Work and sun

Brazil, dancing the samba and lying on the beach!… This post-card image
is not so far from reality. Indeed, Brazilians are a warm people who place great importance on personal relationships. “It’s impossible to work with someone you don’t have any affinities with,” states Éliane Karsaklian, international affairs consultant at Aktéos. This proximity is translated by gestures. “Brazilians are extremely tactile,” she continues. “They will not hesitate to take you by your hand or to touch your arm.” Sociable, Brazilians also pay great attention to their image. “This is the Brazilian paradox,” considers Éliane Karsaklian. “People are both very spontaneous and very in control of themselves. They constantly wonder what others think of the way they are dressed or what they say.” Lovers of leisure activities, Brazilians have flexible timetables. “Foreigners, in particular Europeans, have great difficulties understanding this relaxed attitude that they mistakenly interpret as a lack of seriousness,” regrets Éliane Karsaklian. “If Brazilians seek so actively to avoid stress, it is because for most of them, everyday life is difficult.” With the exception of managers, rare are the Brazilians who have a single job. And in a city like São Paulo, insecurity remains a great preoccupation. “It’s a subject one is better off avoiding speaking about to avoid wounding national pride,” advises the consultant. Before adding: “True, Brazilians mix up everything. They interrupt one another during meetings to joke, go from one subject to another, and in their homes, nothing is enclosed. But they are hardworking and conscientious.” It is in the interests of foreigners arriving in Brazil not to make mistakes. “In the Brazilian environment where oral tradition is very strong, it is normal to meet. And an appointment can easily be obtained in the next few days,” confirms Philippe Aimé, executive partner of Visionis Business Development French Foreign Trade adviser in the magazine Cofamag distributed by Coface. This is where things get more complicated. For an appointment is no commitment. And a Brazilian never says no. If you call him back, he will prefer to avoid you and wait until you give up, rather than telling you that he is not interested in your proposal. A young country, where the majority of the population is aged between 15 and 30, Brazil, finally, demonstrates a strong attraction to technology and innovation. And in this domain, it fully deserves its status as an emerging country.