| 「為什麼不直說？」 和外籍同事相處的潛規則 文/Mitchel Hayden  | I READ BBC News/Politico/Cracked Originally from Rochester, Minnesota, USA, I have lived in Taiwan since 2011 and plan to stay until they kick me out. Since I moved here I've gotten to know the buxiban industry extremely well, taught adults, worked for an English-language newspaper and done some writing. When not teaching I spend way too much time reading articles on the Internet and playing an unhealthy amount of video games. | There are roughly 30,000 foreign, white-collar workers in Taiwan. 美國人原來是這樣想的!
 越來越多人的辦公室裡會有外國人，美國人 Mitchel在台灣工作好一段時間，提出他的跨國溝通術。 當台灣主管遇上外國員工
As a foreigner working in Taiwan, I have worked for several Taiwanese managers. For the most part, there were very few problems. However, I would be lying if I said that the culture differences didn't cause a few issues along the way. Several times I felt frustrated and thought to myself “why did my boss do that?!” And I am not alone in this. There are roughly 30,000 foreign, white-collar workers in Taiwan. Like me, they are drawn to Taiwan because of a low cost but high standard of living, plenty of job opportunities (if you want to teach English), a desire for the adventure of living overseas and a lack of good jobs back in their home countries. However, compared to 23 million Taiwanese, that is a small number. Very few Taiwanese managers have worked in a situation where they had foreign employees. 老闆：請揣測我的心意
The most common complaint foreigners have about working under a Taiwanese manager is a lack of communication. “My boss didn't tell me they wanted this thing done, and then got mad when we didn't start on it.” Variations on this are the number one thing that generates workplace tension and frustration. Similarly, I have heard a lot of versions of “My boss changed something but didn't inform us, it's like they expect us to be able to read their mind!” 為什麼台灣人都說：這張椅子不舒服？
This indirectness comes about both in work performance as well as office etiquette. One of my first experiences with this came shortly after I arrived in Taiwan. The office I was working at had a reception area with a chair. During my breaks I would go and sit down in a chair to read or listen to music. After the first day I did this, one of my Taiwanese coworkers came over and asked “Aren't those chairs uncomfortable?” “Not really,” I replied and went back to reading. After all, they were some of the most comfortable chairs in the office. But then someone made the same comment later that day. The next day, yet another Taiwanese coworker said “It seems too bright to read here, maybe it would be easier in the employee area.” I was getting a little annoyed at this point. “What were these people thinking? It wasn't too bright, the chairs were comfortable … did Taiwanese people have more sensitive eyes and posteriors than Westerners? ”I was confused. Finally, a foreigner who had been in Taiwan for a while said “hey, they don't want you to sit there. Clients pass through there on their way to have meetings, so they probably don't want you lounging around looking like you aren't working.” “Well then why didn't they just say that? I would have moved, no problem” I replied. The coworker just shrugged and said “Welcome to working in Taiwan.” To learn more about how these cultural differences affect the workplace, I sat down for an interview with a Taiwanese manager who has a lot of experience working with both Taiwanese and foreign employees. She has been in this position for six years, and during that time has been responsible for Taiwanese employees, as well as foreign, mostly Western, teachers and has experienced the challenges that this kind of workplace presents. NOTE: To make the answers more clear, I have edited the responses for grammar.  對外國員工說話，請開門見山
 What are some unique challenges that come with having foreign employees?
Well, I think the big difference is, being Taiwanese, we seldom say things directly. Usually with my Taiwanese employees, I will give them a hint; if you do a bad job, I won't tell you you did a bad job, I'll just give you a hint. And most of the time they will know, “my boss didn't like the thing I did.” But the foreign teachers seldom understand my hints. So I learned, in the past six years, that I have to tell them directly, to show what I think, and also to let the foreign teachers know what is acceptable and what is not acceptable. So I have to say it very clearly.  別期待外國員工會自願加班
What are some of the difference between managing Taiwanese employees and Western employees?
Taiwanese employees will usually work overtime. I mean they will finish the work before they leave, whether it's overtime or not. But for the foreign teachers, it's “time's up, I'm off, this is what I get paid for so I will leave.” No matter if they are finished or not. So that's totally different. And I will say, the foreign teachers will be more focused on following their roles. But the Taiwanese employees will usually think about feeling, and “what my boss will think about me.” And also they will try to do things to make their boss like them. But I don't get that from the foreign teachers. They will think “Well, I get one hour pay so that's all I will do.” So I think that's a very big difference. For the foreign teachers, it's “no pay, no way.” (laughs) 辦公室溝通術：主動瞭解文化差異
After the interview was concluded, I thought back on what she had said. None of the points she raised really surprised me; in fact they were all things that I had noticed and occasionally complained about, just in reverse. However, the lesson that I, personally, drew from this interview and from my experiences is the importance of understanding what you are getting into when you enter into a situation where you have managers and employees from different cultures. The cultural differences will always be there, no matter how much experience a manager might have working with employees from different cultures. However, having an understanding of the common problems that Taiwanese and Western workers face when they interact with each other in the workplace can make identifying and resolving those issues when they do arise easier for all involved.■ 本文收錄於英語島English Island 2016年2月號
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