standing here for a long while.”
The bartender, still not fully understanding Pierre, made his way over to the end of the bar where the woman was standing.
“What can I help you with?” the bartender asked Pierre. Pierre looked over at the woman and the bartender's gaze shifted over to her as well.
“May I please have a mixed green salad with grilled chicken and salad dressing on the side?” the woman asked.
The bartender scribbled something in his notepad and walked away. The woman turned to Pierre and said, “Thank you! I could well be standing there for another 20 minutes!”
Pierre smirked. “You might still be standing there for a while. I ordered my food a long time ago and I still haven't gotten it, but you're welcome! I am Pierre. Where are you from?”
“I'm Wendy,” responded the woman. “I am living and working in Dallas, but I originally came from China.”
Pierre couldn't hide his excitement. “Wow! Would you like to join us while you wait for your food?”
She blushed with slight embarrassment, but said, “Yes! I'm on a four-hour delay here, so it would be great to share some company.”
“It's funny because we were just talking about working in English. You may have your own stories,” Pierre shared as they approached the table where Toshi and Liz sat.
“Liz and Toshi, this is Wendy. Wendy, this is Liz and Toshi. Toshi is from Japan but is working in the U.S. Liz is from the U.S. but works in Brazil. And Wendy here works in Texas but is from China!”
“Hi, Wendy! I'm so glad you are joining us! Like Pierre said, I am originally from the U.S., from New Jersey actually, and I moved to Brazil a few months ago. But my next assignment is in Shanghai. I was wondering if I need to take some courses to understand the Chinese culture – I'm used to working with international people, but would you advise me to take some courses in the U.S.?
“Yes,” offered Wendy politely. “Any cultural program that you can take is wonderful. In my company, we have actually had a hard time finding programs for international professionals. If you can find one, I would definitely recommend taking it. I am going to be starting an accent modification program in two weeks.”
“Really?” Pierre asked. “But your accent is so perfect – why would you waste your time in that program?”
“Well, a lot of people say that to me, but I…well, I was nominated for it within my company, and that's really the only program that my company offers. I really need to improve my communication skills,” Wendy replied. “I did take a two-day course on living and working in the U.S. It was fun, but I am not sure how much of that information was useful.”
Pierre fired back, “I find it very odd that you should take an accent modification class, because you are so fluent. It sounds crazy to me!” He now tried to bring everyone into the conversation. “Liz, I have been working in so many countries – in Japan, Thailand, Argentina – all over the world, and I'm not sure that I – well, I have taken courses to understand cultures, but they're really so superficial. What I understand is that there is an international code and there is a certain behavior that works pretty well in every culture. I am not an expert, Toshi, on Japanese culture, and in a two-day course I wouldn't become an expert! What are your thoughts, Toshi, about the culture course?”
Toshi thought for a moment, and then replied, “I think it is very helpful to learn about other people and how they think and behave, and maybe my company has given some interesting courses, but I always found that what people say about American culture and what is actually happening in a culture are two very different things. I would ask people who live in America about things that were said in the class, and they would disagree with what the trainer was telling us. It was a bit confusing for me, just like with the brainstorming I was talking about earlier – knowing that in America people brainstorm didn't make a difference for me when I was actually put in that situation. So it is not so helpful.”
Wendy jumped in. “I was in a program once where they were speaking to Americans about doing business in China. My experience was not so good. I am from China. I grew up there, and all my family is there. The teacher was saying things about China that were so untrue and insulting. They were all based on generalization – China is a big country! I agree, classes like that not only do not give any skills, but they often do worse by giving the wrong first impression for people who haven't even been there before. It often also reinforces stereotypes and makes them stronger – it really can put more barriers in place. Now sometimes I feel that people look at me differently and think of me as ‘Chinese’ in a stereotypical way in my company.”
Pierre shook his head in understanding, “Yeah, exactly. Although France is a smaller country, I pick up books on ‘the French’ and it's just a caricature. It's not very helpful. They should not be talking about big stereotypes and should instead be paying more attention to the relationship you have with people. All of these courses are trying to get outsiders to become like the others. If you try to fit in like that, then you will probably never succeed.”
Toshi waited a few minutes until there was a natural pause in the conversation and added, “Yes, yes, yes; you could never become a Japanese.” Everyone broke into spontaneous laughter. Toshi smiled, hoping he had not insulted anyone.
Liz, who had kept fairly quiet and listened to the struggles of her newfound friends, asked a question that seemed obvious to the rest of them: “Do you all have to give presentations in front of people in English?”
Pierre was the first to respond. “Yes, of course! I spend probably a third of my time making presentations in English.”
Wendy followed. “I wish I had a better ability to do it, but I just got promoted and I will be speaking in front of native English speakers on a regular basis. My feedback from my boss is that I speak so quietly that nobody hears me. I'd rather hide behind the podium. I hope my accent class can help me with this, though.”
Pierre asked Wendy, “Are you more concerned with presenting in front of native English speakers or with non-native speakers, or is it the same for both?”
“I think it is the same for both. Where I am in the company, the value is for the leaders to be able to speak well in public, and I think that this is where my failure will come,” Wendy answered. “I think it is very stressful, and it seems so much easier for European colleagues. They learned English much earlier, and somehow it seems to be easier for them. I find it difficult. I also have such a small vocabulary…”
Pierre interrupted Wendy. “Is it easier for you to present in your native language, Toshi and Wendy? Is it easier for you than having to present in an international context?”
“Well, I have never worked in my native language,” Wendy responded. “So, I think it is easier for me in English. I have confidence in Mandarin, but I've been in Dallas for 15 years, so all of my presentation experience is in English.”
“I give presentations in Japanese to colleagues in Japan often,” said Toshi. “It is easier. I still prepare a lot, but it is much easier to present my thoughts and my research in Japanese. In fact, I'm on my way to give a presentation in Japan, and I'm looking forward to doing it in Japanese.”
Wendy continued to discuss her struggles with presenting in both English and Mandarin with Toshi. Liz leaned over to Pierre and whispered, “Where is your hamburger?”
Pierre looked around. “I was just wondering the same thing! Probably in the same place as your snack menu.”
Both
