Two years in a different country can teach you a lot about yourself as well as those around you and a number of other aspects of life. As I think about what I learned while in West Asia I think the biggest lessons I learned involved flexibility and humility. If you haven’t heard it yet and are considering heading overseas to work in pretty much any field you will hear this soon. “You have to be flexible.” Or at least something along those lines. In the work I was part of the last two years this was almost a daily necessity. From leaders changing gears mid-project to challenges arising with equipment and coworkers, being able to go with the flow of life will surely be a lesson you will learn if you want to be successful or remain on the field for any amount of time. However, even the most flexible people have a limit and that is when it is most important to lean into the second biggest lesson that I learned. Being humble in the way you deal with people will in most cases result in more respect and better relationships than being right all the time. I can’t count on my fingers the number of times I had to see issues arise in the work I was part of because leadership made decisions that I had a pretty good idea were not going to end the way they thought. After voicing my concerns on some of those occasions the decision was still made and I submitted myself to those who were over me. In some cases the result was how I had said and others it was not. BUT, because I did not force my opinion (though it was right) the lesson was learned and I gained the respect of being right but humble enough to submit to those over me just as scripture says. This choice can lead to conversations with locals about why you would do that and open the door to what else is in scripture.
Although I knew I had to be flexible before I went over I wasn’t fully aware of just what that would mean until I was in those situations. Some other things that I wish I had known before going over was about the topography of the country I was going to. I hadn’t visited before and most of the information I found was related to other parts of the country which have slightly different climates/ topography and so if it is at all possible I would highly recommend a vision trip or some kind of visit so you know what you are a in for when you land for the next two years. Of course that could be part of the adventure so that is up to each person.
I want to leave you with this piece of advice when coming into contact with differences. A good friend of mine told me that often times things we see as wasteful or inefficient can be a barrier to reaching people around us. However, he said that in those times you should often remind yourself that it’s probably not wrong it just different.