Lawrence Draken About This Week's Guest Lawrence Draken Lawrence Draken is an author and small business owner. Her latest book, “The Year of the Rabid Dragon” is a medical-thriller based in Beijing, China, centered around a virus that is spread through the civilian population of China’s capitol. Draken lived and worked in Beijing for nearly five years, first doing research in high energy physics, then working on a strategy and engineering team with a German auto company. While living and working in China, Draken was struck by the distance between the headlines of what people hear on the news about China, and the picture of China she formed living there and interacting in the daily drama of the city. Writing became a way for her to share the bigger picture of how China works as a country with people who aren’t able to live overseas themselves. Her book is as much a study on the culture and mindset of China as it is a medical thriller. "In Germany people value their individual rights highly (as they do in the US; In China the 'Group' forms the functional core and you first do what the authorities tell you and when you do that you will have your individual freedom." Her tips on becoming more culturally competent are: Leave your home country; if you can, take a sabatical year or two. Get yourself confronted with different situations that you don't understand (and learn from them). If/when you come in contact with someone new, try not to pass judgement but try to learn first about what is going on. Be open to the experience that you might undergo and realize that what you possibly expected to happen or be, might not be what you will experience. Links mentioned in this episode are: Website: https://www.lhdraken.com/ Email: [email protected] Culture Matters You Can Also Listen to the Culture Podcast and Management Podcast Build your Cultural Competence, listen to interesting stories, learn about the cultural pitfalls and how to avoid them, get the Global perspective here at the Culture Matters podcast on International Business. We help you understand Cultural Diversity better by interviewing real people with real experiences. Every episode there is an interview with a prominent guest, who will tell his or her story and share international experiences. Helping you develop your cultural competence. Welcome to this culture podcast and management podcast. To Subscribe to this Management Podcast, Click here. The Culture Matters Culture Podcast. Available on iTunes and Stitcher Radio Click here to get the podcast on Spotify Talk to your Amazon Alexa and listen to the Podcast If you have a minute, please leave me an honest rating and review on iTunes by clicking here. It will help the visibility and the ranking of this culture podcast on iTunes immensely! A BIG THANK YOU! Enjoy this FREE culture podcast! Music: Song title - Bensound.com More Ways of Listening: Get a Taste of How Chris Presents, Watch his TEDx Talk   Name Email Address Phone Number