TCK and cross culturalism has become more popular as we move towards a more globalized world. With the number of people living throughout different cultures to that of their ‘passport country’ increasing as time marches forward.
Remote living may be the new ‘norm’
“The number of people living in countries not their own now comes to 220 million,” said Pico Iyer in his TED talk, “Where is home?”
This number is expected to rise as people take on overseas jobs and begin to adopt the “digital nomad” lifestyle. Trading the office cubical for the streets of Bangkok or the beaches of Hawaii.
The internet is allowing for us to move between location and location while only requiring a stable internet connection to complete the daily tasks at work.
Now as this becomes more popular amongst the traditionally raised populace the attention shifts towards Third Culture Kids (TCKs). These children who have grown up through global mobility and a cross-cultural lifestyle present questions towards the future. Are these kids going to adopt the same mobile life they have had? Are they going to bring the term “digital nomad” to new levels? Or are they going to adopt the more traditional lifestyle and settle down in one place?
“I still intend to move around a lot,” said James Douglas. “The career path I’m pursuing in aviation management means I can basically work wherever I want in the world at any time.”
Douglas has stated that he intends to finish his study and move overseas to pursue a job in his chosen path.
“The UK sounds appealing to me,” said Douglas. “If I get sick of it then I can go somewhere else. I’ve been moving around my whole life so it’s not like its anything new to me.”
A future that a lot people with a TCK background is going to choose moving into their career paths. With more and more people finding it “normal” or easier to continue their mobile lives rather than settle down into one area.
The world of the future.
As stated earlier, there are more jobs allowing remote working conditions for the employee. And as this trend continues to rise in popularity the modern job requirements are going to favor someone from a TCK background more than a traditional upbringing.
“In the globalized twenty-first century TCKs find themselves increasingly relevant in in the contemporary interconnected world,” said Baker Cottrell in an interview with “The Expat Survey.”
It is exciting to see what these globalized children are going to provide for humanity moving into the future. Some of the most influential stars today come from a TCK background. As the numbers across this global community rise the signs are very promising.
As seen with Douglas, the early development with social interactions and the continuous hardships faced throughout their childhood means a TCK is in a good position when they enter adulthood. They can get ahead of others and push the future of their communities and the world to new heights.
Of course, this is yet to be seen with the biggest wave of cross-cultural children reaching adulthood in the coming years. But the current role models show promising signs.
