7 Impactful Benefits of Cultural Awareness

Why do people bow to greet each other in some countries? Why do they shake hands or kiss each other on the cheek in other countries? And what happens if you’re not sure how to greet people in a foreign country? Or worse, what if you do something that offends people without knowing?

Knowing how to react (or not react) to cultural norms is an important part of traveling.

The solution to these problems is to This helps you become a more mindful traveler and a global citizen. By learning about the country’s culture, you prepare better for your trip while taking a step toward . Plus, the benefits of cultural awareness are not only for yourself but also for those around you, including locals of the country you’re visiting, your friends, your colleagues, or your boss.

Cultural awareness doesn’t have an expiration date—it stays with you for the rest of your life and you keep experiencing the benefits of being culturally aware.

What is cultural awareness?

Our culture has an important role in our behavior, beliefs, and lifestyle. Cultural awareness is about having an understanding and a sensibility of different cultures. It also involves respecting differences, as well as being aware of the social norms, faux pas, religions, languages, and dress codes of a given culture.

In today’s increasingly global world, being culturally aware goes beyond and traveling to different countries across the globe. Knowing what to do and what not to do in a foreign country, having intercultural communication skills, and being open to learning about new cultures are what makes someone more culturally aware.

If you’re considering , , or , having this kind of sensibility and awareness toward others is critical. Since you will be spending an extended period of time in the country, you will be more than just a tourist. Unlike a short-term visitor, you will interact with locals who might be your boss, professor, friends, or colleagues. This requires a deeper understanding of the local culture.

Thanks to cultural awareness, you can communicate more effectively with others and get the most out of your experience abroad!

7 impactful benefits of cultural awareness

Become a more responsible global citizen through cultural awareness.

What are the benefits of cultural awareness? There are many—from work to friendships, culture touches many aspects of life. As a more culturally aware person, you become a better employee, a better friend, and a better person. Plus, your experience abroad becomes more enjoyable and authentic.

Here’s what you have to look forward to when you become more culturally aware:

1. It makes you more employable.

You might have heard that and are good resume boosters. They sure catch employers’ eyes but not only as academic accomplishments. The fact that you’ve studied abroad means that you managed to leave your comfort zone and gain experience living in another country. It also shows that you’ve studied or worked with people from different backgrounds, which is a great way of gaining cultural awareness.

If you’re looking to work with multinational companies, putting soft skills related to cultural awareness will look interesting in your resume. For example, if you’re applying for a job in a British company and you’ve , you have a head start. If you top that up by showing an understanding of during your interview, you will impress recruiters further.

Communicating with potential business partners, stakeholders, and colleagues from diverse backgrounds is not a task everyone can accomplish. Culturally aware people know that we may perceive things differently depending on our culture. This includes jokes, dress codes, or friendships at work.

2. You improve your communication skills.

Better communication always improves quality of life for you and those around you!

Different cultures communicate differently. A culturally aware person can navigate cultural differences in different contexts, both verbally and nonverbally. For example, in some cultures, workplaces are more hierarchical than others. In these countries, employees dress formally at work and communicate in the order of seniority. Other cultures may be more relaxed, with more casual outfits and a more relaxed approach at work.

When you have an extensive understanding of another culture, you know how to minimize misunderstandings, avoid what may come off as offensive, and develop better relationships with people from diverse backgrounds. This is one of the reasons why .

3. Your time abroad will be smoother.

We often talk about the exciting parts of going abroad but there are also , and culture shock is one of them. Luckily, improving your cultural awareness skills before going abroad is a way of .

Especially if you’re going to a country with distinct lifestyle customs such as Japan, you might want to learn about its culture in advance. This helps you set expectations and know what to do depending on the circumstance.

4. Travel will be more meaningful.

Culture is a big part of travel. And cultural awareness enhances the travel experience! When you embrace local customs and traditions, you’re in for a more .

Cultural awareness also leads you to be more observant and tolerant during your travels. For example, you wouldn’t dress the same way on a religious site and the beach. Instead, you observe locals and use your cultural knowledge while deciding.

You would know what the meaning of a certain gesture is since different gestures may mean different things in other countries. You would know how to behave in a given environment, be it at a restaurant, at someone’s home, or in public.

In short, by improving your awareness, you get more out of the travel experience.

5. You develop many other skills thanks to cultural awareness.

Cultural awareness, just like traveling, will foster the acquisition of a whole bunch of useful skills.

Think of cultural awareness as a skill that cultivates the growth of plenty of other abilities such as empathy, open-mindedness, adaptability, and problem-solving. All these skills will help you in life, no matter where.

Put them in your CV—mention that you’ve taken , for example. Use them in your personal relations—. And continue learning because it’s a fascinating world full of diverse cultures.

6. Becoming culturally aware makes you grow as a person.

As you become more , you broaden your horizons, become a more curious individual, and develop your worldview. Cultural awareness challenges learned stereotypes and help you relate to new ideas that would be unfamiliar to you otherwise. Learning about others and embracing diversity also contribute to your self-discovery and personal development.

7. You contribute to making the world a better place!

Many problems in the world arise because of the lack of empathy, the inability to embrace diversity, and thinking of differences as barriers. This is where the benefits of cultural awareness come in.

As a culturally aware person, you can communicate effectively with someone regardless of cultural differences. Language barriers or cultural differences don’t stand in your way anymore, experiences mean more than stereotypes, and is all that matters.

So, what is the impact of being more culturally aware? The short answer: You make your workplace, your school, and the world a better place!

Cultural awareness will make your experience abroad even more meaningful

Why not be the best traveler you can be?

Connect with locals on a deeper level and experience the culture to the maximum during your time abroad. Even when you come back home, your cultural awareness skills will stay with you, making you a more well-rounded person with a more developed worldview.

This article was written with help from CulturaGo. CulturaGo create online interactive courses designed to promote career readiness, inter-identity exploration, and enhance cross-cultural experiences. Courses cater to multiple learning styles and provide firsthand insight for what to expect abroad. CulturaGo have a growing collection of destination-specific cultural preparation courses for countries: Japan, Italy, Korea, Spain, and the UK, as well as CulturaSkills, a cultural competency course to enhance intercultural skills for success abroad.

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