Comming to America

Dear friend,

Heard that you are coming to America to work here. I am sure you have heard how tasty the Pizza here is , also how clean the roads are that you can be served food on it, and how about the restaurants where semi naked waitresses rub more than shoulders with you?

Yes there is a lot of fun stuff here. But fun is not the sole purpose of your visit I guess. May be I should let you in on a few secrets – more like tips – that helped me here.

1. Be friendly – People hate strangers, Americans are even afraid of them they instruct their kids not to talk to strangers. So don’t be a stranger. There is this great American custom of saying a ‘Hello’ or smiling at total strangers, a smile indeed takes the ‘strange’ out of the stranger. Also at work befriend people you are working with. They may resist at first but keep trying. Smile with them joke with them. Once you become friends with them then your stay here is going to be easy.

2. Be Sincere – I am sure at offshore you had your own excuses for each time you skipped a meeting, or forgot your ID card, or went a day late after vacation. Forget all that it is better to be sincere than to be caught lying. I have known several people who had career difficulties because they are caught lying to the client.

3. Be communicative – If you want to impress people here you need to have good comm. skills. If you feel that you are average I would suggest you pick it up as fast as you can. It is easy. Start observing how people speak. Make changes to the way you speak very often by adapting. Watch American television often, stay away from J. Springer.

4. Be confident – This is the most important virtue. If you feel confident about yourself, it shows, and it helps. I have seen people with average communication skills being confident too.

5. Be respectful – It is important to realize that you are in entirely new cultural milieu. You may see, hear things that are a shock to you but a very normal thing here. Do not be judgmental of people. Do not stare at people who may look different or do things differently. Remember point number 1.

There is lot more. But I think I covered the bases.

Do not forget to bring the Avakka pickle, Garam Masala powder and a pack of kings.

Cheers.