Step by Step 3000 第1册 Unit4:Approaching Culture(4)

 　　Part 4. International business.

　　Keywords. do business, tip, nationality.

　　Vocabulary. punctual, contact, designer clothes, casual¹, title, business card, deal, chaos², career.

　　A. Listen to the following passage on international business.

　　After the passage, you will hear 5 statements, decide whether they are true or false.

　　Write T or F in the brackets³.

　　China is the biggest market in the world, and many countries such as Germany, the U.S, the UK and Russia do a lot of business there.

　　Let's have a look at some important tips to help you be successful with these nationalities.

　　Firstly, you must be punctual with Germans, even five minutes late makes a bad impression.

　　Being punctual is also very important in the USA.

　　In the UK, it's important to be punctual for business meetings, but nobody expects you to be on time for a social event.

　　Half past seven really means quarter to eight or even eight clock.

　　With Russians, always be on time.

　　But don't be surprised if your Russian contact is very late.

　　It's not unusual for them to be one or even two hours late.

　　In all four countries, it's best dressed formally and use dark collars.

　　In Russia, designer clothes are very common.

　　Don't be surprised if you go to an office in the UK on a Friday and find everyone wearing jeans.

　　Many companies have "dress down Friday" when people wear casual clothes.

　　In Germany, first name is only used with family members in close friends.

　　So be prepared to use titles and last names.

　　In the USA, you will usually invited to use first name almost immediately.

　　The British are quite formal and using first name in business is more and more common, especially among younger people.

　　In Russia, however, nobody uses first names.

　　So use titles and last names.

　　In conversation, the British and the Americans value humor⁴ are both like to talk about sport.

　　The weather is also a good topic of conversation with British.

　　But avoid talking about politics.

　　In Russia, avoid making complaints.

　　The Germans, however, prefer to get straight down to business.

　　Finally, when doing business in all countries, make sure you have a lot of business cards.

　　Remember that in Germany, once a deal have been agreed, you can't change it.

　　In the USA, money is more important than relationships.

　　Whereas⁵ in Russia, it's important to get to know your contact well.

　　Finally, don't be surprised if a British meeting seem like chaos, with everybody participating and giving opinions.

　　So use these tips, and you will be on your way to a successful international business career.

　　Statements.

　　1. It's OK to be late in the USA, but not in Germany.

　　2. Dress Down Friday is common in all four countries.

　　3. In the USA, it's common to use first names.

　　4. The Germans don't like you to change your mind.

　　5. British meetings seem to be well-organized.

　　B. Listen again, match the verbs in column⁶ A, with the words in column B, to make expressions that appeared in the text.

1 casual   

adj.漠不关心，冷漠的；随便的，非正式的；偶然的，碰巧的

参考例句：

• He earns a living by casual labour.他靠做临时工为生。
• The guests wore casual clothes.客人们穿着便服。

2 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

3 brackets   

n.括弧( bracket的名词复数 )；等级；类别层次；壁架v.把…括在括弧内( bracket的第三人称单数 )；把…归为一类

参考例句：

• Publication dates are given in brackets after each title. 出版日期括于书名后面。
• Put your name in brackets at the top of each page. 把你的名字填在每页上端的括弧内。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 humor   

n.(humour)幽默，诙谐

参考例句：

• He is distinguished for his sense of humor.他以其幽默感著称。
• American humor is founded largely on hyperbole.美式幽默主要以夸张为基础。

5 whereas   

conj.而，却，反之

参考例句：

• They want a house,whereas we would rather live in a flat.他们想要一座房子，而我们宁愿住在一套房间里。
• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。

6 column   

n.列，柱形图；专栏；圆柱；纵队

参考例句：

• I often read his column in the local paper.我经常在当地的报纸上看到他的专栏文章。
• A column of soldiers marched down the highway.一个士兵纵队沿着公路行进。