An Indian woman working in New York City has revealed five things that surprised her about US corporate life. Varsha, a product marketing lead at Amazon, shared an Instagram Reel about the culture shocks she experienced in the United States.
Varsha said that she moved to the United States after seven years of working in India. The move was more difficult than she had anticipated. “Same job role, new country but feels like a whole new world. After 7 years of working in India, I moved to the US with the same company —but the shift hit me harder than I expected,” she wrote on Instagram.
5 culture shocks in corporate US
The Amazon employee opened up about five things that surprised her about work life in the United States.
For Varsha, one of the most surprising things about working in an office in the US was the fact that colleagues did not step out together for lunch. “Lunches are mostly solo. People eat at their desks or take a walk—social lunch breaks aren’t really a thing,” she revealed.
Next, she said that offices are more formal and quieter. Unlike India, where colleagues often stop by each other’s desks to vent or exchange gossip, the office culture in the US is different. “No chai pe charcha. No stopping by someone’s desk to vent or laugh. Coffee chats have to be scheduled—often weeks ahead,” she wrote.
Varsha’s third point – “ You have to be way more self-reliant.” She said that in India, employees are not expected to figure things out on their own. “In India, there’s often more handholding, more people checking in. Here, you’re expected to figure things out on your own,” the product marketing professional revealed.
She also spoke about the isolation that one may experience after moving to the US, where small talk rarely evolves into deep discussions. “People tend to keep work and life separate—which can feel isolating at first,” Varsha said.
Finally, she spoke about one positive aspect of American corporate culture. She said in the US, work-life balance is respected. When people log out, they don’t focus on work at all. “Boundaries are beautifully respected. When people log off, they really log off,” she wrote.