Project Hail Mary: A Masterclass on Navigating the Unfamiliar

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I enjoy listening to instrumental music when I need to do deep focus work. As I write this edition of Schooled Across Borders, the background score from Project Hail Mary is playing in the background.

I wasn't planning to write about a science fiction film. But, movies are a great way to learn about visual communication, storytelling and the human experience. If you've watched the recent adaptation of Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary simply as entertainment, it's a brilliant survival story.

After watching the movie and looking a little deeper, I realised the film is an unexpected masterclass in self-leadership, intercultural communication, empathy and the courage to learn from those who see the world differently. What it truly means to adapt when everything familiar disappears.

The Isolation of the Unlikely Journey

Very few of us will ever wake up alone on a spacecraft millions of kilometres from Earth. Yet many of us know exactly what it feels like to end up in a place where we don't know a single soul.

You don't have to be light-years away to experience that feeling. It can happen standing in the middle of a crowded university square, walking through a busy city, or joining your first meeting in a new workplace in a new country.

For many international students, this journey represents far more than an admission letter. Behind every acceptance is often a family that has invested years of hard work, life savings, and hope into a dream. It is an extraordinary opportunity, but it also carries an invisible weight: the quiet responsibility of making those sacrifices worthwhile.

When challenges arise, asking for help isn't always easy. Everything feels unfamiliar; the systems, the culture, the language, and the unspoken social rules. Visiting or returning home after a few difficult weeks simply isn't an option. The financial and emotional stakes are simply too high.

So the only way forward is to stay.

To adapt.

To learn.

To integrate.

And, eventually, to belong.

Finding Common Ground

The emotional heart of Project Hail Mary lies in an unlikely friendship between a human astronaut, Dr. Ryland Grace, and an alien engineer named Rocky. Two individuals from entirely different worlds; they don't share a language, biology, culture or the similar way of understanding the universe.

They begin with curiosity.

They observe, misunderstand, laugh, learn, and eventually they adapt.

Their purpose and their pain brought them together.

Grace and Rocky help each other navigate the unfamiliar, and don’t you think that in the real world, that’s exactly what a mentor/peer does for a new student, or a new team member?

Every newcomer deserves a mentor or a supportive peer.

Someone who explains the unwritten rules and social cues.

Someone who answers the questions you're too afraid to ask.

Someone who helps transform uncertainty into confidence.

Whether you're an international student, an expatriate or the newest member of a multicultural team, having someone who helps you navigate the unknown can make all the difference.

Looking back, every meaningful transition in my own journey has been shaped by mentors, peers, and friends who took the time to guide, encourage and challenge me.

We all need a "Rocky" at different points in our lives.

If two individuals from entirely different worlds can learn to communicate and build trust across planets, surely we can continue learning from one another across borders.

"What Got You Here Won't Get You There"

Last fall, I took a leadership course, Managing Yourself and Leading Others, taught by Professor Margaret Andrews at Harvard Extension School. During the course, she introduced us to one of educator and executive coach Marshall Goldsmith's most well-known concept, which is also one of his famous books:

"What got you here won't get you there."

That idea feels especially relevant during any major transition. The knowledge, behaviours and habits that helped us succeed in one environment are not always the same ones that will help us thrive in another.

Grace's scientific expertise earned him a place on humanity's most important mission. But once he encountered something entirely unfamiliar, his previous knowledge alone was no longer enough. He had to become a learner again.

In her recent book, Manage Yourself to Lead Others, Professor Andrews also writes that trying a new behaviour, or learning something completely new, can feel unnatural, even inauthentic, because we are replacing familiar habits with unfamiliar ones.

Isn't that exactly what adapting to a new country, workplace, team or culture feels like?

Growth rarely feels comfortable.

But growth begins where familiarity ends.

Another lesson from Professor Andrews has remained with me ever since:

"We judge ourselves by our intentions, but others judge us by our behaviour."

That single sentence changed the way I think about intercultural communication among other things. We know what we intend to say. Others experience our behaviours through our actions and by what and how we actually communicate.

Good intentions matter, but empathy, cultural awareness, humility and behavioural adaptability are what ultimately build trust across differences.

From Crisis to Collaboration

The film also reminds us that humanity's greatest challenges cannot be solved in isolation. Scientists, researchers, engineers, and leaders from different countries bring diverse perspectives together around a single purpose.

Diversity isn't simply about representation, but it's about recognising that different perspectives often produce better solutions than any one individual could create alone.

Interestingly, while taking a Managerial Economics course, we discussed one of management's core responsibilities: identifying problems before they become crises, aligning people around a common objective, and deliberately building a culture that enables teams to succeed.

The same principle applies whether you're leading a multinational organisation or navigating your first semester abroad.

Don't wait until you're overwhelmed to ask for help.

Don't wait until misunderstandings become conflict.

The most successful newcomers, and the most effective leaders recognise challenges early, stay curious, and continue learning.

Ultimately, a key takeaway here is that the future won't simply belong to those with the strongest technical expertise. It will belong to those who can lead themselves before leading others, communicate across differences, remain curious in unfamiliar situations, and choose empathy over assumptions.

We often describe studying abroad or relocating for work as stepping outside our comfort zone.

Perhaps we should start describing it differently.

Perhaps it is stepping into our growth zone.

The greatest journeys aren't defined by the distance we travel, but by our willingness to learn from those, whose worlds look entirely different from our own.

Every border we cross changes us a little.

And if we're willing to stay curious, those changes don't make us less ourselves.

They help us become more human.

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Have you watched or read Project Hail Mary? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

And a reminder that we are hosting a panel discussion to navigate life as an international student in the USA. We would love to have you join us. Register Here.

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Books discussed above