Influential Person free essay sample

Everyone in life has a person or a group of people that has influenced him or her the most. As for me, that one special person is my father. My father comes from a strong, religious family of twelve with two brothers and a twin brother who died before reaching three months old. Both of his parents passed away when he was 19. He then moved to Guam and lived on his own until he received his Associates Degree in Accounting. Upon receiving his degree, he returned home to American Samoa to trive to be successful in any possible way that he could. My father is a really hardworking man that will possibly do anything to help his family, church, and community; thus, is one of the reasons why hes the most influential person in my life. He is the backbone of our family and is someone I can always count on. We will write a custom essay sample on Influential Person or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Life during his time was difficult due to poverty and the lack of technology, but my father was able to push through, risk little that he had, and start his own business. In fact, is business is still in operation up to this day and is our familys main source of wealth. With my father coming from a very religious family, I too was raised in one. Ever since I was a young girl, my father made me attend all church activities yet I never really wanted to. Not only did he have me go to all church ministries, but he also planted a seed in my heart through family prayers and Bible studies at home. His perseverance in pushing me to be a devoted Christian has helped me become a better person in many ways. I have now grown up to learn how to love, respect, and to be polite although it may be really hard and tough at times. My father is really special and dear to me not only because hes an amazing and loving father, but because his ways and teachings has brought me to where I am today and has shaped me into a decent young woman. He has made such an impact in my life in which I could never ask to have another father or trade him for anyone else, for I am more than satisfied, happy, and grateful with whom he is as a father to me. Influential person free essay sample The most influential person in my life would have to be my mother, Dolores. She has showed me how to be a hard working woman, how to care for others even though we don’t have the time or money to care for ourselves sometimes, and how to be a strong and independent woman. (more) Influential Person free essay sample Sussudio Hollis Hollis 1 English 093 Ms. Davis 07-13-2010 Most Influential Person My mother has reached many obstacled in her lifetime. Since I was a little girl, her love for me has made me a better person. She has showed me the importance of an education, having faith in God, the importance of career goals, my appearance and my attitude. My mother knows how important these life choices are and have taught me that if I continue to follow them, I will be very successful in life. Education has been very important in my household. My mother has implanted this in not only me, but also my siblings. Making good grades in school since I was in grade school was always her number one priority. She always told me to do my best and thats all she could ask for. Her believing in me motivated me to believe in myself. My mother was a graduate of Ensley High School. We will write a custom essay sample on Influential Person or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page She went on to Miles College where sshe received a Bachelors Degree in Social Working. My mother kept the belief that in order for me and my brothers and sisters to succeed, she had to continue hereducation so that she could be a role model for us to look up to. Her success in education as motivated me tremendously. Having faith in God have always been my mothers belief. This was implanted in her from my grandmother and grandfather. She taught me that God can help me through anything. She made sure that I was baptized when I was a little girl. My mothertaught me how to pray and read the bible. She always told me that as I grow up in life, always allow God to guide me down the right path. If I stumble along the way, God will always pick me up. Through all of her stumbles, God has picked her up and made her who she is today. I admire my mother for continuing to talk about God and making me know how important he is in my life. My mother career goals were very successful. She always told me to get a high school diploma and then a degree. This is exactly what she did. My mother has a great job and is very proud. Her going back to college motivated me to go back. I attended college before but I did not finish. I ended up getting a dead end job that paid minimal wage. This did not sit well at all with my mother. She told me that I was not sticking to my goals and that I should sit down and reevaluate my life. My mother showed me how imporatant college is. I know now that without a college degree, I will not find a good paying job. My mother definitely made me put my career goals back on track and to her I am thankful. My mother has a great appearance and attitude. She dresses neat everyday and always starts her day with a smile and a greeting. Always be polite, she tells me. When my mother enters a room, the entire room lights up. She has always told me that appearance is everything especially when I am trying to get a job. My mother believes that a nice appearance, a great smile, and knowledge from an education will get me a great job in the future. In conclusion, my mother has been a great role model in my life. She has influenced me to make good life choices. The impact that my mother have on my life will give me the courage to motivate my own children some day. She is my greatest admirer because she never gives up on life and lives each day like its her last. She is truely a strong woman and I love her very much.

Atomic Number 8 Element Facts

Atomic Number 8 Element Facts Oxygen, element symbol O, is the element that is atomic number 8 on the periodic table. This means every atom of oxygen has 8 protons. Varying the number of electrons forms ions, while altering the number of neutrons makes different isotopes of the element, but the number of protons remains constant. Here is a collection of interesting facts about atomic number 8. Atomic Number 8 Element Facts While oxygen is a colorless gas under ordinary conditions, element 8 is actually quite colorful! Liquid oxygen is blue, while the solid element may be blue, pink, orange, red, black, or even metallic.Oxygen is a nonmetal belonging to the chalcogen group. It is highly reactive and readily forms compounds with other elements. It is found as a pure element in nature as oxygen gas (O2) and ozone (O3). Tetraoxygen (O4) was discovered in 2001. Tetraoxygen is an even more potent oxidizer than dioxygen or trioxygen.Excited oxygen atoms produce the green and red colors of the aurora. Although air consists mainly of nitrogen, atomic number 8 is responsible for most of the colors that we see.Today, oxygen makes up about 21% of the Earths atmosphere. However, air was not always so highly oxygenated! A 2007 NASA-funded study determined oxygen has been present in air for about 2.3 billion to 2.4 billion years, with levels starting to rise 2.5 billion years ago. Photosynthetic organisms, such as pl ants and algae, are responsible for maintaining the high oxygen levels necessary for life. Without photosynthesis, oxygen levels in the atmosphere would fall. Although hydrogen atoms are the most numerous type of atom in the human body, oxygen accounts for about two-thirds of the mass of most living organisms, mainly because cells contain a lot of water. 88.9% of the weight of water comes from oxygen.Swedish pharmacist Carl Wilhelm Scheele, French chemist Antoine Laurent Lavoisier, and British scientists and clergyman Joseph Priestly researched and discovered oxygen between 1770 and 1780. Lavoisier first called element number 8 by the name oxygen in 1777.Oxygen is the third most abundant element in the universe. The element is made by stars around 5x more massive than the Sun when they reach the point where they burn carbon or a combination of helium in carbon in fusion reactions. Over time, the abundance of oxygen in the universe will increase.Until 1961, atomic number 8 was the standard for the atomic weight of the chemical elements. In 1961, the standard was switched over to carbon-12.Its a common misconception that hyperventilation is caused by breathing in too much oxygen. Actually, hyperventilating is caused by exhaling too much carbon dioxide. Although carbon dioxide can be toxic at high levels, its needed in the blood to prevent it from becoming too alkaline. Breathing too quickly causes blood pH to rise, which constricts blood vessels in the brain, leading to headache, slurred speech, dizziness, and other symptoms. Oxygen has many uses. It is used for oxygen therapy and life support systems. It is a common oxidizer and propellant for rockets, welding, cutting, and brazing. Oxygen is used in internal combustion engines. Ozone functions as a natural planetary radiation shield.Pure oxygen is not, in fact, flammable. It is an oxidizer, supporting combustion of flammable materials.Oxygen is paramagnetic. In order words, oxygen is only weakly attracted to a magnet and does not maintain permanent magnetism.Cold water can hold more dissolved oxygen than warm water. The polar oceans contain more dissolved oxygen than equatorial or mid-latitude oceans. Essential Element 8 Information Element Symbol: O State of Matter at Room Temperature: Gas Atomic Weight: 15.9994 Density: 0.001429 grams per cubic centimeter Isotopes: At least 11 isotopes of oxygen exist. 3 are stable. Most Common Isotope: Oxygen-16 (accounts for 99.757% of the natural abundance) Melting Point: -218.79  °C Boiling Point: -182.95  °C Triple Point:  54.361  K, ​0.1463  kPa Oxidation States: 2, 1, -1, 2 Electronegativity: 3.44 (Pauling scale) Ionization Energies: 1st:  1313.9  kJ/mol, 2nd:  3388.3  kJ/mol, 3rd:  5300.5  kJ/mol Covalent Radius: 66 /- 2 pm Van der Waals Radius: 152 pm Crystal Structure: Cubic Magnetic Ordering: Paramagnetic Discovery: Carl Wilhelm Scheele (1771) Named By: Antoine Lavoisier (1777) Further Reading Cacace, Fulvio; de Petris, Giulia; Troiani, Anna (2001). Experimental Detection of Tetraoxygen. Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 40 (21): 4062–65.Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann.Weast, Robert (1984).  CRC, Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. Boca Raton, Florida: Chemical Rubber Company Publishing.

Brainstorms, Turning to Showers

Brainstorms, Turning to Showers Brainstorms, Turning to Showers Brainstorms, Turning to Showers By Maeve Maddox Until recently I associated only two meanings with the word brainstorm: 1. noun: a brilliant idea. Ex. Hey, guys, I just had a brainstorm! Lets go to the movies. 2, verb: to generate a lot of ideas in a short time. Ex. Before deciding on an essay topic, take the time to brainstorm. According the the Wikipedia, brainstorming is a group creativity technique designed to generate a large number of ideas for the solution of a problem. The method was first popularized in the late 1930s by Alex Faickney Osborn in a book called Applied Imagination. Osborn proposed that groups could double their creative output with brainstorming. Heres what it says in the OED brain-storm, (a) ‘a succession of sudden and severe phenomena, due to some cerebral disturbance’ (Gould 1894); (b) U.S. colloq. = brain-wave (c); (c) U.S., a concerted ‘attack’ on a problem, usu. by amassing a number of spontaneous ideas which are then discussed; also attrib.; so as v., to make such an attack; hence brain-storming vbl. n. and ppl. Apparently some sensitive civil servants in Britain think the expression brainstorm is potentially offensive to people who have epilepsy or some other medical condition that affects the brain. They recommend that we adopt some other figure of speech, such as word storm, thought shower or ideas shower. . . .staff at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) in Belfast will use the term thought-showers when they get together to think creatively. A spokeswoman said: The DETI does not use the term brainstorming on its training courses on the grounds that it may be deemed pejorative. The Guardian A spokesman for Tunbridge Wells Borough Council in Kent said: We take diversity awareness very seriously. The majority of staff have taken part in training and been asked to use the term thought showers. The Telegraph It seems that people who actually have the condition of epilepsy arent much bothered by the popular use of brainstorm to mean to generate ideas. The Epilepsy Foundation of Los Angeles named a recent conference The Epilepsy Brainstorm Summit. Gemma Baxter from the National Society for Epilepsy in the U.K. said her organization contacted people with epilepsy in the community and the overwhelming response was that brainstorming implies no offence to people with epilepsy, and that any implication that the word is offensive to people with the condition is taking political correctness too far. quoted in Free Republic Tricia Ward and Sam Delaney have something to say about this well-meaning pre-emptive effort of the language police to spare the feelings of people whose feelings are unknown to them: Tricia Ward Sam Delaney (Update: Article no longer online) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Synonyms for â€Å"Leader†50 Diminutive Suffixes (and a Cute Little Prefix)Apostrophe with Plural Possessive Nouns

The development of art Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The development of art - Research Paper Example Synagogues, cities and university buildings also utilized these styles. Their differences were seen in terms of the radiating chapels, arch type, vault, elevation, exterior, sculptural decoration, and mood (Fitchen 1981). Gothic architecture was characterized by ribbed vaults while that of Romanesque used groin vaults. In gothic there were pointed arches in arcades, windows, and doors whereas in Romanesque they were rounded ones. Flying buttresses were seen in gothic buildings while in Romanesque buttresses were shallowly projected. Built during the Romanesque period, the building is outstanding and famous in the world. It has the likeness of other Basilica churches consisting of double aisles, and timber roof. The columns are joined by stacked arches, with red and white marble on the bands outside. Its aesthetics are the general proportions and delicate ornamental features. The Vaults mainly chatracterised the Romanesque era as they were developed through innovation so as to replace wooden roofs which were prone to catching fire. Gothic Architecture was concerned with sculpture, architecture, manuscripts and music. The two main structural concerns are pointed arches and ribbed vaults. One such innovation is the Rayyonant style which concentrated on decoration. Other characteristics are heavy colorings of the glasses, carvings and paintings as seen in Saint Chapelle building. Tall and large buildings were built to complicate their plans. Tall buildings were accompanied by thin walls, as seen in Salisbury Cathedral. Salisbury Cathedral is an Anglican church formerly called the cathedral church of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was constructed in the early English Gothic style. Its uniqueness is the towering central spire in the UK and world oldest functioning clock. It was built with highly sophisticated design under the guidance of Richard Poore, the Bishop of Salisbury. Sainte Chapelle was constructed under the commission of King Louis IX

Dispersed Team Dynamics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dispersed Team Dynamics - Assignment Example The success of an organization depends upon the quality of its functions based on its original principles while respecting the truth of innovations necessary for meeting the challenges that are inevitable part of the management process. The run for excellence demonstrated by various managements exposes every organization to a rather demanding field of competition where the leadership is forced to focus on creating opportunities among multiple choices. Any such innovation which can bring positive result in the business process involves risk-taking. More often, the risks appear to hit the functional areas such as goal-setting, communication and organizational changes which can together act as the blue-print for innovations. According to Stasi (2013), the most essential player that drives the virtual team in every organization is the communication system. A technically sound and mechanism of communication eliminates substantial amount of risk lying in the process of connecting people fr om different geographical and cultural regions of the world who form part of the working staff. There are a number of key players that structure the virtual team and enable the managers to continue with the successful chase of long-term and short-term organizational goals. A close association of important elements like the organizational purpose, human stakeholders and the tools meant for their coordination can ensure the accomplishment of success of every organization with thoughtful and dedicated application of management skills by their leaders. Among all the inputs given to the business, communication plays the most important role. As a result, there is a rapid change in the organizations across the world with regards to their information processing and communication systems. Today’s economic world doubtlessly requires the managers to give first priority to making such virtual teams which

Power distance

Power distance So you want to do business abroad and actually make a profit? Dont forget to ask yourself this: What do I know about the culture? To explain the biggest differences between cultures in this essay we are going to use a method developed by Geert Hofstede (geert-hofstede.com) using his four dimensions; Power distance, masculinity/ femininity, individualism/ collectivism and uncertainty avoidance. With this we will explain the difference between the Dutch culture and the cultures of India and Italy when doing business. Power Distance What Is Power Distance? Power distance measures how much the less powerful members of institutions and organizations expect and accept that power is distributed unequally. In cultures with low power distance, people expect and accept power relations that are more consultative or democratic. In cultures with high power distance, the less powerful accept power relations that are autocratic or paternalistic. Power Distance In India And The Netherlands With a population of over 1 billion it is hard to describe life in India because the Indian people have many different religious, regional, cultural, social, and educational variations in structural and functional patterns of family life, making it hard to generalize. However because the majority of Indians are Hindu, we will primarily focus on the Hindu way of life. India has a high power distance; it scores a 77 on the index. While the Netherlands only scores a 38 with around 16 million people. India is a very interesting country to look at because they have ‘used the caste system ¹ for a long time. With that, they automatically create a massive distance between the highest members of the caste: Brahmins (priests) and the lowest members of the caste the pariah (outcasts, â€Å"untouchables†) there are a total of 5 levels in the caste system and each of the people in a lower caste listen to members of the caste above their own. This makes equality, like in the Netherlands, impossible. This because the social position of a person is determined by heredity, for example if you are born a pariah you will never be a Brahmin and you are expected to life your life in the caste, making it your social group as well. Although the system was officially abolished it continues to play a crucial role in Indian society. Family Life A Joint Family is an extended family arrangement prevalent among Hindus of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of many generations living under the same roof. All the male members are blood relatives and all the women are mothers, wives, unmarried daughters, or widowed relatives. However in the last couple of years the people in the urban areas of India seem to have been shifting more towards a nuclear family household (consisting of 2 parents and children) School/ Education In India higher educations are more like the western European way of teaching, so the power distance is not extremely large in the schools, Teachers are however expected to lecture the students. It has been like this since India was a British colony and it keeps improving towards the level of equality which we are experiencing in Holland right now. However, in India the respect for most of the teachers is higher than the respect students in Holland show towards the teachers. Work/ Business As said before the Indian culture prefers a high power distance, in business there will be a large structural difference between the boss of a company and an employee, splitting them by so many layers that they will rarely or never actually talk to each other. And if they do it would be very formal. Also its necessary to avoid forum like situations where you as a manager ask the ‘lower ranking employees for feedback or advice because this will be seen as weak leadership. Opposed to Holland where we consider it a good thing when managers come to us for our opinions. The State The state consists of many layers in India though it is somewhat similar to the political system in the UK. In India, a persons time is valued based on power. A high-power individual must never be kept waiting. In India, a high-power individual can and will demonstrate their power by keeping a lower power individual waiting. In the Netherlands this is just not acceptable. Power Distance In Italy And The Netherlands Italy scores a 50 on the power distance index of Hofstede which puts it somewhere in the middle worldwide. According to Hofstedes dimensions Italy looks a lot like Germany in. Italy was the pinnacle of European development in the early days (Roman Empire). Italians still seem to expect a lot of differences in power between people. They would say the boss in a company should act like he/she is the boss. Family Life The Italian family is important. Grandparents, aunts uncles and cousins are often invited to share family celebrations and Sunday dinners. The family members do not usually live near each other. When children grow up, they usually live in the house until they marry. Sometimes the children would move in to help their parents. The father is always the head of the family. Friends of the family are also a very big part of Italian society. School/ Education In Italy the schools are even more similar to Holland, you are allowed to question the teachers as long as you do it with the proper amount of respect. The teachers will however have a lecture prepared. Work/ Business Power distance in Italian companies is not extremely really high because a lot of the businesses there are family businesses, nonetheless communication at the office is formal and subordinates are rarely allowed to call their superiors by their first name. The boss of the company is really the boss and he/she should be treated with a lot of respect. Good manners and courtesy are prized qualities in Italy. When doing business in Italy ensure your conduct is always polished. There are etiquettes and protocols for many social and business situations; however, it is important to remember that Italians rate considerateness above behavioral formulas. When you are meeting and departing, always shake hands. This is valid for both individuals and groups. When you do business in Italy, you dress to impress. It is no coincidence that Versace, Gucci, Prada and Dolce Gabbana are all Italian fashion houses. Italians like to make an impression with their clothes. What you wear speaks volumes about the kind of person you are. The State Italians are often cynical about persons in positions of authority. Italians love to ridicule authority and people in positions of power. Breaking petty rules is a source of amusement for many Italians. Individualism And Collectivism What Is Individualism And Collectivism? In relation to Hofstedes cultural dimension study, Individual/ Collectivism will be determined. The meaning of individualism expresses exactly a nation, which do care for him/ herself and his/ her direct family. The word â€Å"I† is a very important factor in this form of life, which is completely different in a form of collectivism. This attitude to life shows that these people care about their whole in-group which includes family, friends, uncles, aunts and grandparents. The word â€Å"we† has obviously a higher meaning to them. Hofstedes charts visualize that countries with high power distance (PDI) belong to the collectivists and countries with low power distance belong to the individualists. According to Hofstede individualism countries have the tendency to be a rich. Countries in a collectivism country have most likely the opposite tendency. Individualism And Collectivism In India And The Netherlands A comparison between India and The Netherlands gives a good impression and shows the differences between those two countries. First of all it is important to have a look at Hofstedes charts. India scores, according to Hofstedes, power distance (PDI) as its highest points for cultures, with a ranking of 77 compared with a world average of 56.5. This fact shows a clearly result of a collectivism country, which India is. It makes itself felt in terms of friendships, which were chosen by their parents, not having conflicts, by being indirect or sharing the income if someone has a good job for example. It absolutely represents the loyalty of the in-group members. As a counter-example The Netherlands will be represented. In opposite to India, Holland scores its highest points in the category individuality (IDV), which is 80 points and ties Canada as the fourth highest worldwide IDV ranking. Some examples to clarify the culture are being very direct, let the children choose friends whoever they want or spend their money however they think it will be right. These facts enunciates that Holland doesnt have this in-group attitude like India but rather the absolutely priority to their immediate family. At school children from India see the teacher as a higher person, whatever the teacher says is right without to question it, which shows that they are depending on their teacher. Furthermore it is normal to focus on a social network, where the synonym â€Å"we† more important than â€Å"I†. Dutch children are joining a completely different way of getting taught in school. It is more important to learn how to develop their own abilities, to be independent and learn how to discuss problems. They also expect the teacher to know everything with every detail. The next part relates to work and business in India. Since they have in-groups it is not normal to work with people who are not part of their in-group. It is very common that the children from India start to work in their fathers, or uncles business. Otherwise they wont find another job because in a collectivist country they are so depended on their in-group. Dutch people raise their children to work at a place wherever and whatever they like. Its more important for them to let them pick up their own experience and realize their dreams. This is the logical way of thinking for individual countries. In addition it promotes the economy to have people who are independent. The final aspect is about the states in individualism/ collectivism countries. Since India is a part of collectivists it is to say that there are more differences between poor people and rich people. Further the human rights are lower than those ones from individualist countries. In contrast The Netherlands which belongs to the individualists are more equal regarding the differences between poor and rich people. It is very important to have the same human rights like every single person in the country. Equality has different meaning for those two mentioned countries. Individualism And Collectivism In Italy And The Netherlands The comparison between Italy and The Netherlands will show the differences between those countries. It is important to take a closer look at Hofstedes charts. It shows Italys highest score, which is about 71 points â€Å"Individualism† and shows the similarity between Holland and Italy. Italy is an individualist country, like The Netherlands, but its Power distance (PDI) is also high. Family life is important for Italians, not just the immediate family, but also uncles, aunts and grandparents play a big role in the childrens life, which shows the differences to comparing to Holland. Sons from Italy leave their parents house in their 20s which is pretty much same like in The Netherlands. Furthermore children are supposed to tell the truth, even if it hurts. This is a typical attribute of individualist thinking countries, which Dutch and Italian people are. They also get raised as independent children with personal opinion because this could useful for a successful life. In those two mentioned country the school and education is pretty much the same. Pupils or students have to be independent, competitive and they are supposed to determine their own goals. It is very common to discuss issues in the class without being silent, so they can develop their skills. Work and business is also a similar matter between Italy and The Netherlands. They are highly educated business people and make business with foreign countries. Employees and employers are committed to contracts which show the human rights, but there is law that people can get laid off, or they could quit the job. The last aspect is about the state and in this point those two countries are also pretty much similar. Human rights are very high, education is important and everyone has his privacy. In conclusion individualist countries appreciate the individual interests and do not deal with collectivism.   Masculinity And Femininity In India and The Netherlands Hofstedes dimension masculinity pertains to societies in which gender roles are clearly distinct. That means, men has to be assertive, competitive and have to air toughness while women stand for nurturance. They are responsible for the household and the children. High earnings and status symbols present a certain social standing for the man. One gets the recognition deserved while doing a good job and is allowed to reach a higher level in his job. In feminine societies these gender roles overlap. Both, men and women are suppose to be modest (both, men and women have the same rights but also the same duties) both parts focus on their relationship and they are also more concerned to the quality of life. With a ranking at 56, the masculinity of India is with the world average just slightly lower at 51. A high rank means that the country is a masculine country. The lower it is, the lower is the masculinity and goes more to femininity. You also can see that India is a masculine country on different examples in Family Life The man is the head of the family. He is the one, who makes the decisions. Who says what to do. Children are obedient towards their parents. Younger children have to listen to the older children. The man is more dominant than the woman. The woman takes care of the household and the children. Whereas women are going to shop for food, household and clothes, the men are looking for cars, a house or things and objectives, which are standing for status. Even when the trend goes more femininity, step by step, traditions like a marriage portion are still common, in rural areas. The woman has to give money which depends of the family earning to marry the man. However, not always the woman (wife) has to do what the husband says. India consists of a lot traditions and one of them is, that the wife has to follow the instructions of the mother of her husband for the first few years. Even when both genders are equal, rightly, the woman is still undervalued. It is not rare that the girls get less or qualitative less food than the boys because the boys have to get strong for hard work, which a girl is not able to do. That is the reason why girls get more jobs like home helpers and get married early. In comparing to the Netherlands which occupy a score of 14 points rank 72, this country is very feminine. Men and woman are modest and focus on their relationship. Both shop for food and both discuss which car to buy. They do not have one dominant â€Å"leader† of the family both act non- dominant. School/ Education Indias school-systems are free for the grades from one till five. However, more boys go to school than girls. Girls are going to marry early, so they let them work and send the boys to school. An example what makes it visible is, that 48% of the Indians over fifteen cannot read and write. 62, 3% of women and 34, 5% of men are illiterates. The education is also more masculine because the pupils or students try to make them visible in class and compete openly with each other. Job choices are strongly guided by perceived career opportunities. The best student is the norm; failing in school would be a disaster. The atmosphere of ego boosting is exiting, the best one wins. Indian children try to learn jobs where they can make money. The Netherlands have more students which present the average. Failing in school is not the end of the world and they learn jobs, basic on their talent and what they like. They underrate their own performance, they do not want to appear too eager and it is okay when the teacher is also just a â€Å"human† and do not know everything. Work/ Business Most of the time, even when it changes in the big cities and step by step also all over the country, the men are working and earn the money for their families. One fourth of the population lives under the poverty line. They live for the work whereas in the Netherlands the people work to live. That means that money and status are not so important like the leisure time. The Indians work in a competitive atmosphere, the higher the position, the better is the money and their status. Only the best are successful in the hard business. The State The state is a performance society. You will be paid for that what you accomplish. The more you can the higher is the earning. The higher the earning is the higher is your status in society. In the Netherlands it is quite different, the community is more important. The solidarity is higher; people help more each other and also the weaker ones. India focuses a lot to the growth in economy, more than in the Netherlands. Masculinity And Femininity In Italy And The Netherlands Italy counts over 60 points and stands on rank 52 in the index from Hofstede but only for the European countries. Italy is also a masculine society but not so high like India. Italy is less masculine but more feminine than India but not so feminine like the Netherlands. Family Life Women expect men to get the leadership in family life and earn the money for the family. Gender roles are also clearly distinct here. The woman is responsible for the family and especially for the household and the man is making career. Children suppose to be obedient, whereas the boys should be tough and the girls more emotional. Most of the time the father is dominant but it is not unusual when there are non-dominant partners in a relationship. Family is very important and children are their future. Parents try to give their children the best perspective and are always around them; often the â€Å"bambinis† sit on the table till late in the evening. The parents take very care of the children and control them also a lot what they are doing. It is normal, that fights are sometimes loud and the Italians also like to make jokes and do not care when the neighbor or strangers hear it whereas love is not shown to the outside. Often a fight between a man and woman sound hard for a n on-Italian but that is their mentality and normally after five minutes all is forgotten. Men are often seen like machos but it is unusual that parents have a divorce. School/ Education The teachers are authority persons to the students but the communication is still friendly and the teachers also make jokes. It is very important that the Italian students pass school with high grades. Often they learn till late in the evening and the parents still control them to repeat the homework and if they understand well. The education is more masculine than in the Netherlands, failing in school or not passing a test is a disaster whereas the Dutch students are more comfortable and they just need to pass, independent from the grade. According to this fact, teachers in the Netherlands, take more attention to weaker students and try to push them by giving them attention, than openly praise the good students. The students are decent in their CVs, whereas in Italy, they sell themselves in interviews to show they are the best. The Netherlands are a permissive society in which the environment should be preserved as small is beautiful. Furthermore the government depends on a coalition between different parties and women are more often elected than in Italy and India. Work/ Business Usually the woman take care of the family and the men is going to work. However women also work, but the earnings of the men are most of the time higher and the high positions are often occupied by the men. Money is important, men like to show their status with cars for example but leisure time and spending time with their families is also important. You cannot really define if it is more masculine or more feminine. It is more feminine than in India but still more masculine than in the Netherlands. The State The community is important, Italy has solidarity. They care about the weak people in the population and aid also a lot of financially help to poor countries. The country is a community and they represent it to the outside. Uncertainty Avoidance What Is Uncertainty Avoidance? The term uncertainty avoidance denotes how members of a culture deal with unknown or ambiguous situations. Cultures with high uncertainty avoidance try to avoid such uncertainties. Members of other cultures maybe experience equal situations as uncertain or chaotic as well, but respond more relaxed and unstressed. Each country has got own rituals and values how they deal with punctuality, formalities and religious affairs. Cultures with a high certainty avoidance index (UAI) are more prepared to evade risks than cultures with a low UAI. The higher the score of the UAI is, the higher the need of people to have laws and regulations which give them a guideline and a feeling of private and public security. High uncertainty avoidance sentiment can be summarized as â€Å"What is different is dangerous.† However, the weakest uncertainty avoidance sentiment can be summarized on the contrary as â€Å"What is different is curious.† In Italy the uncertainty avoidance and individualism/ collectivism are the highest scores, adequate the four dimensions of Geert Hofstede with a value of 75 on the index. It is clear to see that Italy has one of the highest scores at all. On the other hand there are the Netherlands with a relative low UAI amount of 53 which is almost the mean of 39 countries. Uncertainty Avoidance Italy And Netherlands Family Life Because of the high score Italy has achieved, one can see that the family life seems to be as more stressful as in the Netherlands. In the early stages Italian children learn the difference between dirty and clean and between safe and dangerous. They make more experiences with law and rules and know soon what they are allowed to do and what not. Italian mothers and nannies would never allow to see their children in dirt or danger. It is common that family has a very great significance in Italy. In contrast to Italian families Dutch families are quite different. They are more relaxed about that and let their children make experiences on their own. Dutch dont care about their health as the Italian do. Example: Dutch people dont ask for a doctor or a medical certification if they are ill. Often they are already satisfied with the view of a nurse. Religion plays a pretty important role in the Italian family life. 90% of all Italian inhabitants are Roman Catholic. This huge number shows one that they have great Christianity. Religion gives them some sort of security, confidence and for several people a guideline. Health and keeping good are also important things Italian care about. Unlike Italy Holland is not that religious. Nearly half of all Dutch people are atheists. School / Education In Italy there is high uncertainty avoidance. In such countries it is pretty important for the students to believe in that a teacher knows almost everything. The students want to know right answers in detail and the teachers are supposed to have all the answers. In the Netherlands it is quite different. Teachers are rather considered as advisers. The students just want to have good conversation and discussion with the teacher and they dont have problems if a teacher says â€Å"I dont know†. Italians are almost the same as the German and favored a structured and detailed assignments. Work / Business In work life one can see that Italian employees and managers look for long-term employment. In contrast to Italy the Dutch people are short-term orientated and more flexible. If they are dissatisfied with their job they have no problem with looking for another job. Besides the Italian employees and managers favor a well structured and organized work process that they would not confronted with any problems. Many Italian prefer to do business they already know. Example: Italians prefer to know something about an individual before they speak with the person on the phone. Thus, in business one should send an introductory fax and follow-up with a phone call. The State One reason why Italy is scared of the unknown is because it is a very old cultural country that has survived many economical changes, wars and political upheavals. These facts might have bred in Italians a greater anxiety of the unknown. In Italy a mass of laws and rules are the result of uncertainty avoidance. It gives a feeling of security and also it can be seen as a guideline. In Holland there are not that much laws and rules. They think that laws and rules should be established just in case of necessity. Furthermore they believe that many problems can be solved without any laws. The Netherlands have just a few laws and rules to avoid the uncertainty, although the government and the regulation system is very well developed. If there is a law that is not working, the Dutch government would change or withdraw it easily and quickly. The fact that Italy has so many laws and regulations is that many people are not interested in politics. In contrast the Dutch people are very intereste d in politics, because there not many laws, so they are not overloaded by them. For example, Dutch people ask, why there is a change in ordinance. Uncertainty Avoidance India And Netherlands Family life Based on Hofstedes scale Indias UAI is the lowest of the three countries we have to compare. India scores a 40 on the index. This value makes clear that the inhabitants have the least fear of the uncertain. But its quite hard to generalize, because there are many variations in the different patterns of life. One reason for this fact may be that a large part of the inhabitants grow up under the poverty line. Indian are born in the caste system which forms their guideline, therefore they have another way of feeling of losing a job. Mostly they live with a large amount of family members in one house. Their religion, beliefs and rituals are important attempts to avoid uncertainty in the present and in the oncoming life. Approximately 80% of all Indian inhabitants are Hindu. But in Holland it is very different. In Holland religion is not that import as in India or in Italy because there are almost 45% atheists. School / Education Indians who live under the poverty line probably dont fear to have no school education because the most of them grow up without education at all. But for middle class parents it is important that their children get an academic achievement, because its a direct step to achieve prestige and a better status. Another point is that the dutch pupils dont mind what credits they get. They are just interested in whether they passed or not. Work / Business In countries like India people only work hard if there is a need for it, but they also love to relax. So time is not an ever-present concern for them. Furthermore they live day to day, so one can see that they are very similar to the Dutch because they are both short-term orientated. Day to day can also mean that they fight to survive day after day. The State Indian politics are nearly the same as the British. Since its a bicameral system there are multiple parties. A big difference between the British and Indian system is that in India there are political parties that address, only certain groups in the caste system. And with that they create a certain kind of certainty for the people in the caste. Conclusion After our detailed investigation, about how the four dimensions of Hofstede affect the different countries, we can give some marketing and general advices for doing business in India, Italy and the Netherlands. In contrast to The Netherlands, India and Italy are both masculine countries. For example someone wants to publish a new product especially for woman like a magazine. In the Netherlands it wouldnt be difficult to bring such product on the market because its a feminine society. Nobody would have a problem with the content mentioned in the magazine. In India or Italy it might be more problematic. In India the men would object against magazines like this because the society is directed to males being the higher authority. The men have a big influence on decisions being made. The society status is very important for the family. In The Netherlands it doesnt matter who makes the decisions mainly its good for the family. Generally you have to invest a lot of time and effort in order to build up serious and long-term business relationships in Italy but even more in India. Therefore you (as a business man from abroad) should never try to talk about business straight from the beginning. But rather focus on building a relationship, in most cultures on the world people need to trust each other first before they can do business with each other. Work on that relationship and you will have a good business partner who will always prefer you over the loud screaming cheaper company. In the end, the failure to communicate on the intercultural market will result in the failure of your business as an international company. Always take cultural differences into account. Sources Cultural and Organizations – Software of the Mind http://www.globalvolunteers.org/italy/italy_people1.asp http://www.geert-hofstede.com http://www.wikipedia.org/ clearlycultural.com http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/italy.htm Uncertainty avoidance table Caste System india Hofstedes Dimensions for each country

James Spencer Essay

Introduction The conditions for the poor were terrible at the time when Charles dickens wrote the novel a Christmas carol to express his concern about the conditions for these people. At first Charles was going to show his concern by writing a serious pamphlet explaining the conditions people were living in but after much thought he decided a book would be better because he was a famous author. Charles believed this would help by alerting people of the lives the people were living so they would donate to charity at Christmas a time of giving. Paragraph 1 In stave one of the book we are introduced to Scrooge and Jacob Marley. In the first stave scrooge is described as and evil man and also you can tell this from the things he says â€Å"Every idiot who goes around with â€Å"Merry Christmas† on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding and buried with a stake of holy through his heart. † He replied to his nephew after he invited him to Christmas dinner this shows he dose not like Christmas and also he is very rude and is not afraid of sharing his point of view with others. Scrooge is rude to all the people who try to be nice to him in this first chapter from the men who asked for a donation for charity to his employee who asked for Christmas day off to whom he only just excepted say he needs to be in the earlier the next day. When scrooge goes home he sees the ghost of his ex-partner Jacob Marley who tells him he will have to mend his ways or he may end up with a similar fate. Paragraph 2 In stave two Scrooge is visited by the first of the three ghosts of Christmas the ghost of Christmas past. This chapter gives us a lot of important information on scrooge such as his time at school his work for Mr. Feziwig and his relationship that ended when he became obsessed with money â€Å"I have seen you nobler aspirations fall off one by one until the master-passion, gain, engrosses you†. Scrooge’s fianci e told him when she didn’t want to see him anymore because he had changed at the begging of this chapter he is show as a hard working boy in school that didn’t really have any friends but had a grate love for his sister. The chapter also tells us about the time he worked for Mr. Feziwig and how he used to have a good time and how he was bad employer because he didn’t treat his staff to a good time. Paragraph 3 In stave three Scrooge meets the second of the ghosts the ghost of Christmas present who shows him what over peoples Christmas are like this shows the appalling conditions the Cratchits lived in and how his nephew disrespects him and what he says about him â€Å"his offences carry their own punishment, and I have nothing to say against his†. Fred said after he called a toast to his uncle later on at the meal they all insult scrooge. In this chapter we learn of the great poverty of the Cratchits were they have to share glasses and of tiny Tim’s illness and how he will die if scrooge doesn’t help him. Paragraph 4 In stave for scrooge meets the last of the ghosts the ghost of Christmas future. In this chapter of the book scrooge finds out he has died and he realizes that no one liked him and that his money was not any use to him when he was dead â€Å"he frightened everyone away from him when he was alive to profit us when he was dead! Ha, ha ha! † The pawn broker say’s as we realizes all of scrooges possessions have been sold when they can no longer be any use to him as he is dead. In this chapter he realizes that being a bad person isn’t any good to him and that’s its better to be remembered as a good person than a bad one because that’s all you have when you die. Scrooge has now changed and wants to be a better person and we see what he dose in the last chapter Paragraph 5. In the last chapter in the book scrooge seems to be happier person he dose this by trying to be nice to other people and by doing good deeds he also apologizes to bob and says â€Å"a merrier Christmas, bob, my good fellow, than I have given for many a year! I’ll raise your salary; endeavor to assist your struggling family. † Scrooge said to bob on Christmas day he also gives the Cratchit’s a turkey anonymously and goes to dinner with his nephew and family this shows that scrooge has changed a lot and also want to be a better person. Conclusion I believe that by the end of the story scrooge is a better person and the only reason he became a bad person was because of his own ignorance to what was going on around him. Charles Dickens is try to tell his rich audience of readers that money isn’t every thing and you can have a good time without it but if you do have it you should be generous and try to help over people have a good time and by doing that you will have a good time your self.