Swedes speak English well and many of us feel that there are no major differences between Swedes and Brits. But I promise that there are differences and many grey zones where you could use some assistance.
When I moved to England, I believed I was relatively aware of the cultural differences and, to be honest, I considered myself quite “international” - not only Swedish. After a couple of days I already started to notice the differences when I tried to open an account with one of the large English banks. It turned out to be extremely complicated!
After a few months I gave up and turned to one of the Swedish banks in England. It took a couple of days to open an account and I was very happy. After another couple of days, I received my first check book and couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it. A check book – it was 2005! Having worked in England for a few years now, the checks still exist and we get them at work every week.
I have seen many examples of the grey zones I mentioned earlier. They can be hard to deal with. Not so long ago, Enlink assisted a Swedish company with VAT registration - or rather tried to figure out whether they needed to register for VAT or not. We talked to two individuals at the “VAT authorities”, two VAT experts and one VAT business controller. We got four different answers. The same thing happened when we researched insurance policies. The answer we received was that it depended on how the judge interpreted the law if something should happen and go to court. Maybe this is part of the difficulties the English have with being outspoken and clear. They would rather talk in circles than give straight answers.
The English consider humour to be very important and many of them believe their humour is unique and better than anyone else’s. Irony, mockery, sarcasm, silliness and self criticism are always extremely funny and important according to the English. When I say always, I mean always. In most cultures there is “a right time and place” for humour but in England this time and place is around the clock, both privately and in business. You can be fluent in English but if you don’t understand their sense of humour, you can never really understand the English.
No matter how hard it may seem sometimes or how different or like-minded we are, England is a large market that you should not forget about! Don’t be afraid to ask for assistance and remember that small differences are the ones that matter when mistakes happen.