Been couple of days that I'm thinking about how various cultures handle success differently! Like, growing up I always thought success was this universal thing everyone admired; but after living in Europe for a while...Nah, it’s a whole different vibe! What I have witnessed is that success here isn’t celebrated the same way it is in, say, the States or even some Middle Eastern cultures.

And this is hard for me to say, but if you’re an immigrant here and start working in a company… honestly, showing your qualifications and proving you’ve got skills, It usually doesn’t get you respect! In a lot of cases, you won't be appreciated, you’re just creating enemies for yourself. That high five you expected isn't coming. Instead, you're getting some serious side-eye! Like, instead of “Wow, that’s inspiring" or "we should learn from them,” it’s more like, “Who do they think they are?”

In many parts of the world, seeing someone succeed is a reason to celebrate; it's inspiring, it makes you think "Okay, they did it, maybe I can too!". But in Europe, your startup takes off or you get promotion, and suddenly you're not the cool new person anymore. You're a target. The gossip starts, and people you thought were friends suddenly get quiet.

Me, personally, never understood why some people get triggered by your sucess! They’d rather bring you down than try to level up themselves.

Sometimes it feels like success here is a crime if you’re an immigrant. Like you’ve broken some unspoken “don’t outshine anyone” rule. And I was thinking maybe that's one of the reasons that we have "American Dream", but Not "European Dream".

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