What People Get WRONG About GERMANY
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
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There are some things which surprised me about Germany. It's taken a while but looking back I can now see the value (or not) of Generalisations and stereotypes.
What has your experience been?
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About Me:
I am a Brit who lives Germany. After completing University in the UK I moved to China where I taught English for two years. I’ve learned a thing or two about cultural integration, language learning and everything else that goes with upping sticks and moving to a foreign country. I make videos about Germany, cultural differences and tend to pose a lot of questions. Join me on my exploration of life abroad.
#germanculture #cultureshocks #stereotypes
Not only do the Germans think I’m from London, but recently there’s also been an assumption that the British are all monarchists. Amongst other things, as a Republican, a Yorkshireman, and a stay-at-home father of a disabled child, I surprise and silence many, particularly here in provincial Ostthüringen.
A comment on efficiency. Bureaucracy does enable efficient organisation: One person, one function, no waste, what could be more efficient? However, if Person A responsible for some admin' function is not available then the process grinds to a halt. So it’s not an efficient use of the individual's time.
I think it just demonstrates how there is a greater separation between the State (organised activity) and the individual here in Germany. I’ve attended appointments that had been cancelled without any warning, faced surly, patronising employees, and been completely ignored; but we as individuals have to accept it as we are subservient to the ‘bigger picture’. According to my neighbours, during Mittagsruhe, the individual householder is prevented from essentially making any noise whatsoever, whereas the tradesman/the organisation is free work. This separation is essentially built into the laws of the land!
BTW an excellent, calming presentation. I shall be watching more…
Hello Republican stay-at-home Yorkshire father😉 that’s a very interesting point about the separation of the individual and the state, I hadn’t really thought about it in that way before. Thanks for sharing 🙏
Ah, Jesus.
You choose to go as a very liberal Brit to the utmost narrowminded Part of Germany?
Was it masochism or a helper complex making you move there trying to balance it out?
@@Rabijeel, I wouldn't call Yorkshire people "liberal Brits"... As a foreigner living in and around London, I find them rather "traditional Brits" 😎 Besides, the golden rule of every EU country is 'The further away from the capital you live, the more conservative your views on life are.'😉 No matter where you were born originally... Also, my personal experience is that you cannot judge the country before you visit its people living in the countryside... 'cause they are the hard core of the local tradition... including the language accent/dialect, folklore, manners, cuisine and often even the religious practice 😘✨
Despite its recent embarrassments and setbacks, most British do support the monarchy. Of course, there are Britains who, like you, belong to the Republican minority. Still, I should add that belonging to the Republican minority and favoring the dissolution of the monarchy is nothing to be ashamed of. You have the distinction of being an outlier.
Oh yes Mittagsruhe! Shut up, don't play music, keep the children indoors, don't hoover the carpet and for God's sake STOP practicing for the next Superstar saga. That said, it is all fantasy. There is no such law requiring "Mittagsruhe". People customarily abide to this long heeded rule by refusing to work and taking a nap, patronising anyone daring to discomfort their tranquility with any sort of noise or making them feel uneasy by showing the remotest form of activity. Very German? Almost Italian? You decide.
The Germans are not exactly patriotic, but they are very REGIONAL patriotic! The reputation for efficiency probably comes more from engineering and labor.
Hello Arno! Happy Sunday 😀🙏
Look at our achievements, there's not really much to be proud of and we learn in school, that we germans are all bad people who startet WW1 and WW2 and killed many many ppl, so patriotism for our country as a whole is just not a thing. Not that i or my generation did any of this, but we're teached, that we're guilty...so no hard on when we see our flag (or listen to our national anthem, tha's only for TV).
If you say you're a patriot , you automatically are a nazi
Some are. Some aint. Bavarians are proud, sueben, and Kölner and some regions maybe more.
But who is a patriotic nordrheinwestfale?
@@hansberger4939 Not the whole NRW but im a Ruhrpottler and proud of it im also proud of my ancestors that were Gladbecker pirates back then in the 1940s
That about sausages and beer is definitely correct. 🤭 be it a vegan sausage or a non-vegan, alcoholic or non-alcoholic beer.
But I feel like the regional patriotism still is a heritage thing from the time when we were tribes. 🤔 But it’s just my feeling.
I mean there's nothing wrong with liking sausages and beer...I actually like them as well 😉
London is the main bit, really. That’s where most things happen. In Germany you have it spread out across different cities.
Totally!
There is some issue when it came to timeline to put things right. Efficiency is something germany is known for because it was more true for other times than todays germany. Government can change, people and demographic can change (especially with immigration in place) that is changing how the country is working. When you have a increase in crime rates and the police is under-staffed it is more likely that minor crimes like theft are usually not taken serious anymore. Or what I often read on reddit: the immigration adminstration is criticized for working slow and poorly, but what you would expect with thousands of migrants arriving every month not all for a professional stay but also to seek asylum and stuff and clogging then the courts with their cases.
Another example is education where some people recently reacted on some news regarding 'germans' struggling with their own language and children not passing the first grade of their school not saying these are not 'german" children in the expected sense but children of naturalized foreigners. Besides the cultural diversion between north and souht, east and west, rural ares and cities is time in this changing country a major factor why some stereotypes are less fitting as they were when people came in touch with them.
Well, germany IS efficient compared to dozens of countries. In general: Low corruption, high industrialisation, moderate climate that allows you to work all day, high education, high identification with jobs...
You're a really good storyteller with a very pleasant voice. In German I would say "In der Ruhe liegt die Kraft" and you certainly have that. Keep up the good and balanced contributions.
Thank you that means a lot🙏
I'm Bavarian, and I like beer. So much for the stereotype. I'm not interested in football, however. Punctuality, yes, more or less. Accuracy, yes, definitely, but for a reason: If you do things right in the first place, you'll have less work afterwards and don't need a "customer relationship" department to fend off complaints.
With immigrants, you forgot the Greek. When I was young, we used to have three Greek restaurants in my area, and I love Greek food. Now there's only one left because the younger generation follow their own path of life, and running a restaurant has never been easy. (btw, where's my Ouzo?)
Contrary to what many people think, most Germans are more relaxed than it seems. We have a proverb, "Es wird nichts so heiß gegessen wie es gekocht wird." If there's an English counterpart to it, please let me know.
Good morning Eisi and cheers. 🍻Have you had your weiss Wurst already? 😉Yeah that’s a good one. As far as I know there’s not a great translation for that. Something like “things are not as bad as they seem”
@@britingermany Not really. Proverbs are hard to translate and even harder to explain. "You don't eat anything as hot as it was cooked" can refer to private as well as political debates. First, emotions run high, and everyone's on fire, and then, when the heat is gone, you let it simmer down and it's digestible for everyone, as a compromise.
Proverbs are difficult. Why do you Brits say "out of the frying pan into the fire", and we Germans say "vom Regen in die Traufe"? Basically means the same, but why does an island folk where it's always raining (caution: stereotype!) use a fiery metaphor while we use a watery one? (Don't bother answering, I asked at least five English teachers, and none could tell.)
@@eisikater1584 yes, “things are not as bad as they seem” is definitely a wrong translation, it has nothing to do with "bad". My British friend says sometimes an expression to me, that would fit better, just can't remember. He says this frequently because I frequently "lass Themen zu sehr aufkochen" 🤣
@@eisikater1584 Great comment. You started moving into the exciting area of philosophy of language
@@rainerm.8168 Thank you, Rainer. I started, like probably everyone learning a foreign language, with simple vocabulary and grammar, but soon came to the conclusion (I was 14 or something like that) that language conveys ideas, traditions, folklore, and many other things. When I read a modern book from Britain (in English, of course) I am sure that I only understand half the references and allusions, and that's when I'm lucky. But translations usually are worse, sometimes to an extent that I thought, that's nothing to do with the original.
As a German, I really appreciate your critically honest takes on this country. It is very interesting to see things from an outsider's perspective.
Thanks you. That means a lot🙏
German efficiency? I only go to my job and the inefficiency knock me down all 8hrs long I have to be there. The waste of time and ressources is really exorbitant.
Thank you for sharing your critical experiences. And please, don't get me wrong, I love the British English plus your voice is very relaxing. I could listen for hours to you. Did you ever consider to start a new channel for ASMR content? ^^
I'm from close to Heidelberg. When I started to move around in Germany, I was utterly shocked about Germans (being one myself). For example, I worked for a year in Berlin and it felt like everybody was at war with me. When I returned and first entered a bakery, getting greeted with a warm smile and having a lengthy chat about nothing, I understood I'm back in Germany.
Rrrright so Heidelberg is where people are warm * makes note * 📝
😂 But seriously, it's tough, sometimes...
It’s honestly so stupid.
Yeah Berlin is Ausland xD
As a rule of thumb - the most annoying people come from the bigger (often richer) cities. Munich, Frankfurt, Berlin.
People from Berlin mostly sounds like they are insulting you. :D
I'm an Irish guy who lived happily in Frankfurt for 28 years. Then I moved 10 miles outside the city and it's a different world. I now live in the land of the Handtuch Krieger. You know, the ones who go on holiday and get up at 6 O'Clock to put their towel on a sunbed close to the pool.
Haha hilarious! Where is that? Königstein?
@@britingermany Mühlheim am Main, between Offenbach and Hanau.
@@FFM0594 ahh yes I know it 👍🏻
Usually i m not staying in hotels with handtuchkrieger... but, last year in pattaya... mostly german guests. And bevor 7 o clock there were towels on all the pool beds. Weird!
@@britingermany Where the "Mülleimer" came from.
Now you have mentioned it - it's true, most Germans don't know much about the UK aside from London. I unfortunately am no exception, I've only visited London and some places in the south. Why don't you help us out a bit? I would really enjoy a video about the differences of people and culture of the various regions of your beautiful island.
I would also love a video on resemblance and common grounds of British and German people - there have to be some!? After all we're (distant) cousins with Saxons, Anglians and Danes being large groups of early settlers (aka invaders). I am from northern Germany and I often fell like we "Fischköppe" have more in common with the British and Scandinavian people and languages than with those in Southern Germany.
Keep up the good job you're doing, I find your videos always to be very insightful and inspiring.
Thanks a lot for the Gedankenstoss😉. I have something planned for that😀
Yes, you vikings.. 😂
South Germans are rather from different tribes...
@@britingermanyfairly common on RUclips:
YT commenter: why don't you make a video about X?
YT creator: thanks for the idea, I have something like that planned!
@@mynaturalperfume828 south germans are mostly germanized romans. Germania superior (mostly southern germany and parts of rhine) was the under the roman empire, so lot of folks are germanic roman mixed
Germany has a capital city for each field.
While Paris and London represent almost all top levels in the centralized country, Germany has a variety of them. (Pattern of a Federation)
Berlin: Parliament/Administration , theatres, broadcasting, film, music, advertising, start up business, biggest population
Hamburg: Research, Press, Commerce, Major Port,
Stuttgart: High tech, automobiles
Frankfurt: Finance, traffic and Aviation hub
Munich: BioTech, Football, Tourism, Folklore, fashion, Film Business
Ruhr area: Energy, coal, steel, heavy industry
Leipzig: Book publishers, Culture, industrial fair
Hannover: Biggest industrial fairs
Cologne: broadcasting, amusement, modern art
... plus many other specific strongholds.
Yes indeed👍🏻
No automotive in Munich? BMW
No insurance in Munich? Allianz and Munich Re
Hmm…😀
I was talking about the >capital< in each field. I didn’t say Munich had no car industry. - Cologne develops builds European Ford vehicles, Wolfsburg has Volkswagen ...
- Why overextend when just roughly depicting structural differences?
it is exactly like that!
Eh, Leibzig was traditionally the book publishing city, but the GDR successfully destroyed it. Nowadays publishing is shared between Munich and Frankfurt...I guess if I had to pick one capital, I would chose the latter, since it also gets the biggest book fair.
Also, I think "culture" is a too broad term. It really depends on what culture you are talking about. For example, Mannheim is known for its music scene, Cologne for its gay community, Essen for Folkwang (meaning ballet and classical music), Babelsberg for movies aso.
Your airport experience has nothing to do with German efficiency or business-style. During Corona, most airport staff was laid off and now they just refuse to come back! Isn't that mean? So we now ALL have to wait just because A FEW people refuse to load 25 kg suitcases by crawling into planes between 5 am and 2 am for minimum wage. What a shame ...
My personal theory on the efficency stereotype:
In many parts of the world there seems to be a logic in place that sees some people do the thinking and decision making and others do the working (I am exagerating). I believe in Germany traditionally the two were less separated which made it possible to adapt to everyday problems more quickly. 2 examples:
The Bundeswehr (German Military) has a principle called 'inner leadership". Soldiers are not just meant to follow orders and carry out missions, but to understand the mission, its purpose and how it connects to conditions around it. In case these conditions change the soldiers are encouraged to update or adapt their mission without having to wait for new orders from their superiors. Basically they ask WWJD and lead themselves.
Likewise German factory workers used to be highly trained in 3-4 years apprenticeshipments. Many daily decisions and a lot of problem solving were left to people on the shop floor. People were not just taught how this particular machine or that particular process worked but they were taught the basic principles that govern any machine or process (obviously there was some level of specialization). As these principles are universal you achieve a certain level of standardization without actually having to standardize individual processes. All of this makes for a more efficient production. On top of the good education workers would get more experienced over time more easily. It's easier to learn when you already have a system in your head that helps you connect the dots.
In both cases, army and production, the idea of more autonomous workers/soldiers seems to be on a downward trend. I read an article recently titled 'Crisis of inner leadership'.
In production today everything has to be idiot prove. You have to make 100% sure a process is carried out the exact same way everytime so you have ti regulate everything and cannot leave any decision to the shop floor. The logic is that you can gather some people of the street any time, show them their work for 5 min. and fire them if you don't need them any more.
I am not sure though if that development is a German thing or if it's happening everywhere. But if I am right it explains why 'German Efficiency' isn't what it used to be. We are becoming more like the rest of the world, which includes good things and bad things.
On the one hand you seem to be right, on the other hand I've noticed in my commercial job that a) more and more work is being shifted to the base (after all, the PCs do most of the work ;) ), b) on on the other hand, as a "smaller" employee, you get more responsibility without honest praise and recognition. With regard to the large buildings, I (apparently) notice that the delays and cost explosions seem to be related to the EU-wide tenders. = There are uniform guidelines for these tenders, but often a different understanding: some do not write every "screw" in the offer, but expect that this will be paid for according to consumption; the different languages + cultural peculiarities often seem to lead to misunderstandings in the context of the actual work. This hampers efficiency enormously.
* real international example = calculation error on a NASA mission where the satellite was destroyed because "mm" was confused with "inch" ;)
@@manub.3847 I agree! I have also noticed the opposite effect that decisions get delegated down. In my experience that happens when companies try to flatten the hirarchy and get rid of entire positions in middle management. Flattening rhe hirarchy is ok, but the loss of knowhow and experience that comes with firing production managers or master staff is often overlooked. Upper management doesn't have a clue how to solve shop floor problems so they have no choice but to delegated back to the workers. And it often works well enough because there are still some well educated craftsmen and women in the workforce.
Great points. I have the military example and “inner leadership before” which sounds kind of counter intuitive given the fact that we learn soldiers just carry out the mission without knowing why. One thing I am hearing a lot is that people are expected or being asked to do more than they used to (the whole digital/technical side of things on top of regular job). This is probably more a result of the pandemic than anything else….although I think it already started long before that. This could be draining efficiency as people can no longer focus on specialised tasks but kind of have to do a lot of secondary things as well 🤷🏼♂️
@@britingermany The master staff of the factory I work in used to make the rounds and discus technical problems with all the foremen. Today they hardly get out of their office. They make shiftplans, write reports, gather data etc. In this case I believe tge reason is an inefficient organization with a lot of beaurocracy that pulls in capacity from all sides. Just like IT processes have not reduced the number of print outs they have not reduced 'paperwork'.
So maybe I got cause and effect mixed up.
The Bundeswehr as an example for efficiency is an… interesting choice. (Yeah, I spent a couple of years in the Luftwaffe.)
Cheers! I like your calm reflected and broad view. As a German I am always curious about the "outside view" on my own country. And in your videos I appreciate the love that shines through your explanations.
Maybe one factor to Germany's diversity is the fact that Germany as one state is quite young. No, not 1989, but 1870.
Thanks a lot Niels. Yes I think that definitely plays. Role
Considering efficiency, you just have to look at the working hours/productivity-ratio. this compared to other western countries shows you very clearly where this stereotype comes from and that there is something to it
Thoroughness is a better word than efficiency to describe German culture. Everything runs slowly, but it runs.
You could be right. Some people have been asking about autism in German culture which I had never thought about before…there could be something to it.
@@britingermany Grundlichkeit!! We Dutchies always make fun about that, but, hey, it made automobiles like Mercedes, Audi und BMW!! And the Leopard Tank for example
Perhaps also conscientious.
Thoroughness and efficiency are some of the old German values that are getting lost more and more these days... There's nobody out there anymore, who'd be willing to work thoroughly, let alone efficiently. Every enterprise is critically understaffed down here in the South - and the system is not only showing cracks (it actually did that for quite a while now), but is about to break. Because all the administrations at the helm (red and black alike) ignored one crucial topic over the course of >2 decades: Allocation. And now we are getting the bill for that massive failure...
The effiency sterotype was true for prussia since Wilhlem the great and germany overall from around 1850/60 - 1970/80 thanks to a specific history of regional bureauratic structres in a federal union system and capitalistic modernisation. Before holy roman empire had been known for being a bid backwards with all the particularism.
This is really pretty accurate as far as generalizations can be accurate. I'm German myself and I can absolutely affirm that the regional differences are really huge, and sometimes I think that being grumpy is considered as being authentic in Germany. However there are lots of stellar experiences to be made if you take the time (caveat: maybe also in stellar dimensions).
Of course Stereotypes are rarely totally accurate but there's always a little truth to them
I'm moderately tall (for my age, the young folk tend to be taller), and I like beer. Absolutely none of the other stereotypes apply to me, and yet, people will always easily recognize me as German. It's a mystery. ;)
Haha. One of May favourite activities on holiday is to guess the nationality. I can usually recognise Brits, Germans, Russians and Americans
Do you wear Birkenstocks with Strumpfe, perhaps?
@@britingermany Many years ago I met a local on the island of Crete who claimed to be able to identify any person's nationality whether on the beach or in a town.... he was right , he could to it from a hundred meters and never missed. He even was able to differentiate Swiss, Germans and Austrians who would look the same to most people on this world.
@@FFM0594 I prefer crocks myself 😉
@@theoderich1168 that's impressive. I'm not that good. I would say 80% of time I'm right
Good morning!🌞 Greetings from Berlin!🙋 Have you ever been in the north of Germany, like Baltic Sea area or North Sea area? Really that's also again a bigger difference to the middle or south of Germany.😍👍(... to the point of diversity...)
I Have have been to the Island of Norderney and driven around that area it is very different. It reminded me a little of Scotland 😍
@@britingermany Schön!🌞 Du musst unbedingt auch Mal einen Besuch auf der kleinen und autofreien Insel Hiddensee probieren. Man kann dort länger bleiben, aber auch einen Tagesausflug unternehmen. Und zwar fährt man nach Stralsund und von dort mit der grossen Fähre nach Hiddensee rüber. Oder man ist auf der grossen Insel Rügen und kann von dort von dem Ort Schapode aus mit der Fähre nach Hiddensee rüberfahren. 🙋🌞
@@dankarubarth7678 ja Nord Deutschland steht auf meine Liste wieder😀. Ich liebe die Natur dort
@@britingermany Mach einen auf Caspar David Friedrich und schau Dir Rügen an!
When talking about "German efficiency" all you have to do is point them to the Deutsche Bahn, and it will dissuade anyone from that notion :)
Haha you should check out my previous video about complaining😉. The DB featured heavily in it
This is wrong in so many ways...to keep it short, driving by train in germany will never be efficient or punctual (only in those green fever dreams). If you want something efficient, buy one of our cars, if you can't, then you have to drive by train 😉 Point a german to the Deutsche Bahn and i bet you, they don't give a crap...with the exception of people who actually drive by train (which are not enough).
For example, the distance to my workplace is about 25km (about 15.5 miles). I need about 35 minutes by car and it would take about 90 minutes by train. Train is way cheaper, car is faster. If your priority is time, you drive by car. If it's money, you drive by train. Just that simple. Now, what is more efficient?
We germans love our cars and we hate wasting time! (Except die Grünen, they love wasting our time and money for unrealistic ideals)
@@maxmustermann8247 What would you choose if you prioritize energy consumption?
@@eljanrimsa5843 Train. Cars are energy inefficient by nature, just like any other transport that splits the cargo up into small individual pods. You cannot do efficient like that. The more cargo in one go, the more efficient it can be.
But if you compare the DB with other nations - the US for example - you´ll find out, that German public transportation still is quite efficient. We´re at least not in the worst spot.
all your examples how ineffective we Germans are are absolutely correct, there is no doubt and ich we try hard we will surely be able to find some more but when you compare German efficiency with British efficiency then that is still not a comparison at all. If you think it is roughly on the same level than you have shifted so far of your native culture over the years that we might better can you German than British. Go to the UK and ask anybody about the concept of "Lohnstückkosten" and you learn absolutely everything you need to know about British efficiency. ;-)
Well yeah but the British have never had a reputation for being efficient. A “stiff upper lip” maybe and getting the job done but not necessarily in the most efficient way
If you compare German efficiency with British inefficiency, there is no comparison. I lived for 13 years in (former West) Germany during the 1970s and early 1980s and it really blew me away just how well things worked in Germany and how badly everything was run in Britain. Every time I returned on the Ostend ferry to Dover for a visit, it was the same, shabby, dilapidated country I didn't love much, and still don't. The worst mistake I ever made was returning to Britain. I still visit Germany occasionally, though not during the pandemic, and it still impresses me to this day. I would move back in an instant if I was younger than 77 and we had not left the EU. I believe Britain now is broken and beyond hope. There's already a lot of emigration of younger people to Australia, New Zealand, everywhere, really. They are voting with their feet.
Well I think that the world is a very different place than it was over 30 years ago. Where do you visit when you come back and is germany still recognisable to those days in the 80’s?
@@britingermany Hamburg. The only difference I perceive is that Germans today, especially younger Germans, are a lot more relaxed about using Du with complete strangers, e.g. shop assistants, where back in the 1970s Sie was used almost exclusively, except among close friends and, of course, relatives. The trains are far better today, too. Double-deckers from Ahrensburg into Hamburg Hbf. I'm looking forward to my next trip. I'm still waiting for the post-pandemic chaos at British airports to subside.
It's a common use of "the Germans" or "the Americans" to talk about an average, or something that applies to 60% ...a majority. Comments "it doesn't apply to all .." are just annoying, everybody knows hat.
Thank you 🙏
2:58 it´s nice people have that idea of Germany. Truth is our complete authority system.. like no matter what kind of position from social to political is so utterly incompetent people won´t even believe it when they see it. And the real fun part is the cutting edge technology.. I am fairly certain that France in the middle ages had a better internet infrastructure then Germany has today.
🤣🤣
I enjoy your calm and collected thoughts. Thanks for sharing them.
Thanks for watching 🙏
It is interesting that the LNG terminals, which normally take years to build, were build in mere months. I guess if push comes to shove the Germans can speed up construction.
Germans can rebuilt a country after losing two world wars which left many cities as piles of rubble.
German efficiency and quality was ruined by globalization
What do you think the solution is? Many people are trying to push back but it’s not easy
I would never assume a Brit has to be from London😂. You got some many nice smaller cities too.
Thank you! 👍🏻
Definitely! So many people that are (nearly) impossible to understand (especially the northerners I‘ve met)…
I know England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Yeah... British cities are not my strength
Our parents made us stay in England or Wales for holidays nearly every year during in our childhood. My mom fell in love during a one year stay at Scotland with GB. Besides germany GB is like a second home, althoughmy dad worked in the US a few years. All areas of GB are different but so nice.❤❤❤
Germany used to be efficient, trains used to run on time, airports used to work etc. You forgot to mention the bureaucracy, rules for everything, if you want to pass wind, you must first submit form 21-b etc.
evening. Do you really think everything used be so much better? Bureaucracy was actually my point with regards to efficiency...
Absolutely agree with your point on efficiency. I think the Germans are very accurate and efficient in implementing made decisions. Once a decision is made, there is no questioning anymore and everyone ensures it is implemented properly, even if they fought it before. But the way to the decision can be veeeery long because of bureaucracy, technical accuracy, search for consensus, etc.
Yeah the research and discussion phase can be really excruciating.
Consensus is really a German thing. Everybody's interest needs to be heard, and if at all possible, accommodated. While consensus is a nice thing to aspire to in theory, it can be a very time-consuming process and in the worst case it leads to half-baked solutions or even disastrous results.
Yes a very big difference between the UK and Germany is centralisation. The reason most people only know about London is because every thing is centralised on the capital. Here in Germany the federal system made sure that all the regional cities are just as important as Berlin which is a blessing compared to the UK. Germany is just a much more modern, forward - looking country which is why I would never consider going back to live in England.
Totally agree about the centralisation issue. I'm not sure I totally agree with German being more modern and forward looking, but it's a big and very complex topic...too big for the comments section😉. Thank you for watching
Regions like wales or the scots have a special f..k westminster layer as well.
Unfortunately, Germany is so "efficient" that it's culture has lost almost all forms of human interactions/emotions. You are a robot at work and confined to a routine after-hours with occasional punctuations of liesure to pursue your interests. The stress factor, high burnout rate and levels of sick leave in the German Employment Sector is high and getting worse as "human elements, (however hard we chose to ignore them), remain and must be factored into the daily grind. The US, UK, Canada and most European nations handle this nicely - Germany and the Netherlands are the worst - exports are high, but upward career mobility and work/life balance is dismal to say the least. I work in HR in Germany and I can tell you that "Credentials" is not what lands you the job here -- first it's connections in the firm (Family members, friends of family or owners, former parents who worked there etc.), next it's race, next it's looks and then credentials are seen. I can't tell you the number of times, we hired a person with a bachelors degree (job called for a masters), simply because someone knew him or her. In any other country, this would be considered a court case for liability, but Germany no - it's handled "internally" and we all know what that means.
Try that in the UK and report it to the authorities - see how quick that gets exposed.
Even on vacations, Germans cannot relax. Regional differences are deep roooted and not changing anytime soon. I worked in 10 out of 17 Bundeslander and was at home in Hesse (Frankfurt) and Bavaria (Nuremberg) the most - Again, these two cities are large and had an international presence - other places I worked were simply backwards, inbred (putting it politely) and scarce of skilled employees. I will look forward to returning to Britain where after hours, I can go down to the pub and see my mates or office friends for a pint and game of darts -- everyone speaks to you in the UK; here you'll be lucky to get a nod.
It’s the British that think Germany is about the past, because of a typically British obsession with their “finest hour”. From my experience of various holidays in Britain, half of the TV program seems to centre around 1940-1945. Probably because the part that the British played in the victory over the Nazis is the one moment in British recent history that they can agree on and don’t feel uncomfortable with. Suez 1956, or the Bengal famine, or invading the territories of most current nation states on the globe can easily be avoided by focusing on victory over the Germans (to a point that even forgets that there was a little help from the Soviet Union and the USA).
There are two types of Brits out there: those who leave their comfort zone of such narratives, and of their own language, and those who don’t. Thank you for trying to translate and describe a few things for the latter group. Although “Bregret” might have started to gnaw away at the immense delusion of a part of the British population that led to Brexit (and that was partly due to the popular narrative of the war that fed British exceptionalism), I fear that a lot of the stereotypes on Germans had become far too important especially for the English, to define their own identity. National identity is often defined by opposition - to the French, to the Germans, etc., in the case of England- and it is dangerous and delusional to proceed this way only founded on stereotypes, and without having the foggiest about what you’re dealing with in the real world.
Hi Thomas. Interesting point about national identity and it's true that the easiest way to rally people together is through a common enemy/fear. There is a definite obsession with the war and Nazi Germany...but it is no less an obsession than in Germany itself... just seen through a very different lens. I do agree that it's time to move on though. The world has changed, as has the balance of power and the west would really do better to unite.
@@britingermany I’m not so much arguing for moving on, as for trying to be objective - first of all, in being honest about oneself, and then by trying to assess others on evidence and merit, rather than on pet stereotypes. The view of the past that Germany and Britain take is different because of differences in these two points of their respective perspectives.
You don’t learn a lot by winning wars, you learn much more about yourself from losing them - especially if revanche is not an option. Britain is the only major European country not to have had a lesson from the others. But it’s contrived to defeat itself now. It’s a novel way of coming to terms with one’s real status in the world, thus losing one’s delusions...
@@britingermany
It's not an "obsession" about the Nazis over here in Germany but part of the, since 1945, permanently ongoing education about the Nazi past, to keep it in memory that it'll never happen again, as this is our responsability.... that's the difference!
@@saba1030 nah its just obsession because the brits are jealously and desperately tries to prove they better than germans, always turning everything into some sort of competition, but the thing is germans dont care, they competes with the dutch the french but dont give two shits about uk. A toxic and xenophobic people incapable of respecting other cultures..
Oh thank you for putting my thoughts into words 😅 I agree. Also, this might be weird but I feel like especially British comedians have a strange obsession with Germany and have to make a connection to WW2 in some way, i swear to God every other skit by a British comedian is about Germany or Germans. Us Germans don't really joke about other countries or people that way except when we ourselves are from there. I mean the British empire has caused so much terror and suffering for such a long time but this one time they were on the right side of history and now they can't let it go
For sure Germany it's different now than 60 years ago or before, especially bigger cities in the Western part. I remember coming from Frankfurt/Hahn airport with the bus and when we were entering Frankfurt Main city the first thing you saw was like Sarajevo restaurant and a Chinese one. And one British guy was saying something like "What happened to sausage?" hahaha Guess he had never been here before.
You have to look for the sausage now 🤣
Morning all. How far off was I? 😉
Not far off, I'd say.
I've lived most of my life in Germany and I've been wondering the whole time what it is, that makes a German German.
I've settled on perfectionism. It's the one trait that explains everything.
The quality of the products, but also the massive amounts of rules and (safety) regulations, the fact that Germans never seem too happy about anything (leave it to a German to find the flaw in everything!), the punctuality, the strict adherence to traditions...
It's the explanation for all the best and worst things about Germany.
The Germans will never stop striving for perfection, which leads to constant improvement but also constant frustration.
They just can't let things be.
I was born in Germany, spent most of my life here, but spent the first few years of my life in Spain.
I'm a laid back person. I let things be. And I can see how that's the antithesis to the German way on a daily basis.
Good morning, Ben. You weren't far off at all.
It's really interesting to think about that question "Who are the Germans".
The easiest answer seems to be everybody speaking German. Until realizing that there are people speaking German beyond the borders of the FRG. And even within Germany the language can sound pretty different from what you've been taught at school.
Is it the history ? Yes somehow, but there are two years making significant changes: 1806 and 1871. And before 1806 Germany was a collection of kingdoms, duchies, powerful bishops and monastries, ... an assembly of state-like entities at the brink of falling apart completely sometimes. A characteristic which is still reflected by the federal structures of Germany today.
Our culture and traditions are united as well as split by the Christian religion.
The more peripheral a region within Germany is the more it is influenced by neighbouring regions and countries abroad. But then that's just contributing to Germany's role of a central market place and a place of exchange of ideas within Europe. That exchange is driving political, economic and cultural changes continously so much that even our language is changing.
Maybe that's even a valid part for an explanation why some stereotypes about Germany have become so persistent.
@@barbarusbloodshed6347 I'd say you are quite right, mate. Never thought of it from this point of view before, but I see in the truth in your words.
And btw.: there IS a flaw in everything, you just have to find it. 😁
Proof God doesn't exist? Well, if he'd make no mistakes why did he make us Germans the way we turned out to be? 🤣
It is always a strange feeling when someone describes "Germans" and I feel that, though being a German, am definitely not covered with that description. When that happens I am prone to write a comment to the effect of "you cannot generalize".
But there are, of course, general cultural features that describe the overall society and culture of a nation. And though I am pretty sure I am not necessarily your most typical German, I am also very conscious that in some respects I am "as German as they come". So, if I write the "not-all-Germans-are-like-this"-comment, it is probably not meant as a critique but just as an addition to what was said.
Hey! Thank you for your contribution.
To talk about efficiency is really tough. If you want to judge Germanys efficiency in regard of the Berlin Airport, it might seem terrible. When getting into more detail, what led to the delayed completion, then one might come to the conclusion, that effiency (bureaucracy and regulations etc) might not have been the biggest problem, but the wrong planning or later changes to begin with.
In the end the European Union is responsible for all regulations. The real question in my opinion is, has everything to be so complicated and regulated. I actually think, it has to be in order to balance everyones interest and in that, Germany excelles (or follows the tough way). I do though admit, that having 16 Bundesländer is a blow to efficiency - but since they are so diverse, it generally makes sense to maintain them. In details, like Bundesbeschaffungsamt, Germany derailed and adjustments have to be made. But that is a challenge, every democracy has to take on and work on steadily.
I like your channel and your work, thank you for that! In my opinion, your audio shoul be adjusted, there is way too much bass and I have trouble, to understand you. ^^
About bureaucracy: I agree that it's not efficient. Or maybe more correct, not convenient. But at least you see corruption, at least in the lower echelons, not often. Or barely at all. E.g. if I talk to colleagues from Italy, they tell me horror stories of unreliable local officials, who either don't show up for appointments and/or want to be bribed to do their job. I have never seen cases like that in Germany. Corruption is usually in the higher levels of politics than on the "street level". That being said, I hope we will get more cases where we can interact with officials online w/o having to personally go somewhere and wait. Great video, like always.
Yes I’ve heard the corruption stories from Italy as well. I think for some of them it is a large motivation to come to Germany where everything is above board.
@1IGG As I'm an accurate german, please correct this: "But at least you see corruption, at least in the lower echelons, often. Or barely at all." You mean, _not_ often?
Yeah. Our corruption is mainly on the political level. We even have a technical term for it: "Lobbyismus". (And obviously an exhaustive body of rules and regulations governing it with the main purpose of making it intransparent to the public.)
The efficiency trope is a bit of a mixed bag and dependent on the sector I'd say. When I grew up it was seen as a basic virtue to strife for in school and at work - but I experienced very different levels of it in the last 40 years 🙃
Burocracy is in itself very difficult to judge in terms of efficiency and depends very much on how the council is organized, which varies a lot throughout Germany in my experience.
The addiction to paper and the slow digitalisation is mostly because of conflicts with our pretty strict privacy and data security laws.
Being the Kraut I am, I have to correct you. 😁 There are three Frankfurts in Germany, the third one is a tiny little village in Bavaria. Just between Würzburg & Erlangen.
Thanks, I didn’t know that! I know about the two Oldenburg and three Essen, but not about the third Frankfurt.
Haha thanks kreepy. I’d not heard of the village
What?? I live in ansbach near Nuremberg Franconia and I didn't even know that. When I moved to Germany last year, I kept looking for the famous race track in Nuremberg. But then I realize it is Nurgburgring.
But we DO like sausages and beer! 🍺🌭🍻🌭🍺 Though we also eat this 🍕and this 🍝and we also like this: 🫕!
Fun fact: Germany is one of the best countries in the world for producing wine (mostly white wine).
Yes. Where I live it’s more about wine than it is about beer
Now I begin to understand, what 'polite and apologetic Britishness' really means, when you react to complaints about generalisations like "the Germans" with a TRIGGER WARNING 😆👌!
Oh yes! 😉
I'm a German. Half swabian and half silesian. I'm born and raised in south Germany right in the middle of Baden-Württemberg. I speak German with an swabian accent. And I feel swabian. But above all I feel German!
Of course I have prejudices about other Germans. Mostly about the Germans in the north of my beloved country. But more in a funny way. For exmple we swabians call the Germans living at the coast "Fischköpfe" (i.e. fishheads). On the other side I am very aware that swabians in northern Germany are considered as bossy and complicated people with a dopey dialect.
But all in all I think we Germans do love each other.
That’s great to hear. Thanks for sharing 🙏
There are indeed vast differences between the cultures in the 16 Bundesländer, most notably - at least for strangers - between the northern and the southern ones. However, if you want to have a very different living experience without moving through the whole country, just move from the citiy to the countryside and you will immediately see vast differences not so much in culture or language, but in every day life. Distances tend to be bigger, the pace of life tends to be slower and people tend to be more interested in each other than in the cities.
Definitely. One thing I notice when back in the countryside is that things like social media and artificial intelligence seems very far away and not at all important. The weather, the food and the neighbours dog is what’s important. Things are a lot more simple
Yes, but that s the same everywhere. Urban life and rural life are not the same, has nothing to do if that s in Germany or Ireland or France or Spain or...
regarding Munich and Berlin, they were the capital cities of two different countries - and I don't mean East & West - but the kingdom of Bavaria and the kingdom of Prussia
that's also the reason for the vast differences between Germans, many regions started out on their own before being taken in by a greater power - Germany in its current form is actually only 36 years old, celebrating its 37th birthday this year, even when taking the time after WW2 into account we aren't even scratching the 100-year-mark, (78 years since 1945) - we underwent so many changes in the last 100 years alone, so that's impossible to determine what the typical German even is
It's a process...
I’d argue that the bureaucracy in Germany is efficient in their own way of PAPER. It’s just that instead of solving a problem in hour or a day, it can be prolonged to weeks. Eventually it’ll be done.
Well I'd argue that it is the opposite of efficient 🤣
Ah, being another immigrant in Germany, not far from you, and working for a German company for the past 15 years, (half out of Germany, half in) I can say that, what "efficiency means in German is, "just make sure you covered all possible cases and cover them all first and foremost". So, yes, planning takes a lot of time but after that actual implementation is just a clockwork. On the other hand, when you look at the botched projects, they are managed in a non-German way. :)
Also, the diversity and distributed nature of Germany is of its past: They were and still more of a confederation of small fiefdoms, not a monolithic country with a singular center of gravity for power and business.
Help neighbour😉. Thanks for commenting.
I think there is an important problem of understanding when it comes to Germany. Germany has historically never been a centralized state, even Hitler didn't really make it. There is a centuries-old resentment against too much centralism. Germany has always been diverse, regional, shaped by immigration and influences from the surrounding countries. Federalism is in the DNA of Germany. This confuses many who look at it from the outside. Germany as a state is relatively young and the long period of many small states with very different cultures is much more important. This puts Germany in a rather unique position in Europe, which perhaps also explains the strong commitment to Europe, it is anchored in German culture to act in confederations of states.
Well said 👍🏻
I think Germans and major eurolian countries (maybe more from Germany towards east and north-lack flexibility
Interesting insight. Thanks for sharing
Accuracy is what made engeneering so successful in Germany. And reliability.
Or is engineering what increased and sharpened reliability and accuracy...
@@britingermany maybe also
The efficiency stereotype is a rather old one that *was* actually true at some point. Germany is a shadow of its former self nowadays, though.
In what way do you think it is a shadow of its former self? In terms of industry and manufacturing ? Presence on the world stage?
@@britingermany The cliché of German efficiency and punctuality probably came from the Prussians and from the time Prussia was the leading power in Germany prior to the 1st WW. It may also have to do with Germany's rise as an industrial nation before the World Wars and after WW2 in connexion with the Wirtschaftswunder. However, it more or less went astray with the fall of the Soviet Union and the beginning of the Berlin Republic. We cannot run our trains on time, anymore, and we can't build an airport or a trainstation within an acceptable time frame, the latter having to do with a lot of corruption and nepotism in modern German politics. You're right in the assumption that on a private or socio-cultural level, a lot of those values still exist in Germany more so than in other countries (albeit that's not necessarily a plus).
I'm not talking about presence on the world stage, but Germany's post-war presence essentially hinges on its influence as an economic power ... and we're about to mess that up.
airport security needs backgroundchecks, you cant just "hire more people" also nobody wants to work there that isnt already doing so...
they literally cant "hire more people" it just doesnt work, that the reason it sux at the moment...
its not cutting costs, its they literally cant hire anybody
I don't know how it is in other Airports but in Frankfurt they have an agency who does all the hiring. It's not easy. Although you can actually book a slot online for your security check so they are trying to streamline the process as far as possible
All in this video is correct even if its subjective because i know all the problems in this country like very other german. We have many problems with simple stuff where other countries can laugh at us.
Well I don’t know if anyone is laughing at Germany but there are issues just like any other country
I'm 2 meters tall, have brown eyes and brown hair. I don't drink alcohol and I like sausages. I'm very direct but am extremely lazy.
🤣
Ps.: Cornwall is my favorit spot in the UK so I'm already more educated than the average German. I know more than London.
Ahh well 1 point for the sausages at least 😉🇩🇪. Glad to hear Cornwall is on the map in Germany so to speak
the stereotyp of efficency go back to the Friedrich Wilhelm I, King of Prussia. His regency idealized certain virtues of the Pruss like honesty, sense of duty, discipline, punctuality and such. It is a joke amongst my family, that we are raised with the virtue of the Pruss, so there is a little bit of truth in the cliché
Do you think the “Prussian way” is still visible and in effect in German society? I mean how children are raised or the values that are instilled in people in school.
@@britingermany I don´t know, if they teach it in the school as such, but my german friends and me, we probably comprehend it as a certain heritage that is rather a mindset, somethings our parents and grandparents used to do, rules they lived by and identified with. A german teacher brought up like that might asked these things from his students unconsciously. Maybe in history class when they are tought about Prussia these themes come up, but that is intellectually not emotionally.
Lots of people are unreliable nowadays, don´t answer, don´t call back and such. So I am a little proud to have those standards for me that. My parents always said: punctuality is the politness of Kings.
I like to say about me I am very prussian, but I am sure some people would reject that comparison, even if they have prussian standards. Or they don´t even know that they have them. So in a certain way these ideals are interwoven in the society.
Germany, as the world, is changing quickly, so we´ll see what virtues will push through as typically "german".
By far the best foreign "docu" of germany.
You explain very very good and focus on the important factors. You probably know more about germany (in general) than the average german.
The explanation about the different citys and the influence of migrants on them was a important point.
But you missed the East - West difference and the big differences through the dialects.
Thanks for your kind words. Yeah I’d like to look more into East Germany…maybe sometime soon
If I only could, I would marry you on the spot! Kisses from a German admirer 😍
awww thanks you. that is very sweet
Where you expect "efficiency" it's more thoroughness, or attention to details. What could be considered a good thing, if you think about it one by one, can become a handicap if it creates complexity or generally delays. With the mediterranean "laissez faire" (don't care for laws) or with a dictator (we do it, cause I say so), things would be faster. But Germans don't like either one of this. They want thourough plans and guarantees.
The diversity goes back to the various German tribes allover central Europe. Like the Saxons, Thüringer, Bavarians, Frisen, Allemannen, Sueben ect.pp. They all used to have their own culture. The remains of that today are the Federal States.
Thank you
@@britingermany here is more about that topic: ruclips.net/video/e8WHWDG5IhI/видео.html
I think you have touched on something very important here. The loss of identity for me is hugely connected to globalization and tech. There is a strong sense that change is too rapid, resulting in a deep sense of loss of control. This to me is responsible for the growth of the far right globally.
Maybe a contribution. However I think the economic situation plays a larger role.
@@britingermany What do you mean?
Growing up in Germany I always wondered why Germans have that image of being hard working, punctual and reliable. I did not find the average person to be extremely like that.
That changed when I lived in other countries for more than just a short holiday and when I became part of international teams. And yes, in comparison to most people in many other countries the average German is very efficient, punctual and reliable. 😀
It always helps to get a new perspective 😉
@@britingermany very true. 🙂
Very insightful summary. Your decade in Germany has been well spent. You are also a very observant person. Enjoy Germany and Europe !
In my opinion you get a different flavour of german depending on the country that borders that section of germany.
That definitely makes a difference, especially in regions where more than one language is spoken
One thing I’ve learnt from my American colleagues is to prepare meetings more efficiently. In Germany it’s quite common that people would blabber in professional meetings without getting to the point. I’ve worked in both the private and public sector, and it’s really surprising how inefficient Germans often are in these situations. When you tell people that their time is up because they’ve talked for too long, they often feel deeply offended. Most of my German colleagues are specialists in their field, but most of them lack what I would call ‘secondary skills’, in particular with regard to working in diverse teams. By diverse I don’t mean necessarily the cultural background but rather situations where you have - like in my case - engineers, managers, people from accounting and so on working on the same team. Maybe this sounds like another stereotype, but my experience here in Germany has always been the same, i.e. people show a lack of interest in other people’s rationale. This type of attitude really drives me crazy 😜
I don't think you can get away from stereotypes when you discuss something as broad as culture. I live very close to Mexico and I have a very difficult time making friends because I just can't bond with other people. Most Mexicans just don't like a lot of things I'm interested in because they have a different culture. It would be a stereotype to say that Mexicans don't like historical fencing and western classical music, and prefer things like soccer and reggaton music, but the former just isn't an important part of their culture. Now, I know there are some Mexicans who do like those things, but they are a very small minority. You can't just walk into a culture and think you'll fit in because all the stereotypes are wrong. You can't have a culture without stereotypes. There's nothing wrong with making assumptions if they're based in fact. You can't just assume there are a lot of people who speak in English in China because stereotypes are immoral. Just like you can't assume there will be no differences between the culture of Germany and the country you live in
I'd say the efficiency comes more from a personal point of view, not for large projects by the state or the state in general. Everything involving the state - may it be a small thing you are requesting in your local citizen office or a large construction project - needs so long because there's a ton of bureaucracy. That's because we Germans are (unfortunatelly in this case) also very correct, precise and like to have rules for everything.
On the other hand, we are very efficent in getting work done on a personal level. Like if you're supposed to work 8 hours at your job, you will do exactly that, with normally very little time you don't actually work. Most people won't slack off, and they won't just go to a sports play of ther children or sth like that. We have great worker rights with quite some free time compared to a lot of other countries, which works well because the workers aren't using it but giving their all in return. Punctuallity also plays into it. We just prefer to have things like work and free time seperated and to get things done and then be with our family.
Germany since its inception gets everything totally wrong about Europe on a social-cultural level. Maybe fix that first.
London is not even in England anymore, however Nutty Mutty has made Berlin and elsewhere in Germany foreign to Germans. As far as my experience in Germany goes, which is several holidays there every year, Ich kann auf der Autobahn fahren, und habe kein angst vor Straßenschäden. In England driving makes me paranoid, spending more time dodging potholes on our third world roads than concentrating on the task in hand. Keep up the good work with these informative videos.
Love that the first thing I see are scenes from Frankfurt
Yes! Gotta love FFM 😀
I think I can judge quite well what the situation is in terms of efficiency in Germany, because I grew up here and have also lived in other countries and can compare things quite well. Germany was certainly not wrongly appreciated for its efficiency and was sometimes notoriously known for it. For some years now, however, things have been going steadily downhill and many things that used to be taken for granted no longer work, especially in the big cities. And yes, Berlin is particularly bad in this respect, as every traveler notices at this new airport, which is not only terribly boring, but also has very slow processes, because once again people believe that everything has to be done differently here than elsewhere. Unfortunately, travelers are already frustrated at the security checks, which can take a lot of time and nerves of steel.
No. NOT everything works like a clockwork in Germany. And 25% of the population here have a migrand background. So Ze Germanz are really divers. And we have the same problems with cost of living, low wages, high taxes, drug problems and many people from abroad, who dont give a sh!t about the law and the culture.
'Working like clockwork'is the German view of Switzerland😀
I'd propose to say that "Germans" are rather "fleissig", not so much efficient. And also we're perfectionists. The pencil pushers are perfectionists, too. Which can be hindering efficiency.
Conscientious perfectionists that's quite a combo. But you could be right. Leads to a lot of great achievements but also a sense of never being finished and never being satisfied.
@@britingermany 😊
One can be satisfied, when "that" task/job/piece is done, but one can also work on " a better/progressed/advanced" version 😊
THAT can also give one some sort of "satisfaction".
"Dem Ingenieur ist nichts zu schwer" 😊
Well, it's correct that Germany is not the typical immigration country. Especially Italian and Turkish people came here as Gastarbeiter in the '60s and '70s. They initially were supposed to go back to their home country after doing their job here. Instead these people stayed and raised their children here. That's why we have parts of their culture here.
Just started to listen to your opening comments so before I watch and listen further, because then I do not know what you are going to say further, I would like to say that of course there are Germans, but this is a problimatic construct of the English language. The English (Anglo Saxon) are German, the Dutch are German, so lets say instead of German, they are Germanic. The Danes, Norwegians and Sweeds are also Germanic (although a different kind of Germanic)!!! What the English call Germans are Deutsch.
runs like clockwork 😛 depends... it is sort of true iegarding complex industrial machinery
I grew up and lived in Germany up until the early ‘00s, then moved to another EU country where I still live today. I remember Germany in the 1980s and 90s was extremely efficient, trains were mostly on time and bureaucracy/public administration was pretty smooth. Law enforcement was also very efficient. The country was without doubt among the most solid and stable ones in Europe back then.
From what I read and hear today, the Germany of today is not on the same level as it was back then, for different reasons. An ageing population and the influx of immigrants from war-torn countries are taking their toll (mind you I find it positive that Germany is open and welcoming to migrants but there are capacity limits). There is a lack of skilled workers which is becoming more and more noticeable. The education system is not fully fit for purpose.
Sub-standard train services and understaffed airports are just some of the more visible signs of the gradual decline, it’s also noticeable in schools and public administration that things are not running so smoothly anymore. There are vast differences between wealthier and less well-off regions, which wasn’t always the case (in the old West Germany at least).
Add to this the rise of extremist parties in politics, and the situation does not look so rosy. Germany is still a powerful country with great potential but it will take good leadership and hardship for many people in the coming years to bring things back on track.
There are huge differences between Germans from the East (ex DDR) and West Germans. I have worked for a number of years and shared living spaces mostly with (when Germans) East Germans in Belgium and the Netherlands), I also worked in East Germany in 1994 where I learned a lot of my German language having left the Army in 1993. The East Germans are much more hospitable, friendly and helpful in so many ways they reminded me of being at home in Lancashire because they greet everyone on the street and take time to chat and help complete strangers. Bavaria by the way is called "Frei Stadt" because to this day they do not see themselves as Prussians, they say everyone north of Bavaria are shit Prussians even though the Germans (better said Deutsche Volk) are united as one state.
In terms of efficiency, I have to say that the Germans are very efficient at work, just not their state. Technical efficiency and bureaucratic efficiency are unfortunately two different things. I think "thorough" or "complex" is more appropriate, because the work is always good in itself, but just complicated like nothing else.
As an American living in Munich, I would tend disagree with your notion that German government bureaucracies are fairly inefficient.
Yes, they have their way of doing things, yes it tends to be paper based, but the system actually works. The officials I have dealt with have all been extremely polite and helpful and will help you maneuver the system. For the most part they actually seem to like their work.
If you dot your i‘s and cross your t‘s you will actually get a result. A consistent result, regardless of whom you‘re dealing with.
Back home government agencies tend to be horribly mismanaged, staffed with people who hate their jobs and are unwilling to give a straight answer. It‘s extremely hard to get a consistent answer and your results will depend on the person you‘re dealing with.
Case in point; try dealing with the IRS as an expat.
😂😂 every time someone found out I'm British (in Germany) they automatically assumed I was from London and when I say a small village on the south coast near Brighton they have to know how far it is from London as that is their only reference. I used to tell my clients, "please dear God get out of London and actually see England. London isn't England. It's a multicultural center for business and tourists but isn't real England! Actually broaden your horizons and cultural experience and head north or south but get out of London" does my head in. I hate london and even more so now because of that. 🙄
One other cultural thing is not only migration - but the south-north axis, wich was historical allways there. Starting with the saxon influences in the north, as well as Scandinavian in the medieval, following up the reformation wich basicly splitted Germany into half wich lead to the Prussian influenced north-east and the Austria/France influenced south-west. As I'm originaly from Schleswig-Holstein, I can relate way better to the Danish or Dutch culture than to the Hessians for example.
Remember Germany was not even a unified state still the late 1800s the UK is much older. Even then Germany has been broken up into various parts even quite recently post WW2.
When you said "americans" did you refer to US American citizens or citizens from other parts of "America" (the continent)??
Efficiency goes down the hill wherever German politicians and authorities get involved and put ideology over common sense like it happened in the Berlin airport chaos. The head of the board for that project back then was the Berlin major Klaus Wowereit. Germany has highly efficient companies but also highly inefficient politicians and bureaucrats.
Before I listen further, I will comment again about efficiency. Because my experience here has been for almost 43 years on and off and I was married and have Daughters and grand children here I would like to say that the efficiency rating has dropped due to the Germans who now work are a completely different mentality to 40 odd years ago, they have had 40 years of being spoiled and living well in general. This is no different to England and the mentality of working men in the 70s when I was taught to be a working man and the way things are done now!!!!
I believe in fact that the largest bulk of what keeps holding Germany back from major changes in development is this gigantic tumor that is our bureaucracy.
Also, generalizations are of course valid. Otherwise why would we call them that way?
Exactly!
Yeah it is damaging the reputation somewhat!
I think efficiency is the wrong term. Germans have a good sense of bringing quality, costs and time of production together on a very high level.
It is a frequent and valid observation by historians of the Third Reich that its government was the opposite of streamlined efficiency. Some of this had to do with the personality of Adolf Hitler and his habit of pitting his servants and government departments, including the military, against other officials and departments. As a result, officials and agencies often had overlapping responsibilities. When disputes arose, the parties were forced to appeal to Hitler to resolve them, thus preventing the formation of effective opposition to Hitler's personal rule.
Yeah, it is sad that people often push back on "stereotypes" in a very heated manner (then missing the point of the exchange quite often). There is a reason for them being there and the experience others have is valid no matter how you feel, as a german, while acting the way you do. I am a bavarian and there are many german stereotypes about bavarians specifically but nevertheless some "german" things still apply to many bavarians. Thus making it hard for others to pick up on the nuances we are so proud of or derive our sense of regional patriotism from.
The thing is, i may be an exception in many ways, but still it cannot be denied that there is a german culture and this culture leaves an impression on every single one of us living in this country. Even those that push back and try to be different are still impacted as they are members of "counter-culture" (Gegenkultur) which only makes sense the second you recognize the existence of an overarching cultural framework you actually oppose.
Thank you for this. Yes a few people seem to feel personally attacked or at least insulted by being labeled as "the Germans"...and then again some people deny the existence of the country of Germany 🤷♂️
@@britingermany Feeling attacked is funny in its own right. Germans are generally not very aware of the fact that coming from a foreigner it can be a good thing to be called "german".
This could explain your own experience when talking about stereotypes.
Each german city, region or village being a vastly different microcosm of its own is pretty spot on.
My region for example is (in)famous for housing many people like me called 'siegerländer Stöffel'. We are a hardy, self-sufficient and stoic bunch. Since it is virtually impossible to hurt our feelings, we have no aptitude in understanding the subtle delicacies of social interaction. We can tolerate a very wide range of people, even the obnoxious and toxic ones. We do not mince words, we will clobber you with our honest and sincere opinion. And we are always surprised to see how "nice" the rest of germany is. Here you can commonly see, people hurling the most offensive insults at each other while being the best drinking buddies, or extremists publicly demonstrating throughout the streets making fools of themselves without the passers-by giving them even an ounce of attention.
So when moving into the 'Siegerland' be prepared to receive a full broadside of unfiltered opinions.
To take Berlin as an example for Germany is almost offensive . 😉 Berlin has a history of a failed state attitude and wouldn’t even survive if the other states especially from the south wouldn’t send billions of Euros to Berlin every single year.
There are sections of the Autobahn without speed limit? I wouldn’t agree to put it like that. There are sections with speed limits but those limited sections only make up for 30 percent of the Autobahn
3:22 The problem there isn't so much a general lack of efficiency but the fact that the cheapest contractor gets the contract regardless of how realistic their price statement is and expectedly the costs skyrocket afterwards and stuff in done on the cheap without proper prior planning which ultimately causes piss poor performance.
Companies in Germany are very often very efficient. We invent a lot of things and German products are of high quality. The government, however, ruins a lot projects. But I guess this kind of failure happens everywhere. Overall, Germany does pretty well. What is the piano song in the beginning?
Yes I think some German companies are very efficient. It’s just the companies or organisations which I…and I would argue the average citizen comes into contact with are often not very efficient (e.g. governmental, public transport etc). I’m sorry I can’t remember which piano track that was.
Thanks for your well balanced thoughts on this, I agree to most of them. Concerning efficiency I believe we as Germans are getting in our own way with an ever growing flood of bureaucratic regulations to the point that one day we will have immobilized ourselves
Yes I think you’re right. Changes are desperately needed but I think everyone is aware of this and trying to improve things. It just takes a very long time
It’s not OUR bureaucracy, it’s the bureaucracy of the government. Every German complains about it - and about many things, so I guess it’s because of our complaining that they invent more and more detailed procedures to exclude possible future problems 🤔. In any case, I personally am still working on becoming more efficient. I would rather think the efficiency myth belongs into the German corporate world, and not into all of the companies either 🧐, it’s particularly not existent in schools. And I’m saying that as a teacher.
@@chrisg7795 it sure isn't my bureaucracy, but italso isn't only the government. There is some reason to it inherent in our societys perception of things. Let me take as an example safety, perfection and responsability. I work in the building authority of a small town and I am confronted with this daily.
Lets say somewhere in Germany, in a municipally managed kindergarden, a child is injured by getting its face scraped over the surface of an unevenly plastered wall. Next step is, the childs' parents complain against the municipal authorities and maybe even sue them. Then the collective insurance organisation of the municipal administrations investigates the case. It concludes, that there is a gap in the safety rules for the construction of kindergardens and other buildings attended by young children. Consequently, it adds a new rule to its already endless list of guidelines, regulating the tolerance of such walls regarding evenness, hardness and elasticity to the smallest detail. So the next time anything similar happens, and a town gets sued for it, the insurance won't pay, in case the existing constructional guidelines were not observed. This procedure has meanwhile been pushed far beyond any proportionality, resulting, among other things, in extremely high costs for construction and maintenance of the buildings. What are the reasons?
Safety and Perfection: The Illusion, that by foresightedly dealing with every possible source of danger and by subsequently closing every gap, accidents and tragedys can be perfectly excluded.
Responsability: So in case of an accident the question must be "how could this ever happen" and somebody has to be found and held responsible for it.
This ignores the reality, that a wide range of things can and will allways happen, and that to some reasonable extent everyone has to carry the odds of life in his own responsability.
Sorry for the sermon😬 I got carried away, trying to pin at least an aspect of the problem 😆😉
@@mitasol3864 Don’t apologize. Your sermon was absolutely on point 👌🏼. I meant the same issue. We overdo things because we try to get them (perfectly) right. I totally agree.
@@chrisg7795 thankyou 🙂
Yes, we are talking about the same thing
I guess you have to make a big difference between work efficiency and the general efficiency. You can't compare the snail-like bureaucracy or the unablebility of some German airport builder Heijopeis and the general working efficency. Maybe I'm wrong, but my impression, especially from the industry, I did work for 3 people compared to other countries, because the processes were idealized that I was able to it so. And I was allowed to do my own decisions and not waiting years for a yes or no from some boss who was not even sitting in the same building.
Yeah, I agree. As other expats have observed: Germans enjoy their free time, but when they are at work, they work hard.
Efficiency is just an observed side effect of the German desire for correctness. Doing things correctly can lead to more efficiency, especially when compared to some chaotic messes visitors may be used to. But it also is a big hindrance, as it takes time to follow the correct process and can lead to absurdity when there are no special rules for special cases.
Nicely put👍🏻
Difficult with that awful background music.
They are not efficient. German cities are not so clean and the country is far behind in terms of digitalization.
B.I.G.: "I live in Frankfurt am Main"
Every German not from Frankfurt watching this: "Oof..."