One thing turned into another, and before I realized it I was [...]]]>

New Business Cards

In my post On April 8, 2011 I spoke about what it takes for both seasoned and new business men and women to be successful on the international playing field. This came about due to a request to help pick out business cards.

One thing turned into another, and before I realized it I was picking out a new set for myself. I have been buying my business cards from the same printer for the last five to ten years. I know him, he and his family know me and well I guess that is the problem. He knew me so well that he never asked me if I wanted to change styles, add something here of there, etc.. Well, I realized that my current set of ten thousand – which was almost depleted – looked rather plain.

That was one of the factors that drove me to buy some new ones.

I actually didn’t buy them from my normal printer, one of the websites my friend sent me a link to had a wide selection and I ended up buying my business cards from there. I had spoken to the owner briefly when I asked to use some of his designs as reference and he was gracious enough to agree. I contacted him again when I decided to buy and talked to him a bit about the business cards he was offering. They were full color print, which was something new for me. I had always went with the simple white variant. And I will be the first to admit that when I saw all of the designs I picked out some pretty crazy ones. Luckily my wife consulted me on them and we picked out a pretty nice set of business cards.

One of my colleagues (not of Asian decent) recently asked me to help him pick out business cards. He does a lot of traveling and business in the Asian market and wanted something to show his respect for his Asian business [...]]]> A Look at Business Culture International – From the Perspective of An Asian American

One of my colleagues (not of Asian decent) recently asked me to help him pick out business cards. He does a lot of traveling and business in the Asian market and wanted something to show his respect for his Asian business associates. This proved a little more difficult that I think he was expecting. But I tried my best to give him a hand. He had picked out a number of cards that he thought were good and we went from there.

But it is more than just a business card, it is about the message that it conveys and that is where he went astray.

Here are a couple business cards that he liked. I won’t go over them too much, in fact I will leave it up to you to decide what you think of them.

All images of these business cards were used with permission.

What I want to cover is something a little more target, actual business culture, this is mainly deemed international, but it works just the same for those here at home that work with Asian colleagues.

One thing I often hear from students that have finished study in foreign policy, or international business programs is their eagerness to start working in a far away and exciting place. The business world is big, but once you start jetting around from location to location you will realize how small it really is. That is one reason, this ease of travel, that many people feel comfortable treating their colleague in Tokyo, Bejing, or Istanbul the same way they would Joe from three offices down.

But they need to be aware of different etiquette and customs that may very easily cause them to come across as arrogant or inconsiderate if they fail to recognize them.

Building Long Lasting Relationships

One important aspect of international business that need not be forgotten is cultural sensitivity. Building a strong awareness of this is very important for success abroad, in ten years from now it will be mandatory. It is expected that more than 42% of college graduates in ten years time will be working closely with, or even working in one of the large Asian markets. These are the Chinese, Japanese, and Indian business worlds.

All three of these nations will be shaping the way the world works and operates over the course of our lifetimes.

And everyone of these countries have their own customs and expectations in the professional business world. What’s more, a taboo in one country can be a daily accepted activity. It is up to you to recognize these pit falls and properly navigate them.

It is important to remember that working in another country, living and interacting with its people and culture is a rewarding and fun experience. make sure that you study what type of etiquette is expected from you ahead of time though, it might not only save you from an embarrassing misunderstanding, it might just land you that big contract you were shooting for.

After all, you wouldn’t want to use the wrong wording on your business cards would you?

No matter which country you look [...]]]> The Asian fine art movement is a long and rich one, many art admires haven’t been able to fully experience this trend, others have simply overlooked it. Today I want to go into a little bit of detail about what Asian art is, and its place into today’s culture.

No matter which country you look at there is a rich and long history of artistic expression. Art holds a special place in many Asian homes, being passed on from one generation to another. This gives everyone, from the smallest child to the oldest member of the family a way to stay connected. Asian art is very subtle, with discreet, but detailed artistic style that many wester art lovers have a hard time connecting to. One reason this might be hard for somebody unfamiliar with the region to relate to is because Asian art is very deeply bound to the Asian doctrines and beliefs. However, there are also common themes in the art of this region that many will be able to relate to, for example: Mother nature, community, love and honor are common themes in Asian art.

If you have ever looked at a painting you will notice that it has a tranquillity and soothing feel, this is another aspect of the style you will become aware of when you beginning exploring this branch of art.

While Asian arts might often fill empty, however, these works are not, artists often fill only a portion of the canvas with imagery, but what is there says more than a thousand words. And often, what is not there says even more.

While the richness of art in Asian countries is as vast and unique as the people living there many countries have stopped seeing the worthiness of art. Nations like the Philippines and Cambodia have lost much of their art heritage, while putting food on the table is more important that buying a statue or painting, even those that are in a position to save it often fail. The view of art is often one of extravagance, or even decadence.

Countries like these have slowly begun to lose their artistic identity, slowing assimilating the styles and themes from other nations such as the Untied States, Japan and others. Even going as far as destroying the work of antique artists to make room for modern comforts.

Other countries in the region, however, have taken drastic steps to preserve their history, by saving such works from the wear of time and war.

The Asian fine art movement isn’t common in many American homes, but it is a growing force, and one that people will become more and more aware of as the years go by. For example, it is not uncommon for homes in the US and Europe to be built with Xen gardens at their heart. Japanese comics and animated movies have long been a staple of American youth, and it is through cultural bridges like these that people will become familiar with one another’s art forms.

What has Obama noticed among this demographic? First, the Asian American community has much lower unemployment rates that other minorities in the US – couple that with high median wages, higher than average spending [...]]]> During these trying times many Asian Americans have been looking for resourceful ways to to navigate the Country’s turbulent economic waters.

What has Obama noticed among this demographic? First, the Asian American community has much lower unemployment rates that other minorities in the US – couple that with high median wages, higher than average spending habits and successful management of small to medium sized business and you will realized that we are tiding the storm more successfully.

With the current health of the US job market, unemployment is climbing higher everyday. A recent paper released from the US Department of Labor guaged the unemployment rate at 8.9% in Febuary 2011. The interesting thing about this study was that it placed the Asian demographic lowest for unemployment – this included all ethnicities including white. It doesn’t matter what what gender, age, or the region Asian Americans have kept their jobs secure since the beginning of the recession.

When one takes a closer look at the this successful trend you will also notice that the Asian population has been earning higher wages than the rest of the United States.

Following this trend in the most recent Census (2009) Asian Americans have been shown to have a median income of $65,469. When compared to their white neighbors this is more than $1000 dollars more, and more than $25,000 more than African and Hispanic Americans.

One reason for this higher than average yearly salaries is partially due to the positions held by Asian Americans. One reason is because a higher percent of upper and middle class families have one or both parents occupying a management position. Some of the US’s biggest corporations have key positions filled by Asian Americans: Google, Sun Microsystems, Yahoo and Avon are just some of the key businesses. More than 50% of the Asian American workforce hold a professional position in upper management. Compare this with only 35% of the rest of the American workforce.

With the recession in full swing you will be more than tempted to dip into your savings account, the opsitie can be said for the Asian demographic, who is more likely to have a larger savings. With this extra money you can expect that there will be a higher level of healthcare in Asian American households. On top of that also makes travel and other luxories possible, with Asian Americans making up more than 37% of all yearly travel, 1000 miles or more.

With higher income, lower debt and better health care the recession hasn’t really phased the American Asian community. Infact in 2010 alone more than 100 billion dollars was sent to family members in India, China and the Philippines. Even though every demographic in the united States is suffering, some are doing better than others. Due to the stability success of the Asian American community the Obama administration has begun looking more closely at what has made us so successful at withstanding the storm.

And with that the hope that what is learned will help pull the US out of the recession.