How Culture Affects Business Interaction Between Americans and Europeans

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Americans must first realize that Europe is a very diverse place as compared to the United States. The United States is about 3,000 miles across, has a population of around 300 million and has only one official language. Comparatively, Europe is about half the size of the United States, has a population of almost 740 million, and is comprised of 47 countries. Furthermore, of the 47 countries, only a handful have English as on official national language. Just as different states in the US have cultural differences, the European nations each have a distinct cultural background, many of which are deeply rooted in the nations history. A history that is much older than that of the United States. Europeans have a much different perception of time. For example, a house in the United States that was built in the early 1800s would be considered ancient to most Americans. This belief comes from the fact that the United States has only been an independent nation since the latter part of the 1700s. Europeans, on the other hand, would not consider a building to be ancient unless it was at least 2,000 years old. European civilizations have been around for thousands of years and Native Europeans are very proud of their long lasting history. In a business setting, Americans must be careful to respect the ancienty of European nations. As Americans think of newer things as being old, they may be quick to lump things together in a category as "ancient" when the things considered have no place together to a European. For example, let's say an American is looking to purchase some land in the Italian capital of Rome. However, the two structures on the lot were built in 1765 and 593. The American may think, "oh these structures are both old." Whereas an Italian may see the newer as just an old building, and the older structure as a part of history. In negotiations, the American would need

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