The United States of America has the world’s largest economy—four times greater than anyone else’s (with the exception of China). America is first in volume of trade, first in industry, first in food output and first in aid to others. They spend, too, being the top consumers of energy, oil, oil seeds, grain, rubber, copper, lead, zinc, aluminum, tin, coffee and cocoa. They have the busiest airport in the world (Atlanta) and fly more passengers than anyone else. They have the world’s longest road network and longest rail network. They own more cars, telephones, refrigerators, television sets, dishwashers, microwave ovens and cellular phones than any other people. They are the second to China in tourist spending but gross the biggest tourist receipts (twice as much as popular China). The U.S. leads the rest of the world as water users and polluters. They also have the highest rates of prison populations.
The pace of American life is different from that of other countries. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries vast tracts of open, unclaimed land to the west beckoned with some urgency to poorer settlers and new arrivals. For decades it was first come, first served—you staked your claim, cleared the land, tilled, planted and defended it. They were days of land grab and gold rush. There was no time to lose as immigrants poured in; out west there were no ruling classes or aristocrats, royal claims or decrees, no constraining ideologies or regulations—only practicality; if it worked, you did it, before anyone else did.
One might have assumed that with the majority of goals attained and the visible advent of the affluent society, this frenzied tempo of life would have slackened. It has not. Modern Americans continue at the headlong pace of their nineteenth-century forebears. Work equates with success, time is money. They have to get there first. The chief difference is that in the nineteenth century, everybody knew where “there” was. Today’s Americans, unrelentingly driven by the traditional national habit of pressing forward, conquering the environment, effecting change and reaching their destination, are no longer sure what that destination is.
The rest of the world looks on in awe, for none of us are in the same grip of this achievement fever. It can be argued that the Germans and Japanese share the same work tempo as Americans, but the Germans, with their long vacations, social welfare and impressive culture, value quality of life much more. The Japanese, with no more leisure than the Americans, nevertheless achieve what they do at a much more relaxed pace and have created a calm, relatively crime-free society where moral and spiritual values take priority over materialistic goals. This, however, is changing. The four “Asian tigers”—Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan, breakneck export powerhouses all—most closely resemble the U.S. in unrelenting effort, although their Eastern philosophies incline them to view success as collectivist as opposed to the American view that the individual must triumph. In the U.S. you start at the very bottom, give it all you’ve got, pull yourself up by your own boot straps, guts it out and get to the very top. It’s rags to riches, in a land where everybody is equal—in theory. It’s a daunting task, but fortunately Americans are unfailing optimists and future-oriented.
Americans are not afraid of challenge or competition, although the strain is beginning to tell. Up to the 1970s the economic and political development of the U.S. had unquestionably been a success story. Other nations had had their ups and downs, peaks and valleys, successes and reverses. Only in America had progress been invariably forward, up and one way. Then came Vietnam, mounting trade balance deficits and the slowing of the economy. Even so, no one in his or her right mind writes off the Americans. Their industrial, commercial, financial and military assets are of a muscular nature not yet approached by their rivals for twenty-first-century dominance. A greater problem for the American people is not so much the maintenance of their material strengths as the attainment of inner harmony.
How should wise Asians, or Europeans with their variety of ideals, handle this time-keeping, media-driven, dollar-minded phenomenon? Hitch one’s star to their wagon and make a fast buck? Or tough it out with them?
American businesspeople have the reputation of being the toughest in the world, but they are, in many respects, the easiest to deal with. That is because their business philosophy is uncomplicated. Their aim is to make as much money as they can as quickly as they can, using hard work, speed, opportunism and power (also of money itself) as the means toward this end. Their business decisions are usually not affected by sentiment, and the dollar, if not God, is considered at least almighty. This single-minded pursuit of profit results in their often being described as ruthless.
Northern Europeans are well placed to deal with Americans successfully. Their reputation as straightforward managers is well received by the open, frank Americans, who often get seriously irritated by what they see as the “devious” manners of Latins and Asians. At meetings, Americans show the following tendencies:
Calm, pragmatic northerners such as the British, Dutch, Nordics, Canadians and other English speakers can live with most of these characteristics. They, too, are used to informality, first names, humor, persistence, bluntness, technical competence, give-and-take bargaining and general consistency in sticking to what has been agreed. They also wish to conclude the deal without unnecessary time wasting or labyrinthine procedures. Yet care must be exercised; Americans are fast talking, and if the language is English, there may be certain traps. With Americans one always has to read the “fine print,” for their apparent openness and trust in the other party are usually underpinned by tight legal control in their contracts, and they will not hesitate to sue you later if you do not comply with every clause you have put your name to. American law is also quite different from many other legal systems.
You should always attempt to appear straightforward, honest, but quite tough in your dealings with Americans, who will respect resilience, open disagreement and alertness and strong cards. You don’t have to “beat about the bush” as you would have to with the Japanese or Italians. “Yes, but what happens if … ?” is a good question to ask Americans.
If you appear tough often enough, Americans will argue, provoke and certainly push brute strength, but it is all part of their game. They, too, want the deal. They will use far more words than you are comfortable with, but your relative quietness will cause them discomfiture and will eventually gain you points. You will only irritate Latins with reticence, but Americans will respect it. The answer to the oft-repeated “Have we got a deal?” should be “Maybe.” Don’t be rushed. They, too, are taking risks, but more likely than not, they can afford to lose more than you can. They are looking at this particular deal more than the long-term relationship. They have quarterly forecasts to satisfy. They want profit now, as opposed to the Japanese, who want your market. Realization of such American aims helps you in dealing with them. Their friendliness means nothing, although it is pleasant while it lasts. They will forget your name the day after the deal is made.
You have a lot of cards up your sleeve. You know a lot more about Americans and their country than they know about you and yours. Many Americans think Finland is in Canada and confuse Lapps with Inuits. You can enter their cultural world without difficulty—you have seen hundreds of American films, read many U.S. books and journals. You speak their language and therefore have insight into their thought processes. They will find many Europeans disarming, but also deep. British people deal with Americans by occasionally using Americanisms in their speech, then retreating into British vagueness or semi-incoherence when they wish to confuse. Americans are tough, cunning, but also naïve. You should blow hot and cold with them, appearing half the time to be on the American wavelength and the other half of the time your own person. Americans find this disconcerting; they want to follow the script, or scenario as they often call it.
This is never more apparent than when the Americans are buying—they want to hear your sales pitch. Soft sell is not necessary in the U.S. Any American walking into a car showroom expects the salesperson to attack him from the start. He wishes to be told every good point about the car, the true and the peripheral, the fine discount and the personal concession; he then wants to hit back hard with his own demands. Finally, after much tough talk the buyer and seller arrive at the “deal” neither of them trusts but both want and fully accept. You can improve on this dialogue by showing all your toughness but slipping in a quiet injection of “niceness,” even humility.
A certain amount of modesty scores points with Americans. If you are too modest with Latins, you run the risk of their believing you (“they have a lot to be modest about”), but the Americans, as native English speakers, will hear the linguistic nuances and respect your reserve. They, for their part, are incapable of being modest in speech, as American English is irrevocably tough, clever and tending toward the exaggerated and sensational. The chart below compares British modesty with blunt American tough talk.
Finally, when dealing with Americans, it is advisable to have on your team someone who knows their country well. This applies when dealing with any nationality, but at least many Europeans have spent years in the U.S. and such experts are readily available. Northern Europeans, with their language abilities and wide knowledge of the Anglo-Saxon world, are today quite close culturally to the British. Their mistake is in often assuming that Americans are similar because they speak the same tongue. But Americans live in a different hemisphere and a different world. They do things their way and people who have lived in the U.S. know the shortcuts in doing business with them.
| Americans | British |
|
Jack’ll blow his top. You’re talking bullshit. You gotta be kidding. I tell you, I can walk away from this deal. |
Our chairman might tend to disagree. I’m not quite with you on that one. Hmm, that’s an interesting idea. (disagreement) We’ll have to do our homework. |
|
You’re going to get hurt. Bean counters drive me mad. It’s the only game in town. We had sticker-shocked the consumers right off their feet. |
I’m not sure this is advantageous for you. Accountants can be frustrating. There is no other choice. We had overpriced the product. |
|
Go for broke. He’ll do his best to make it fly. If they ever come back from the grave … When you scramble, you scramble like a son-of-a-bitch. |
Stake everything on one venture. He’ll do all he can to ensure success. If they are ever a force in business again … Speed of action is advisable. |