One of the hardest aspects of Swedish culture to assimilate into is how they speak. I don’t mean that it is verbally difficult to understand them, in fact, most people I have met here speak English perfectly. It is almost quite frustrating with how much English they speak here, because you don’t really get the chance to practice your Swedish if you are trying to learn.
When I say speak, I am more referring to the cultural norms of conversations and general interactions.
In America, it is very common to want to “fill the silence” whether that is small talk or another form of speaking when there is a natural lull in the conversation. The Swedes do not feel the same pressure to not have an awkward silence, as silence to them is normal. I usually feel a bit uncomfortable if I am conversing with a coworker and they stop speaking abruptly, but now that I have been here for a month, it is a lot easier to know this is just how they talk. I kind of enjoy not having the typical American conversations about weather, sports, or the news: all of which have little to no meaning.
People are just much more reserved here and presentably monotoned as opposed to Americans. I often think Swedish people dislike me when they are actually just neutral. They tend to mind their own business, but that often does not stop them from staring on the train to work or out in public areas. For all I know, they could be thinking something positive, but since I am inclined to assume how they are on the outside is how they are on the inside, I always find myself thinking the worst.
That is one thing Americans do that I had never noticed before. We judge people just as much as the Swedes, we are just much better at hiding it. Another aspect difficult to adapt to is their work dynamic. This might be something I have experienced only because I work for a startup, but I have found that power dynamics are vastly different to America. My boss is the CEO, but he does not run the show like American offices. He leads meetings and such, but when it comes to company decisions, he will ask input from every employee, even the interns.
Although this is something I had to adapt to, this one is more positive as I really enjoy this type of equality in an office. It is good to have multiple people keep you in check, even if you are the “boss”. This has also allowed for some very innovative ideas from people “lower down” as it leads to bouncing ideas off each other.
I wanted to add some silly things to include that weren’t huge for adaptability but still worth mentioning. In the grocery stores, self checkout is huge and they often don’t have workers scanning items unless it is a busy hour. They also have you scan your receipt in order to exit the checkout area at most stores. The public transportation here is usually early, not late if it is off schedule which is interesting to me because in America, it is usually the other way around. Also, a lot of people bike or take public transportation here, which means it is a bit more crowded on the trains, but also is much better for the environment.
The last thing I wanted to mention was the Swedish idea of “Lagom” or “just enough”. They all relatively live under the idea that one should be able to work and achieve “just enough” in life. This takes away the greed of overachievement. The word is referring to having just enough to still be able to live, not just survive. Living is enough to buy a coffee before work or afford a small vacation every July. There is a culture beyond the office that looks at things other than money.
There are many positive things here in Sweden, and some cultural differences that just require your attempt to learn and understand. It helps to be completely immersed in another culture as living here I have developed a routine, but even then, I am constantly growing as a person and discovering new things about Sweden every day.
Until next time!