Comments on: Cultural Stereotypes - Worth The Trouble? http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/ My Global Career: Where you belong in the flat world. Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:45:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.7 http://www.myglobalcareer.com/wp-content/themes/myglobalcareer/_media/_global/logo.gif My Global Career: Where you belong in the flat world. http://www.myglobalcareer.com by: Ron Lamb http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-1051 Mon, 03 Sep 2007 14:46:19 +0000 http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-1051 I am surprised that AnitNWO responded with such confidence. I disagree heartily with their comment. Without responding to what the tone of the their message, the reality is just wrong. A great example is when people from the US (those that don't speak foreign languages) think that they understand foreigners that speak English quite well. What they are missing, is that foreigners frequently translate directly from their language to English without understanding the difference in tone / directness. The best example is between Dutch and English. Most would agree that Dutch generally speak English extremely well. They come across confidently and powerful in their speech. One of the reasons is that the structure of their language is more direct. It uses the word 'must' much more commonly. To an English listener it often sounds like you're being given an order. That can make you defensive. The reality is it is just a direct Dutch to English translation, with no sense of the change in tone. This is just one example of where words and what they convey can be interpreted very differently between two cultures/ languages. Just ask my wife and the scores of Dutch and other foreigner with whom I've worked. Regarding AnitNWO's other paragraph. Some of my most rewarding and interesting cultural experiences / communications were with a very old woman in a dirt floored cave at Petra Jordan. She had enjoyed a trinket negotiation we had had so much that she invited my collegue and I for tea at her cave up the side of a hill in Petra. (Where the third Indiana Jones was filmed). Our conversation was 98% handsigns with my little Arabic and her non-existent English. It is amazing how useful a 'mud' dirt floor is for three people who don't speak the same language for communicating. We were able to draw pictures, maps and smiley faces to have a wonderful chat. After about twenty minutes, her grand-daughter arrived from school who spoke some English. She had walked a few miles from the school bus to her grandmother's cave. There is no question of the smartness of this wonderful woman and her grand-daughter who both lived in caves on the side of this hill in Petra. But you are right there are knuckle draggers among us. Some of them even make comments on blog sites. I am surprised that AnitNWO responded with such confidence. I disagree heartily with their comment. Without responding to what the tone of the their message, the reality is just wrong. A great example is when people from the US (those that don’t speak foreign languages) think that they understand foreigners that speak English quite well. What they are missing, is that foreigners frequently translate directly from their language to English without understanding the difference in tone / directness. The best example is between Dutch and English. Most would agree that Dutch generally speak English extremely well. They come across confidently and powerful in their speech. One of the reasons is that the structure of their language is more direct. It uses the word ‘must’ much more commonly. To an English listener it often sounds like you’re being given an order. That can make you defensive. The reality is it is just a direct Dutch to English translation, with no sense of the change in tone. This is just one example of where words and what they convey can be interpreted very differently between two cultures/ languages. Just ask my wife and the scores of Dutch and other foreigner with whom I’ve worked. Regarding AnitNWO’s other paragraph. Some of my most rewarding and interesting cultural experiences / communications were with a very old woman in a dirt floored cave at Petra Jordan. She had enjoyed a trinket negotiation we had had so much that she invited my collegue and I for tea at her cave up the side of a hill in Petra. (Where the third Indiana Jones was filmed). Our conversation was 98% handsigns with my little Arabic and her non-existent English. It is amazing how useful a ‘mud’ dirt floor is for three people who don’t speak the same language for communicating. We were able to draw pictures, maps and smiley faces to have a wonderful chat. After about twenty minutes, her grand-daughter arrived from school who spoke some English. She had walked a few miles from the school bus to her grandmother’s cave. There is no question of the smartness of this wonderful woman and her grand-daughter who both lived in caves on the side of this hill in Petra. But you are right there are knuckle draggers among us. Some of them even make comments on blog sites.

]]> by: BeenThereDoneThat http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-1010 Sat, 01 Sep 2007 05:25:51 +0000 http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-1010 Read "Cultural Intelligence" by P. Christopher Earley and Elaine Mosakowski. Read “Cultural Intelligence” by P. Christopher Earley and Elaine Mosakowski.

]]> by: Anit NWO http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-961 Wed, 29 Aug 2007 03:19:27 +0000 http://www.myglobalcareer.com/archives/2008/07/22/cultural-stereotypes-worth-the-trouble/#comment-961 Either you are smart or you are something less. There are no cultural differences when two bright, intelligent, open minded people sit down to discuss ideas. I don't care where you are from. Now when you put a smart person with a knuckle dragging living in a mud shack state educated being, you got issues. Either you are smart or you are something less. There are no cultural differences when two bright, intelligent, open minded people sit down to discuss ideas. I don’t care where you are from.

Now when you put a smart person with a knuckle dragging living in a mud shack state educated being, you got issues.

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