Cultural Differences

The other day, my cyber friend Lori and I were in a digital chat. Lori wanted super-inexpensive storage ideas. I suggested Lori spray paint a few boxes and voila! easy storage solutions.

Lori, however, lives somewhere blizardish wasn't able to spray paint. Me, a desert dweller, didn't exactly understand (until Lori pointed it out) that blizzards and spray painting don't go hand in hand. A cultural difference.

Of course, there are other cultural differences I encounter on a regular basis. Most of these I have absorbed through the course of running my accidental business. Many of them I don't even notice anymore.

Last week Mr. Partner was making noises like he does every quarter or so about the state of affairs in Alabama. I grumbled to Marty Sunshine that if Mr. Partner felt he could do a better job managing this, I was willing to retire. And, Godspeed.

Marty pointed out that Mr. Partner couldn't handle the cultural differences. Though Mr. Partner totally rocks at being a landlord. And, he brings thrifty to a level only surpassed by Ebenezer Scrooge. Doing business in the South takes a bit more than understanding when to write the check and whom to write it to.

In the South, people expect--and only respect--those who are polite. There is a time window in any conversation where small talk is required. The weather, the state of affairs or any other issue deemed appropriate in polite society is required to be covered thoroughly before getting to the crux of the matter at hand.

I am sure there have been 911 calls that start, "Hello. How y'all doing? Can you believe this weather we are having here? By the way, Timmy has fallen into the well..."

By which the 911 operator would answer, "Oh, bless his heart..."

Urgency in the South is not the same as the rest of the world. Kirby taking four days to return my e-mail (which he did) may be overly maddening to me, but to him--and most everyone else over there--this is a politely acceptable time frame to respond to an e-mail. Mr. Partner would not find this acceptable. Frankly, I don't either, but I understand Southerners do.

When I go to Birmingham, I am somewhat expected to have face time with those I do business with. Though this is an acceptable business practice everywhere, in the South, these aren't business meetings. They are social calls--and are to be treated as such. In the South, business is done with those people trust. Trust comes with a price and responsibility.

These aren't just basic MBA business practices, but time honored rituals rich in tradition and cultural heritage. Southerners in general don't particularly trust outsiders. Outsiders have to work to earn the trust. Not the other way around.

Just like for Lori and her near Arctic conditions, in the South, what I am calling "cultural differences" are really just a way of life. And though I fantasize about Mr. Partner taking over, I am not sure he would take the time to learn these differences. And if Mr. Partner doesn't master the cultural mores, that alone could make or break what we do.