Keep It Simple, Silly!
I have lived here for around 2 years now and here are three things I really appreciate..
1. German directness: hands down, this is one of the most special and well embedded German character. People tell things to your face. That doesn’t mean, they don’t bitch behind your back; but still the 99% of the things will be told to your face. This comes very handy in a professional environment. You exactly know what is expected from you and how good or bad you’re doing.
And this thing is very hard to get used to but once you get used to it and then you go to a different place, it becomes very easy to spot a lie (at least for me).
What does a German mean when he says...?
2. Respecting other’s time: before coming to Germany, I never really knew the “value” of my time and rarely used the phrase “you’re wasting my time”. 2 years now and I say straight to person’s face if he/she is late and doesn’t have a valid reason. I cannot say how much I appreciate this thing. They say, time is money- and Germans follow it to the core (deutsche bahn- hear that? :P).
P.S. I love DB but there’s always some fun to make fun of them :D
3. Order/regulations and more order: I give it to a new person that its a pain in a** for first few weeks. But once you get used to it, this is one of the better aspects of German society. Sometimes though it comes with a drawback, where the person is so much used to orderly and regulated living; that in a strange situation its very hard to adapt.
Ordnung muss sein!!
