M: You travel a lot. Which people do you think are the most time-conscious? W: I think it's probably the Swedes. M: Really, what makes you say that?
W: Well, on my last trip to Sweden, I ordered a taxi to pick me up at my hotel at 6:25 am. I got to the street at 6:27, but the taxi had already left. M: That's a little hard to believe. Is it true?
W: Absolutely, everything runs on time there. There's no room for mistakes. Everyone is very time-conscious!
M: They must seem very stiff and serious!
W: Sure, but once you get to know them, you find kind, caring people behind their serious faces.
M: This is very different from my experiences traveling in South America. Of course, people there are very kind, but they don't care much about time.
W: I agree. South Americans don't put very much stress on time. They're always late for everything, but no one seems to mind.
The biggest problem in my company has to do with culture, in particular our different ways of looking at time. People from some countries think it is OK to show up late for a meeting and some people even don't think they need to come at all! As president of the company, however, it is my responsibility to tell them that this is not acceptable. Whereas in some other countries attending meetings is not considered very important, in this country, and especially in this company, meetings must be attended on time. Not being on time causes inefficiency. I spent all night thinking about the exact words that I would use to explain my feelings. I even wrote my words down. I planned to discuss this problem at the meeting today, and entitled my speech
\— no one came to the meeting!
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