"There was so much we didn't know because it was blocked from us. The iron curtain was real. It was like overnight we went from being part of the big ol' USSR to being free and independent Lithuania."

How do you go from have one type of expectations and known experiences in your first country and to almost literally waking up the next day to a new world that you never knew existed? And it's all in your home culture?

Akvilina Reiger has lived in the USA for over 20 years yet she experienced new cultural norms and culture shock in her home country before ever coming across the Atlantic Ocean. Listen to Akvilina and Janese share about learning new cultural norms and becoming so highly adaptable and flexible it's hard to prove or articulate in a tangible way.

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• How family shapes our understanding of our culture
• Traditional ways versus progressive ways
• Why cultural sensitivity in American workplaces is vital to organizational culture
• Akvilina's Top 4 Tips for Learning Cultural Norms

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

Tiffany Ingle is an ESL professional who has a beautiful way of sharing her stories and observations as well as bringing wisdom to cultural situations. We discuss the challenging stages of the culture shock cycle, touch on experiencing micro aggressions in another culture and language, cultural fatigue, depression due to culture shock and how to harness your energy when you're feeling completely unmoored within a new culture.

This is her first episode with Janese about living in another country. Listen to her experiences with culture shock and the sage advice she brings to the conversation. If you've ever lived overseas for more than six months, you'll connect to this episode and with Tiffany.

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• Culture shock parallels with Racism
• The "eating at McDonald's stage" of culture shock
• Bargaining from an individualistic cultural perspective
• Tiffany's Top 5 Tips for Working Through the Culture Shock Cycle

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

My guest on this week's podcast is Andrea Heiliger. There are plenty of adjectives to describe Andrea - artistic, caring, spunky, brave, witty, smiley, dedicated, and adventurous are a few that come to mind. If you're ever having a bad day, she's the person you want to call because she makes everyone feel welcome when you're in her presence. 

Andrea was born and raised in Nebraska but isn't quite sure where she caught the exploration bug. It may have started with her artistic talent combined with technical drawings that took her to archeological digs in Israel. Traveling is one of her passions and she definitely knows how to go with the flow no matter the circumstances. Most people try and make lemonade with lemons but Andrea would probably make an art project or a dessert...the options are endless with her imagination! It's this ability to adapt and be flexible that created opportunities in Turkey to observe and learn about the culture around her.

Andrea and her husband lived in Turkey. She and Janese chat about the highs and lows of culture shock overseas, how everyone experiences humbleness through it, and how to differentiate between cultures and personalities.

My guest on this week's podcast is Mehmet Casey. Mehmet (Mo) was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq where like many others, he navigated a stressful lifestyle. After college and a brief employment, he decided to step out of the scene to pursue more professional opportunities and gain a global perspective. He landed what was supposed to be a 10-month long exchange teaching Fulbright scholarship but later events at home left him no choice but to seek asylum, which ultimately made Billings, MT his new home. 

#everyonesaforeigner #firstcountryiraq #podcast #culture #interculturalcommunication #beingforeign #globalmindset #asylum #refugeestories #Fulbright

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• Bargaining culture
• Food culture
• Different expectations of Generosity
• Nonverbal personal space "bubbles"
• Mehmet's Top 5 Tips for Working Through the Culture Shock Cycle

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! www.everyonesaforeigner.com 

Clementine Lindley is a born and raised Montanan who proclaimed at 7 years old she was going to live in Ireland. Not really understanding what that meant at the time, but learning it was possible, propelled her into studying abroad which forever changed her worldview. She was able to acclimate into the culture in a unique way which gave her a different perspective of her own culture.

This is her first conversation with Janese about living in another country. Listen to her experiences with culture shock and how she connected with her ancestral roots.  If you've ever lived overseas for more than six months, you'll connect to this episode.

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• Studying Abroad in Ireland
• Linguistic & Cultural Faux Pas
• Clementine's Top 5 Tips for Working Through the Culture Shock Cycle

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

Imagine you are seventeen and deciding to go to a foreign country by yourself for the first time to study for a year - without a cell phone and without social media. The only thing to really inform you about where you're going is movies or books like encyclopedias. 

Akvilina Rieger has lived in the USA for over 20 years and when she entered the country so much of her world had been turned upside down even before she came to the US to study. Her country of Lithuania had become independent and was figuring out the future as a country. 

In this episode we discuss culture shock through her first experience in the USA and how it has informed her exploration of other countries as well.

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• Culture Shock Definition
• Akvilina's Top Tips for Working Through the Culture Shock Cycle

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

Ignacio Barrón Viela was born in España has lived in multiple European countries for his career before landing in Billings, Montana USA. This is his first conversation with Janese about living in another country. Listen to his experiences with culture shock and how he connected with his roots to overcome the challenges of the culture shock cycle. You'll also learn more about Janese's similar, yet different, experiences as well as take away some universal understanding about navigating the culture shock cycle. 

Highlights include:

• 2 Facts & a Myth
• Culture Shock Definition
• Ignacio's Top 5 Tips for Working Through the Culture Shock Cycle

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

In this pilot episode, you're introduced to the host - Janese Carstens - as she outlines her background and why she felt compelled to start this podcast. You'll learn a little about the format and some of the guests coming up! You'll laugh, you'll cry, and most of all you'll feel connected to other people and their experiences being foreign. 

...and remember, we're all foreign to someone! 

Follow us @everyonesaforeigner on Facebook and Instagram