Why Culture Shapes Your Career—and How to Lead Authentically Beyond the Bamboo Ceiling

By Van Tran, Co-Founder, API Rising

For many of us, the early stages of a career feel straightforward: work hard, do good work, and success will follow. Our craft, our dedication, and our persistence open doors. But somewhere around mid-career, the rules change. The skills that helped us get promoted no longer seem to be enough to take us further.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, despite being a high performer, you’re not alone.

The Shift from Craft to Influence

Early career growth is built on knowledge, craft, and execution. But mid- and late-career growth is about influence, visibility, and leadership presence. And here’s the challenge: many of us in the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) community grew up in cultures that value humility, deference to authority, and letting our work speak for itself. Additionally, we may not have had models for direct communication, self-advocacy in the face of formal authority, or the most dreaded, self-promotion.

These values are strengths—but in corporate America, they don’t always align with what’s rewarded. While others may get noticed for speaking up, self-promoting, or pushing into strategic conversations, API professionals may hold back, hoping their contributions will be recognized without needing to self-advocate. Without this cultural understanding managers and peers aren’t always aware, trained, or inclined, to seek out unspoken contributions. If you don’t voice it, it can be invisible. And of course there is the added effort of dispelling stereotypes or navigating reactions when we behave in ways contrary to stereotype.

The result? A leadership representation gap.

The Leadership Gap is Real

• Fortune 500 Leadership: Only 2.7% of Corporate CEOs are Asian, a percentage lower than their share of the U.S. population. CAPAC

• Board Representation: Among Fortune 100 companies, Asians hold approximately 5.2% of board seats, while Asian women hold just 1.9%. MyAsianVoice

• Workplace Support Perception: Only 26% of Asian Americans strongly agreed they have support to take on leadership roles—dropping to 21% for Asian American women. AAPI Data

These numbers reflect a pattern: while API professionals are present at entry and mid-level, their leadership pipeline thins dramatically.

The Hidden Costs of Cultural Misalignment

This cultural influence gap doesn’t mean API professionals lack ability or ambition. On the contrary, we often excel at execution, innovation, and collaboration. But when organizations primarily recognize outspoken or self-promotional behaviors as leadership traits, talented professionals can be overlooked.

It can feel like there’s an invisible ceiling—one built not of competence, but of cultural misunderstanding. This cultural gap leaves AAPI professionals caught between two worlds: living out their values of humility while operating in a system that rewards self-advocacy.

Leading Authentically Without Losing Yourself

So, what can we do? The answer isn’t abandoning cultural values that shape who we are. Instead, it’s about bridging worlds—learning how to communicate with authenticity, how to influence without feeling inauthentic, and how to navigate leadership dynamics in ways that reflect both our culture and our aspirations.

That’s where API Rising’s programs and mentorship comes in. Over 8–10 weeks, we guide professionals through:

• Defining values and ambition: building clarity on who you are and what you want. Celebrating our values and our identity.

• Understanding spheres of influence: learning how to build networks of mentors, allies, and sponsors who can advocate for your growth.

• Building leadership presence: practicing how to articulate your story, share your vision, and show up with confidence—even in culturally unfamiliar spaces.

• Finding community: creating space with peers who share the same cultural challenges, where you can practice and grow without fear of judgment.

You Belong in Leadership

Representation isn’t just about filling seats—it’s about changing the way leadership is defined. You don’t have to change who you are to lead. You can lead with authenticity, with your values intact, while communicating with cultural awareness and intentionality.

At API Rising, we believe the next generation of API leaders will do more than climb the ladder—they’ll redefine what leadership looks like.

Van Tran is an executive strategist, speaker, and storyteller who helps organizations reimagine leadership through the lens of cultural intelligence, equity, and regenerative systems. She is the Co-founder of API Rising, Partner at Create Ripples, and serves as Program Advisor for Women in Leadership at the University of San Francisco. With a deep commitment to building workplaces where people and purpose thrive together, her work bridges systemic thinking, lived experience, and practical action.