Navigating global work with a steady voice, clear values, and one eye on the border.

I have worked with a wide variety of clients spanning multiple industries, from startups to large corporations. To date, I’ve worked with some great people in Canada, Australia, Israel, the Netherlands, France, Czechoslovakia, the UK, and the US. Without fail, we’ve been able to happily exchange barbs about our individual countries’ foibles and strengths, and get insight into what each other’s daily lives are like. It’s a huge perk of working remotely – you get to talk with people that have very different day-to-day experiences and learn about different cultures and values.

Up until recently, though, when I’ve been talking to Americans, I’ve barely registered a difference in countries. We might’ve joked about accents or policies or why we have different Thanksgivings, but it’s always been easy and familiar.

Now, it feels different.

I’m careful with what I say, not out of fear of disagreement, but out of respect for the sheer weight of what many of my American clients must be feeling. The divides feel deeper, and I know they’re painful.

And as a Canadian, it feels complicated.

I’m proud of my country. I’m grateful for public healthcare, for our social systems, and for our commitment to multiculturalism and equity (in theory, although I know the reality of the execution needs work). Even though we squabble between provinces, we pull together when we need to. When Donald Trump mused about coercing us into becoming the 51st state, that was the impetus we needed to unite, and I’m glad we did.

I’m not a nationalist, though. I think we need to preserve what makes Canada good – our decency, our trust in institutions, our relative peace (barring the honking convoy) – while still building bridges with people around the world. Freelancing has made my belief in globalization even stronger. We have so much to learn and appreciate by collaborating with one another, and by gaining a deeper understanding of other people’s experiences.

I’ll gladly continue to work with clients in the EU, the UK, Australia, and anywhere else that is happy to collaborate with a clear-thinking, plain-speaking Canadian. But I will also keep freelancing with American clients, as long as they’ll have me – although I’ll avoid crossing the border for now. I’ll do so with my values intact, and with a quiet kind of patriotism that says while we do better when we work together, my compass still points north.