Talking About Cultural Differences Between German and English Speakers

Andy: One cross-cultural experience that I have had doing business in Germany, and even just making friends in Germany,

Andy: is that Germans are much more direct in the way that they speak, and especially in the way they criticize people, both when Germans speak English and when Germans speak German with you.

Andy: In English, we tend to be a lot less direct, so if I criticize someone in English, I would say, “Hey, no offense. You did this and that really well, but could you maybe take a look at this other thing…” “Here’s how we might fix this,” “Thank you,” “Please,” etc.

Andy: But in Germany, if someone criticizes you, they’ll say, “Fix this,” or “This was wrong,” and they don’t waste a lot of time being polite or going back and forth about it.

Andy: So, that took me a while to get used to in German culture.

Vocabulary:

cross-cultural – (adjective) relating to different cultures or the comparison between them, “Living in three different countries gave her valuable cross-cultural experience.”

direct – (adjective) saying exactly what you mean in a very clear, honest, and straightforward way without hiding anything, “He appreciated her direct approach because he always knew exactly where he stood.”

criticize – (verb) to express disapproval of someone or something, or to point out faults and mistakes, “The coach did not criticize the players after they lost, but instead encouraged them to try harder next time.”

no offense – (idiom/expression) a phrase used before or after saying something that might upset or insult someone, to show that you do not mean to be rude, “No offense, but I think your old car was much more comfortable than this new one.”

take a look at – (idiom/expression) to examine, review, or inspect something briefly, “Could you take a look at my essay before I submit it to the teacher?”

waste a lot of time – (expression) to spend time doing something useless, unproductive, or unnecessary, “You should not waste a lot of time playing video games when you have a big exam tomorrow.”

going back and forth – (idiom) moving repeatedly between two positions, or discussing something repeatedly without reaching a quick decision, “We spent hours going back and forth trying to decide where to go on vacation.”

took me a while – (idiom) required a certain amount of time or effort for someone to do or understand something, “It took me a while to learn how to drive a manual car, but now it feels completely natural.”

get used to – (idiom/phrasal verb) to become familiar with or accustomed to something so that it no longer feels strange or difficult, “It took some time to get used to waking up early for my new job.”