cultural awareness


Malaysian Hierarchy-Learned at Home

When I was very young, one of the most difficult things I had to learn was how to correctly address my multitude of aunts. In Chinese culture, there are specific titles for each family member. I couldn’t just call them Aunt Jane or Aunt Mary. I had to learn the […]


6 Ways to Get Feedback from Malaysians

In any business environment, you will probably hear the word “feedback” multiple times a day. People often promise to “give you feedback soon” or they “look forward to your feedback”. But the reality is that most people often do not get the honest and useful feedback that they desire. Feedback […]


Kuala Lumpur-A City of Contrasts

Through my window, I could see the PETRONAS Twin Towers dominating the cityscape as usual. They were impossible to miss, as opposed to my humble dwelling that consisted merely of a single story with a few rooms, and that looked like every other house in this poor neighbourhood. I had to be at the […]


Malaysian Rubber Time

‘Time is relative.’ That’s something we’ve all probably heard before, and is an interesting subject, though one we will not be dealing with in this blog. However, still on the subject of time, let’s think about how Malaysians view time. Is it valuable? A scarce resource? Or something that everyone […]


What Is Cultural Awareness?

Cultural competence refers to an ability to interact effectively with people of different cultures. Cultural competence comprises four components: (a) Awareness of one’s own cultural worldview, (b) Attitude towards cultural differences, (c) Knowledge of different cultural practices and worldviews, and (d) cross-cultural skills. Developing cultural competence results in an ability […]


Malaysian Culture 101

  The first thing you need to know about Malaysian culture is that their really isn’t just one culture.  There are at least three in Peninsula Malaysia or as it’s usually referred to, West Malaysia, and several tribal cultures in East Malaysia located within the states of Sabah and Sarawak […]