International Exposure To Develop Cross-Cultural Skills

Cindy King — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 23:00:19 +0000

How To Develop Your Cross-Cultural Skills

Last week I wrote about the dangers of cultural generalizations in business. Recently on Twitter the topic of Third Culture Kids came up. And in another previous article I wrote how Third Culture Kids have a different vision of the cultures around them.

Cultural Generalizations Are Too Broad

The problem with cultural generalizations is that they are too broad.

In today’s world where globalization touches most people, broad generalizations usually appear out-of-date.

And for you to realize these generalizations are too broad, you usually need some international exposure yourself.

Cultural Differences First

When you confront a different culture for the first time, it is natural to see the differences between cultures. And only the differences… because they stick out.

As you begin to question and understand the reasons behind these differences, it is natural to actually like some of these different ways of doing things…

And also to dislike, or to personally disagree, with other differences.

Depth Of Cultural Understanding

When you dislike cultural differences, or personally disagree with them, the question remains:

Do you really understand why this different culture does things differently?
Or are you stopping half way in understanding cultural differences?

You see, most people with strong international skills do not let any of their strong disagreements with cultural differences get in the way of understanding them. Strong international skills come with an intimate understanding of different cultures on many different levels.

Empathy Leads Towards Cultural Understanding

It is only when you intimately understand different cultures that your understanding deepens enough to see why people do things differently. Strong international skills include empathy towards different cultures.

Now, when you have empathy for a foreign culture, this does not mean that you personally like or agree with everything about it. But it does mean that you are able to think, or follow the reasoning, of people from that culture.

And this is why people with strong international skills do no usually have strong dislikes or disagreements towards these cultures. Their understanding leads to a certain acceptance or tolerance, at least to a certain extent.

International Exposure Leads To Personal Changes

The path towards empathy also gives you a more rounded vision.

As your understanding of different cultures develops:

You also begin to acquire new preferences
You adopt different ways of doing things
You become more tolerant of cultural differences

A parallel can be made between international business professionals and third culture kids.

In both cases, strong international skills come through both:

International exposure
Personal development in empathy

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