership Practice

One of the most powerful moments in the episode comes when David reflects on humility as a core leadership quality. For him, intercultural leadership begins with recognising what you don’t know and being willing to learn continuously.

This applies not only across cultures, but across generations, disciplines, and experiences. Leaders must balance confidence in their own expertise with openness to being challenged.

“Am I humble enough to learn things?” David asks. “You have to know that you don’t know it all.”

Building Teams, Not Just Hiring Individuals

David also challenges traditional approaches to talent and diversity. While diversity is often discussed in terms of representation, he stresses the importance of team balance—including cognitive diversity, thinking styles, and emotional perspectives.

Recruiting the “best individual” is less important than building a team that can think, collaborate, and problem-solve effectively together.

“You can get results very fast with the wrong team,” David explains. “But they’ll be the wrong results.”

True inclusion, he argues, goes far beyond compliance as it requires leaders to actively create environments where different perspectives are genuinely valued.

Leading with Purpose Across Cultures

For David, purpose-driven leadership is inseparable from intercultural maturity. Leaders who want their organisations to thrive long-term must care not only about short-term results, but about the people and systems that sustain them.

This means balancing profitability with psychological safety, inclusion, and development especially in global contexts where expectations and norms differ widely.

“If you want to keep doing this in ten years,” David reflects, “then that’s what leadership has to be about.”

A Mindset for the Future

David Rigby’s insights highlight that intercultural leadership is not a skill to be mastered once, but a mindset to be practiced continuously. It demands curiosity, humility, courage, and a willingness to step outside comfort zones.

By listening deeply, communicating with intention, and valuing difference rather than fearing it, leaders can build organisations that are not only globally effective, but deeply human.

Watch the full episode here to hear the complete conversation and all of David’s insights on leading across cultures in a complex world.

Further opportunities to watch

David Rigby’s recent conference presentations

Smart Coaching & Training works with over 30 associates, in four continents speaking 14 languages. Most raised and working in a wide range of cultures and living in a different place than where they were born . See our associates here.

Many of our associates learned how to speak via Toastmasters and Professional Speakers Association Read more

Many of our associates are specialists in Diversity , Interculturality and related topics Read more here and here.

Written by David Rigby © 2026 Smart Coaching & Training Ltd

Authenticity is key to creating memorable experiences

I write as I speak

I write as I speak , with all the quirks of a Northern English man who has all the corners knocked off by working in 22 countries. It is completely beyond me why anyone would want to look like or sound like or write like some generic version of themselves . I know you can spend months trying to coax an AI version to be exactly like you .

“And I mean this most sincerely folks” was the catch Phrase of British TV personality Hughie Green in the 1960s and apparently was the most insincere and horrible man of the time.

And in conclusion, my message to the world: If you have got anything to say to me,
• Say it in person, don’t be excruciatingly polite
• Make it factual or your opinion (which is also a fact)
• Don’t make anything up if you don;t know – say you don’t, and make it short
• Don’t, therefore, hallucinate and just cut out the slop

Smart Coaching & Training works with over 30 associates, in four continents speaking 14 languages. Most raised and working in a wide range of cultures and living in a different place than where they were born . See our associates here.

Many of our associates are experts in AI and love it.

Many of our associates are specialists in Diversity , Interculturality and related topics Read more here and here.

Written by David Rigby © 2026 Smart Coaching & Training Ltd