Cultural Intelligence Part 2

When we started talking about cultural intelligence, I immediately thought of this man. He is incredibly good at languages and learns new languages to visit with and surprise people from different countries and cultures. He not only learns the language, but also customs and traditions. What is amazing to me are the responses he gets from the people he talks with. In the video below, we see that the warriors of the Massai tribe are deeply touched by his effort to learn their language. Within minutes they not only welcome him to their tribe, but adopt him as part of their tribe (5:10). Other responses are not unsimilar, he often finds himself the recipient of food, clothes, and other gifts. People want to learn about him and how he came to learn about them, their language and their culture.  They feel important to him. They feel a kinship with him and they want to reciprocate in some way. Yes. This is what cultural intelligence looks like.



As we continued learning about cultural intelligence, I thought about this older woman who was having her hair done in a barber's shop. The situation is staged. Fake racism acted out to see what reactions the patrons would have. I watched this video years ago and have never forgotten the woman's response.

There is so much we can learn from her response! No anger. No hate. Just understanding, compassion, empathy, encouragement, self confidence, humility, acceptance, and love. It had a completely different impact on the situation than any of the other responses. It unified instead of divided. It motivated instead of shamed. Moving forward, rising together. Yes. This is what cultural intelligence looks like.



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