Get a little closer!
This week I’d like to talk about personal space. You may not have thought about it very much; however, you’ll know it exists after today. I don’t know how it is in other parts of the world, (those of you from Australia, England, and so forth can inform me) when people talk to each other at social gatherings in the U.S., they usually stand three to four feet apart.
It is very different in Latin America. When people talk to each other, they generally stand closer together. Both men and women stand close together and this has no hidden or implied meaning at all. They simply just stand closer together when they talk.
This took some getting used to when I first lived in Latin America. When this happened to me for the first time, I was talking to someone and they stood very close to me. This was a little uncomfortable because I felt like they were invading my personal space. When I took a step backwards, they took a step closer to me without even realizing they did. After another minute or so, I again took a step backward, and again they unconsciously took a step toward me. I didn’t realize that personal space was a cultural thing, I thought this person was either a little bit different or was trying to send me a subtle message. Here I was trying to learn Spanish and focus on what this person was saying but I couldn’t stop thinking that the person was invading my space!
Having people stand so close to me when we talked drove me crazy my first month in Latin America; however, I did get used to it eventually. Now that I am accustomed to it, the personal space issue doesn’t bother me at all anymore.
For those of you who are going to travel to Latin America, I wanted to let you know that this exists. Whether you travel there for business or pleasure and you notice that the person you are talking to is standing uncomfortably close to you, they aren’t sending you a message by standing so close to you, they simply just stand closer together.
If any of you have had experiences with this, I would love to hear from you. Please visit our blog to share your thoughts! Click here!
Sneak Peak at Next Week: My Wife’s Experience With Personal Space
¡Que tengan un buen día! (I hope you all have a good day!)
David S. Clark — President / Director
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