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Abstract

as at one time? How about the giant Sony video screens? These are great and memorable life experiences. Times Square has nothing on Ginza or Shibuya Ekimae.</p><p id="5872">You are on the lookout for unique experiences. Keep a journal. Make a record. What impressed you? What challenged your understanding? Build your trove of international stuff.</p><h2 id="d375">Magazines, newspapers, news channels</h2><p id="3517">A great way to immerse yourself in different points of view is by reading. These days, everything is online. You can read newspapers in Seoul, Paris, Montreal, and London with just a few clicks. Note what events make the headlines. Headlines are there to make an impression. Google translate is ready when you are.</p><figure id="ec58"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*_-J3ulZ9WR5A62vPNCtkeQ.png"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><h2 id="5537">What is the news today?</h2><p id="42f4">Did a big event happen? Get perspective by cruising the paper and magazines. If you are a linguist, immerse yourself by watching a sitcom stream in a new language. Listen carefully. Jot down words you recognize. The visual will help you understand what is happening. Compare and contrast the same headline in Spain, UAE, India, Poland, and Singapore.</p><p id="977d" type="7">If you think you will have trouble with the pronunciation of a person’s name. Simply ask them to teach you how to say it!</p><h2 id="48b3">Let’s talk about it</h2><p id="a825">Start a discussion group. Invite a diverse group and ask the participants to invite their friends. Pick a topic with the goal of greater understanding. Discuss how the event affects your life or your business. Ask for thoughts and feelings. The media spins people, culture, government, and business stories differently depending on who and where they are. Ask each participant for their take on events.</p><h2 id="a57d">International networking</h2><p id="166d">Building a natural network of global minds is easier than you think. <b>Medium.com</b> is a great starting point since so many writers are available to you and locate themselves around the globe. Everyone knows <b>LinkedIn</b> is a source of international contacts. Have you heard of <b>Internations</b>? It’s an invite-only ex-pat network calling 420 cities home. I will send you an invitation if you are curious and would like to join. It’s free. Use my contact details below.</p><h2 id="d7fb">Take a class</h2><p id="2eef">I did a MOOC a few years ago. No less than 14,000 participants! I met people from everywhere. The bustling comment board with networking and introductions got everyone together. I am still in touch with many of those classmates today. I also developed a business contact with one of the professors.</p><p id="b4f7">I chose coursework to learn about the world economic system. I took classes about European Law, global demand for oil & gas, and managing an NGO. There is something to be gained from learning how events in one economy affect another. Industries and economies are interconnected. No effort to educate yourself is wasted.</p><h2 id="1f08">Birth, school, marriage, and death</h2><p id="c707">Four life events carry culture. Families in different cultures celebrate these events in distinct ways. Comparing cha

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racteristics will tell you a great deal about life in a different culture. How does the family celebrate the birth of a baby? What traditions are followed when the young one ventures off to their first day of school? Learn more about marriage traditions and what happens when a beloved family passes away. Other events carry culture, but none quite like these four. Culture is a particular way of life of a group of people.</p><figure id="6f45"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*NHieUjbZ6Sh5J5N7C34fYA.jpeg"><figcaption>via Unsplash by Nareeta Martin</figcaption></figure><h2 id="add8">Money circles the globe non-stop</h2><p id="eeb4">Look into how capital and payments flow around the globe 24/7. Realize that a global carmaker, for instance, does business in 24 time zones. Their operation never ceases. There is no close of business at the end of the day. They probably needed to invent a differential calculus equation to figure out how much money they made in any given period. Inquire into how a multinational in Ireland differs from one in Russia.</p><h2 id="7d51">Fulfilling the unmet need</h2><p id="292e">People thought he was crazy. After grad school, a friend of mine moved himself to Prague. He started a chain of coin laundry shops in the city. Instead of listening to naysayers, he chose to listen to the voice of his potential customers. He was thinking about how he could best meet a need. The priority was to understand the viewpoint of his customer. He adopted the local business practices and cultural norms of his new city and made it work. He had a going business in no time. Research, adjust, execute!</p><h2 id="b2e2">Calendar of culture</h2><p id="0850">Get that notebook out. Every month learn about a different country. Keep a journal. Learn everything you can about that country during the month. Make notes of what interests you. Get your yellow highlighter working on things you want to refer to later. Make lists. Compare and contrast. Write down the names of pop stars, tv shows, city names, holidays, food, and greetings and leave-takings.</p><p id="65d8">Make notes and a list of verbs. Enter them in a spreadsheet with your other countries. The result is a handy guide that will create endless conversation material when you chat or zoom with new friends around the globe! You will have a fun reference when you need to say RUN in Bulgarian, Korean, Portuguese, or French. Don’t forget to enter the local currency name for each country on your spreadsheet.</p><p id="53d7">No matter how you are involved in international topics, growing your awareness is worthwhile. You are a step ahead if you have lived in a different country or traveled to far off places. If you haven’t yet, you can still discover the world and meet interesting people along the way.</p><p id="8bb7">They say the man who departs is not the same man who arrives!</p><p id="7d70">Ganbare!</p><p id="1920">*** *** </p><p id="7965">Portland-based writer/journalist. Covering luxury goods, exotic cars, CJ-CX, horology, lifestyle, & workplace issues.</p><p id="1d60">Comments welcome! [email protected]. Twitter @realsawyertms</p><p id="d547">Copyright © 2020 AstonBell Media</p><p id="9deb">All rights reserved.</p><p id="9e60"> *** ***</p></article></body>

12 Steps to International Savvy

Increase your understanding of the world

You are just off the plane, in the car, and headed to your hotel. Calgary had 33 inches of snow yesterday and the day before. The weather is cold in January. You feel like a quick snack and spot Tim Horton’s on the corner. Time for a bowl of chili, a coffee, and a donut. The nice person on the other side of the counter says looney and a tooney. You knew it was time to pay but did not catch that he was referring to money. Time to level up your international game!

No one expects you to know everything. Learning about a new place is the best part of travel for many. It takes a while to get your international legs. If you are a world traveler, you already know the drill. If you are not a globe-trotter, take advantage of your resources. The internet brings us all closer.

Increasing your international savvy is a good investment in time. Not only will you be exposed to new places and ideas, but you will also feel prepared when you get out there and start meeting people. Gaining a broader view of things is a tremendous benefit to business people at all levels.

12 steps to savvy

Learn how others think of your country and the role it plays in the world. Consider the other point of view. Hold off on your opinions and feelings to make room for some perspective. Every interpretation has merits. Give some space for new ideas to take root. You do not have to agree with every detail. It is about increasing awareness in a complex world. Take a step back, let some new ideas rattle around.

This is the day of the expanding man

The first step is to expand your thinking and knowledge about the globe. If you are regularly on zoom calls with Berlin, Hong Kong, or Buenos Aires, you have a starting place built-in. Begin by leaving your comfort zone. Look at things from a different point of view. Economic developments and worldwide trends never take a day off. There is never a shortage of things to take in.

Reach out

Identify those in your network or organization from other cultures and engage them. The goal is to see things from their point of view. How do they interpret an event? How does it differ from what you think? Ask questions about business and social topics.

Look for differences, ask more questions. Compare and contrast thoughts, feelings, and opinions. Remember your conversation partner may not be comfortable expressing themselves right away. Don’t press, demand, or insist. Friendly not familiar will get you off on the right foot.

What surprises you?

Imagine your first trip to Tokyo. You grab your umbrella and get off the Yamanote line at Shibuya station. You meet your friend at the Hachiko statue, rub his nose, then off to explore. Did watching 3,000 people cross the intersection all at the same time surprise you? Have you seen that many umbrellas at one time? How about the giant Sony video screens? These are great and memorable life experiences. Times Square has nothing on Ginza or Shibuya Ekimae.

You are on the lookout for unique experiences. Keep a journal. Make a record. What impressed you? What challenged your understanding? Build your trove of international stuff.

Magazines, newspapers, news channels

A great way to immerse yourself in different points of view is by reading. These days, everything is online. You can read newspapers in Seoul, Paris, Montreal, and London with just a few clicks. Note what events make the headlines. Headlines are there to make an impression. Google translate is ready when you are.

What is the news today?

Did a big event happen? Get perspective by cruising the paper and magazines. If you are a linguist, immerse yourself by watching a sitcom stream in a new language. Listen carefully. Jot down words you recognize. The visual will help you understand what is happening. Compare and contrast the same headline in Spain, UAE, India, Poland, and Singapore.

If you think you will have trouble with the pronunciation of a person’s name. Simply ask them to teach you how to say it!

Let’s talk about it

Start a discussion group. Invite a diverse group and ask the participants to invite their friends. Pick a topic with the goal of greater understanding. Discuss how the event affects your life or your business. Ask for thoughts and feelings. The media spins people, culture, government, and business stories differently depending on who and where they are. Ask each participant for their take on events.

International networking

Building a natural network of global minds is easier than you think. Medium.com is a great starting point since so many writers are available to you and locate themselves around the globe. Everyone knows LinkedIn is a source of international contacts. Have you heard of Internations? It’s an invite-only ex-pat network calling 420 cities home. I will send you an invitation if you are curious and would like to join. It’s free. Use my contact details below.

Take a class

I did a MOOC a few years ago. No less than 14,000 participants! I met people from everywhere. The bustling comment board with networking and introductions got everyone together. I am still in touch with many of those classmates today. I also developed a business contact with one of the professors.

I chose coursework to learn about the world economic system. I took classes about European Law, global demand for oil & gas, and managing an NGO. There is something to be gained from learning how events in one economy affect another. Industries and economies are interconnected. No effort to educate yourself is wasted.

Birth, school, marriage, and death

Four life events carry culture. Families in different cultures celebrate these events in distinct ways. Comparing characteristics will tell you a great deal about life in a different culture. How does the family celebrate the birth of a baby? What traditions are followed when the young one ventures off to their first day of school? Learn more about marriage traditions and what happens when a beloved family passes away. Other events carry culture, but none quite like these four. Culture is a particular way of life of a group of people.

Money circles the globe non-stop

Look into how capital and payments flow around the globe 24/7. Realize that a global carmaker, for instance, does business in 24 time zones. Their operation never ceases. There is no close of business at the end of the day. They probably needed to invent a differential calculus equation to figure out how much money they made in any given period. Inquire into how a multinational in Ireland differs from one in Russia.

Fulfilling the unmet need

People thought he was crazy. After grad school, a friend of mine moved himself to Prague. He started a chain of coin laundry shops in the city. Instead of listening to naysayers, he chose to listen to the voice of his potential customers. He was thinking about how he could best meet a need. The priority was to understand the viewpoint of his customer. He adopted the local business practices and cultural norms of his new city and made it work. He had a going business in no time. Research, adjust, execute!

Calendar of culture

Get that notebook out. Every month learn about a different country. Keep a journal. Learn everything you can about that country during the month. Make notes of what interests you. Get your yellow highlighter working on things you want to refer to later. Make lists. Compare and contrast. Write down the names of pop stars, tv shows, city names, holidays, food, and greetings and leave-takings.

Make notes and a list of verbs. Enter them in a spreadsheet with your other countries. The result is a handy guide that will create endless conversation material when you chat or zoom with new friends around the globe! You will have a fun reference when you need to say RUN in Bulgarian, Korean, Portuguese, or French. Don’t forget to enter the local currency name for each country on your spreadsheet.

No matter how you are involved in international topics, growing your awareness is worthwhile. You are a step ahead if you have lived in a different country or traveled to far off places. If you haven’t yet, you can still discover the world and meet interesting people along the way.

They say the man who departs is not the same man who arrives!

Ganbare!

*** *** ***

Portland-based writer/journalist. Covering luxury goods, exotic cars, CJ-CX, horology, lifestyle, & workplace issues.

Comments welcome! [email protected]. Twitter @realsawyertms

*** *** ***