"Kiss, Bow, Or Shake-hands"

The title of this post is also the title of a book authored by Terri Morrison and Wayne Conaway.  It is a guide, and good start source, in the study and understanding of cross-cultural differences and their impact on doing business in different countries - through verbal and, more importantly, body gesturing and messaging.

This is the second of a two-part post on body language and its importance in dealing with others on a daily basis in both personal and business relationships.

In the world of body language, cultural differences reign supreme. Nodding your head, direct eye contact, hand and arm gestures are examples where cultural differences can have very different meanings. Lets take hand signs. Look at the hands and see if you know what they signify.

A - means OK but in many countries like Russia and Brazil it is a sexual insult.
B - means '1' or 'OK' but can mean 'No!' in some cultures
C - in the U.S. it means '2' or 'Peace' in Europe 'Victory', in Australia 'Up yours'
D - 'three' in Europe
E - 'two' in Europe, 'waiter' in the U.S., in Japan 'an insult'
F - 'four' in Western countries, 'an insult' in Japan
G - '5' in West, 'Stop' everywhere
H - 'small penis' in Europe
I - 'protection against evil' in S. America and Italy
J - 'two' in West, 'go to hell' in Greece
K - 'screw you' in U.S.
L - 'one' in Europe, 'good/ok' in U.S.
M - 'hang loose' in Hawaii, 'want a drink' in Holland
N - 'I love you' in U.S.
O - 'stop' in West, 'I'm telling the truth' around the world

Hand gestures are but a small part of body language and non-verbal gestures we all use. You need to study all forms of body language and make sure what there meaning is - not only in the U.S. but in relationships with non-Americans as well.

Jim Lavorato