Although they claim to be the most normal people in the world, the Swedes are actually significantly different from the rest of the world.
When, during the first wave of corona, they did not hide behind masks, nor shut themselves up in their houses, it was clear to everyone that they were different. But there are other, lesser-known features that make them unique:
Swedes don’t brag
Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, did not take public transportation because he is a weirdo, but because he is Swedish. They don’t flaunt expensive cars and branded clothes, they are uncomfortable with their wealth being visible to everyone. A recent study on status symbols showed that different nations perceive them differently. While for Russians, status is reflected in luxury cars, Americans are rich if they give to charity, and in Sweden, people who have enough free time and can afford quality trips for their family are considered rich.
Swedes don’t smoke
If a country has less than 5 percent of smokers, it is considered non-smoking. Sweden has reached that gold standard. And they achieved this by back in the 70s, when a third of the adult population used cigarettes every day, they began to switch to less harmful alternatives – at first only tobacco for oral use, later also newer types of cigarette substitutes. Thanks to this, this country has the lowest rate of smoking-related cancers, including lung and oral tumors, in Europe.
Little Saturday
If you enter a restaurant during the week and order an alcoholic drink, the waiter will rightly think that you are not native Swedes, because they only drink on weekends. Often and excessively, but only on weekends. However, it turns out that even they sometimes cannot withstand the cultural rules that have been in force for decades. That’s why lately they started drinking their “schnapps” (vodka-like drink) and beer on Wednesdays as well. But in order to stay true to tradition as much as possible or calm their conscience, they renamed Wednesday to “little Saturday”.
“Flet” organization
In Swedish companies, hierarchy is significantly less prevalent than in the rest of the world. From the outside, it is sometimes difficult to determine who is the general manager and who is employed in lower management. This makes it somewhat difficult to make decisions, because a large number of people are asked for their opinion, but on the other hand, the model survives because the entire company stands behind the decision made in this way, believes in it, and therefore every employee is more engaged in its implementation.
“Swedish Action”…
Swedes say that the voice that beats them that they are sexually very free and active, with their own or other partners, is just a prejudice. They do not mind having such a reputation, especially not men, but they claim that this is actually the only segment in which they do not differ from the others.