Show notes
An expert in law and communications builds a career in Latin American politicsIn this episode of How to be the Difference, Johanna and Paul sit down with Jaime Bermúdez, former Minister of Foreign Affairs in Colombia and Ambassador of Colombia in Argentina. Jaime is now the President of the Lazard Investment Bank in Colombia but has spent most of his career working in communications, public affairs, and studying social behavior from different perspectives.He obtained his law degree from Universidad Los Andes in Colombia and then completed a Political Science Ph.D. from Oxford University, where he specialized in public opinion, mass media, and communications. After his doctorate, he began his career in politics as an advisor for a candidate that was eventually elected president in Colombia. Jaime believes that being wise is more important than being hyper-specialized in one topic since going out of your comfort zone to study a diverse range of subjects gives you a balanced perspective on how the world works. And he lived his life by this principle: he is interested in philosophy, political science, and history, he worked in crisis management, he is a board member of international organizations, author of two books, he promoted the creation of e-learning and digital content creation companies, and more. In conversation with Johanna and Paul, Jaime shares his journey through different career paths and talks about his experience working in public affairs. He tells us about his perspective on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, his take on how the definition of success has changed in the last decades, and why he thinks internships are great opportunities to learn about different perspectives on reality.To learn more about amazing internship opportunities, check out The Intern Group’s website.Outline of this episode:[02:08] - Introduction to this episode’s guest[03:07] - Jaime’s background[06:30] - Jaime’s career aspirations as a child[09:20] - Becoming a specialist in communications[13:16] - His time in politics[17:10] - Jaime’s take on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine[20:52] - Working in the corporate world versus in politics[23:38] - The role of technology in education[27:40] - Skills required to succeed in the XXIst century according to Jaime [33:10] - Best advice Jaime received[35:30] - Jaime’s last book[41:55] - The importance of internships[45:10] - Jaime’s opinion on Zelenskyy’s leadership[47:52] - What's next for him?People & resources mentioned:Jaime BermúdezOxford UniversityLazard Investment BankUniversidad de Los AndesBook ¿Por qué incumplimos la ley?Johanna MolinaPaul Lynskey
