The N Factor: Networking in Other Cultures (Authors @ Mashable)

Via Mashable

September 25, 2008 – 8:12 am PDT – by Guest Writer 1 Comment

This is a guest post written by Marion Freijsen and Adrie Reinders, authors of “The N Factor: How Efficient Networking Can Change the Dynamics of Your Business,” as a part of the Authors@Mashable series. Please join Marion and Adrie for a live Q&A today, Thursday, September 25th at 3:00 PM ET on Mashable.

It’s a Small World
Our world has gotten smaller. Not in the way that the huge house you played in with your friends when you were six years old seems small when you return to it at 30. More in the sense that these days, every business that starts up is no longer just competing with the company in the next village, but more likely with a company on the other side of the world. We all have access to the Internet, we can fly places and as such, the borders have stretched further and further.

Recently I was sitting at breakfast and next to me was a table full of people. They were having fun, which I think is great, but they were so absorbed in their own little world and talking at such an embarrassing volume that it was hard to have a quiet, peaceful conversation with the person sitting next to me. You all have these examples no doubt. Maybe a person next to you with a mobile phone that talks so loudly that you can’t hear yourself think. Or an attendant in a store or hotel who is paying more attention to his colleagues whilst serving you, then to you, the paying customer. I could go on and on – and I am sure you can think of hundreds more examples.

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