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Mexican Culture
Mexican Cultural Differences
Relaxed Atmosphere. In the Baja, there is a relaxed atmosphere and a lack of pressure and tension in the culture and in the air. When it comes to living or vacationing in Mexico, the Mexican culture can be a positive, mentally healthy thing. The people are very pleasant and accomodating for the small things. Everybody seems to get along with each other because Mexicans do not put much pressure on themselves or on other people for performance. Live and let live. While you are on vacation, if you do the same as they do, everything will be just fine. If you know what to expect and what not to expect, you can relax and enjoy yourself and the people around you. That is what is so appealing about vacationing and living in Mexico. It can be a good thing.
Concept of Time
Foreigners in Mexico may find that the greatest obstacle to getting anything done is the fact that the Mexican culture does not view the concept of time in the same way as, say, Americans, Canadians, or other modern westerners. It doesn't matter whether you are interfacing with a highly educated and licensed Mexican professional, an official in a Mexican government agency, or an uneducated Mexican laborer. They all view "time" in the same way. That is, almost no pressure to adhere to deadlines, appointment times, or due dates promised. These are prime examples of Mexican cultural differences compared to the American culture.
In the Moment
Mexicans are "in the moment". That is, not much time or energy is spent working now to achieve something in the future. Mexicans aren't nearly as goal oriented as Americans. Mexicans either do not think about the future at all or they believe that the future will take care of itself. Therefore, they think in terms of now. There is a positive side to this. It's more relaxing and easier, at some level, to keep your sanity and peace of mind if you think this way.
Many people in the progressive western culture think in terms of the future. They are goal oriented. That is why education is revered in the western culture, as education is seen by progressive westerners and Asians as an investment in the future. However, the down side could be that we westerners are more neurotic than the Mexicans. If you have ever gone to certain new wave churches or therapy sessions for your neuroses, one of the mantras taught to you is "to be in the moment", stop worrying...about the future. Stop being preoccupied now about something bad that hasn't even happened yet. Well, Mexican culture rarely suffers from that.
Mexican Culture is generally not "proactive"
Little thought is given to doing something today to prevent a negative consequence occurring tomorrow. Instead, problems are handled as they come up. In the US, it's called management by exception. Little thought is given to thinking ahead or even thinking about the future. Often, things aren't ready when promised. Phone calls are frequently not returned and email messages are not returned promptly, if at all. If you ask several questions by email or by phone message or even by a fax, if answered, only the first question is answered. Key beneficial information is often not volunteered. Nothing is ever mailed to you. You have to physically pick it up. You have to be present in Mexico to get things done in Mexico.
You can prevail over the administrative shortfalls in the culture by being proactive yourself. When working with the people in Baja, you must be proactive for them. You need to anticipate problems and suggest to them the way to avoid the problems. You need to double check and prompt them to make their appointments and to meet deadlines. It requires alot of following up by you if something is time sensitive.
Baja-Lots works successfully within the Mexican culture
In Baja Mexico, we work only with Mexicans that have proven themselves to be reliable, and we know how to get things done with the agencies. We know which offices to work with and we have dependable contacts and relationships with key people. It takes time to get to this point and we are effective at what we do. Top