The Compass of Culture Expanding Our CPD Beyond the Classroom
(Vipul Malhotra)
I have a confession to make.
For most of my professional life, I have been a classroom learner or a zoom learner. I have valued the structure, the frameworks, the credentials. And rightly so—these have shaped me into the coach I am today.
But over the years, I have discovered a new way of learning. One that I have been indulging in quietly, almost without acknowledging it. It is not found in a course or a workshop. It is found in the world itself—in the people I meet, the cultures I encounter, and the conversations that challenge everything I thought I knew.
I want to share that discovery with you.
The Classroom Without Walls
Having been fortunate enough to travel to over 25 countries, I have come to see my passport not just as a travel document, but as a crucial tool for professional and personal development in the most important subject of all: humanity.
When you coach across different cultures, you quickly realise that universal principles of leadership—empathy, clarity, vision—are expressed in a thousand different dialects. To coach effectively, we must become fluent not just in language, but in context.
Currently, I am working with an Australian coach on a workshop about Australian culture—a part of the world I am new to. This collaboration has been a vivid reminder that learning never stops, and that humility is one of our greatest assets as coaches.
The Ripple Effect: Tolerance, Understanding, and Care
The benefits of this immersive education are not just professional; they are deeply personal.
- Tolerance: Travel teaches us that there are countless ways to live, work, and grieve. This cultivates patience and non-judgment in our coaching.
- Where might I be imposing my own cultural lens on a client’s situation?
- Understanding: Travel dismantles the illusion of a single “right” answer. It    allows us to ask more powerful, open-ended questions.
- What if the opposite of what I believe were also true?
- Care: When you have been helped by a stranger who speaks a different language, your capacity for care expands. You begin to see the shared humanity in everyone.
- What is the story this person is living that I don’t yet know?
- Perspective & Critical Thinking: Travel is a constant exercise in problem-solving. It gives you the ability to step back and see the bigger picture.
- What would this look like from a different vantage point?
Erin Meyer captures this beautifully in The Culture Map. She writes: “What matters is not the absolute position of either culture on the scale but rather the relative position of the two cultures. It is this relative positioning that determines how people view one another.”
Travel does exactly this—it shifts your relative position. Suddenly, you are not the centre of the map. And that shift is where real learning begins.
The Universal Truth Beneath the Costume
I am of Indian origin, and I have had the good fortune of living and working in Hong Kong, a vibrant tapestry of cultures from across the globe. This experience has been one of the richest sources of my own development.
And here is what I have come to understand: I feel I have multiple cultures that reside within me. Depending on the conversation, the context, or the company, different parts of me surface. The Indian in me, the Hong Konger in me, the global citizen in me—they all coexist, and each one helps me understand the others better. This internal diversity is not a confusion of identity; it is a richness of perspective.
And here is what I have learned from this: under that costume we call skin, colour, and shape, we all want the same things. We want to feel belonged. We want to feel cared for. We want to feel loved. This is the universal language that transcends every border and every cultural norm. When we truly internalise this, our coaching becomes not just a professional service, but a profound act of human connection—a soul connection that reminds us we are all part of something far greater than ourselves.
If You Cannot Travel, Travel Where You Are
I recognise that not everyone can hop on a plane. There are countless reasons—financial, family, health—that may keep us grounded. But the world has come to our doorstep.
Look around your own city. Where are the pockets of culture different from your own? A building community centre, a cultural festival, a dance or theatre meet up group, a tennis club . And sometimes, it is not about a grand opportunity. Sometimes, it is as simple as grabbing a coffee with someone whose life experience is different from yours.
Ask questions. Listen with curiosity, not judgment. Seek to understand, not to respond. These small, intentional acts of connection are micro-travels. They broaden our horizons just as surely as a passport stamp.
Redefining Our Investment in Self
Courses and certifications are valuable—they give us frameworks and credibility. But let us not mistake the map for the territory. The most powerful instrument in our coaching practice is not our list of credentials, but our own expanded worldview.
If we look at the world around us, it is crying out for peace, for connection, for learning. To contribute to a more peaceful world, we must first cultivate that peace within ourselves.
Investing in a course gives you a new model. Investing in an experience of a culture different from your own—whether across an ocean or across your city—gives you a new soul. It awakens a spiritual connection to the world and to the people in it.
A Call to Action: Just Grab a Coffee
So, my fellow coaches, here is my invitation to you.
This week, reach out to someone new. Not to network. Not to sell. Not to fix. Just to connect.
Find someone whose background, culture, or life experience is different from yours. Invite them for a coffee or a tea. No agenda. No outcome to achieve. Just two human beings, sharing a moment, learning from each other.
And as you sit together, be ready. Be ready to let go of what you thought you knew. Be ready to fall in love with a new way of seeing. Be ready to make a new friend. Be ready to challenge your worldview. Be ready to discover that the distance between you was never as wide as you imagined.
You might find a new perspective, a new part of yourself, or a connection that nourishes your soul in ways you never expected.
And in doing so, you will be engaging in the most profound form of CPD there is—the continuous practice of becoming more human.