Intimate relationships require work, and a cross-cultural one will need a bit of extra effort from both partners.
To overcome your cultural differences in your relationship, start by learning the other person’s language. Use body language to communicate in the meantime.
Talk about your cultural values and how they impact your daily life. When in doubt, be open, and honest, and keep communicating.
Below are some ways to overcome language and cultural differences in your relationship:
Switch between languages
Be prepared to jump between languages pretty regularly in conversation with your partner.
You may find that a certain language takes over when you are discussing particular topics, such as finances. Or, you may notice that you both go back to your native language when emotions are high.
Pay attention to body language
You can communicate a great deal by simply watching how someone holds and uses their body. Observe their hands and how they are gesturing. Watch their eyes to see where you should be looking.
See if their arms are crossed in a more standoffish way, or open and excited. Facial expressions are obviously a huge clue as to how someone is feeling.
Ask questions
If you aren’t sure what your partner is saying, take a moment and ask them. Silence is a real danger in cross-cultural relationships as you may want to nod and agree to everything to keep things simple.
However, you are not fully communicating when you do this. Watch for cues when you can jump into conversation.
Discuss daily choices
Like any couple, talk about your day-to-day routine. Go over what you eat and when. Talk about how you like to shop for clothing and where you go.
Once you get to know your partner better, discuss how you feel home tasks and chores should be divided.
In an established relationship, it is a good idea to go over one another’s ideas regarding money management as well.
Talk about love and affection
Different cultures can express love, and discuss it, in varying ways. Open up a conversation with your partner about what you expect in a loving relationship and how you’d like romance to be expressed.
If you are at the start of your relationship, you can discuss all of these things in the abstract, to make it less awkward.
Discuss any religious differences
Go over each other’s upbringing and the role that religion played in each of your early lives, if it did at all. Talk about how you view different religions.
Outline how you’d like to proceed religiously in the future, if that is a factor for you. Be aware that religious differences don’t have to be a deal breaker, if you keep communicating.
For example, if you go to church every Sunday morning and plan to do so into the foreseeable future, then you may want to let your partner know of your plans. You may need to come up with a compromise.
Read also: 5 Unhealthy Behaviours That Destroy Intimate Relationships
View your differences positively
You are bound to find areas in which you have vastly different opinions. Instead of viewing these as deal breakers, look at some of these moments as learning opportunities.
You now have the chance to get an inside view of a culture from someone you trust. You and your partner can also use your cultural differences to become a stronger team unit.
Look for commonalities
It is easy to focus solely on the obvious cultural differences between you and your partner. Push back against these distancing feelings by sitting down and making list of all of the things that you both share.
Spend some time on this project and include cultural commonalities, but also any shared personality traits as well.
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Discuss daily choices. Like any couple, talk about your day-to-day routine. Go over what you eat and when. Talk about how you like to shop for clothing and where you go. Once you get to know your partner better, discuss how you feel home tasks and chores should be divided. In an established relationship, it is a good idea to go over one another’s ideas regarding money management as wellDiscuss daily choices. Like any couple, talk about your day-to-day routine. Go over what you eat and when. Talk about how you like to shop for clothing and where you go. Once you get to know your partner better, discuss how you feel home tasks and chores should be divided. In an established relationship, it is a good idea to go over one another’s ideas regarding money management as wellDiscuss daily choices. Like any couple, talk about your day-to-day routine. Go over what you eat and when. Talk about how you like to shop for clothing and where you go. Once you get to know your partner better, discuss how you feel home tasks and chores should be divided. In an established relationship, it is a good idea to go over one another’s ideas regarding money management as wellX
