How to Be a Genuine Person Abroad?

When you move overseas, you get to experience the rudiments of a new culture. You are no longer in your comfort zone. Therefore, there is a tendency to act out of character.

Most people fall into this trap and find themselves on the wrong side of the law. A new place means a new attitude and the right attitude. It pays to be a genuine person when abroad. Genuineness is one of the critical factors for becoming successful in a different country.

By being authentic, we mean being vulnerable while having a sufficient amount of integrity and transparency.

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The following twelve tips demonstrate how to be a genuine person abroad.

1. Do Not Force People to like You

One of the w1ys of being genuine when abroad is not to force people to like you. Most people fall for this land mine. They are in a new environment; therefore, they tend to think that the sooner they make some friends, the better for them.

This way, they begin to pander to every wish of the people they feel can help them. Many people have fallen into the wrong hands and ended up taking to crime—a long-term prison sentence or worse, getting expelled from the country.

Genuine people do not force people to like them. Play your intrinsic part, and friends will come to you naturally.

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2. Do Not Judge Other People

As a genuine person, you should be open-minded. You should be free and have people find you attractive. Not judging other people is being mentally flexible enough to have them tell you who they are. They can do this with their attitude or tell you straight about this.

When you judge them or have unfavourable opinions about them, it shows through. And if they find out about this, they might not find it flattering. Be open and give people the chance to be useful in your opinion.

3. They Create Their Paths

Genuine people guided by their moral compasses. Therefore, if you want to come off as an honest person abroad, you have to act trustworthy. Acting authentic means developing an atmosphere of integrity. You have to be who you say you are consistent.

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Therefore, whether someone is present or not, you have to stick to doing the right thing and choosing the moral path. Being genuine involves a continuous effort, especially in a foreign country where your home country’s reputation precedes you.

4. You have to be Generous

One of the critical ways of being a genuine person abroad is by being consistently liberal. Never hold back anything from somebody except when it is against their interests.

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While being generous may not get you far, being unkind will undoubtedly become an obstacle to your path to success. Being liberal means that you have to be kind to strangers, and people are known to you. 

5. Treat Everybody with the Respect They Deserve

As a genuine person abroad, you have to treat everyone with respect. Whether dealing with the top boss of a blue-chip company or with the lowest security personnel.

Most cultures have mutual respect deeply embedded in their lifestyles. Therefore, you will be doing yourself a world of good by being respectful to other people.

6. Material Things Do Not Drive Genuine People

If you have to authentic while abroad you have to know that money and fancy things should not frighten you. These things are beautiful to have. But they should not become your primary motivation.

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Falling for money and fancy thins can easily lead you to crime. Instead, your primary motivation should come from the willingness to work, family, friends, and a life of purpose.

7. You have to be Trustworthy

You want people to like you in a foreign country; you have to be credible. People like someone they can trust. To be a genuine person abroad, you have to form the reputation of being reliable.

People gravitate towards others who are trustworthy. This trust can get earned by keeping promises, commitment, as well as being honest and transparent.

8. Genuine People Are Thick-skinned and Never Get into Ugly Situations

While being actual means that you do not hurt other people’s feelings, it comes with being thick-skinned. Being genuine does not mean that you get to take shit from everyone else.

Being an honest person abroad means being thick-skinned as well as being humane. Never develop hard feelings towards people, whether they are co-workers or random strangers on the bus.

Always keep a positive vibe about you when in a foreign country. At work, you should learn from constructive criticism any time someone dishes it out to you. Then importantly, learn to avoid threatening situations without offending anyone to make them come after you. Genuine people never keep enemies. They forgive, forget, and move on.

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9. Put down Your Phones

Genuine people put down their phones when in conversation with someone. There is no better way to tell someone that they are dull or unimportant by peering at your phone while they speak.

Except the person isn’t meaningful to you, maybe a street urchin – the habit can be excused in this scenario. However, in every other appropriate setting, you have to put down your phone and engage fully in it.

Genuine people show a legitimate interest to the next person when involved in a conversation.

10. They Do Not Get Big-headed

Genuine people are down to earth and never do things to please their egos. The “Hey, look at me!” lifestyle is not for honest people. Genuine people are too morally upright to fall for the temptations of their feelings of pride and ego.

Being a reasonable person abroad means being unassuming and selfless with large amounts of honesty, accountability, and integrity.

11. A Genuine Person Is Never a Hypocrite

Being an honest person abroad means that you have to practice whatever it is that you preach. You do not tell other people to do a sure thing, and then you end up not doing it yourself.

Furthermore, you have to be genuine enough to own up to your mistakes. Honest people discover their errors and own up to it before it gets found by other people. Before it gets noticed, owning up to your faults and mistakes is one of the purest forms of genuineness.

Notably, in a scenario where you know that owning up puts you in a disadvantaged position. Most often than not, people get forgiven when they publicly own up to their mistakes. Forgiveness is often the reward for a reputation of integrity and genuineness.

Conclusion

Now being a genuine person is not something like a hat that you tend to wear on and off. Genuineness is a long-term positive string of behaviour all woven together.

In a foreign country, foreigners are mostly scrutinized by the locals to ascertain whether you are a threat or not. Especially in this age of constant terrorism and other crimes, being a genuine person in a foreign country is the best way to go.