“When in Rome, do as the Romans do” is a popular proverb usually shortened to, “When in Rome…” It means it’s best to follow the traditions or customs of the place being visited. It’s easy enough to do if you don’t know better, however, how far would you go?
International stereotypes
Using stereotypes of different countries, would you expect the following people to “do as the Romans do” in these situations? Would you expect…
– A vegetarian to eat a sanger at an Australian barbecue.
– An animal lover to go to a Spanish bullfight.
– Someone who is teetotal to drink beer at a German Oktoberfest.
Vegetarians can go to barbecues without eating meat, animal lovers can enjoy other Spanish traditions, and teetotallers can be surrounded by beer and not drink. These examples show that you shouldn’t blindly follow a foreign tradition when it goes against what you want or believe.
Thank you but no thank you
In all of the situations above, a polite “no thank you” to any of the suggestions should suffice but when people insist, what should you do? The person is ignorant of your wants or needs so you can simply explain why you don’t want to follow their custom.
If the person continues to insist, then they are still ignorant and a firm “no thank you” probably won’t help you. There are many more ways to politely say no, however, that’s not good for you or the other insistent person.
Look at that, not this
What’s left? Change the subject to something more agreeable, persistent people making suggestions are very proud of their customs and want others to enjoy them. Talk about another custom which you like to avoid the one you don’t like.
In short, if someone insists on you doing something against your wishes, do the following; a polite “no thank you”, “no thank you” with an explanation, a firm “no thank you”, and finally, change the subject. If that doesn’t work, ask “Why?” and if they respond, “When in Rome.” Leave!
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