The term “code-switching” typically refers to a linguistic ability to switch back and forth between two or more languages. For those who are multilingual, this is something that can happen subconsciously, such as switching into one’s native language when emotion rises, or it can be used as a deliberate tool by the speaker, such as choosing to use the language that either contains the vocabulary or tone that best supports what they want to communicate.
There is also another kind of code-switching that can happen at the level of culture and identity.
“Flexing” is an effective skill of many successful global leaders who are able to adapt their work and communication styles to more nearly match colleagues’ cultural tendencies without sacrificing their own core values.
Some examples of healthy flexing are:
- Someone with a very direct communication style adjusting how they deliver messages when working with those from indirect communication cultures in order to facilitate understanding and rapport.
- Someone who is more transactional allowing more time than usual for relationship-building when working with people who need more personal connection as a foundation for doing business together.
- Someone who is very group-oriented and used to working in teams adapting to be able to also work individualistically in organizations where that is more the norm.
Flexing is often a major collaboration catalyst, since it can bridge the distance between people’s differences, and can help avoid fundamental misunderstandings that sometimes arise due to unseen cultural differences.
The key to healthy vs. unhealthy flexing, though, is to take care not to cross over into inauthenticity or self-sacrifice.
Once you start to compromise deeper core values in order to “fit in” with others, this is no longer flexing. This level of flexing is instead more like masking, and is usually based on surviving instead of thriving. It’s similar to code-switching to another language so that you’re not discriminated against for speaking your native one.
Historically, especially marginalized groups of people have had to adapt or even hide who they were in order to be accepted by their communities, and since human beings need community to survive, some kinds of adaptation can arise from a survival-based response, rather than an empowered choice to foster collaboration across differences.
Minorities are most at risk for crossing this threshold from flexing to masking. Groups such as people of color, women, LGBTQIA+, neurodiverse, and others might sometimes change themselves in order to either fit in or move up the professional ladder.
Just some examples of this are:
- People of diverse races and ethnicities who change physical aspects of themselves such as hairstyle or cultural clothing.
- LGBTQIA+ people who change their style, or avoid talking about life outside of work in order to avoid discrimination.
- Neurodiverse people who cover up challenges with the environment or certain work tasks in order to avoid judgment.
These are only a few examples of when cultural code-switching can turn into masking.
Deliberate cultural flexing, such as in the first set of examples above, is a powerful adaptive tool that workers and leaders can use to interact more effectively with people from other cultures and backgrounds.
The second set of examples reflects the crossing of a threshold into sacrificing fundamental personal values and important parts of who you are.
The difference between the two can be subtle. Often, it comes down to whether or not people feel they have a choice. Are they consciously choosing to change how they work or interact as a way to produce greater impact, like when someone changes languages to emphasize a point?
Or are they changing parts of their identity so that they fit in or increase their chance at a promotion, like when someone switches to another language in order to avoid discrimination?
Being able to recognize the distinction between flexing and masking, between empowered and survival-based code-switching, is critical.
That way, you can make sure that the choice to flex doesn’t result in self-sacrifice, and you can effectively switch up your style to increase productivity and collaboration, while still embracing your unique cultural identity and values. After all, diverse and inclusive workplaces are statistically the most productive.
Learn more about the benefits of cultural flexing in the workplace.
