This exercise helps you reflect individually on your relationship with culture, your expectations about the host country, and your mindset toward intercultural experiences. Using a visual format makes these reflections more accessible and easier to revisit later in your journey.
What you will need:
- A printed blank reflection wheel (can be pre-drawn or provided as a handout, see below for explanations)
- Colored pencils or markers, or just a pen to note things down.
- Optional: digital drawing tool (e.g. Canva, Miro, Google Jamboard) for remote version
Instructions:
Have a look at this wheel (894.46 kB, pdf). The wheel is divided into six equal segments with guiding questions, each segment focusing on one aspect of your intercultural mindset. Take your time with each section and respond honestly - there are no right or wrong answers.
You can write keywords, short sentences, symbols, or draw simple images.
1. How I respond to differences
- What do I usually think or feel when I meet someone who acts very differently from me?
2. What I know about the country
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What do I already know about the place I’m going—culture, values, lifestyle, history? And where did I get this knowledge?
3. What excites me about going
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What are the moments I look forward to?
4. What I fear or feel unsure about
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What makes me anxious or uncertain?
5. My intercultural strengths
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When have I handled differences well?
6. My cultural assumptions
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What beliefs do I carry that I might need to question?
After Completing the Wheel
Take a moment to look at the wheel as a whole and reflect -
- Which sections feel full or easy to answer?
- Which ones feel more empty or uncomfortable?
- What does this tell you about where you are right now?
You can return to this wheel later in the project to notice how your perspective has shifted.