All Asians Are Not Quiet

LeadingCreatives.com's 2009 Asia Tour ended a week ago, so it's probably time to wrap up the lessons learned from Asia. We'll do so, though, with an article from America's Diversity Executive magazine.

Kellye Whitney writes in "All Asians Are Not Quiet" that for a long time Asians in the U.S. have often been viewed as unsuited for leadership positions because they are considered "too quiet and meek." This is a case where stereotypes aren't just hurtful and insulting, they're also affecting someone's career. And in this case, they're pretty much wrong.

While the article points out that Asians tend to be anything but quiet and meek -- and anyone who's ever been at a large family gathering can confirm this -- the unfortunate result of stereotyping is that some Asian employees feel compelled to adjust to those stereotypes in order to fit into their "expected" place in a company. I've even seen this in a few social settings during trips overseas, when some folks treat Westerners differently from their fellow countrymen. But there's nothing about Asian culture that explicitly inhibits leadership skills (and there are also about as many "Asian cultures" as there are countries in Asia), so leaders who overlook their Asian employees are actually hurting themselves, too, by missing out on important contributions.

The concerns expressed by some folks are discussed pretty well in the article, so rather than repeat it here I'll just suggest you take a look. Remember, even though some people might say "a stereotype wouldn't exist if there wasn't some truth to it," the REAL truth is that if you accept stereotypes and base your decisions upon them, you're probably going to make the wrong choices.