Consideration is Key- Lucy Martin

I’d like to open up a discussion on real experience and the realities of walking in someone else’s shoes. I was working the other day and a customer came in and ordered some food. Upon realizing that there was a 50 cent charge for the condiment side he wanted, he developed an attitude and declined the condiment with a statement about the price being outrageous. I shrugged it off at the time as an unreasonable customer, but it did get me thinking. He really has no room to complain about something he likely knows nothing about. Sure we all complain about the prices of things these days, but you have to consider a business owner. The main goal of a business is to make a profit. Take the food business as an example; the owner has to purchase all the necessary items for the store. Therefore, that owner needs to price these items higher than what he/she originally paid in order to make a profit. So looking back, I think it was out of line for that customer to come into a place of business and expect certain items to be free because he does not like the price. My opinion is that he would have a different outlook if he were running that business and saw what it takes to make a good profit. I give this example because I think it very closely applies to cultural knowledge and understanding.

I regularly hear and see a lot of opinions of other cultures. I have made and voiced my own opinions at times. But the reality is, these opinions, statements, actions, etc. against or in favor of other cultures need to be made on a foundation of knowledge and true understanding. Our text looks at the Vietnam War dialogue cited in McNamara et al. (1999, p. 91) that considers two very different perspectives on the objectives in the Vietnam war from an American Colonel and a Vietnamese Colonel (as cited in Moran, Harris, & Moran, 2011). This shows that, while we all may have our opinions on the Vietnam War, it is important to consider the realities of both sides. However, gaining an understanding does not mean taking one side or the other, it means being educated before forming thoughts and opinions. Without education on other cultures, there is the risk of ethnocentric behavior.

Without an appreciation and acceptance of the differences between cultures, ethnocentric behavior can set in and lead a person to believe that their culture is paramount to other cultures (Moran et al., 2011). Opening your mind to another culture can be difficult, but it can open many doors in terms of what you can gain from cultural relationships (Moran et al., 2011). Global leaders can profoundly benefit from cultural open-mindedness because it means looking at the positive benefits of diversity (Moran et al., 2011). Our text summarizes this idea well in the following statement, “Cultural understanding may minimize the impact of culture shock and maximize intercultural experiences, as well as increase professional development and organizational effectiveness” (Moran et al., 2011, p. 28). However, it is not always easy to consider information that conflicts with our strong opinions, ideals, values, etc.

I was struck by the Herald Tribune article by Nicholas D. Kristof about how people tend to block conflicting information (as cited in Moran et al., 2011). His article expresses how people tend to agree that differing opinions is healthy, but when the time comes, they block out these differing opinions and safeguard their long held beliefs (as cited in Moran et al., 2011). This reminded me of a talk radio session I was listening to the other day. An individual called in and told the host how much she appreciated his show but she was sorry to report that she did not agree with him on the specific topic at hand. This prompted the host to let all his listeners know that he welcomes a difference of opinion. He said that if we all agreed on everything then life would be boring. I think this is an extremely valid point to remember, especially when considering and learning about other cultures. You may not agree with all the information you take in, but it is important to take it in none-the-less.

One big take-away from this week’s lesson is that it is more beneficial to work with differences than against them. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to accept all differences, but you can use them to make educated decisions and form sound opinions and thoughts. Sometimes when I find myself in the same disgruntled position as that customer, I try to stop and consider the other side of things. This consideration gives me time to look at a different perspective and consider my choices and thoughts on the matter. I think this step is important for global leaders when looking at other cultures. They have to consider each culture from many different angles in order to gain a full and substantial understanding. This understanding is so important in the interconnected and globally expanding environment that we live in.

References

McNamara, R.S., Blight, J. G., & Brigham, R. K. (1999). Argument without end (p. 191). New York: Public Affairs.

Moran, R. T., Harris, P. R., & Moran, S. V. (2011). Chapter 1: Global leaders and culture. Managing cultural differences: Global leadership strategies for cross-cultural business success (8th ed.) (p. 2-36). Oxford, UK: Elsevier Inc.