Improving Your Cross-cultural Competence

"...traditional values and life principles"

Denis Waitley stands up against a tendency which is running rampant in modern American society, that of drifting away from traditional values and life principles which have always been: hon­esty, hard work, equality, inner drive, all those things that make up the backbone of American national character and are rooted in the history of American people.

Many of the basic attitudes and characteristics were formed in the struggle of first settlers for survival. Americans think they should work hard and most of them like to work. Their work ethic emphasizes the virtue of industry and diligence, a passion for excellence, respect for personal effort. The non-worker is regarded with a certain scorn, based, perhaps, on the conviction that in pioneer days he would not have survived. Material success in this country is an evidence of hard work; it tends to promote respect rather than resentment and envy. This has fostered the spirit of enterprise, another feature of American national character. •

Americans believe in the ethic that recognizes the truth of human equality and the fact that all people are endowed by their creator with inalienable rights. This ethic, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, has its roots in the non-hierarchical community organization of the first colonists. The "pull" factor that lured the settlers to come to the New World was a prospect of gaining freedom that would come with leaving behind the shackles of political and religious oppression and economic hardship. The fact that American colonies from the very start were self-governed and had not known a tyranny of a monarch on their physical soil made them reject rigid social distinctions between people and contributed to Americans' credo "all men are created equal".

"...individual freedom and collective responsibility"

One of traditional core values in the USA is emphasis on individual personality rather than collective identity or responsibility. This individualistic orientation means that people believe that their well-being and personal goals are best cared for by themselves rather than someone else. American individualism, by far the most important motivating force of the tremendous energy of American society, is undoubtedly the source of many of the country's accomplishments. This powerful and ever-present individualism has become proverbial; it is embodied in numerous language units like the cliches "Doing your own thing", "to strike out on one's own", "acting on one's own", "being a self-made person" etc.

A striking contradiction in American culture is the co-existence of a strong belief in individual freedom and an extraordinary capacity for collective action. This willingness to cooperate goes back to pioneer days when barn raising and cabin roofing were accomplished, often in a single day, by a combined effort of friends and neighbors. Personal differences (of religion or opinion or political belief) were set aside in the interest of getting a job done.

Today this tradition is continued in all kinds of volunteer action: raising funds for a hospital, supporting a museum or a symphony orchestra, organizing programs for foreign students. These activities bring Americans together and offer them a sense of involvement, achievement and the hope of improving their surroundings — without any reward, except for feeling good about themselves.