Post by Agnieszka (Aga) Sypniewska, MBA

Culture matters! Today, I have arrived in my hometown of Szczecin, Poland. When I was taking a minibus from the airport, I was struck by how four of us passengers sat next to each other in close proximity and for three hours didn’t say a word to one another, except the initial “hello.” I was amazed by how comfortable everyone was with silence and non-interaction. Nobody felt pressured to fill the void (and the need to rest after long flights) with small talk. And it felt very refreshing. And then I reflected on my bus ride to Boston airport, where I chatted with people around me. And it hit me how I forgot that we Eastern Europeans (and many other cultures) don’t really do much small talk. But I also realized how I learned to do so in the US over the last 25 years, even though it didn’t become my second nature. And now, I appreciate both: the ability to chat with strangers and the ability to be silent with them — depending on the cultural context I find myself in. This is a great gift to develop such flexibility! I guess I have become somewhat bi-cultural. #interculturalintelligence #culture #CQ