An Expat's Unexpected Personal Growth

Sometimes the biggest lessons in your personal development come when you're least expecting it. That happened to me in the last few years. Things were kind of looking down for me so I took the opportunity to move to Cebu Philippines. I have been living in the Philippines for a bit more than four years now.

Though I didn't move for personal growth, it has turned out to be one of the biggest benefits of my new life in the Philippines. I primarily moved for the lower cost of living. I did gain that but I have also seen a remarkable improvement on my outlook in life. Here's how:

Personal Development Though the Culture of Others

It started within a few days of moving to Cebu. I was sitting on the back of a motorcycle with a large sidecar attached. I looked around at all the poverty, the wild noises one will hear here and the unsafe mode in which I was traveling.

I thought to myself, "What have you done?" That was a moment of fear and thinking I had made a huge mistake. Then I looked around and I saw all the happy people. Filipino people living with far less than I have. These people are often living in huts with no air conditioning, sometimes with no electricity, in homes that look like they are falling apart and often even without running water.

I noticed how happy these people are and I thought to myself, "There are millions of happy people here. If they can do it, I can do it." Though I didn't realize it at the time, it was the beginning of a journey. This journey didn't require a plane or a car, it required an open mind.

I then began to delve into the culture of the Philippines. I began to ask a lot of questions and many times when I asked Filipinos my questions they seemed to be defensive. I often explained, I do not think the Western way is better. I simply am seeking to understand. Once I did that, I found the defensive answers would disappear.

As I began to understand, I thought about why these differences would come about. I concluded that the differences in our histories are the main factor. Humans adapt to their environment and the environment of the USA, England or Germany is very different from that of Asia and the Philippines.

With this open minded approach to the Philippines, I found myself beginning to take on some of the culture of the Philippines. As I did, I became a more contented person. Some of this I feel comes from understanding how much I have in the way of material things. I find it harder now to complain about things that don't go my way when I have so much going my way.

See the original post here:
The Unexpected Ways You Can Grow as a Person