Summary
Throughout my life, I have experienced time as an objective phenomenon within reality and the universe, just like temperature or gravity. However, the ninth chapter by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (2020) has shown that this is a subjective phenomenon and a highly variable value whose nature varies from one culture to another. I realized that the perceived flow of time differs between people of different cultures and the significance and very existence of such physical, linguistic, and mental concepts as past, present, and future.
On the Size of the Past, Present, and Future in Cultures
Another revelation was that the conceptual size of the three forms of time also varies between cultural and ethnic groups. I know people who focus only on everyday things and those who live in the past, and I thought such variations in perception only exist on a personal, individual level. Surprisingly for me, such radical contrast in the vision of temporal dimensions is present at the level of micro- and macro-societies. Even historical and linguistic neighbors like the British and the Danes see the timeline differently (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2020). It is natural that professional human activities closely related to time perception, such as management, become more complex and challenging when they reach global and intercultural levels.
Perceived Time in Intercultural Management
I also learned that different understandings of time could either complicate or simplify companies’ organizational processes and business interactions. Concepts such as short-term and long-term vary temporally by months and years in intercultural management (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2020). Companies’ performance and operation can be improved or worsened depending on whether the bearers of differing time perspectives can come to a consensus on the time perception.
Reference
Trompenaars, F., & Hampden-Turner, C. (2020). Riding the waves of culture: Understanding diversity in global business (4th ed.). Hachette UK.