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An American CEO had exchanged customary, polite greeting with his Japanese opposite number, a ritual that the American felt had gone on for too long. They had at last come to the root of the problem, and the Japanese president was being evasive, ducking all the straight questions, and repeating that with goodwill and sincerity all such questions could be satisfactorily answered.

As part of the initial greeting ceremony involving the Japanese delegation, the parties had exchanged meishi (business cards), and the American CEO, conscious of Japanese custom, had placed the cards on the table in front of him in the same pattern as the seating arrangement for the Japanese delegation. In this way he could call everyone by name, having a convenient reminder in front of him.

As the meeting grew more stressful and his impatience with evasive answers increased, he picked up one of the cards, absentmindedly rolled it into a cylinder, unrolled it again, and began to clean his nails with the edge. Suddenly he felt the horrified eyes of the entire Japanese delegation on him! There was a long pause, and then the Japanese president stood up and withdrew from the room. We would like to call an intermission, the Japanese interpreter said. The American looked at the battered meishi in his hand. It was the one the Japanese president had given him.

This example aptly demonstrates the devastating effects that insufficient awareness of cultural differences may have.

Question:

A systematic understanding of cultural differences and an understanding states of mind. What is the meaning of these two concepts? Please explain.