Earlier this week, I flew into Mumbai for a meeting. I flew India's national airline Air India. One of the things that stuck me at the check-in was the complete change in interaction. And I wasn't sure this was an anomaly or was our attitude as a people.
Since this was at the back of my mind, I was consciously observing the interaction at every level. The air hostesses, the pilots, the ground staff in Mumbai, the immigration officials, the customs, the cab drivers, the rickshaw drivers, restaurant personnel, hotel personnel, IT programmers, managers,... basically everyone I came across.
And the interesting things was that there were several differences in behavior between people in the US and those in India. Some good and some not so good.
Here's my list of the Top 5 good differences and the top 5 bad differences.
Good
5 - God fearing
Almost all Indians believe in the divine. And are very devout. And believe that their fate is decided by the Almighty.
4 - Knowledgeable
We tend to be updated with information. And are quite knowledgeable about events. Local and Global. Being informed is not restricted to urban areas and even in rural areas most people are up to date on information and are knowledgeable in general.
3 - Helpful
This quality shows itself in everyday life. You can ask any stranger for directions and they'll go out of their way to help even if they have absolutely no idea of your destination. Or ask your relatives or friends for help and the only problem you may have is too many willing people.
2 - Patient
Our culture has taught us to be patient. And this allows us to live life with a smile, even when on many occasions the time taken may be frustrating.
1 - Adjusting
As a people we are very flexible and adjustable. Most people quickly adapt to their circumstances and adjust very well even in the most adverse of conditions.
Not so good
5 - Line Breakers
We love to break lines. And complain when others do the same. Whether its in driving or at the airport. Interestingly even at the US Embassy an American Immigration Officer commented to me, "This is India, you don't wait your turn, it may never come."
4 - Tardiness
Its okay to be late. But its not okay for anything or anybody else to be late. We love to complain about how everyone else is late, from the government employees to the trains, to the courier, but justify our tardiness with several reasons.
3 - Hierarchical Behaviour
Our behavior is totally dynamic. We have our best smile and nice things to say to someone superior to us and are completely obnoxious to those we think are inferior to us. Seems like 66 years after Independence we are still caught up in a class based society.
2 - Bribers
We seem to think its okay to bribe to get something done. And spend hours justifying that what we did was because we had no choice, but the system is corrupt and so on. Problem is the fact is that the system is corrupt because we make it so, a simple but inconvenient truth we refuse to accept.
1 - Chaltha Hai
An unique Indian attitude of abject acceptance of circumstances. Its an "Its okay" attitude. And so its not important to keep our commitments. We feel that if something is close enough to what we claimed its good enough. Problem is close enough is conveniently defined as what is the current result.
As a culture we have several positives and a few negatives. If as a country we are able to collectively reform our negatives, we could very quickly make a huge difference. To ourselves, to India and to the world.
Since this was at the back of my mind, I was consciously observing the interaction at every level. The air hostesses, the pilots, the ground staff in Mumbai, the immigration officials, the customs, the cab drivers, the rickshaw drivers, restaurant personnel, hotel personnel, IT programmers, managers,... basically everyone I came across.
And the interesting things was that there were several differences in behavior between people in the US and those in India. Some good and some not so good.
Here's my list of the Top 5 good differences and the top 5 bad differences.
Good
5 - God fearing
Almost all Indians believe in the divine. And are very devout. And believe that their fate is decided by the Almighty.
4 - Knowledgeable
We tend to be updated with information. And are quite knowledgeable about events. Local and Global. Being informed is not restricted to urban areas and even in rural areas most people are up to date on information and are knowledgeable in general.
3 - Helpful
This quality shows itself in everyday life. You can ask any stranger for directions and they'll go out of their way to help even if they have absolutely no idea of your destination. Or ask your relatives or friends for help and the only problem you may have is too many willing people.
Our culture has taught us to be patient. And this allows us to live life with a smile, even when on many occasions the time taken may be frustrating.
1 - Adjusting
As a people we are very flexible and adjustable. Most people quickly adapt to their circumstances and adjust very well even in the most adverse of conditions.
Not so good
We love to break lines. And complain when others do the same. Whether its in driving or at the airport. Interestingly even at the US Embassy an American Immigration Officer commented to me, "This is India, you don't wait your turn, it may never come."
Its okay to be late. But its not okay for anything or anybody else to be late. We love to complain about how everyone else is late, from the government employees to the trains, to the courier, but justify our tardiness with several reasons.
3 - Hierarchical Behaviour
Our behavior is totally dynamic. We have our best smile and nice things to say to someone superior to us and are completely obnoxious to those we think are inferior to us. Seems like 66 years after Independence we are still caught up in a class based society.
We seem to think its okay to bribe to get something done. And spend hours justifying that what we did was because we had no choice, but the system is corrupt and so on. Problem is the fact is that the system is corrupt because we make it so, a simple but inconvenient truth we refuse to accept.
An unique Indian attitude of abject acceptance of circumstances. Its an "Its okay" attitude. And so its not important to keep our commitments. We feel that if something is close enough to what we claimed its good enough. Problem is close enough is conveniently defined as what is the current result.
As a culture we have several positives and a few negatives. If as a country we are able to collectively reform our negatives, we could very quickly make a huge difference. To ourselves, to India and to the world.
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