The best of all worlds

September 28, 2009 naima third culture, 6

• Tweet
• Sharebar

• Tweet

This is not a post about Hannah Montana.  It is about third culture, and one the main premises of this blog.

Third culture individuals are typically those who have grown up in foreign countries, their formative years in environments outside of the father’s and mother’s home cultures.

However, I would contend that in today’s globalized and increasingly connected world, there are other groups of individuals who fall into the third culture category.  I know, I know.  Must we always peg and classify people? Can’t we all be individual, different, unique? Of course we could, but then where’s the fun in that?

Here are are two other groups who I believe are third culture candidates:

Serial expatriates: these are the ones who left home to take up a job, travel for a year or even just visit friends or family.  Many end up doing exactly that – complete the work contract, have their vacation and go home.  Yet, many more go abroad for six months or a year, and end up never really coming back, never quite making their home in the birth country again.  We have many of those in the Emirates.  Some even came for a week’s holiday, fell in the love with country, stayed on, and are still here several years later.  They fit the third culture category by the very fact that they are integrating their own cultures with the host country (as immigrants might), yet still keep strong ties with their home traditions, and, unlike immigrants, usually  including annual visits home.

Working mothers: here is where it gets a little tenuous, but bear with me a moment.  Working mothers are constantly straddling two worlds: the workplace, where they tend to function and behave according to the corporate culture; the home, where as chief domestic officer, they must function in usually very different ways (can’t get anyone to follow Microsoft Project Home Edition anyone? ).  When a mother deals with a non-performer at work, she does so in a manner that is utterly different than when trouble at home needs sorting – while all the while staying true to her values.  For instance,  a mother’s instinct to nurture manifests itself as  “development” at work, whereas at home it’s called “mothering”.

Social network addicts: I use the term addict in its nicest sense here.  These individuals have an active online life, with friends they spend virtual time with on a regular basis.  They constantly navigate in and out of their real and online lives, and are comfortable when sometimes the two coalesce into a rich and colourful fusion.  Their new online culture gives them an opportunity to express parts of themselves they didn’t perhaps dare explore offline.  As their virtual life takes shape and they become immersed in it, they can pick and choose what they wish to integrate, and what they will simply ignore with a simple click.

So – what does it matter? Third culture individuals in the past may have been the proverbial stick in the mud and perhaps even been shunned in the school yard.  But in today’s highly globalized world, where other cultures come to you without traveling a single mile, the time has come to appreciate and even seek out the  unique strengths of third culture individuals:

Tolerant:  a third culture individual is more likely to be tolerant, and seek to understand, often choosing to suspend judgment.  They are the ones who call driving on the left “driving on the other side of the road” and not “driving on the wrong side of the road”.

Adaptable: a third culture individual is much more adept at navigating unknown waters and going with the flow.  They are clear on the difference between hypocrisy and flexibility.  These are the individuals who  change as opportunity and not as loss of status quo.

Grounded: third culture individuals can handle disagreement without compromising their own values.  They are rooted in themselves, and do not have a need to be constantly validated by continuously trying to convince others that they are right.  They are those who better handle peer pressure, who can say “let’s agree to disagree” and actually mean it.

It’s not that there are no tolerant, adaptable, grounded persons who’ve never travelled.   There are plenty, and I’ve been blessed to know quite a few.  The point is that third culture individuals cultivate these traits by necessity, and continuously hone them over time.

So the next time you are interviewing someone or “auditioning” a new set of friends, remember that a third culture individual is more likely to tow the line with you when you embark on changes.  They are the individuals who approach your differences with a healthy dose of curiosity and little judgement.   Know that a third culture individual will not get on his soap box and convince you it’s his way or the highway.

Unleash your inner third culture child today: take a good look at the buffet of all world cultures and start filling your plate with the most succulent pieces, and don’t worry about mixing tastes.  Fusion, after all, is the best all worlds.

Dubai, third culture, values, working mother

What is living in the moment anyway? How to fall, and stay in love, with your diet