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.

GLOBALIZATION

“Globalization is a process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology.” In other words, globalization is a worldwide movement towards economic, trade and communication embodiment. Globalization affects everyone in the whole world in one way or another, and it brings us to a common place of interest and links us together.

The video clip “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As3pWXoq_as” gave some examples of wide spread globalization. I loved the stop motion video, especially the zoom out and back on the world. Technology is a huge part of our ever changing society. The first personal computer came out in 1981 by IBM. Can you imagine life without your smart phone and tablet? How would we BLOG?? Another example used in the video was McDonalds. McDonalds has spread worldwide with over 34,000 restaurants in 118 countries. Did you know that McDonald’s opened its first franchise in 1955? That is less than 60 years ago! McDonalds now serves 1% of the world population daily. But globalization is more than technology and a fast food chain; we see it in our currency, our media, our trading, and government policies.

I looked up globalization in the thesaurus and it gave me five words, but two of those words really stuck out, Growth and Development. The world is ever changing, nothing is statue quo, and if we are to keep up in it we have to have knowledge of the international innovations that are beyond our traditions.

Globalization does have pros and cons. An example of a con would be exploitation of child labor to get the prices so low that no one can beat it; where a pro may include the fact that socially we have become more open and tolerant towards each other, and people who live in the other part of the world are not considered aliens. Those are just the “tip of the iceberg”.

Globalization is here to stay.

Cultural Awareness

Although I had never seen it before, culture is often compared to an iceberg. The Iceberg Model of Culture shows cultural aspects that are more obvious at the "tip" and things that may not be as apparent below the surface. The more visible characteristics of one culture might include the flag, language, holidays, music and arts. It is important to remember that what lies beneath the surface, even though less visible, plays an important role in the characteristics we do see. One example used in the article was religious beliefs influence on holiday customs. We have to dig into the "why" under the surface to fully understand, and more importantly, appreciate the diversity of our world.

My perception of the Scottish/Irish/Celtic man would be Mel Gibson in Braveheart. I think Warrior!! I could actually go further by saying, I think whiskey drinking, less disciplined warrior; but, fierce fighter all the same. However, as I become aware of the facts I see that Celtics are more than fighter or bagpipe players. They were farmers, musicians, loyal family men and so much more. In order for my cultural awakening to take place I must understand the Four Degrees of Cultural Awareness; Parochial Culture Stage, Ethnocentric Culture Stage, Synergistic Culture Stage, and Participatory Third Culture Stage.

The Parochial Culture Stage would be described as one who thinks everyone everywhere does things just like they do. The Ethnocentric Culture Stage acknowledges others have different ways, but believes their way is just better than anyone else. The Synergistic Culture Stage people are aware of the differences in culture and are willing to do what is best for the situation. People in this stage realize that diversity is helpful.
The Participatory Third  Culture Stage brings different cultures together to create a new shared culture.

It is my opinion, the best stage for me while traveling abroad is the Synergistic Culture Stage. I feel I want to treasure my own customs, beliefs, and traditions while having the opportunity to experience that of a different country. The fact that the other country was home to my ancestors makes it even more important for me to see and learn.

Blog Development

Hi everyone! My name is Becky Berry, and I am from Benton, Arkansas. I am mom of two boys and a nanny to a new grandson, whom was born November 26!! I am engaged to be married next month to the greatest man I have ever met. I work full time as an administrative assistant, and plan to graduate next December with a BBA. After graduation, I believe that I would like to work in banking or a mortgage company.  I definitely want to work face-to-face with the public. My "hobbies" right now include church, school, work, and family. I am extremely busy with those things and love my life.

 I am taking the travel and study class with Henderson State University this semester to develop a better understanding of other cultures and globalization, as it relates to business. I feel that I will gain a better understanding of the people I plan to communicate with in the business community and this understanding will carry me farther in my professional career.

 In this blog, I will be sharing my expectations and experiences for the course along with the upcoming trip abroad to the Scotland and Ireland. This is an extra special trip for me because it is my family's heritage. My maiden name is Johnston, which are descendants of Scotland. I am looking forward to sharing this surreal chance of a lifetime with you.

Thank you for following me.