Cultural Alignment
Cultural differences between South Africa and Australia
Anyone who has travelled abroad will know that many things work very much the same from one country to another. Hotels and air ports are good examples. You will have a pretty good idea of how to find your way in an airport in another country once you have visited one in your own country. There are exceptions.
On face value the Australian and South African cultures are very much the same. But don’t let the love for sports – most notably cricket – the competitiveness, the love for the outdoors, British traditions and laws, and the commonality of the use of the English language fool you. Culture goes much deeper than what is visible at face value. Do not think that there is anything wrong with either culture, they’re just not as similar as you would expect them to be.
Speaking Australian
When someone’s tone of voice or choice of words do not fit the nature of the discussion Australians like to say “he is not using the right language”. Using “the right language” is a challenge for very many South Africans who seem to be far more comfortable with a direct, almost confrontational style of communication.
The surest way to learn to ‘speak the language’ is to live in the relevant country. Better still, if you can prepare yourself physically by reading up or studying before going to that country and then increasing your understanding of the culture by physically interacting with people while you are there. That way you are likely to make less mistakes and are also more likely to integrate a lot sooner.
How much different is Australia to South Africa?
Many South African migrants accept that things are done differently in Australia but have completely underestimate the extent to which things are different. Giam Swiegers is a respected businessman and leader of people. He has been very successful both in South Africa and in Australia and made the trip to Australia more than 10 years ago. Even Mr Swiegers is quoted only 2-3 years ago as noting the extent to which the two cultures different.
Our recommendation is to talk to as many migrants as possible, and to prepare yourself mentally that you will need to adapt new ways of seeing things, particularly when the ‘honeymoon’ period of migrating to another country is over.
‘Australia is full of South Africans’
Contrary to common believe in South Africa, South Africans do not make up the vast majority of immigrants to Australia. In fact, South Africa does not rank amongst the top three either.
South Africans needing to adapt to the Australian way
In our experience there are a couple of aspects of moving to Australia that South Africans, generally speaking, are aware of that it may be challenging to adapt to but struggle with anyway. If you think you will be different, you probably will not be:
- Having had a successful career and prestigious position in South Africa, to then take a position of lower rank, pay and/or prestige.
- Having had a successful career and prestigious position in South Africa, to then accept and retain a position where you need to report to someone who is less qualified than you are, has less experience, less ‘leadership ability’ or less common sense. It is not the first or the second or the sixth month of doing this that gets to you, it is when you have to continuously struggle to be heard – year in and year out.
- Having had maids and/or cleaners and/or gardeners in South Africa, to then have to do some if not all of the house and garden chores yourself. There are domestic and garden services available but they are rather costly and may take more than their fair share out of your budget. If you choose to do these chores yourself you may find your way of life change completely.
- Having enjoyed a certain lifestyle for some years in South Africa, to then be forced to adjust your lifestyle downwards – some by a couple of notches.
- Having worked out a suitable budget, to then find that things are just a whole lot more expensive. Property can be between 4 and 6 times more expensive than in South Africa, so to buy a comparable home in Australia will set you back quite significantly.
- Having lived in a brick-built house for most of your life in South Africa, to then find that different building materials are used in Australia and to live in a house which, for some, closely resembles that of a ‘matchbox house’.
- To be used to ‘call a spade a spade’ in South Africa, to then have to choose your words carefully so as to not offend others or branded ‘boorish’.
Prepare yourself for the Australian way
Since the way we perceive the world around us has an important bearing on our well-being and general state of happiness we would recommend that you discuss within your family the above aspects of migration, at least, and source some further learning points from friends, ex-colleagues and family currently living in Australia.
The sooner you start talking about these things the better. Should you suspect that you may not be able to afford cleaning or garden service once in Australia, start making these chores part of your daily living whilst still in South Africa so that you may be less affected by the time you arrive in Australia.
Last update: April 2011