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Summarize this reading on Business Culture into couple of paragraphs

Today, the entire globe is a marketplace. Many companies have been doing global business for years with tremendous success, while others are just beginning to investigate it. Since doing business globally usually requires overseas travel, you'll need to get a passport. But that kind of password only gives you permission to enter a country. It doesn't help you communicate and conduct business after you get there.

For that, you need a different kind of password, a cultural passport. And unfortunately, it's not as easy to get. But when you get a cultural passport, you're well informed. Not just about the language, but also about the life and culture of the country before attempting to conduct business there. Here's how to begin.

First, start with an open mind. The American way of doing business in one way, but not the only way. You'll be successful in the global marketplace if you can become more socially accepting and open-minded when confronted with another way of doing things.

Second, when doing business in another country, make sure you bring your sense of humor. This doesn't mean trying to make jokes in their language. That could backfire if you're misunderstood. Just remember that your host is as apprehensive as you are. So even though it seems like a small thing, a smile is universally understood and goes a long way in awkward, social situations.

Third, do your homework. This video will give you a few examples of different business practices you may encounter in other countries. But it's necessary to do extensive and specific research on the particular country and culture you're going to approach in business.

And last, get experience. You need to travel to learn to adapt and become more flexible. Don't be afraid to make some mistakes. Sometimes you won't know quite what to do, even after you've done the research. But don't let the fear of failure keep you from getting out there. Remember, doing business globally has great financial and personal rewards. Your company's market expands and you gain a broader understanding of many cultures around the world.

Now let's look at some of the elements of business culture that you'll want to include as you acquire your cultural passport.

First, how to greet and address people.

In the United States, a business handshake and an exchange of names is a familiar greeting. But in other countries, you could be greeted with a limp, one pump handshake, a bow, a hug, or a kiss on each cheek. It varies.

Once again, in India it's very appropriate to say namaste at almost any set of surroundings. And it's very appropriate in the social circumstance. I also happened to be working doing some work with clients in the Middle East.

In the Middle East, while I would not say namaste, I would instead say salam alaikum which is the Arab greeting. It's something that's universally understood with the clients I was working with. And it was appreciated that I took the trouble to learn what the appropriate greeting of the country that I happened to be in was and took the trouble to use it.

I think it's very important when you're dealing with someone from China to understand of course, which the family name is and which is the given name. And typically, it is backwards from what we would do in the West. In other words, if someone's name were Mr. Wong and the name were Wong [UNINTELLIGIBLE] you would actually not refer to him as Mr. [UNINTELLIGIBLE] because that would be the same as calling me Mrs. Carolyn instead of dear Mrs. Pribble when you're writing a letter. So it's very important that you understand which names are family names and which names are the given names.

What's also very important is that Japan is a very hierarchical society. And so, when people meet each other, they have to find out what levels, what hierarchical levels they are. Whether they are above or below. And their speech patterns and their bowing is actually going to be a function of how they relate to the other person. So the business card is really the way to ascertain right away, immediately, right before you start, how you should behave. So it's crucial. And you have to treat it also as an extension of the person, which means don't drop it somewhere, don't put it in your back pocket because that's kind of meaning that you'd do the same thing with a person. So you have to treat the business card in a very formal way.

In Java it's more common as you travel in the countryside to be greeted with a profound greeting, which I find profound. Which is ma'am or sir, where are you from? And where are you going? This is the first question. It's all over the island of Java.

It is extremely questionable whether one should use first names right away. Americans are inclined to that and it establishes over-familiarity. Or in some cases, it may also imply well, use the more familiar form and that may imply lower class.

Conversation is another stamp needed on your cultural passport.

What should you talk about besides business? Sports? The family? What's proper and what's inappropriate when it comes to topics of conversation?

In Great Britain more so than in other European countries, you do not ask private. That is, family related questions. Issues which come up in the United States. You know, do you a large family or how many kids do you have and all those things. Which is a friendly inquiry from the point of view of an American. I would say in Britain, even more taboo than it is on the continent.

I think it there's one rule that I've learned, it's always a good idea to stay away from politics. You never know what political persuasion the people you're doing business are of. And politics are a mine field. I think this is possibly true in any country. Discussion of politics is a mine field.

My general advice to people going overseas is talk less and listen more. And it's OK if there is a silence of five seconds. It's not going to kill anybody. This is not TV. You can have five minutes of silence and you're going to survive. I think that society, that time is always going to be filled up with something doesn't apply outside the US.

Body language can include element such as eye contact, gestures, posture, and spatial distant.

In the US, we use gestures liberally. But when doing business internationally, the fewer gestures the better. Otherwise you may be saying something with your body that you didn't intend to say.

In Brazil, the A-OK sign, for us a hand signal A-OK. For Brazil, it's very, very rude and it could derail a well negotiated contract.

The Japanese on the other hand, interpret this gesture as money. This is their symbol for money.

I had meetings in Japan where I was asking a specific question and I asked a question, I got a yes answer. And middle of the conversation, like 45 minutes later I ask the question and I thought I was getting a hint that actually it was a no. At the end of the conversation, I knew it was a no. But I needed to ask three times. And if I just asked the first one time, I would have thought it was a yes. So again, there's a general principle here. Is that in most cultures, you have to read beyond the words.

The feet, this is something that I had trouble getting accustomed to when I came to the United States that people quite frequently sit with their feet up in front of them. So say you're at the football stadium and the seat in front of you is empty, quite frequently you would put your feet up and there they are.

Now in India, this is incredibly bad manners to have your feet relatively close to the face of any person is impolite. It implies disrespect.

Americans have this great sense of distance. Kind of this area around. And so if anybody comes even close to them, they expect the person to apologize. But you don't see that in Japan, you don't see that in Europe. People will shove you and say nothing.

The sensitivities of a particular country have a broad range of applications on your cultural passport.

One example of a cultural sensitivity might be deciding what to give as a hospitality gift to your international host.

In the US, a bouquet of chrysanthemums would be fine. But in many European countries, it's a flower associated with death.

In China and Taiwan for this matter, we try to avoid presenting your host a clock. Because by virtue of the play of words, [UNINTELLIGIBLE] which means death. Which in other words, inadvertently, you are wishing your host to get killed. Which is not appreciated at all.

Not everybody called Jean-Francois wants to be called Jean. In fact, very few people want to be called by something else. So it's a sensitivity in the sense that it may not play in the US. It am It may be irrelevant in the US. But in other cultures, it becomes very important. Names are very important in France. I don't know why, for whatever reason they're very important.

People ask my wife, what is your husband's nickname? And she says, well, he doesn't have any. So they say, well, what do you call him when you're in a hurry? And her answer is Jean-Francois. In other words, not everybody needs to have a nickname. Some people like to be called by their full name.

Now that's what I know because I mean I live it every day. But obviously, other countries have other sensitivities. So you kind of need to know what the hot button is.

I happened to be in the Middle East working on a project during the time of Ramzan. Now Ramzan is a time when muslim's fast from morning till the night. I learned it was Ramzan. I could not, I would not ask for a cup of coffee or a glass of water on the premises of this client in their presence because it would be inappropriate to be drinking and eating in their presence when they were fasting. So I think it's always useful to be aware of the kind of circumstances that the religion suggests.

It is very different from country to country. For instance, taking a bottle of wine to someone's home for dinner is the norm probably in Europe and in many places in the United States. But I don't think you would want to do that in a Muslim country because alcohol is forbidden, basically in those kind of situations. And so you would need to be sensitive towards that. I laugh at myself sometimes when I think I try to behave in a way that would make my grandmother proud. I simply would never wear shorts anywhere. I may do that in my own home in the United States, but in most other countries it's not appropriate. And it's not worth the hassle of finding out that the country that you're in it's not appropriate there.

Table manner are as different around the world as the kinds of food you'll be served.

Since a business meeting frequently includes a meal, it's important to know what to expect. You'll want to research the kinds of food you'll be served, how the culture views drinking alcohol, and other meal related customs.

Table manners are a hard thing for many Americans at least. We've been taught since the time we were tiny that you don't slurp your soup, that you chew with your mouth closed, and that many other kinds of things that would be considered very, very rude here are in fact, considered very gracious in other countries.

The first time I was in Korea for instance, one of my hosts was trying to explain to this American how important it is really to slurp your soup. Because that says to your host or hostess that you appreciate the work that they have done in preparing this meal and that you think it's very delicious, and really shows your gratitude and appreciation for it.

If you are looking at images of what France is about, you certainly would pick up the meal. You may pick up the football game for America, you would pick up a meal for the French. And very often-- this happens quite often-- Americans make a lot of faux pas because they come, they snack all day long. And they come to a French meal and they're not hungry.

Well you know, if your host is taking you to top restaurant and ordering a full meal, and you say you'll take a salad, right away it's the wrong thing to do. Because he's going to be eating his three-course meal while you eat your salad.

If he has chosen a carefully chosen bottle of wine, and you say you want to drink a Coke, right away that's a faux pas.

In the US, it's perfectly acceptable to conduct business over a meal. On the other hand, a social occasion such as a meal in some of the Asian cultures-- and this is very true in India, is an opportunity to show grace if you like, to show graciousness, and to receive graciousness. It's a way of making connections, a way of networking, besides merely a means of conducting business.

One thing that I think though, anytime you're anywhere in Asia before you travel there for the first time, you really need to learn how to use chopsticks. Most places, especially large cities, you can get a fork and you can ask for it and you will be given one. And in the major hotels of course, the international hotels would all have Western table service. But if you're actually going to smaller cities or to places that are not frequented by Westerners, you won't find forks. You won't find knives. Spoons you may find. Probably will. But you're just doing yourself a big favor by learning how to use chopsticks.

I was recently in China for almost three weeks and I never saw a fork the entire time I was there.

I have made it a rule whatever is put on the table is obviously edible if the others eat it. And well, in China and places like that, I do not inquire what I'm eating.

Gender awareness is another element to include in your cultural research.

Whether you're a businesswoman traveling alone or a businessman accompanied by your wife, it's important to be informed about how a particular culture views women.

In the Middle East, it was relatively easier, partly because I came highly recommended, so that helped a great deal.

In India, surprisingly, it was very easy. I think in India it was easier. It was much easier to be accepted as a professional. Being a woman there were fewer gender issues that I encountered as a management consultant working in India than I do as a professional woman in the United States. And I think that if I were to think about the causes for what that might be, in India, the more important set of issues are the class issues. So if you happen to have surmounted the class question, then the gender question is relatively irrelevant.

When I first started traveling internationally, it was something that I was concerned about. Because I had heard that if you were a woman traveling internationally that you would not have the same opportunities as a businessman, for instance. You would be excluded from certain meetings and certain events. I have not found that to be true. I did some homework on this before I went as well, and the people that I talked with all assured me that certainly in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China, they see many, many Western women and they understand that Western women are businesspeople as well.

I think that basically, I'm treated somewhat as a third gender. I think that I'm treated differently than women within that culture. That there is a different place and a different role for people.

The particular negotiating style of a country is a part of its business culture too.

You know the steps necessary for closing a deal when doing business in the United States. But in another country, those steps may be inappropriate. Without a little research, your international business negotiating may leave you feeling confused and frustrated.

There's a French thing that says you discuss business entre la poire et le fromage. That is, between the pear and the cheese. So the general rule is that you don't start discussing business till dessert.

But very often, it could be, for example, in Arab countries, you may have to have two or three social meetings before any business at all is transacted.

In Asia, no one wants to get in a disagreement with anybody. It's always the best to come to a nice understanding without anyone losing face. That's very important. And so it would be very unlikely that anyone would get into any kind of a major disagreement on the surface of things. However, you can go a long time without ever coming to any resolution and have it all still be very polite.

We have an expression about high context and low context cultures. Low context culture is where people say exactly what they mean. High context cultures is where you're supposed to get the clues from the setting, from the body language and the like about what is going on. Generally, the more high context the culture is, the longer it takes to start doing business.

Politely take your time, play it by the rules. The others talk about a contract when they are ready. So I wouldn't start it earlier. In China, you talk around things for days and days and nothing develops.

In Denmark and Sweden or in Germany, you are probably at the point within a day, or maybe even two hours.

Time of appointment varies greatly from one culture to another.

In the United States, arriving early or late makes a definite statement. And even though we're all using the same clock, another culture's perception of time may be very different.

In Mexico, Central and South America, the culture and the concept of time is a vertical relationship. A vertical. The time is now. They do not have the concept of future or past. This is a beautiful concept, a spiritual, a highly spiritual concept inherited from the Indians. And as such, what is now is now. And if we can do things today, fine and dandy. If not, there's always tomorrow.

In Africa, when I've been there, it's even much more difficult because often there isn't a system of telephoning that you can even use. You have to appear in person to set up your appointment for several days later. And if something happens to the person that you're supposed to meet, he has no way to call you either depending upon where you might be. So these things are very different.

In Mexico, usually the business day would go from 9:00 until 2:00. And then, maybe a two-hour break for the midday meal. And come back at 4:00 and work until 6:00 or 7:00. Well that's very unusual for us to deal with. And I think the thing you have to do before you go is really talk to people from that culture and find out what the norms are for time and really, how it would affect you so that you can be prepared for it and not be upset by it.

Maybe this is the most difficult thing to do. You know, the sense of what the time dimension is, where the conversation is going, whether we're getting closer. When to leave. When to stop talking. When to leave a party. When you stay too long. And this requires again, a very subtle understanding. Very subtle picking up of clues.

If you're used to a much more mechanistic sense of time, you're going to miss that.

Contracts. What to include in them and what not to include.

Your company and your company's legal staff are well versed in how to write contracts when doing business with another US company. But some of your international business associates may prefer contracts to be more or less open to interpretation and general, rather than detailed and precise.

In the US side, we need many more clauses in order to reduce liabilities than in Europe. So I would say US contracts tend to be much more specific. And the Europeans who do international business in the meantime have learned that and want to reduce their legal course and their liabilities to the extent possible.

When we were doing a contract with China, we had it written both in Chinese and English. And you need to have someone who's bilingual who can check to make sure that the language is the same in both of those particular areas, so that you're saying the same thing and signing the same thing.

A contract that carried greetings from Allah on it inserted in the proper manner, in the proper position [UNINTELLIGIBLE PHRASE] would be a signal to the person working on the contract took the trouble to do their homework to meet me halfway in terms of doing business.

Americans are used to doing business for people they don't know or don't like. Or I like it to move away tomorrow. So the contract becomes very important. But the contract means different things in different countries.

If you push a contract in somebody's face right from the beginning, you may actually hurt the relationship. Now, I'm not saying that you should do everything on basis of relationship with that contract. But there is a time when you bring the contract, which is different from the US. You bring the contract later. You need to build the relationship first and take time for that.

And finally, attitudes and values are a consideration when conducting cross cultural business.

Attitudes and values are possibly the most difficult cultural differences to learn. But it's very important to know what a certain culture values most highly. Is the price the bottom line? Or is contentment or self esteem more important?

I think it is probably useful for Americans to consider that materialism is a value that is not held in very high regard in many Eastern cultures. Spiritualism is on a relative scale, more important.

In America, we believe and I think rightfully so, we believe that materialism is an important value. It's part of being a market society. In some sense that can rub hosts in a far eastern environment and in an Asian environment the wrong way.

Americans jump into it right away and they are very direct. This is a very sincere society, where sincerity is more important than tact. In many other countries, tact is important than sincerity.

We're getting into values there. But I think that's very important. In many countries, it's more important not to hurt people's feelings than to tell the truth.

It's something that takes a long time to figure out that all of us are very different and things that are important to me being raised in the Midwest aren't at all important to someone who has been raised in India, for instance. The political systems are different, the values are very different. If you understand that everyone doesn't look at things in the same way you do, you're 90% of the way towards having a good experience wherever you go.

No one ever said that doing business globally would be easy. It'll take quite a bit of research. Read about other cultures. Talk with people whose culture is different from yours. Ask them for suggestions on conducting business successfully in their country. And remember, when you pack your bags to get some field experience in the global marketplace, along with everything else you're going to need, don't forget your cultural passport.