Once you’ve landed in a new country, it seems like there are endless new things to learn: the language, customs, social norms, laws, money management in more than one country, and a lot more. But, one of the most difficult things to learn as a migrant is the culture of a new country. Especially in a diverse culture such as the Israeli one. If you want to succeed in a new country and feel like you belong there, it’s worth putting in the effort to assimilate as best as you can. Here are a few ways assimilation can help you in a new culture.
Helps you Understand and Appreciate Another Culture
When you move somewhere foreign to you, it can be a shock to see how the locals live. Everything from the fashion to the food and even the media they’re used to might be completely different than what you’re used to. Assimilating into a new society will help you understand and appreciate those cultural trends.
For example, if you’re working in Israel as a foreigner, you might not understand the Israeli “chutzpah,” but assimilating into the local society there will help you learn why and how it came to be. Still, that doesn’t mean you need to participate in all cultural trends, but understanding them helps you appreciate culture and get over your fear or hesitation of something different.
Allows you to Interact with Locals
As a migrant, you’ll likely find you fit in best with other expats or people that come from the same region as you. However, you’re doing yourself a disservice by not assimilating since learning and adopting certain norms from another culture will help you interact with the locals.
This transition can be gradual and it doesn’t mean you need to give up on your identity, but interacting with locals is important since they can help you fit in in a new country. Especially when it comes to the bureaucratic work like finding new schools, identifying good doctors in the area, understanding where to shop for basics, or help with anything else you need to learn.
Assimilation Helps you do Better Work
When you work on assimilating, you’ll need to learn the language and become part of the local culture, which are all traits that will help you do a job as you won’t have to face the daunting language barrier. It will be easier for you to communicate and will help you become independent both in and outside of your work. Not only that, but when you start interacting more with the locals, you can build trustworthy connections that might last way beyond work.
