Culture. Discomfort. Resilience. These are worth more than any degree.
Joe Hyrkin, former CEO of Issuu and Silicon Valley veteran, didn't build his business skills in a boardroom or classroom. They were earned on the streets and trains of China.
In this episode, he shares what nearly a decade in China taught him about negotiation, resilience, and reading any room you walk into.
Topics discussed:
00:00 - Introduction
01:45 - Cross-cultural childhood
03:41 - What led him to China
07:44 - Navigating a new culture
12:09 - Learning how to negotiate
16:33 - “I was not gonna be Chinese”
21:46 - Traveling vs. discovering
26:23 - From Hong Kong to Silicon Valley
30:01 - Building video before YouTube
34:00 - Resilience as a business skill
37:42 - Early days of social media
40:24 - How AI is history repeating itself
41:32 - The CEO years
45:29 - Why some businesses survived COVID
51:38 - 3 principles for entrepreneurial success
🔗 CONNECT WITH JOE HYRKIN:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joehyrkin/
ABOUT CULTURS:
Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.
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Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson