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Value Systems
Family first
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Neil Balfour
Creative Director,
Addison Espaņa
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It's clear that Spanish people have other important things in their lives which sometimes British people tend to forget, and we are all very focused on our work and we are all going as fast as we can. Spanish people have got a little bit of a wider perspective and this sometimes can be frustrating if you've still got the British perspective of "I'm here to work all day".
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If you compare the Spanish with the British then they are going to put personal relationships first. The work ethic perhaps would be sacrificed to personal problems or relationship priorities.
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Jay Kettle-Williams
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Let me introduce you to my mum
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Adela Gooch
Spanish Correspondent,
The Economist
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The family is terribly important in Spain and I think any sign of disrespect towards family would really be considered an enormous faux pas, and generally you've got to be careful with criticism. Spaniards are very sensitive; they like to please. You need to couch your criticism in very gentle terms.
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What's important to them is interpersonal activity, interpersonal relations, friendships, family life, and enjoyment of life. I think the greatest difference working in Spain as opposed to, shall we say, working in Britain, is the degree and standard of interpersonal relationship that is going to take place. And that's got to be considered supreme. You've got to show interest in your Spanish colleague, in your Spanish colleague's family. So be prepared for that much more personal and interpersonal contact.
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Jay Kettle-Williams
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Adela Gooch
Spanish Correspondent,
The Economist
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Their sense of humour is very different. So what might be considered a witty aside in Britain is an extremely sarcastic and rather rude comment here, because humour here is sitting around in a group, a formal joke and then you laugh at the punch line.
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They've got a very strong sense of humour. Not like ours, not understated, not culture-bound, but a little bit brash, sometimes a little bit common. They're not afraid of sexual topics as we are in northern Europe. They're not so put off by political correctness, they don't see that as such a barrier. And of course that brings up the whole idea of sexuality. I'm not talking about deviancy or anything like that, but sexuality - we've been built differently, we've got sexuality, that's fine. But their humour is more direct, more open, more frank. It's a humour more for belly-laughs than the little chuckles that we like when we try to be that little bit clever and understated.
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Jay Kettle-Williams
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- Be prepared for greater interpersonal contact.
- Show your personal side even when doing business.
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Being there index |
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Being there