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.Conservative readers from other cultures may be even less forgiving of questionable behavior and images than prospective employers.In today’s way of thinking, Google is your résumé.Try to keep it clean and respectable.By the way, if you’re applying for a job in a different country, the manner in which you present yourself may take a radically different form, even if it’s a Western European culture.Find out how to do that in an appropriate résumé.Chapter 14Adapting Business English to Specific CountriesIn This ChapterConnecting across culturesWriting well to China, Russia, France, Japan, India, Mexico, Germany, and BrazilAvoiding mistakes and paying cultural courtesiesIt’s a big world out there – full of countries developing their economies and, to varying degrees, eager to establish business relationships with other countries.Today’s easy communication systems, together with growing acceptance of English as the world’s business language, can disguise the deep gulches that still exist between cultures.A first imperative when communicating with people outside your own country is to become more aware of your own values and the filters through which you see the world.For example, Americans aim to be concise and direct and value individualism.Many other cultures have different priorities – family, relationships, a society of consensus, perhaps.In Chapter 13 I provide general principles of cross-cultural writing and the thinking behind it.In this chapter I give you some specifics for eight sample countries chosen to demonstrate different cultural perspectives, and because they are likely to be of interest.I also note the specific contributors at the end of each section, excepting several who preferred not to be credited.Don’t read this chapter looking for comprehensive information or formulas.After all, a dozen different people in the US can come up with different ideas about what’s important about writing business English.* * *Tailoring Business EnglishSurprisingly little has been written about how to tailor business English to particular countries, I decided to seek information and ideas directly from people who are part of other cultures or have lived within them, write often in English, and are sensitive to language and cultural differences.I found sources through friends, business contacts, the For Dummies author network, professional associations and research.I first asked all my contributors whether they agree with the following basic writing guidelines:Use simple short sentencesAvoid English-language expressions and abbreviations non-English speaking native might not understandAvoid contractionsUse basic words rather than long complicated onesKeep sentences and paragraphs shortAvoid humour that may be misinterpretedMost agree with all the points, and so they form the basis of my general guidelines for writing in English for a global audience (see Chapter 13 for specifics).Where they didn’t agree or took exception, I note in the country’s coverage in this chapter.* * *I recommend reading through the whole chapter to glean helpful strategies for communicating more effectively with other people throughout the world.Use the ideas to stir your own consciousness of how perspectives differ and figure out the best questions to ask to help you create successful interactions with people from any country.The Internet levels the playing field enormously.While big internationally known companies may be more readily received than small players in many environments, the opportunities for small and middle-sized enterprises to build productive relationships are new and real.Writing by itself is unlikely to accomplish this.But the written word is often the best and most practical way to make initial contacts.Knowledge, thought, and above all, respect, helps open doors.The advice I give here is in broad strokes, and I never intend to slip into stereotyping.Remember that the differences among regions and individuals in a non-native English-speaking country are often considerable – just like in your own native country.All Russians or Brazilians do not think alike or have the same expectations.Always find out as much as you can about the particular person you’re writing to, as I explain in Chapter 2, as well as her country, region or ethnic group.Her position, education, values, priorities and many more factors are important to shaping successful messages.Writing to ChinaThe US is a powerful cultural influence in China, thanks to American movies, websites and books.The Chinese are comfortable with American-style English.In general, however, expect a warmer reception for messages written in Chinese.A language difference: conjunction words are traditionally not much used in Chinese.Sentences are short and readers are left to figure out the relation between sentences themselves, which leads to ambiguity.Younger Chinese, however, are beginning to write long English-style sentences with conjunctions, especially when writing in English.To be clear, use words like ‘therefore’, ‘because’, and ‘so’.Find a good connection before approaching a Chinese business person.Non-Chinese business people are almost certainly best off seeking help for legal and registration issues, and hiring an agent to protect their technology.Practical tips for email and lettersThe proper form of address depends on your relation to the reader.For friends, colleagues, or people you know, first names are acceptable [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]