So different and yet so similar – the irony of culture

ILI participants celebrating a member’s birthday at the Stadium Field Club.

One of the most intriguing sessions for me was when we learned about direct and indirect speech. Although many people tend to focus on the categorization of the two types of speech, the fundamental values lying beneath both types of speech were the same: to respect each other and be polite. In American culture, direct speech is rather prominent, as people fully express their opinion and belief.   Where I am from in Japan, it is rather impolite to directly express your opinion due to the “honne and tatemae” culture.* We are not supposed to truly reveal ourselves, except for in our homes. Ironically however, even though these two cultures seem so different, we share a common belief: to be polite and respect others.

The opposite can also be said about cultures. For instance, many people tend to group China, Korea and Japan as a monoculture under the label, “East Asian culture” just because of geographic proximity. However, through multiple ILI discussion sessions and country presentations, I realized that this is undoubtedly a mark of stereotyping. Even though we all share the common root of revering Confucianism when dealing with leadership styles, Chinese people revere power, Korean people prioritize group consensus, and Japanese people ensure courtesy. I felt that rather than grouping cultures in this way, it is crucial to examine cultures from a neutral perspective because in that way, we are more prone to new investigations and discoveries.

The ILI experience has been truly rewarding, and I feel that it has not only helped me develop as a leader, but also as a person. Unconscious stereotyping and ethnocentric beliefs are rather normal, but I learned through my ILI experience that acknowledging  this, and trying our best to refrain from it leads to a more holistic perspective.