Lecture Notes Colin Moon April 14, 2016
Colin Moon, speaker, author and anthropologist:
Cross-Border Communication Colin Moon is an anthropologist and has lived in many countries, studying firsthand our differences and similarities. He concludes that most people are interested in looking at other cultures, but in anthropology that’s the second step. The first step is looking at your own culture. We have to understand ourselves first, we need self-awareness, in order to understand others.
There are some things that are part of human nature and that have nothing to do with culture. Every culture has for example dancing and music, and a ceremony when someone dies. Another human thing is to give gifts, and humans all over the world have the same way of talking to small children. Other aspects have to do with culture and culture is learnt, for example how to have a conversation. If you break a cultural rule, most of the time people won’t hate you for it, because they know you’re a foreigner, so the emotional level is low. Only if it’s about core values reactions will be stronger. According to Colin Moon, the first seven years of our lives are formative years. That’s when culture is learnt.
Start with looking at your own culture In anthropology there are no truths. Colin Moon tells that most people are interested in looking at other cultures, but in anthropology that’s the second step. The first step is looking at your own culture. We have to understand ourselves first in order to understand others – and to be able to explain our own culture.
About Colin Moon Colin Moon is an expert in cross-border teamwork and one of Scandinavia’s most appreciated business speakers. In 2012 Colin Moon was named Business Speaker of the Year by Talarforum (Årets Talare 2012, Man). Colin Moon is from London, UK, but has lived abroad for more than 30 years. Presently he lives in Stockholm, Sweden. He is author of the book ‘Sweden – The Secret Files’, which has sold more than 200,000 copies over the world. For more information about Colin Moon, see www.collinmoon.com.
Swedes are for example known to have a lot of meetings. In Sweden there is also a high tolerance for colleagues leaving early. According to Swedes, it’s bad manners to interrupt, whereas most of the rest of the world interrupt each other all the time or involve in conversation.
Some cultural differences The Nordic cultures are fairly similar but they’re not quite alike. When we work with people from similar cultures we often skip the step about differences, but a better approach is to be aware of the fact that others may not be exactly like ourselves. According to Colin Moon, there are in fact four ways to get things done in the Nordic countries. In brief, Swedes like to process and discuss things before they start implementing, Danes work more iteratively, Finns start doing immediately and Norwegians may be slow to start, but finally put all the forces together. Typical of German business culture is that people often tell you exactly what they think. And they give you lots of facts and figures. The Brits, on the other hand, have a stronger tendency to say what they believe you want to hear. Americans want entertainment and emotions.
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Colin Moon
If you have a meeting with people from a different culture, you should be yourself, but also think about what will turn them on, says Colin Moon. For Germans, the more information, the better. If you hold a presentation to Americans, start with something entertaining and emotional. Swedes, for their part, want to hear that it’s modern and unique.
Study: Should the boss have all the answers? In 2006 Time Magazine asked a question on the Internet: Should the boss have all the answers? Half a million answered and the answers showed some obvious cultural differences: Should the boss have all the answers? • Japan 78% • China 73% • Italy 66% • Germany 46% • Poland 38% • UK 27% • Finland 23% • Denmark 21% • Norway 13% • Sweden 7% Most organisations worldwide are hierarchical, whereas organisations in the Nordic countries are relatively flat. When flat organisations communicate with hierarchical organisations things don’t always work so smoothly. If the boss of the hierarchical organisation asks a question, the boss of the flat organisation may very well delegate the question, or involve a lot of employees. Finally, a different person may answer to the boss in the hierarchical organisation, which the boss in the hierarchical organisation may find strange. If you understand the differences, communication will be smoother.
Lecture Notes, Kompetenskortet
Cross-Border Communication!
Key takeaways • Start with looking at your own culture. We need self-awareness in order to understand others. • The second step is to learn about other cultures and being curious about others. • Remember there’s always a reason why people behave as they do.
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