Have you ever heard a professional athlete who said, “I’m not a role model”, with exasperation? “I’m just a (fill in the blank) ________________ player”.

Be that as it may, when you are in the public eye you have a chance to be a role model for those who may be looking at you.

It’s kind of the same thing when you’re an expat. But the difference is you’re a diplomat. You represent your home country at every turn. To the locals and other internationals you meet, everything you say and do or don’t say or do reflects your home country.

Regis in Germany, who comes from Manassas, Virginia, agrees with me, and has this advice for fellow Americans abroad:

Exercise good judgment and behavior – you are a diplomat of the United States of America.

So embrace it! Think of it as your chance to “school” others on what it means to be (fill in the blank) ______________. In my case, I get to show others what it really means to be an American. So what does it mean to be an American? You’ll get a different answer depending on what day you ask. But I’ll give you one example. It means that I get up to let a pregnant woman or elderly person take my seat on public transportation. 9.9 times out of 10 those around me don’t do that in Stockholm. But to be fair to the Stockholmers I have not performed a scientific survey to know if most would.

But that doesn’t matter, does it? All that matters is that I do my best to be the best diplomat I can every day in each situation. Whether I like it or not, when it is revealed that I am American, preconceived notions are ladled on me. I choose to be diplomatic about it.