They Came to Baghdad in Armored Convoys. He Walked to the Same Meeting.

A group of Western executives arrived at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event in Baghdad inside armored convoys, and didn't want to get out of the vehicles. Dr. Midhat Zwayen had walked there. He told them the weather was nice. Dr. Zwayen grew up in Iraq in the 1990s, under sanctions, in a country you couldn't easily leave. He worked in his father's engineering office, watched that business pivot into trading with Russian and Chinese partners, took his first trip outside the Arab world in 2006, and eventually earned a PhD in the United States. His book, Leadership Beyond Borders: A Western Executive's Guide to the Iraqi Business Mindset, came out of noticing the same gap over and over — in both directions. In this episode of the Command Your Brand Show, Jeremy Ryan Slate talks with Dr. Zwayen about what the news doesn't show you about Iraq, why trust works differently when the banking system doesn't, and the leadership style he argues actually survives in emerging markets. In this conversation: • Growing up under sanctions, and what it does to your sense of the outside world • Culture shock — and what's on the other side of it if you push through • What Western executives assume about Iraq before they arrive • The armored convoy, and the walk • Why media is a source of information, not a picture of a place — and what that means for anyone making decisions off it • Baghdad as a historical melting pot, and the parallel he draws to the United States • Why Iraqi business still runs on personal trust and cash, and how that changes the pace of a deal • Jeremy's counter-argument: that American business has degraded trust in the other direction • Dictatorship versus servant leadership, and which one he's seen last • The many different cultures inside Iraq — north, south, east, and the blend in the middle • Iraq as "virgin land": how much of its heritage is still unexcavated LEADERSHIP BEYOND BORDERS: Forbes Books: https://books.forbes.com/books/leadership-beyond-borders/ Simon & Schuster: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Leadership-Beyond-Borders/Midhat-Zwayen/9798887506883 👇 COMMENT BELOW: What's a place you were told to avoid, went anyway, and found was nothing like the warnings? CHAPTERS: 00:00 Intro 02:03 Growing up in Iraq under sanctions 04:04 Why he wrote the book 06:29 Culture shock, and what's past it 07:08 What Western executives get wrong about Iraq 08:09 The armored convoys — and the man who walked 09:45 Athens was "on fire" — until you got there 13:09 Baghdad as a melting pot 17:13 Trust, speed, and why Iraq still runs on cash 18:50 The counter-argument: has American business lost trust? 21:34 Dictatorship versus servant leadership 28:24 The many different cultures inside Iraq 31:28 The one lesson he wants readers to take 34:43 Where to find Dr. Zwayen