By Gabrielle Granillo

Google defines the word cultural as “relating to the ideas, customs, and social behavior of a society,” and defines competence as “the ability to do something successfully or efficiently.”

Cultural competence develops your world view, habits, and understanding of what it means to be a life-long learner. This includes cross-country road trips, visiting your bordering state or country, and even your next-door neighbor. Taking the time to learn other customs is invaluable practice for the workplace, open communication, and developing appreciation for the person you are and the people you want to surround yourself with. 

Why cultural consciousness is necessary

The navigation of various cultures can sound intimidating, especially for someone who has little practice with cultural competence. The wonderful thing about this concept, however, is that we are actively adapting to the cultures and the individuals around us in our everyday lives. We make conversations with individuals who come from different backgrounds, celebrate alternative holidays, and such people may have extended family in countries we are unfamiliar with.

We are often practicing cultural competence without realizing it–learning the proper way to pronounce someone’s name that honors their ancestor, learning a new recipe from a friend, reading texts that have been translated from various languages. These tasks not only display cultural sensitivity but also allow us to broaden our understanding outside of all that is familiar. 

The practice of developing cultural competence requires intentionality, open-mindedness, and curiosity. The idea of “practicing” may seem daunting, however, there are only a few steps to acknowledging and activating your cultural competence.

 

The key to thriving

Always keep an open mind. Differences have a way of bringing individuals together. Taking the time to share a piece of yourself with someone, in turn will allow them the space to share something personal about themselves. Cultural competence develops our ethics and effectiveness in an intercultural setting. Keeping a positive attitude to develop meaningful relationships is paramount.

Cultural competence gives yourself and others the space to grow as an individual and a community towards a common goal–that even in spite of all your differences, both people belong and deserve to express their identity.

Cultural competence is invaluable and something that deserves to be embraced for a more understanding and community-centric world. It is being confident and having an awareness of where you may fall short in understanding. Most importantly, it is embracing immersion, and welcoming the unfamiliar–treating other cultures and their practices with care, as you would want done unto yours.