The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia [Paperback]

Dean Foster (Author)

Book Description

Series: Global Etiquette Guides | Publication Date: April 7, 2000

Everything You Need to Know for Business and Travel Success

The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia
* Country to country protocols and customs
* International business musts and faux pas
* Dining, hosting, gift giving, and more
* Cross-cultural exploration


The Global Etiquette Series Did you know:
* In Indonesia, you should always present your business card with both hands?
* You might offend your Japanese hosts by refilling your own teacupat dinner or forgetting to refill theirs?


In today s high-stakes, highly charged international business world, you simply can t afford a misunderstood gesture, an ill-placed word, or a misinformed judgment. The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia shows both business and leisure travelers how to understand, appreciate, and manage as well as maximize the benefits of the myriad cultural differences that can exist between you and your Asian business hosts.

This fact-filled cultural guidebook provides detailed advice on:

Dining Drinking Speaking Eye contact Hailing a taxi
Dress Negotiating Gift giving Conducting a meeting
Tipping Holidays Dealing with authorities

Just as customs vary greatly between Asia and the West, so do they vary among the diverse nations of Asia. What is proper and expected in Malaysia, for example, may be a deal-breaker in India. The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia will familiarize you with the customs, habits, tastes, and mores of every key Asian nation over forty in all and help you guarantee the mutual respect and acceptance that are vital for keeping every international business relationship agreeable, effective, and successful. Wiley s Global Etiquette Series provides the practical information you need to travel and conduct business in foreign countries and cultures. Each easy-to-navigate reference book is filled with helpful hints, do s and don ts, and other rules of the road for travelers of all types.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do," or for that matter, when in Turkmenistan do as the Turkmenistans do. The premise of this new series of books by the managing director of Berlitz International is to familiarize the traveler with the various customs of the countries of the world. The books are a fountain of information on dining, business, public behavior, communication, and more. Some important facts to remember: Do not smile in public in Romania or the locals will think you odd. When in Thailand, do not gesture much with your hands or you may find yourself the source of laughter. And be careful in Bulgaria to say quite clearly yes or no because to shake your head from side to side means yes. Those planning a lengthy stay in a foreign country should familiarize themselves with the information in these books. A useful addition to the travel guide genre in all public and academic libraries.DSandra Knowles, Henderson Cty. P.L., NC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Back Cover

Everything You Need to Know for Business and Travel Success

The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia

• Country to country protocols and customs
• International business musts and faux pas
• Dining, hosting, gift giving, and more
• Cross-cultural exploration

The Global Etiquette Series Did you know:

• In Indonesia, you should always present your business card with both hands?
• You might offend your Japanese hosts by refilling your own teacupat dinner?or forgetting to refill theirs?

In today?s high-stakes, highly charged international business world, you simply can?t afford a misunderstood gesture, an ill-placed word, or a misinformed judgment. The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia shows both business and leisure travelers how to understand, appreciate, and manage?as well as maximize the benefits of?the myriad cultural differences that can exist between you and your Asian business hosts.

This fact-filled cultural guidebook provides detailed advice on:

? Dining ? Drinking ? Speaking ? Eye contact ? Hailing a taxi
? Dress ? Negotiating ? Gift giving ? Conducting a meeting
? Tipping ? Holidays ? Dealing with authorities

Just as customs vary greatly between Asia and the West, so do they vary among the diverse nations of Asia. What is proper and expected in Malaysia, for example, may be a deal-breaker in India. The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia will familiarize you with the customs, habits, tastes, and mores of every key Asian nation?over forty in all?and help you guarantee the mutual respect and acceptance that are vital for keeping every international business relationship agreeable, effective, and successful. Wiley?s Global Etiquette Series provides the practical information you need to travel and conduct business in foreign countries and cultures. Each easy-to-navigate reference book is filled with helpful hints, do?s and don?ts, and other rules of the road for travelers of all types.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (April 7, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471369497
• ISBN-13: 978-0471369493
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,379,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Open the door to another culture, September 9, 2000

By 

steve mccrea (Fort Lauderdale FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia (Paperback)

I teach at a language school in Fort Lauderdale. We receive students from Asia and Europe who visit for 3 weeks to 6 months to improve their written and spoken English. What I often spend a lot of time doing, espeically with students from countries that are foreign to me, is deceiphering their customs and automatic responses to new situations. For example, a guy from Egypt walked with me to his apartment to give him a book. I was perspiring so when we reached his bedroom, he pulled out a red box and sprayed cologne on my shirt's armpits, in front of my shirt and on my left and right ear. "Now you will feel fresh." Well, I'm waiting for Dean Allen Foster's book on North Africa or the Middle East, because his book about customs in Asia is stellar. I highly recommend its ability to give near-instant insight into the mores and traditions of foreign cultures. To meet a guy from Japan or China without knowing the stuff in this book is like entering a supermarket without a map of the store and expecting to find toilet paper quickly. This book is like an aisle guide to the store and it might even point out that toilet paper is sold in a different container than you expect. the book helped me overcome some misconceptions (and fears) that I had developed about China and I am grateful for that. Write to me if you have other insights. [e-mail]

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Useful book, but desperately needs a fact-checker, December 14, 2004

By 

N.N. (Albuquerque, NM, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia (Paperback)

There aren't many books to help one navigate social customs in the diverse cultures of Asia, and for that reason this book is extremely useful. The author admirably tries to give depth and context to the rules of etiquette in Asia by providing some historical, cultural and religious background, but, unfortunately, he gets a lot of that stuff wrong. For example, he says the Buddha was a "wealthy Brahmin priest". In fact, he was a Kshatriya (warrior caste) prince. This is a key factor in his renunciation of wordly things, and important to know if you want to understand the role of the Buddha and Buddhism in India.

There are similarly significant errors in his descriptions of other Indian cultural matters (I don't know enough about the other Asian countries he talks about to comment, but I'm a bit skeptical of their accuracy in spots, too). Why even give that kind of background if it's not right?

I noticed that a few reviewers of the Global Etiquette: Europe book complain about like errors in those books -- mostly to do with language and usage. All in all, it seems like Mr. Foster could greatly improve this series if he'd get some knowledgeable native fact-checkers and proofreaders on the job for upcoming editions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A quick reference guide, January 2, 2008

By 

Org. Effectiveness Guru - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Global Etiquette Guide to Asia (Paperback)

A great reference guide for anyone traveling to asia for the first time. The book is broken up by countries which helps in understand a little bit of the history, culture, do's and don'ts.