Russian Business Culture 2 - Global Sales Mentor | Zach Selch

27 Oct 2020 · 2 min

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2:11

In this brief talk, Zach Selch stands before St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow and explains the monument’s historical roots: it was erected roughly 500 years ago to celebrate the expulsion of the Mongol yoke that had dominated Russia for two centuries. He expands the narrative, noting that for nearly a millennium Russians endured raids from Vikings and other outsiders, fostering a national self‑image of perpetual victimhood and fear of external forces. Selch argues that this deep‑seated fear of outsiders is a core component of Russian culture and psychology, and that grasping such national narratives is crucial for successful international business. He recommends studying Russian history, literature, and folklore to gain insight into how Russians view themselves, and suggests that this cultural literacy directly improves sales outcomes. The talk concludes with a promotional invitation to contact his firm for help growing international sales.

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I'm in front of St. Basil's Church. I'm in front of St. Basil's Church in Moscow and its icon. We all know it as a symbol of Russia and a symbol of the Russian people, but very few of us in the West know the history of it, why it was built. It was built about 500 years ago to give thanks for essentially throwing the Mongols— It was built about 500 years ago to give thanks for essentially throwing the Mongols out of Russia. The Mongols had dominated Russia and ruled the Russian people for about 200 years, really creating a situation of terror. And for almost 1,000 years, the Russians were essentially the targets of slaving raids from Vikings and other people. The Russians, in their mind, in their national narrative, see themselves as a people that have always been harassed and always been put in danger and always been treated roughly by the world around them. And that fear of the outsider is an essential part of their culture and their national psyche. And understanding those things is really helpful in understanding the Russian people. Understanding people's fears, understanding their national narrative from their perspective is a huge part of doing international business. And the better you can understand these different national narratives, the stories from the perspective The better you're going to be able to do business. There's a lot of sources for this. You can read up on it. You just read some of their history, some of their novels, some of their folk tales or fairy tales, those type of things that will give you a good insight into understanding what they're thinking, how they see themselves. Because the better you understand how they see themselves, the better you're going to be able to do business with them. Remember, when you're ready to grow your international sales, reach out to us. We can help you. When you decide it's time to grow your international sales, International sales, call us.