Rating: 5 out of 5
Is this one of the most significant books I’ve read this year? Probably! Ms Meyer’s experience—in which refreshingly she was quite often the one doing wrong—makes for great examples in a book full of theoretical comparisons. If I had one wish, it’s that the examples could have been more culturally diverse: e,g., trying to solve the same problem between Americans and Germans and Japanese and Australians, etc., however this is a minor quibble in an otherwise excellent work.
So what’s the premise? If our cultural background is enough to make us think, reason, and speak in a specific way, then the same is also the case for our neighbour. And if we two no longer come from the approximate same background, these differences can cause huge gaps in what is being said and understood in either side. Working daily with people from the US, Italy, and Spain, this is something I can relate to.
While a lot of what I read isn’t something I can put directly to use today, it is something I can try to grasp better in my future communications. Of course, the one thing I can put to use is that I make sure that someone I talk to understands exactly what I mean. While repetitive and not strictly necessary for my own benefit, it seems to be the least that I could do to ensure that both parties benefit.
What I would like to add is that the figures, though interesting, are also infuriating as the graphs sometimes add a (nation) culture into the graphs only to remove it from the next one. Consistent information is best in my book, pun not intended, so this left me a bit puzzled trying to figure out the full story. But nevertheless, this made for a good read with a number of important points that I wish more would recognize. Is this one of the most significant books I’ve read this year? Probably! Ms Meyer’s experience—in which refreshingly she was quite often the one doing wrong—makes for great examples in a book full of theoretical comparisons. If I had one wish, it’s that the examples could have been more culturally diverse: e.g., trying to solve the same problem between Americans and Germans and Japanese and Australians, etc., however this is a minor quibble in an otherwise excellent work.
So what’s the premise? If our cultural background is enough to make us think, reason, and speak in a specific way, then the same is also the case for our neighbour. And if we two no longer come from the approximate same background, these differences can cause huge gaps in what is being said and understood in either side. Working daily with people from the US, Italy, and Spain, this is something I can relate to.
While a lot of what I read isn’t something I can put directly to use today, it is something I can try to grasp better in my future communications. Of course, the one thing I can put to use is that I make sure that someone I talk to understands exactly what I mean. While repetitive and not strictly necessary for my own benefit, it seems to be the least that I could do to ensure that both parties benefit.
What I would like to add is that the figures, though interesting, are also infuriating as the graphs sometimes add a (nation) culture into the graphs only to remove it from the next one. Consistent information is best in my book, pun not intended, so this left me a bit puzzled trying to figure out the full story. But nevertheless, this made for a good read with a number of important points that I wish more would recognize.
