We didn’t just grow up bilingual. We grew up between languages.

In South Africa, many of us live at the intersection of cultures. Where humour translates tone. Where food speaks when words fail. Where English builds bridges between “gogo” and “yiayia.”

I think about this often - as someone born in South Africa to Greek immigrant parents.

We grew up between “geia sou” and “howzit,” between souvlaki and Sunday braais.
English wasn’t just a subject. It was the thread that stitched our different worlds together.

But here’s the thing:
Clarity at work doesn’t mean sounding the same. It means being understood.
It means preserving the power of our mother tongues while developing the tools to share our ideas in a common one.

This Heritage Day, I’m celebrating:
• The mix of "eish," "parakaló" and "pivot" in one conversation
• The braais where business insights and boerewors share a plate
• The workplaces that embrace accents as richness, not risk

Great teams don’t just share goals. They share language, laughter and layered identity.

What phrase from your home language deserves a spotlight at work?

Let’s celebrate the words that shape our work and our world.