10 Things People In Finland Do Better Than Americans

10 Things People In Finland Do Better Than Americans

Finland is widely known for its modern sensibilities and fabulous views of the Northern Lights, but the nation has many other attributes as well.

Here are 10 things the people of Finland do better than Americans.

Number 10. Education. While US schools are often criticized for underperforming, those in Finland are lauded for their continued excellence. The nation boasts some of the world’s highest test scores and is consistently ranked amongst the best educational systems on the planet.

Number 9. Handle awkward silences. Finns don’t always have the perfect thing to say when conversations lapse, but that’s okay. Long pauses during talks are deemed as being perfectly acceptable. Saying something just for the sake of speaking, however, is not. 

Number 8. Women’s equality in the workplace. According to The Economist’s glass ceiling index, Finland is at the top worldwide.  Matters such as maternity rights, pay, and representation in high-ranking positions were considered while compiling the list.

Number 7. Dispose of nuclear waste. Not only has Finland actually devised a plan for nuclear discard, the country is building a refuse bunker that will keep the radioactive matter safely contained for at least 100 thousand years.

Number 6. Ensure that newborns thrive. The Nordic nation has the world’s lowest infant mortality rate. Conversely, among the 28 wealthy nations ranked by the Centers For Disease Control, the US has the highest.

Number 5. Stay out of prison. In the United States, nearly 700 of every 100 thousand citizens are locked up. Incarcerated residents of Finland account for only 55 per 100 thousand. Some of them even get to live in ‘open’ systems where they can attend college classes, go on fishing trips, and head into town to buy groceries.

Number 4. Embrace Heavy Metal. Finland has more metal bands per capita than anywhere in the world. The country’s count is about double that of runners up Sweden and Norway, and roughly 10 times greater than the ratio in the US.

Number 3. Saunas. There are approximately 5.3 million people in Finland, and an estimated 3.3 million saunas. They’re so engrained in the culture, they can be found in government offices, factories, and even sporting arenas.

Number 2. Keep corruption out of government. In Transparency International’s recent rankings of corrupt governments, Finland’s was ranked amongst the three least so. The US came in at 19th.

Number 1. Live longer. On average, the men of Finland can expect to live until the age of 78, and women until 84. Americans’ lives aren’t significantly shorter, but US males and females generally live for 2 to 3 years less than their Finnish counterparts. 

What’s your favorite thing about the country of Finland?