Key to developing the intercultural awareness

The world is consists of people from different countries and backgrounds. It is important to recognize and appreciate the differences among people. Thinking one’s culture is the best or superior than others is the most foolish way of thinking because every culture has its own value and showing respect is essential to each of them. So, how can people develop their intercultural awareness and attain happiness from it?

To start with, one should first develop his own awareness of his views, assumption and beliefs and how they are shaped by his culture. When meeting new people, do not only ask about other’s culture and their views but also express one’s opinion on different issues so that an exchange of ideas can be facilitated. Through the conversation, it will be fun to distinguish the intercultural differences and recognize any gaps between one’s own assumption and beliefs.

Furthermore, admitting the thing one do not know is a way of developing the intercultural awareness. It is always acceptable for someone not knowing much about other cultures. The important thing is to recognize the misunderstanding or unclear thoughts and ask. Never pretend to be knowing everything and act like an expert because it only makes the person and the others embarrass and hard for further discussion. Instead, the person should grab the opportunity to ask the local people while like travelling and absorb new knowledge so to widen his horizon. It is always not a shame for being blank about different cultures but is definitely a joke to people for pretending to be knowing everything.

Lastly, it is important to not making judgement about other’s culture. Some people just like to make their own assumption about people of other countries and believe it without even getting along with them, for example, thinking the Netherlands is all about weeds and sex, which is something not totally true. People should first collect information about their interested culture and then ask neutral questions and clarify meaning before assuming anything about it. In the researching process, lots of unexpected information may appear and it is a golden opportunity for people to open their mind and learn. It is always joyful to discover new things during the searching stage and happiness may be attained when the person understands more about the different cultures he is interested in.

To conclude, developing intercultural awareness is essential to everyone because it helps people to recognize the knowledge they are lacking and learn from the other cultures. The exploration process is always fun and full of unexpected matters, thus, people should really try to open up their mind and recognize more about the different cultures exist in this world.