Global Connections are built, not inherited

The first six weeks in America

Much of this perspective was formed during his time at Maastricht University’s School of Business and Economics. While Maastricht is international by design, he believes its true strength lies beyond the classroom. The SBE alumni network, in his view, is global, diverse, and highly capable but only when actively engaged.

That belief was reinforced when he relocated to the United States. During his first six weeks, he did not yet have a permanent place to live. Instead, he stayed with fellow Maastricht alumni in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York. “During my first six weeks, without a permanent place to live, I stayed exclusively with Maastricht alumni, often crashing on their couches,” he recalls. These experiences provided far more than temporary accommodation. “These connections provided not just accommodation, but fast access to local knowledge, professional realities in tech and startups, and honest conversations that would otherwise take months to build,” he says. What stood out most was how quickly meaningful context became accessible not through formal channels, but through personal initiative.

A non-linear path

Working internationally, however, is not without its challenges. He identifies uncertainty and loss of status as the most difficult aspects. “In a new country, your résumé matters less than your ability to adapt,” he explains. “The key is tolerating ambiguity and remaining proactive instead of waiting for stability to appear.”

For current SBE students and young alumni aspiring to global careers, he emphasizes a small set of essential skills and mindsets: curiosity, resilience, communication, and the willingness to ask for help. “If you don’t ask,” he says plainly, “you don’t exist.”

Balancing professional ambition with personal relationships across countries requires the same level of intentionality. “I treat relationships with the same intentionality as career choices,” he explains. “Both deteriorate if left to chance.”  Now living in Los Angeles, California, Lennart is experiencing what he describes as one of the most dynamic professional environments in the world. What excites him most about his current professional chapter in the United States is what he describes as the density of opportunity. “The U.S. rewards speed, ambition, and openness,” he says, “especially when combined with international networks.”

Be your own architect of your opportunities

Looking ahead, he believes the role of alumni networks will continue to evolve. “Less symbolic, more functional,” he predicts. “Less about belonging, more about value creation through active engagement and self-directed use.” Maastricht, he argues, already provides the foundation the responsibility lies with individuals to activate it.

A recurring theme in his thinking is what he calls increasing one’s “luck surface area.” “Many people overestimate planning and underestimate initiative,” he observes. Careers, particularly international ones, are built less by linear strategy and more by conversations, timing, and exposure. “The more people you talk to, the more contexts you enter, the higher the probability that meaningful opportunities emerge.”

For him, the conclusion is simple. The SBE alumni network is exceptionally strong but it is not passive. It does not work for those who wait. It works for those who take responsibility for their trajectory. “Asking someone for a coffee often leads to a conversation,” he says. “Conversations lead to insight. Insight leads to movement.”

In the end, global careers are not discovered. They are built deliberately, actively, and by those willing to reach out first.