I’m an American who lives in Europe—Switzerland to be exact, and I’m home for a visit. I love Europe and I love America, but both could use a bit of infusion from the other to make things better off. (And when I say Europe, I want to acknowledge that there is no “European” culture or policy or procedure. Each country is very different!) For instance, if Switzerland could just adopt a bit of the attitude of customer service that American establishments have, that would make my heart sing. But, if the US could adopt these 5 things, they would make your hearts sing.
1. Regular doors in public bathrooms.
You know what we don’t worry about in Switzerland? Where Transgender people use the bathroom. You know why? Because bathroom stalls are equipped with full sized doors that have no weird gaps around the edges. You don’t have to peek under or peer through the crack to determine if anyone is in the stall–you know because when the door is locked, it shows red on the outside and when it’s empty, it’s green. It’s like magic. Seriously, USA, can we adopt this one?
2. Let’s all take a vacation.
Yes, the US has lousy vacation days compared to Europe. We don’t require any by law in the US, whereas all European countries require at least 20 paid days off. I’m not going to actually advocate for new laws to require companies to give vacation days, but I am going to advocate for Americans to use the days that they have. Seriously, people, you get less vacation than most of the world, and you still don’t use it all. Take a break!
3. Trusting self-checkouts.
Now this one is Swiss specific, as I haven’t done a lot of grocery shopping at self-checkouts in other countries, but can the US please adopt the Swiss style of self-checkouts? What I mean by that is that you scan your item and it records it and that’s the end. No setting it on the platform next to the register so that it can be weighed. No “Please place the item in the bag” or “unfamiliar item in bagging area.” Look, retail Americans, are people really stealing things by scanning them and not placing them in the bag? Of course not. If they are going to steal, they are going to do so by not scanning in the first place. It takes me forever to use the self-checkout at the Walmart down the street, whereas at home, I use it all the time because it’s faster. You want to cut costs by self-scanning? Make them trusting.
4. The left lane is for passing and definitely not for semis.
The German Autobahn is super fun to drive on–it’s true you can go very fast. But you know what you can’t do? Hang out in the left lane, and you can never, ever, pass someone on the right. Where are the semis? In the right lane. Always. It makes traffic move more smoothly and you don’t get caught going up the hill, blocked by two large trucks traveling 15 miles below the speed limit.
5. Dress a little nicer in public.
I don’t know what it is, but people in Europe tend to dress a little bit nicer. You don’t see too many people at the grocery store looking like they just came from the gym. Wander Wisdom theorizes that this is because so many people use public transportation that they are used to seeing entire bodies, and not just heads like you do from a car. If you are seeing more people, all the time, maybe you care just a bit more about how you look in public. I’m not asking that Americans wear their heels and pearls to shop, but that they reserve the halter tops and Daisy Duke shorts for the beach. It somehow seems more civilized.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.