Trying to Expect in a World of Expectations

After accepting our invitation, we were instructed to write an aspiration statement explaining our strategies for apapting to cross-cultural situations and our professional and personal goals for our Peace Corps service. Besides the fact that, even though I was completely honest and sincere, it was pure cheese--a cheese factor of 9.67 on the cheesiness scale.

I've been giving some thought to my main strategy for dealing with cross-cultural situations, which is keeping an open mind as much as possible and not having any expectations, and if I could think of any specific examples of when it's worked and how it's helped me before. I think the main thing that I find challenging about travelling somewhere is the language barrier. Keeping an open mind and not expecting anything, while expecting everything is more easily said than done. Keeping an open mind and not having too many expectations is key.

Some tips that have helped me overcome my frustrations:

1. Do read up a a bit about the place you're going to, especially if it'll be your new home. It'll come as less of a shock to you if you read before hand that giving someone a thumbs up means telling them to go to hell, rather than finding yourself in a pub, giving a thumbs up and getting punched in the face.

2. Don't expect to find things exactly as they are at home. If you live in a developed country and are travelling to a developing country, don't expect that people will do things the same way. For example, if you've got to go to the bank to deposit money, don't expect for it to be open when it says its meant to be. And try not to let it get to you too much!

3. The locals will have a different way of doing things and a different way of thinking, and it's not inferior to yours or better. You might even think it's rude or odd. Try not to judge the locals based on your own cultural standards. Your neighbour might not think twice about telling you that you've gained weight or that you're fat, but it's just not taboo for them to be upfront about some things and once you figure that out that they aren't purposely trying to be mean, you'll be able to shrug it off.

4. Get into the habit of observing and listening, rather than just going out there and doing things at first. This will make you stick out less and you give the impression that you're at least attempting to be respectful. If you're unsure as to how something is done, wait for others to begin and follow their lead.

5. Be able to laugh at yourself and learn how to accept failure. Being the native speaker that I am, I once said mear (to pee) instead menear (to stir). Yes, I was expremely embarrassed, but I laughed with the rest of the people present instead of getting upset that they were laughing in the first place.

6. Have some expectation about what you hope to accomplish, but be prepared to adjust your expectations or goals to lower levels. Sometimes much, much lower. If volunteering in rural Bolivia a health promoter for a year isn't at all what you expected, take a moment to think about why specifically and see if you can adjust your goals to a lower level or in a different direction and see how that works for you. Some times we tend to get caught up in the euphoria of going that when the excitement wears off and reality sets in, we are really disappointed.

Your expectations play a big, big role in how your experience will play out, so try to keep them flexible!