Anyone who works or interacts regularly with people from other cultures needs to understand the basics of intercultural communication. In this accessible, completely revised edition, readers can teach themselves the intercultural essentials. This is the training anyone who works across cultures needs. An invaluable resource for students and educators alike, this self-study workbook is used as a primary text and basis of intercultural communication curricula. Understanding the World's Cultures is organized to create an "immersion experience" for readers. Culture is directly addressed through 40 activities that can be worked through in a classroom or a coffee shop. In five chapters, Craig Storti: * Defines culture and explains how cultural differences threaten successful interaction * Identifies four fundamental ways that cultures differ and describes the implications for everyday interactions * Describes cultural differences in communication style * Identifies key cultural differences in workplace settings * Describes the stages in developing cultural awareness and cultural competence and how to move through them Craig Storti has over 30 years of experience as a trainer and consultant working with business people, diplomats, civil servants, and foreign aid workers to help them work and engage effectively with people from different cultures and diverse backgrounds. He leads cross-cultural workshops for international agencies and organizations on four continents and assists corporations and government agencies to better manage global teams and culturally diverse workforces.

Updated with a new introduction and chapter How much culture lurks in common conversation? According to Craig Storti, so much that many of our most common, seemingly innocent exchanges-in social settings, on the job, in the world of business-are cultural minefields waiting to explode. These explosions-cultural misunderstandings-can cause confusion, irritation, even alienation. At the workplace and in the world of business these explosions undermine communication, threaten important relationships, and cost a great deal of time and money; away from work, they strain, even endanger, personal relations. Cross-Cultural Dialogues is a collection of brief conversation (4-8 lines) between an American and someone from another country and culture. Short as each dialogue is, it has buried within it at least one, and usually several breaches of cultural norms which the reader is challenged to figure out. And a challenge it is: the exchanges are so brief and innocuous that even the wariest among us are sandbagged by the dialogue's hidden subtleties. Ten cultures are represented by the non-Americans in the dialogues: Arab/Middle Eastern, British, Chinese, French, German, Hispanic, Indian, Japanese, Mediterranean/European, and Russian, and the dialogues are grouped according to the setting in which they occur: social, workplace, and business. Whether you're a learner, trainer, educator, or an armchair interculturalist, you'll enjoy solving these cultural riddles-and increase your cultural awareness in the bargain.

Why Travel Matters explores the profound life lessons that await anyone who wishes to learn what travel has to teach. With engaging prose, delightful wit and a distinctive style, Craig Storti infuses his own experiences traveling the world for 30+ years with quotations, insights, reflections and commentary from famous travelers, great travel writers, historians and literary masters. Storti's vast knowledge of the literature makes him an expert curator of astute gems from the likes of: St. Augustine, Mark Twain, Somerset Maugham, D. H. Lawrence, Bruce Chatwin, Aldous Huxley and more.

Why Travel Matters explores the profound life lessons that await anyone who wishes to learn what travel has to teach. With engaging prose, delightful wit and a distinctive style, Craig Storti infuses his own experiences traveling the world for 30+ years with quotations, insights, reflections and commentary from famous travelers, great travel writers, historians and literary masters. Storti's vast knowledge of the literature makes him an expert curator of astute gems from the likes of: St. Augustine, Mark Twain, Somerset Maugham, D. H. Lawrence, Bruce Chatwin, Aldous Huxley and more.

If you were lucky, you knew about and were prepared for culture shock when you moved overseas, But unless you are very lucky, you probably don't know about and are not prepared for reverse culture shock. And you should be. Most expats find coming home after an overseas assignment more difficult than adjusting to a foreign culture-and very few organizations and companies prepare people for the experience. Veteran trainer and consultant Craig Storti sketches the workplace challenges faced by returning businessmen and women as well as the re-entry issues of spouses, younger children, and teenagers. He also addresses in detail the special issues faced by exchange students, international development volunteers, and military and missionary personnel and their families. From leave-taking and the honeymoon stage through to reverse culture shock and eventual readjustment, The Art of Coming Home lays out the four stages of the re-entry process and details practical strategies for dealing with the challenges you will face each step of the way. Whether you're about to relocate abroad, are already living abroad, about to come home, or already home, this book walks you through the biggest adjustments, personal and professional, and in this new edition presents a complete do-it-yourself repatriation workshop to help you identify and address your individual readjustment issues.

Have you ever struggled to communicate with a limited-English speaker? Have you been frustrated by unsuccessful interactions with non-native English speakers? Did you know there is a simple solution to improve cross-cultural communication in English? What most of us native speakers overlook in these situations is that the problem here may not be the limited English of the other person; it could be our English. And while we certainly can't do anything about the former, we can do a great deal about the latter. In just 160 pages, this book gives 50 practical tools to help you become aware of and adapt your own language to completely transform exchanges with limited-English speakers and greatly increase the chances of a satisfying outcome for native speakers and for the limited-English speakers they're trying to serve. And the good news is: it is not that difficult and it is entirely in the hands of the native speaker. Craig Storti is a nationally known figure with over 30 years of experience in the field of intercultural communications and cross-cultural adaptation, and the author of several standard works, including Culture Matters, a cross-cultural workbook used by the U. S. government in over 90 countries. He has successfully led workshops on cultural diversity for Fortune 500 companies, hotels such as Marriott, diplomats, civil servants, and foreign aid workers. But it was his 90-minute segments on common mistakes native speakers make when talking to limited-English speakers and how participants could improve interactions that became the most popular and useful aspect of his training. This much-needed book is ideal for anyone working in a public facing job from government to hospitality, international organizations, human resources, cross-cultural and diversity training, English teaching, foreign aid, or those with a love of language, culture and communication.

Westerners and Indians are working more closely together and in greater numbers than ever before. The opportunities are vast, but so is the cultural divide. Misunderstandings and frustration due to cultural differences wreak havoc on success. In this revised edition of Speaking of India, author and intercultural communications expert Craig Storti attempts to ease the frustration, and bring cultural understanding in business and life. With a new foreword by Ranjini Manian, author of Doing Business in India for Dummies, the book also features new content on managing remotely, and the results of a five-year cultural survey. With more than a dozen years of experience working between the two cultures, Storti has identified key cultural flashpoints and the result is a powerful series of Best Practices, which is the basis of Speaking of India.

Expecting that the home will be the way it was when you left? Are you instead shocked to discover that both you and home have changed? The Art of Coming Home offers the solid advice you need to reduce the stress of making the transition home. Leave-taking, the honeymoon stage, reverse culture shock, and eventual readjustment - The Art of Coming Home lays out the four stages of the reentry process and details practical strategies for dealing with the challenges you will face each step of the way. Veteran trainer, consultant, and world adventurer Craig Storti sketches the workplace challenges faced by returning business executives as well as the reentry issues of spouses, younger children, and teenagers. He also addresses in detail the special issues faced by exchange students, international volunteers, military personnel and their families, and missionaries and their children. Whether you are a recent returnee or are just now thinking of moving abroad, The Art of Coming Home sets itself apart as it brings the process of returning home right to the heart of the overseas experience.

'The definitive back story of Mount Everest' Stewart Weaver, co-author of Fallen Giants 'Craig Storti has given us the Everest book that we've needed all along' Scott Ellsworth, author of The World Beneath Their Feet The seventy-one-year quest to find the world's highest mountain. The Hunt for Mount Everest is the seldom-told story of how the last remaining major prize in the history of exploration was identified, named and at last found. This is Everest, the prequel: a high-drama tale, filled with larger-than-life characters and quiet heroes, traverses the Alps, the Himalayas, Nepal and Tibet, the British Empire, the Anglo-Russian rivalry known as The Great Game, the disastrous First Afghan War, and the phenomenal Survey of India. Encountering spies, war, political intrigues, and hundreds of mules, camels, bullocks, yaks, and two zebrules, this account uncovers the fascinating saga leading up to the fateful day in late June of 1921, when two English climbers, George Mallory and Guy Bullock, became the first westerners - and almost certainly the first human beings - to set foot on Mount Everest.

Adjusting to a new culture and getting along with the local people can be a challenge for everyone who lives and works abroad. Whether in business, diplomacy, education, or as a long-term visitor, anyone can be blind-sided by a lack of international knowledge and experience and be caught at a disadvantage. In this completely revised and expanded third edition, Craig Storti outlines the personal challenges of adjusting to the change - anticipating differences, managing the temptation to withdraw, and gradually adjusting expectations of behaviour to fit reality - and shows what it takes to encounter a new culture head-on and succeed. Now an established bestseller, The Art of Crossing Cultures is a one-of-a-kind guidebook to bridging the cultural divide, incorporating an easy-to-understand model of cultural adjustment, and tips on how to master the process and develop adaptive strategies. This timely new edition focuses on how to deal with country and culture shock and includes many examples of cross-cultural misunderstandings. As well as revisions throughout, it includes a brand new chapter on crossing cultures at home. "As enlightening to the university student as it is to the practical-minded businessperson." L. Robert Kohls, author of Survival Kit for Overseas Living

Whether you work with Americans face-to-face, communicate with them by telephone or e-mail or interact together in a virtual team, Americans at Work reveals the subtle and the not-so-subtle aspects of American culture in the workplace. Best-selling author Craig Storti provides historical perspectives and explanations of the six most important American cultural themes and their relevance to the workplace: "Land of Opportunity" (a driven people), "Go-for-It Mentality" (ready, fire, aim; new is better), "Equality for All" (but don't forget who's boss), "The Drive to Achieve" (nice guys finish last), "Live and Let Live" (do your own thing), "Time Matters" (obsession with efficiency). Learn about straight talk, American style, and how Americans aren't always as direct as they say they are. Find out why Americans are deeply conflicted about power: they crave it but are loath to be caught craving it. See how Americans view outsiders. Gain tips for succeeding in the American work environment. Finally, get the basics of work-related etiquette: conducting meetings, giving feedback, nonverbal communication, e-mail rules, gifts, taboo topics and so on. Knowing how Americans work with each other will help you predict their reactions and, more important, their expectations of you. And if you are American, you will be better understand your own behavior and be able to work more effectively with collegues from other cultures.

50 common cultural mistakes made in business are presented in the form of short conversations which show that there's always a reason why people do the strange things they do, the reason is almost never to upset you, and there's always a way round. The Art of Doing Business Across Cultures presents five brief, unsuccessful conversational exchanges between Americans and their business colleagues in 10 different locations-the Arab Middle East, Brazil, China, England, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, and Russia.