SHORTCUTS TO POLAND KLOS SOKOL L. Księgarnia

INTRODUCTION

When I meet Poles for the first time, they're surprised to hear that as an American, I have settled permanently in Poland, and they often want to know why. It's an interesting country, I say, I like the lifestyle and the people. Some are genuinely pleased; others think I'm some kind of weirdo. Some challenge me and point out troubles with the economy, corrupt politicians and the tax system. Gee, it all sounds pretty normal to me-what country in the world is exempt from those types of problems?

Poles are quick to criticize their own country, but don't be fooled:

Their national pride is fierce. Besides, it's easy to focus on the problems in Poland; don't let them overshadow the achievements of the last 15 years or so. If you haven't been in Poland for long, the strides in economic and social progress might escape you. But the process of revising this book, updating (and often discarding) texts first written ten years ago, has made me aware yet again of how fast things are changing.

Poles' entrepreneurial spirit is impressive, and though we've come to take it for granted, EU membership is an amazing accomplishment. The effects won't be obvious for a few years, but it's certainly a psychological boost for the country-especially among younger generations.

Now here comes the obligatory disclaimer that I hope is obvious:

Not every Pole and American behave in the ways I've described. I see great differences between how younger and older Poles behave, and have tried to point out which behaviors seem to be in flux. And if you're a foreigner working in a multinational, you might be experiencing a different Poland than I describe here.

Sometimes the best I could do was to write about the existing rules and norms of cultural behaviors, not about the exceptions. That means I've resorted to making some generalizations-but I see no way to write about culture other than by freezing reality for a moment. And besides, I think that we sometimes have to speak in generalizations about human behavior, because if we didn't, we wouldn't speak about it at all.

And although the essays on cross-cultural communications are mostly directed at Americans, I hope they'll offer at least some help to other foreigners trying to find their way through Poland.

I want to thank Steve Owad for his rockin' editing skills-nearly everything that I have written over the years has passed under his big nose. While he was ice-fishing, Nate Espino filled in and he's a damn good editor too. Of course, any mistakes are my fault. A big thanks to Beata Taras for keeping things together, to Tom and Lotta Keller for their occasional hounding to do this second edition, and to Janusz, Michal, Lukasz, and especially Tomek at Kawiarnia Lokalna. I'm most grateful to my home treasures, Marek and Olivia, for their patient support.

This 3rd edition includes update and new chapters on work, kids, dogs and more.

Los Polandos, radio TOK fm: about the author and the book

193 pages, Paperback

Po otrzymaniu zamówienia poinformujemy,
czy wybrany tytuł polskojęzyczny lub anglojęzyczny jest aktualnie na półce księgarni.