We all carry ideas about places we’ve never been and people we’ve never met. It’s part of being human. We typically get these ideas from the news, movies, or things we heard when we were kids. But here’s the truth: many of our beliefs about other cultures aren’t entirely accurate. They are based on both physical and emotional distance. And the only real way to change them is to close that distance. One of the most powerful ways to do that? Live among strangers.
This concept could make you feel uneasy or even scared. You have to give up what you know to venture out of your comfort zone. But when you do it, like when you live, work, or travel closely with people from other cultures, you start to see the world in a new way. All of a sudden, the lines that separate “us” from “them” start to fade. Cultural misconceptions start to crumble, and real understanding takes their place.
Face-to-Face Connection Changes Everything
Think about how easy it is to evaluate someone when you haven’t talked to them in person. You might think you know what they value, how they act, or even how they feel about you. But when you talk to someone who is really different from you, these assumptions start to go away.
When you live among strangers, you stop seeing them as “others.” You begin to think of them as humans. Thus, you eat together, tell stories, laugh, and maybe even have problems. You find things you have in common where you never thought you would. And what did you think about their culture back then? You realize they were only half the story, if that.
Everyday Life Reveals the Truth
It’s one thing to visit a place as a tourist. Living there is a whole different story. You, as a tourist, receive the best of the best: museums, cultural shows, and popular sites. But when you live in a neighborhood, you notice the little, real-life things that happen.
You see how cross-cultural families take care of their kids. You can see how neighbors look out for each other. Also, you learn that traditions are a part of everyday life, not because they are expected, but because they are meaningful and loved. These little things that happen every day tell you more about a culture than any guidebook ever could.
Language Becomes More Than Words
When you live among strangers, you’re often surrounded by a language that’s not your own. At first, this can feel overwhelming. You start to grasp not only how people talk, but also how they think as you learn new words and phrases.
Language affects how we think. The way people in a culture talk to each other often shows what they value. Some languages, for instance, don’t have a word meaning “I own.” Some people have more than one method to say “we” to show the difference between “we including you” and “we not including you.” These distinctions show us how lovely and different human thought can be.
You Learn to Listen Before Judging
Living among strangers teaches humility. You rapidly discover that you don’t know everything, and that’s a good thing. When we are around things we know, we can start to think that our method is the best or only way. But being among people from different cultures makes us want to learn more instead of judging them.
You learn to ask questions instead of jumping to conclusions. Why do they do things this way? What does this custom signify to them? Your first reaction changes from judging to being amazed over time.
You Become the Stranger, Too
A lot of people don’t think about this: when you live in a different culture, you’re also the outsider. You have unusual habits, strange expectations, and a bizarre manner of talking.
Being a stranger makes it easier to recognize how easy it is to have the wrong idea about people who don’t look, talk, or act like you. It makes you more understanding. You learn how it feels to be evaluated unfairly, which makes you far less likely to do it to other people. You come home with a new understanding of how small bias may be and how crucial it is to be open-minded.
Your Own Culture Comes Into Focus
Living with someone you don’t know well teaches you about yourself as well as about them. Immersing yourself in a new culture reveals your own norms from a fresh perspective.
You can find out that things you believed were “normal” are actually something that are unique to your upbringing. You start to wonder why you do things the way you do them and if they truly make sense. Thinking about things like these might help you grow as a person.
You Build Bridges, Not Walls
Living with people you don’t know is a way to fight back in a society where politics, racism, religion, and geography often divide people. It’s a technique to fight back against fear and not understanding. It’s how we make connections instead of walls.
We start to recognize that most of us desire the same things when we share stories, meals, and experiences with individuals from different backgrounds. We want connection, dignity, safety, and love. Also, we know that our cultural misconceptions are not as important as our similarities.
Final Thoughts
People commonly have cultural misconceptions and cultural misunderstandings when they are alone, afraid of the unknown, or in silence. But they fade when we choose to engage, to listen, and to live among strangers. It’s not about knowing everything; it’s about being open to asking better questions.
If this idea speaks to you, there’s a book you’ll want to read. Sven of the Arctic by Dr. Loren Jay Chassels relates the true story of a man who abandoned his affluent life in New Jersey to explore the frozen tundra of Alaska. What began as a personal challenge quickly became a deep lesson in cultural understanding and self-discovery. Pick up Sven of the Arctic and see how one man’s Arctic adventure turned into a path of transformation, insight, and human connection.