I was riding a motorbike across India in July last year when the magic of a very unintended experience took control of my plan I was actually heading towards Pakistan at the time I took a wrong turn somewhere and found myself on this road and that was excellent and it gave me an idea we're going to walk through experiencing culture shock and arrive at what I call culture comfort I'm going to describe how I got to being okay with this situation I'm gonna introduce you to a formula that maps out the change process of newness to
familiarity but first let's do a bit of immersion close your eyes if you like and consider this scene it's a new city it's nighttime too perhaps your eyes are shifting from side to side moving with your head and neck but actually seeing very little the messages from the retin they aren't making it to the right part of the brain because the brain is too busy trying to digest the smells and sounds and sights that are thrust about you in a chaotic tornado of newness all the while the brain is trying desperately to maintain the age-old
task of fitting in while knowingly standing out the eyes again shifting looking for a point of reference of familiarity something to grasp on and return order to our systems we're lost or alone we're confused and then we've got it it's to go across the street of course towards the Sun vent undated coca-cola sign sitting tilted over the doorway shabby sure but recognizable does this sound like it could be culture shock is that vaguely familiar with something you might understand as as culture shock but we're asking does it have to be this way we tend to
assume when we arrive that what we know is the norm and everything going on about us which were not familiar with in any given situation is the oddity I'm going to throw it out there and say we're a little afraid of newness I think that's okay so what can we do to overcome it what can we do to throw it out the window and conquer that fear of newness when we encounter a new place we tend to concentrate on how it may be different to what we know this is a useful way to compare and
contrast lifestyles and practices short interestingly it's not what causes culture shock a real shock comes later when we tried to recreate patterns of behavior from home like trying to pedal a bike even after the chain has come off you keep wanting to do things the way you have that's something to think that it might not work so well in the new place so let's take the time to watch do and then think about how to achieve the same goals but in a local way so I propose these three steps to put the proverbial chain back
on our bikes first of all follow the French example intro in Flannery Flannery it means wandering while wandering step to embrace the space around us and do everyday things and finally reflection or use this as a tool to wrap it all together and create understanding so first of all step one as soon as we arrive in a new place go outside go for a walk sit down have a coffee or drink and observe the world around you a French verb that this is Flannery and translates vaguely to simple dawdling it encourages the magic of the
unknown experience to occur we have to allow time for our surroundings to Osmos the size with our psyche because people places and things are not often how they appear at first glance so let's rather take the time to think about making ourselves more familiar with difference so we can become a true part of our new scene this photo was taken by a friend of mine outside of our apartment in Delhi last year I'm gonna use it to illustrate how I didn't do this I needed to buy some milk and veggies I knew two things I
knew that a man I passed up and down the street each morning with a goat selling milk and I knew that veggies were sold down the square each night but for one month I inherently and instinctively went to find a supermarket I found myself asking later why would I do this and I know that the locals do it another way and I think what this shows us is that a common response to a new environment is to avoid the difficult and unusual activities we get so caught up in the gut-wrenching turmoil of billion feeling alone
and without our usual securities about us that we get forgotten the reason why we embarked on the journey why we stepped out from the door that day to begin the new adventure we've lost our motivation and we've misplaced our inspiration here managing this part of the culture shock experience is essentially a question of timing is that as soon as we feel the twang of discomfort as soon as we see the sight of the challenge on the horizon we should rush towards the encounter with an optimistic spirit as sooner we engage with a new experience it
will act as a symbol of willingness and welcoming to our surroundings and people will notice the effort that we've made and the novelty of doing something you will become the bridge to belonging without new place we have to want to experience the shock of culture and we can do this by embracing the space around us this part is the most fun step to I promise you but the first before we go into it I want you to put yourself in the mindset when you have a task to achieve a mission to accomplish at home something
annoying and silly like trying to find the right battery for the car key you're out to the shops for a quick check you've got a vague idea where to go we end up spending the whole day going to five or six different places and getting a bunch of stuff you didn't need imagine doing that and a totally new and unfamiliar environment with no idea and none of you usual securities or guidances around you does it bring an adventurous smile to your face to become comfortable with newness and familiar with strangeness we have to give ourselves
something to do go find the milk figure out how to dress like a local explorer intrepid I found looking for the biggest bookshop in town all the best coffee is usually a good way to achieve this step embracing our space creates this newness comfort paradigm whereas a newness to a situation over time decreases our culture comfort correspondingly and necessarily increases as we participate in the daily norms of a place will offset the newness by exposure to the context and dynamics of the situation and we'll also meet people but this part is crucial because will begin
to form that relationship with community so it's important to recognize the symptoms of culture shock because it is these that we must seize upon and the Wackness the kickstart we need when things are new and we're still uncomfortable we internalize our loneliness we stay away from others and things that are frustrating things that are new about that place suddenly become more frustrating but it's these that we must seize upon because if we throw ourselves in the casserole of culture that surrounds us we'll become distracted by the effort and emerge out the other side energized by
that challenge and so we move into reflection reflective practice requires us to step back from a situation and recognize that a challenging experience is all part of a process and it is the hardest process we can imagine self change basic reflection is writing things down journaling scrapbooking blogging writing to family and friends the important part is to really get into descriptions and write vividly because this helps to digest experiences but why is this the final step because reflection allows us to see the big picture it allows us to see the process of becoming comfortable it
allows us to see and challenge our own benchmarks of normalcy it in fact reveals that normal is not a static frame of mind and it is in fact changeable culture shock is not exclusive to a travel experience and it is in fact applicable to whenever and wherever you've exposed yourself to a new situation think about the time you started a new job or joined a new church I began at a new gym you ask yourself you always ask yourself it's part of the human condition will they like me am I going to fit in are
they gonna think I'm a bit weird perhaps even worse maybe they're going to be a bit weirder than I thought when we first met I want you to consider this mantra observe it do it and then think about it we have to consciously put ourselves into position to become aware of the space around us with no filter but curiosity we have absolutely nothing to lose go next to a new place actively follow these steps throw yourself into the heartbeat of that place and see what happens be intrepid about newness and confront culture without the burden
of shock you
