In this special episode, Trisha and returning guest Ned Legaspi — cultural intelligence consultant, CQ Fellow, and author of Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators — put the Bamboo Framework to work by analyzing a film together. The movie? The Thai sensation How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies.

What makes a story travel across borders without losing its cultural soul? Why did a quietly paced, deeply collectivist Thai film move audiences to tears from the Philippines to Indonesia — while barely registering in the US? Trisha and Ned unpack the cultural dimensions woven through the film — from collectivism and power distance to indirect communication and the Thai concept of Bun Khun — exploring why emotional truth is universal, but its expression is always culturally specific.

Connect with Ned at nedlegaspi.com and on LinkedIn. His book, Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators, is available globally on Amazon, Apple Books, and Google Books.

Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

Trisha is running a webinar with the Australian Psychological Society on Cultural Intelligence and Social Cohesion — open to psychologists, therapists, and coaches. Link: psychology.org.au/event/25795

Referenced in This Episode: Global Dexterity by Andy Molinsky (recommended by David Livermore) Episode 70 — Ned Legaspi and the Bamboo Framework (Part 1) Episode 71 — Trisha reflects on culturally intelligent storytelling

In this solo episode, Trisha unpacks a powerful question: What if the most important cultural intelligence work isn't happening in training rooms at all?

Drawing on Malcolm Gladwell's concept of the "overstory"—the shared narratives hovering above us that shape what we consider normal—Trisha explores how stories themselves shift these invisible cultural frameworks. From a 1978 TV drama that gave America permission to talk about the Holocaust, to Bad Bunny's history-making Super Bowl performance that had 135 million people experiencing Puerto Rican culture through their bodies, this episode examines the ecosystem of cultural change.

How do storytellers, experience creators, and CQ facilitators work together to help people see beyond the narratives they're living under? Trisha previews upcoming conversations with Ned Legaspi applying his CIS Bamboo Framework to specific films, starting with "How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies."

Resources mentioned include "Revenge of the Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell and Ned Legaspi's "Culturally Intelligent Storytelling" framework.

Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

In this episode, Trisha interviews Ned Legaspi, a CQ Fellow and cultural intelligence consultant who spent three decades pioneering diaspora storytelling with ABS-CBN Global, the Philippines' leading media conglomerate.

Why do some stories resonate across continents while others remain culturally bound? What if the key to global storytelling isn't neutralizing culture, but deepening it? Ned introduces the CIS Bamboo Framework—a groundbreaking approach that asks not "what happens next?" but "what matters here?" Drawing from films like Parasite and How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies, he reveals how stories rooted in specific cultural logic can bend without breaking, traveling authentically across cultural clusters. Discover why bamboo's interconnected roots mirror the way meaning moves through storytelling, and how cultural intelligence transforms the way creators approach narrative craft. Stay tuned for an upcoming episode where Ned and Trisha will apply this framework to analyze two powerful films: The Drover's Wife and How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies.

Connect with Ned at nedlegaspi.com and on LinkedIn. His book, Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators, is available globally on Amazon, Apple Books, and Google Books.

Join Trisha in this journey of growth and discovery throughout the year via Substack or LinkedIn.

Resources Mentioned:

1. Book: Culturally Intelligent Storytelling for Southeast Asian Creators by Ned Legaspi
2. Available globally on Amazon, Apple Books, Google Books, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo
3. Available in the Philippines on Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop
4. Book: Leading With Cultural Intelligence by Dr. David Livermore

Films Discussed:

1. Parasite (South Korea)
2. Squid Game (South Korea)
3. Money Heist / La Casa de Papel (Spain)
4. Dark (Germany)
5. How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies (Thailand)

Coming Soon: Stay tuned for upcoming episodes where Ned and Trisha analyze specific films using the CIS...