Category Archives: Cross Culture
Jack Welsh’s “Lebensweisheit” : The 10 Leadership Principles
Image by Getty Images via Daylife I read an interesting, short article that Peter Isackson wrote for the Intercultural Insights Group, he brought up the simple yet profound leadership principles that Jack Welsh developed in his time as CEO at … Continue reading
Can GOOG-411/US Conquer Foreign Accents?
Image via Wikipedia Can GOOG-411/US conquer foreign accents? Imagine an Indian, Frenchman or Chinese looking to call a local US business number using GOOG-411. Needless to say, it can become a very frustrating. If we think of a Chinese English … Continue reading
French Guru’s Advice – Jean-Louis Gassee’s “wise” words – en francais
Many months ago I ended doing the rounds of the foreign-born executives I talked to over 14 months here in the Silicon Valley because the book [They Made It!] with their interviews finished. Since I am having withdrawal symptoms and … Continue reading
Do you really want to send that email?
Image by Pesky Library via Flickr Don’t write bad emails. Here are some examples of emails I received: “Hi, I read your web site. I want to know what class you teach. I also want hear from you answer to … Continue reading
Our Worst Critics Prefer to Stay
Image by jackleg via Flickr Stephen J. Dubner [co-author of Freakonomics] had a contest: Write a six-word motto for the U.S! The winning motto was: Our Worst Critics Prefer to Stay (194 votes) The runners-up were: Caution! Experiment in Progress … Continue reading
Rush for H1-B Visas for 2008 – are there enough? We need these foreign professionals!
Image from Wikipedia The 2 tech greats Oracle (ORCL), Microsoft (MSFT) are trying to make Congress understand that they need to increase the amount of foreign skilled workers they let into the country under the H1-B Visa. [Source:http://www.siliconvalley.com/ci_8726242.htm] Once more … Continue reading
Um, like, you know, kind of, stuff….speech for the boardroom?
Often, when I work with younger Asian clients, I notice that their English is full of “fillers” such as the ubiquitous “like” and also “you know”, and “stuff”. In fact, I attended a Stanford Continuing Studies class a while ago … Continue reading
Gossip – An International or American phenomenon?
Image from WikipediaGossip is probably the least effective form of communication. Do the French or Spaniards do more of it? Are Americans less likely to pass along “bad” rumors? Do Chinese gossip, are Japanese or Indians also involved in gossiping … Continue reading
Network outside of your comfort zone
Image from Wikipedia Networking is a way of life for most Americans, it seems they start in Kindergarten and just keep on improving their networking skills. For example, a friend of mine, Samba Murthy, gave some sage advice, urging Indian … Continue reading