My pre-departure training focused on many aspects of living in a foreign culture and included examples of how the workplace culture can be different from the Western workplace. The aspects I kept in mind for India were the fluidity of time, the hesitance to give any form of bad news, and very rigid bureaucratic hierarchy. I told myself that these would be different and might really fly in the face of my dislike for tardiness and appreciating when someone was straightforward with bad news instead of just saying yes to save face. I was ready, I might have a hard time at first but I know these are the things to look out for.
I was totally not ready. Living in the midst of it, where deadlines aren’t usually given, and if they are then they are very flexible, and in a culture where it was more important not to break bad news than to be blunt with it was very different than knowing to confront these things. When I would ask when a co-worker if he could please do this task by a certain date and it doesn’t happen, my instinctual reaction would be frustration at making me behind in my deadline and why he didn’t simply tell me that he was overloaded with other work and just wouldn’t be able to get to it. In the heat of the moment it never occurred to me that this situation is exactly what the training was for. After weeks of frustration, I’ve realized that the workplace culture is just different. I was finally able to see this is what fluid time means, how important it is to save face or not give bad news. The switch in my head went off and now I am at ease at work. Time fluidity is embraces the attitude that things will happen when they happen. There just isn’t the obsession of getting things done by a certain time; there isn’t really a bad consequence if it’s not done by a certain time. The world really doesn’t end if I don’t get the spreadsheet on time. I am actually grateful that things work differently here; I can sometimes be very rigid and by the book with work. But here I have learned to take things as they come, and using my judgment to determine which situations require me harping a little on the deadline and which situations I should just let play out. The harder aspect to get used to is the hesitance to give unhappy news. This can range from “sorry I won’t be able to finish that today” to “I will not finish this assignment because I don’t know what you’re asking me.” This extends to everyday life as well, when auto drivers will say they know what obscure building you want to go to. At times I’ve discovered they haven’t understood what I said but nod and say “yes.” I’m still trying to figure this one out, I understand how wanting to save face is important but I also think being straightforward will accomplish more in the long run. I’m sure they know that as well, so I’ve tried to figure how to work with it. I’ve found that people are so incredibly helpful when I ask for help, on the street when asking for directions or at work. They don’t seem to judge me when I shrug and say “I don’t know,” so I’m curious why people I’ve become familiar with show such hesitance to asking me for help or showing they might need some further explanation. The rigid hierarchy also took a little getting used to. Every assignment that is finished is sent to peers and superiors for feedback and comments. Thus the process of completing a simple assignment can take weeks and months waiting for all the feedback and implementing all the comments received. This is a complete departure from what I’m used to. I remember starting out in my work and being surprised that I was asked to complete assignment for formal submission without a review from my boss. One time I asked “You don’t want to look over it?” and my boss said, “no I’m sure you did fine.” I guess I got used to just submitting briefings and deliverables, but now everything I write or review is reviewed again. Hopefully I can jump back into non-reviewing mode when I get back. Although it took a few months, I’m glad that I’ve adjusted to a different workplace culture. We’ll see how the reverse culture shock goes when I return to work in the US.
