21st Century Skills

I am a senior at HSU working towards my BBA in management. The article,
Culture Awareness in the Workplace, not only relates to business but ALL relationships. Especially when it speaks about listening,  "Effective listening is something that most cultures have in common. Listen to your coworkers actively, displaying positive body language and affirmation during the listening process. Listening intently allows you to read between the lines, pay attention to the way your coworkers say things and ask questions if anything is unclear. They will recognize your willingness to listen and appreciate being asked to explain an unclear point."  Listening and communication aren't new. They are the basic skills required to move forward in any business venture, but there are a few skills that we do need to add to our "area of expertise". 21st Century Skills are required from early education on to ensure our children can compete on a global level in the continued growth of globalization and technology. “Economic success is increasingly based on the effective utilization of intangible assets, such as knowledge, skills, and innovative potential as the key resource for competitive advantage.”—Economic and Social Research Council, 2005
It is important to start this innovative thinking and skills set as early as PreK and continue through job training.

Lens Shifting

What really keeps Americans from traveling outside of the United States? I think Matt's blog hit the mark on several topics that keep Americans home; opportunity, fear, cultural ignorance. I believe that time and money should have been in the list as well, maybe even at the top!
The United States has something for everyone. There are places from the west coast to the east coast that I would love to visit. It could take someone a lifetime of vacations to enjoy them all; The Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, Yellowstone National Park, NYC, Florida Keys...the list could go on and on. Vacation opportunities, without the need of a passport, are endless. I believe (especially since 9/11) people feel a comfort from staying within the states due to fears, or ignorance, of foreign cultures.
Fear is not something that plagues me, but I witness it often when I talk about traveling abroad. I love people! I love learning more everyday. I crave that, and I have always felt as though I was an open-minded individual. Unfortunately, the "cultural lens" I have been wearing are the same as most Americans, "time is money"  and possibly even that Americans are not liked in other countries. We are considered a fat, spoiled, or ungrateful society by other countries. I want to prove them wrong. I want to be an example of a "likeable" American. I know I would have never thought twice about jumping into the point of a business call, and I feel I would be guilty of assuming that all things done in business are to increase profit margin, not enjoyment of the work or building relationships. I feel I have missed it though. If I am to be an example I have to wear different cultural lens. Other countries that consider themselves rich because of the personal relationships built and their contentment in the works they have done probably achieve greater fulfillment of life as a whole than anyone of us who feel that "time is money". I hope to experience that type of fulfillment during my own career. I hope to remove the learned lens of my own culture and upgrade to a culturally diverse set of specks.