[Annotation blog post #1] Bridging The Culture Gap - Penny Carté and Chris Fox

1. Writer’s main point is mostly about intercultural comparison. When having business with international clients, which have different cultural, and beliefs, it’s better for businessmen/businesswomen try to put themselves in their partner’s position in any situation. Knowing yourself and learn other’s beliefs will help you in communication and avoid the misunderstanding and false stereotypes.

2. a) [f]ocusing on yourself and your own agenda is the major block to successful communication, whatever context you’re operating in (91)

b)“[p]ut yourself in their shoes (position) at every stage.” (91)

c)“You don’t see something until you have the right metaphor to perceive it.” (Thomas Kuhn) (89)

d)“It just seems wrong to you because you’re looking at it from your own cultural standpoint.” (67)

3. The idea that your point of view is not universal is concerned in the reading I read so far. And in business, especially with the international trading, learning others’ beliefs is necessary. The international clients have their own norms, beliefs, culture that they think is right, and they use those to treat/communicate/respond to other people. From this source, the writer also show how to respond to specific cultural (Western, Asian,etc.,) The writer gives “the guide to international business communication” in specific cases.

4. The interested topic that I found in this book is about the international business communication. Communication is absolutely important in business. Even if you don’t do business with foreigners, the people in the same country also have different cultural standpoints. As a specialization of business, human resource manager is one of the careers I concern. So I think it is really helpful if I could understand how people interact, communicate with each other, especially between people have cross culture.

5. The book provides the skills, understandings from the consultants, who have first hand experiences in working across “linguistic and cultural barriers.” The authors of this book are two of the directors of a company whose expertise lies in communication, so they probably are experts in their field.

Communication is one of the required skills in business, which is my main topic. And as an international student, whether I will come back to my home country or decide to stay here, my cultural standpoints are affected. If I come back, my beliefs will be different from when I stayed in my home country years ago, because the norms in America are different from Vietnam, and even I try to maintain my own culture, there must be few changes, such as more open-minded, individualism oriented. But if I choose to stay in America and work, I still have my cultural beliefs in the depth of my heart. And in the next post, I will mention and focus more in intercultural business communication, which go more detail in my topic for communication in business.

Work cited:

Carté, Penny, and Chris J. Fox. Bridging the Culture Gap: a Practical Guide to Business Communication. London: Kogan Page, 2004. Print.