When we are dealing with people in other countries, it is important to take note of little vital information pertaining to their culture, language and business ethics. It is embarrassing when you make a phone call on your working day to an overseas client or potential customer who is having work holiday. Yep! And this can be very serious matter if you are dealing with a very important client. As it has occurred to my network of business friends overseas, so I thought it might be useful to write about this here.

Asians are known to celebrate different forms of religion and legendary events. In one religion, there can be many sects. In one race, there can be many ethnic groups of people who speak many dialects. In one language, there can be many accents of the spoken form and many rules of the written form (e.g. simplified or traditional Chinese, Malay in Romanised alphabets or in Jawi.) It is so mind boggling if you try to understand why and how come people come to celebrate certain days for seemingly no apparent reason.

Yet, you cannot expect people to follow your ways of doing things in your world. Do what the Roman’s do, as they say. Imagine calling on your Muslim Malay friend during the fasting month. You are not a Muslim so you don’t practise the fast. But your friend does. How would you organise your day around his schedule? Would you insist on having a conference call at the time when he is supposed to break his fast. Do you know of the fasting hours and how long it is supposed to last?

Imagine calling on your Chinese friend who is a Buddhist? Where would you arrange to have dinner with him? Would you mind having only vegetarian meals? Do you know anything about Buddhism or how Buddhism is practiced by a Chinese person? 

The essence of Asian business success lies in them upholding their strong beliefs in religion, culture and tradition. Money is made because people celebrate religious, cultural and traditional events. Does your Asian friend or business friend practise a religion? Knowing the religious practices help you better prepared for topics to be discussed. You cannot hope to achieve much on a fasting month when all Muslims are fasting. For instance, in Indonesia, all businesses are closed for at least one week before and after the end of the fasting month. 

Be informed and keep updated of designated national, public and school holidays of the country of your potential client. If you can’t find this information on the internet, simply request from your client or customer in order to help them better. Or ask your company’s representative to send you a copy of this information. Impress your Asian customer with your knowledge of important dates in his religion, culture and country. 

The Wikipedia gives quite a huge list of holidays by country. Click here. You should also verify these dates directly with your Asian sources. 

How would you answer someone who asks you this simple question, “What do you do?”

Do you notice that sometimes this question actually pops up even AFTER you have exchanged business cards? There are just some simple reasons for that. 

1. Your namecard does not say anything about you as it only has your title, the name of your company and your contact details.
2. You have only met the person for the first time and he is interested to know more about you so he can get ahead with the next thing on his list, that is shortlist you for future contacts.
3. You have not explained yourself clearly the first time.

In the words of Jonathan Senior, he thinks it is ‘boring’ to answer the question by mentioning the title of your job or name of occupation.

BORING: I AM “WHAT I AM”

“I am a hairdresser.”

” I am a fashion designer.”

“I am a teacher.”

“I am a housewife.”

These titles read like the list you would tick on an immigration visa card when you travel overseas. So what if you were a lawyer or an accountant. Do you think it would sound any better?

The people who I can really connect with are those who do not advertise or promote their job title or occupation. For me, the road to networking ends right after the person says: “I am .(who I am).” One would be led to assume so many things that are associated with that title. 

Let us do a simple quiz. Which of these do you think will open the path for networking opportunities in your chance conversation? 

1. “I provide business training for business entrepreneurs and networking individuals on languages and culture in Asia.”
2. “I am an author.”
3. “I am a business trainer.”

Unless you are not interested to connect, refrain from being short and lazy. It is like gesturing to them to look at the namecard for the answer, even then, it still does not say what you do in your business. People in Asia generally have a tendency to answer simply:

1.  I work for IBM as technical officer.
2.  I am an Assistant Engineer at the Singapore Changi Airport
3. I am a police officer. 
4. I teach at a local primary school. 

All these do not answer the question” “What do you do?” Business English goes beyond the ability to speak properly. Although you do not run your own airport or school, it is certainly boring to just say in one sentence what you might write in a job application form under the heading, “Nature of your job.” 

What does the question mean?

When someone asks: “What do you do?”, he is indeed asking for what sort of activities you do in your business. So don’t be too quick to dish out your namecard and state your name and occupation, as if you were standing in front of the custom officer at the airport.

Here are some better ways to start answering the question.

1. I have an internet cafe in downtown…..

2. I own two restaurants which serve…..

3. I look after a small department in the catering wing of ….

4. I play the piano at a cafe at  Marina Bay Sands. 

The keypoint is to put some energy and enthusiasm in your answer. Even if the job is boring to you, “YOU’ cannot afford to sound bored.

A most recent collaboration introduces: Sharp End Training, a unique virtual organization with expertise and experience in almost all aspects of business.  From sales and marketing to insurance, finance, business culture and workflow planning to business coaching and team building – Sharp End Training has it covered.

“Between us we speak English, Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Mandarin, Bahasa, Malay, German, Spanish and Dutch, making us truly unique,” says Jonathan Senior, President of the organization.

Sharp End Training is entering the Market with this brand new video course:  “Taking the Mystery Out of Follow-up.”

The video course emphasizes if you do not follow-up with prospective customers you can leave up to 80% of your sales on the table, or put them in the hands of a competitor. The bottom line of studies, statistics and personal experience: when you do not get back to prospects, you lose a customer.

Commenting on Sharp End Training bringing this online video training course to businesses and entrepreneurs around the world, Patricia Weber, head of Sharp End Training USA says:  ”This collaboration could only happen this easily because of dogged follow-up. It seemed like an appropriate launch topic.”

Collaboration is not just a “good to do” business tactic today. It is critical to a business’ success. It takes collaboration and connectivity, connectivity with purposeful follow-up, to create both innovative and powerfully effective learning programs.

For additional information on Sharp End Training USA, or Taking the Mystery Out of Follow-up, visit Networking Skills

Weber holds a Masters in Business Management from Troy State University, an NLP Practitioner Certification from NLP Comprehensive in Colorado and is a Graduate Coach of Coachville.

Small Talk : We can tallk all day and still can't agree on anything. Cut the small talk! Get to the point.

What is the purpose of small talk? I am curious. It seems to me that some people can manage to hold a conversation for a very long time without feeling dragged on by time. They can also roll out so many topics in succession, whilst keeping the conversation lively and interesting. I am a straightforward person, so for me small talk is not something I enjoy having during a conversation. I realize that it can make a person quite boring and sometimes almost too serious. Why? Well, although small talk doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the conversation or discussion that is about to take place, it can be beneficial to include it at the beginning, in between or at the end of a conversation.

What are topics commonly used in small talk? I have only listed a few topics here. However, the list can be so huge, it can be anything you can find in a newspaper or magazine.
1. Weather :- It is quite safe topic if the parties are not familiar with one another. “Its a very hot day, isn’t it?” In regions where the climate has great variation and can be unpredictable, it is quite common to talk about the weather. Actually, at school, we used to think that people who talk about the weather are boring because in the tropics, there is really nothing much to talk about when someone brings up the weather.

2. Television, movies and films. Almost everyone has watched a programme on the television or read movie reviews, at least once in their lifetime. Not a movie buff or couch potato? What about the theme songs from movies. And the faces of superstars that are so well promoted and advertised everywhere around the world? Surely you would have heard about them somewhere. Even if you haven’t, mind you, as soon as your friend bring up topics on entertainment in a small talk, you will want to get into the swing of the conversation. “Oh?! I didn’t know anything about Shrek 4D adventure. I have only heard of 3D movies. How was your experience with that?”

3. Sports. This year, 2010, has got Asia talking sports all year. Commonwealth Games in India, Youth Olympic Games in Singapore and Asian Games in Guangzhou. There are noteworthy topics like medal winners, Asian sports and Asian venues. “Did you see the closing ceremony of the Asian Games live on television? It was spectacular, wasn’t it?”

4. Traffic. You may think this is boring but in most Asian countries, it is not just a topic for small talk but will be spoken about in between conversations and at the end of a conversation simply because there is always heavy traffic all day long. They say if you are able to drive well in Bangkok, Thailand or Jakarta, Indonesia, you can drive and survive anywhere in the world. Even on Facebook, people in Indonesia are updating their frustrations while waiting for the taxi to get to work. “Macet sekali. Sudah satu jam menunggu taksi, masih belum ada yang kosong. Udah terlambat ke kantor lagi nih.”

5. Food. It is probably the easiest topic in a small talk. If you do not eat spicy food, you can joke about why you cannot have it. “Hey, I like spicy food but my tummy just can’t handle it. Do you enjoy eating spicy food?” “So, is it durian season yet? I think durian is great but it leaves a bad taste to my mouth and my breath stinks all day long after eating it.” Topics about food during the Muslim fasting period is less commonly talked about though. Instead of talking about the food, the Muslim folks will ask, “Are you fasting today? Where are breaking your fast today?”

6. Family. In Asian culture, questions about the family are common and well received. The family unit is the strength for the individual. So you would probably hear an Asian making a request before parting, “Please send regards to your family.” Or “I meant to ask you. How is your mum?” It is not about being kind, polite or courteous, but it is just part of the Asian culture to do so. The family name is held dear to an Asian individual and he is very pleased if one should ask about their well being of their family members.

7. Economy and Politics. Small talk on economy and politics takes place with professional and business contacts. If both parties or people in the group share a common livelihood, example, they are working professionals who pay income tax, you can hear them talking about the economy and political scenes in their conversations. Because these topics can be become quite heavy, it is best to keep the conversation short and shallow (not in detail), so as not to invite any kind of disagreement. One way is to refer to a 3rd party. “I heard on the news last night that they are going to raise the tuition fees. What do you think of that?”

Because small talk has no purpose except to serve itself, the topics can be varied and styled accordingly, depending on the relationship of the parties involved and the level of interpersonal space needed.

In fact, in a marriage, small talk turns out to be a lubricant if a married couple gets into a disagreement or a quarrel. In an effort to get the wife feeling happy again, the husband speaks about their holiday in Bali. He says, “Did you like the coffee we bought from Bali? I thought it tasted a bit bitter.” Wife may not want to reply but eventually she may. Small talk may seem unimportant and pointless, but it can bring two persons back together again after a quarrel.

Going Beyond Greetings

Do you have problems in remembering names of people you’ve just met? After the exchange of handshakes and introductions, we often find ourselves unable to recall the names of the people whose hands we have just shook.

“Sorry I didn’t get your name just now.” “Excuse me, I didn’t get your name just now.” Then you spend the next 15 to 20 seconds trying to register the name as it is being repeated to you and you would nod your head in acknowledgement as if to tell the brain that’s how it should be remembered. In the meantime, your mind is already racing off to meet another person. Rarely do we stand still and allow the moment to pass before taking on another action. Our eyes are fixed on leading our body to greet another person standing closeby. After one or two handshakes, it is not always possible to remember every person’s name. Their names become ‘misplaced’ in our own mind.

Here are 7  ways to handle this problem.

1. Repeat the name of the person right after he has made his introduction. “Pleased to meet you , (name).” Traditionally, when you meet a person for the first time, you would expect something like “How do you do?” and your response has to be “How do you do?” This greeting has long been unused even by native English speakers. “It is dated.” says  Jonathan Senior, owner of Sharp-end-Training. These days, people use Hi, Hello, How are you?. Yet with such simplified greeting words, the chance of forgetting the name of the person is high. What if it were a foreign name? What would have you done?
2. Ask for the spelling of the name. Jo and Joe are read in the same manner but are spelt differently. Asking for the spelling of the name reinforces memory.
3. Does the name sound familiar to you? Peter as in Peter Pan, Jill as in Jack and Jill. If the names are not English, learn to repeat it so you get it correct by the person you are speaking. This is polite. It might take a few more seconds to get it right but it is worth the effort.
4. Keep the business card and read the name on it. Take interest. First impression lasts. Do not toss the card on the table or stick inside your pocket without having a small talk about what’s printed on it.
5. If you find the name difficult to pronounce, it is all right to ask for it to be repeated. People always have shorter forms to their names, Sagun for Sagunthala (for instance), because it helps them too!
6. During a dialogue or conversation, make attempts to address the person again using his name. “Joe, that is a very good idea.” “So Joe, how many languages do you speak?”
7. Many Asian women who are married do not change  their family names. So it is all right to address them by their maiden name.

When you are ready to part, you may complete the session by addressing the person again. “Hope to see you again soon, Joe.”

Thank you Jonathan for your comment. Here’s point no. 8 to the list:

Repeating the name to a third party can also help

“Hello Jane, I was just asking JOE how many languages he speaks”

1. Deepavali (Diwali as the contraction) falls on 5th November 2010. It will be an official holiday in India, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Mauritius, Malaysia, Nepal, , Singapore, Sri Lanka, Myanmar , Fiji and Surinam. This event is also popularly known as the Festival Of Lights. Celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jain. On this day, many worshippers will go to the temples to offer prayers.

Little India in Singapore has already marked the coming of Deepavali with street decorations a month before this event is due to begin. Majority of the Indian people celebrate Deepavali, and on this day, the women are dressed in beautiful Saris, the traditional costume of the Indian folks. You can learn more about this festival from the National Library Board website.

2. Hari Raya Haji or Hari Raya Korban. Hari Raya literally means “Day (Hari) of celebaration (Raya)”. Korban means Sacrifice. So Hari Raya Korban is also called the Festival of Sacrifice.  It is celebrated by Muslims the world over.  On 2010, it falls on the 17th day of November.

This festival marks the end of Muslim pilgrimage to the Holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. It also celebrates Prophet’s Ibrahim willingness to sacrifice his son as act of obedience to Allah swt. As the prophet was willing to perform this sacrifice, Allah had commanded only the slaughter of an animal, namely the Cow.

Many people who pay money (in Singapore its Sgd300 to Sgd350 for a goat and Sgd700 to Sgd800 for a cow) will have the meat of the slaughtered animals distributed to the orphans and poor people. There are many poor people around the world who may never have the chance to eat meat until this day. It is a good day for both rich and poor.

You can learn more about this festival from the National Library Board website.

3. Asian Games 2010.

The 16th Asian Games is approved and governed by the Olympic Council of Asia and will be held in “Flower City” of Guangzhou from November 12 – 27, 2010.

You can learn more about this event on the Asian Games official website.

However, once you have started to live side by side with the locals, (and I don’t mean living in condominiums and expensive luxurious bungalows), you will find there are indeed many practices that are distinctly Singaporean. Let’s share some of  these:

1. Eating out? Most eating places like hawker centers and food courts  plastic cutlery and melamine plates. Don’t bother about asking for a knife, because Asians eat with spoons, forks, chopsticks or their own fingers (like you would when you are eating snacks).

Incidentally, there is an art to eating with your fingers, unless you have perfect eye, hand and mouth co-ordination, you will find yourself struggling to pick up and send the first mouthful of food from your plate to your mouth. So always come prepared with tissue papers (which will not be provided) and knife next time you go out and dine at the public food courts or hawker centers. We actually have friends who ask quite appropriately, “Don’t they like people  with knifes in this country?”

2. The climate in this part of the world is the same throughout the year, temperatures ranging from 26 to 33 deg Celsius. The humidity level is high and so the air has lots of moisture. Although it is hot most of the time, seldom do you see people wear hats or caps when they are out and about.

All those smart caps you get to wear during summer in Australia or other parts of the world are not be the best sorts to put on when you are in Singapore, because they are made of thicker materials. By the end of the day, your head and hats actually stink due to the humidity that’s trapped inside the hat. Although skin cancer is the 7th most common kind of cancer in Singapore, people generally do not stay out in the sun for a long time on a daily basis. Further information on this topic can be found on the National Skin Cancer website.

3. There are many high rise buildings and apartments which is why sometimes the city is called a ‘concrete jungle’.  One of my friends who visited me from overseas recently was surprised that I put a padlock on the metal gate before leaving home. Standing outside the apartment, it looks  like a vault. He said, “The crime rate here is very low, isn’t it?” No doubt but people have stolen shoes,bicycles and whatever they think are of value or use which are  left outside the house. Low crime doesn’t mean no crime.

It is also common to have the gate remained locked even when there are people inside the house. Silly habit? Not really. The space outside these apartments are accessible to the general pubic. It is always safer to lock the apartment even if you are at home.

4. You’ve probably heard of national service. All Singaporean male is required under law to enrol for the  Basic Military Training (BMT) at the age of 18 years old. This is the transition from fresh-faced teenager to combat-ready fit soldier. Not only is this unique, it has become  a national pride.

This is how elaborate a wedding decor can be. Its so pretty I have to post it to the link.

5. Wedding ceremonies and funerals in the void deck. These can be held on the ground floor beneath HDB flats. You will be happy to know that these events signify the multicultural existence of the society. They are personal and major events in the lives of the people who need to hold these functions. Some funerals last for as long as 3 days and 2 nights  (mainly Chinese Taoists and Buddhists), and wedding receptions (usually Malay or Indian Muslims) are held over the weekend.

To hold a function beneath the apartment building where you live, you just need to register the date with the local town council. The cost is so negligible compared to the cost of the function itself. Priority is given to funerals though but the incidence rate of a wedding party and a funeral happening on any given weekend is very low.

Now the functions in void decks are not limited to just wedding ceremonies and funerals. There are resident corners and rooms for karaoke and tuition.

6. Lastly,  many Singaporeans  speak Singlish. The language they speak is what truly makes them unique in the eyes of foreigners. Singapore survives and thrives on this uniqueness of culture and language.

Like many other versions of English mixed with foreign langauges (e,g Spanglish), Singlish has helped people from different racial and language backgrounds (Hokkien, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tamil or Malay) living in the same country to manage communication. To them, Singlish is conversational. Furthermore, many traders had arrived in Singapore from India, China, Indonesia and most of them did not know any English. Perhaps the bosses did, but certainly not the workers.

There are probably a lot more stuff to talk about the Singapore lifestyle and culture. These are just some which I think really come in top in my list.

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According to the Islamic Calendar, the Holy Month of Ramadhan takes place in August 2010. And according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, The Hungry Ghost Festival also happens in August 2010. Incidentally, they both fall on the same day! One can’t help but feel a surge of strange self awareness on a day like this. We are not writing about superstition or religion. We are also not making facts out of coincidences. Speaking of coincidence, today is Friday the 13th.

Muslims worldwide are obligated to perform the fast during the Holy Month of Ramadhan as it is one of the 6 pillars of Iman or Steadfastness of Belief. Kids from as young as 7 years old are taught to perform the fast, principally abstinence from food and drinks, from dawn to dusk. And fasting is performed throughout a person’s lifetime, for as long as he or she is healthy and able-bodied. It takes a lot of self-discipline. On the spiritual side, it is Holy because it is believed, Allah, the God of Islam, revealed the Holy Quran in this month and no evil spirit is allowed to dwell in human land.

With regard to the Hungry Ghost Festival, the Chinese worshippers believe that it is the month when spirits of their ancestors are free to roam amongst humans. Incidentally, this festival falls on the same day as the first day of the Holy Month of Ramadhan.

If you have been on the streets of Singapore, you would have noticed many Chinese people burning incense and making offerings (food and prayers) as an act of allegiance to this month. It is said that when there are stage performances like Chinese opera and singing, the performers have to perform even if there is not a single person watching. As a kid, I used to see so many of these performances but never took heed of the spiritual significance to the Chinese. Our neighbours are ever so willing to let us sit by their kitchen window to watch special performances like stand up comedies or magic shows. The entertainment was captivating enough to keep us glued to our spots even if it meant standing on the kitchen stool.

Singapore do not tolerate litterbugs, but on a month like the Hungry Ghost Festival, it looks like it is all right to leave the debris of sorts after the ritual. Because most Chinese “make offerings to the various gods” by way of burning incense at temples or just outside their doorsteps, the local council has even made stone structures to contain such rituals in one place, to keep the environment free from debris as much as possible. The above pic was taken after the cleaners clearned the debris.

So here we have Muslims performing fast on a Holy Month and the Chinese paying respects to their ancestors. Although the Hungry Ghost Festival is not practised worldwide, in Singapore it is so explicit that one can’t help but feel a strange sense of spiritual awareness, especially when these two unrelated events occur at the same time.

Henceforth, if you call Singapore home, you would have embraced the many differences such as race, language and religion. In order to live in peace and harmony for the progress of the nation, Singaporeans learn to live with these differences, in order to remain constant with their own. Although most of the time, it is taken with a pinch of salt, the people learn to tolerate and persevere together for the sake of existence as a nation, not as a race, ethnic or religious group. Singapore is home for those who can embrace a pledge to remain united irregardless of race, language and religion. Fortunately, for this young nation which just celebrated its 45th year of independent rule on 9th August 2010, there have been harmony, prosperity and progress.

Indeed, “Attitudes are more important than facts.” George McDonald.

August is very special for many reasons. Singapaore, Malaysia and Indonesia will be celebrating their respective Independence Day during the August month.

On 9th August 2010 – Singapore. (Independent since 1965) You can watch the parade on the web. Click here. MediaCorp National Day Parade 2010 or NDP 2010 Official Website.

On 17th August 2010 – Indonesia (Independent since 1945)

On 31st August 2010 – Malaysia (Independent since 1957)

For Singapore, it is also the month when it will be hosting the first ever Youth Olympic Games 2010. The Olympic Torch has since arrived in the country and it is going round the island country for the next few days until the game officially opened on 12th August 2010. If you have a website, you may wish to publish this international event by copying and pasting the following command.

For more information on this event, you may visit the website. Click here. Youth Olympic Games 2010.

An interesting fact about August 2010 is that it has 5 Sundays, 5 Mondays, 5 Tuesdays, all in one month. It happens once in 823 years. For Muslims, Ramadhan also falls in August 2010. The Muslims will begin fasting from 11th August 2010.

Do you know of any special events that will occur in the month of August 2010?

Asia 5000 Years Of Traditional Medicine

What is our main concern when we travel overseas? Medical help. It is difficult to anticipate what sort of medical help you might need when you travel overseas, so having enough knowledge of the local medical support you can get may ease your mind. What is really interesting about Asia is that you can get almost any sort of treatment for any kind of sickness. Sweeping statement indeed but that is how it is with Asia, it is surprisingly ready for the cure.

Just ask any Singaporean or Asian. For a simple problem as the common cold,  you can choose to take Panadol (Paracetamol) and massage Tiger Balm Oil (Singapore) on your chest to help you breathe better. I have also tried Eucalyptus Medicated Oil, Minyak Kayu Putih (Indonesia), Air Zam Zam or Holy Zam Zam Water (from Mecca), Air Cap Kaki Tiga, Air Halia (Ginger drink), Aromatherapy etc. When I had skin problem as a kid, I had grated coconut literally smeared all over my body. Then our Chinese neighbours offered to treat it with traditional Chinese medicine. It had such a pungent smell I could even recall it if I ever smell it again.  I was eventually healed. What traditional herbal treatment did for me could never have been plausible with  conventional western medicine.

Medical treatment in Asia is so vast and it cuts across cultures and religions, it is almost useless to try and figure out how someone who has gout can be treated with acupuncture. Or drinking Brands Essence of Chicken is better than consuming vitamin supplements. Or eating anchovies is the same as drinking a glass of milk everyday.

If all of  these works for Asians, why is there need for conventional western medicine? In all my encounters with both types of medical treatment, traditional Asian physicians are not explicit with their findings and prescriptions; they seem to have the ‘power of the know’. Whereas conventional western medical practitioners seem to have documents to support their theories and diagnosis. You can always have a second opinion to the kind of treatment you have been given by a conventional western doctor; you cannot expect to do the same with traditional Asian physicians. Not only is the treatment entirely different, so will be the diagnosis. Yet they are trusted and their opinions, relevant.

So relevant is the opinion and treatment by traditional means, the first Asia Pacific Traditional and Complementary Medicine conference was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in November 2008. In Singapore, the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) now comes under the charge of the Ministry of Health. In Malaysia, Putrajaya Hospital was chosen as one of the locations for the first phase of the pioneer project to integrate complementary medicine into the existing public health care system. It even includes herbal treatment for cancer patients and traditional Malay massage. Given these and the growing interest in traditional herbal treatment, indeed we are assured of  adequate, if not overwhelming  medical help, when travelling overseas, Asia inclusive.

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