Globalisation good? McDonald's way of life for a more confident you

break barriers ... with a burger
Maneesh Kuruvilla, Today Online 10 Jan 08;

WE MAY not understand it, care about it or want to be a part of it, but we cannot escape its clutches. And while it has become prominent over the past decade, Theodore Levitt first coined the term "globalisation" in 1983 in an article for the Harvard Business Review entitled The Globalisation of Markets.

Yet, as fascinating as all this is, the true significance of globalisation is often lost on anyone without a PhD in economics. Globalisation means different things to different people.

To a call centre employee in south India, it means helping a client in Surrey navigate through the buttons on his Hi Definition TV remote. To a teenager in China, it is the opportunity of receiving an American education. To a housewife in Singapore, it means buying the freshest cuts of Australian beef at the local supermarket. And to a 10-year-old in Austria, it's about ordering the latest computer-programing magazine online.

To truly understand, experience and appreciate globalisation first hand, all one has to do is visit a place where the language, culture and people are foreign.

Let's take a trip to Italy — the land of pasta, Paolo Maldini and the Pope. Even to the most seasoned traveller, a maiden voyage to Italy can be a challenge.

Deciding on what to order at a cafe may not be easy despite the multilingual menus displayed outside for clueless tourists. Ordering pasta usually involves selecting the type of sauce and the meat to go with it. And this has to be communicated to the waiter in English, Italian and possibly, hand gestures.

How much simpler is it then to walk inside the all-too-familiar McDonald's. McDonald's is one of the classic examples of globalisation at work where the words "Big Mac" transcend all language barriers. It doesn't matter whether the staff member taking your order is Italian and doesn't speak fluent English.

The implications are greater than they appear. In a globalised world, you're never too far away from home (or a McDonald's). By accepting the "McDonald's way of life", we become part of a global culture, which doesn't require us to adapt to or adopt the culture of that particular place. Instead, familiarity breeds confidence and we gain new experiences within the confines of our comfort zones.

There are symbols of this borderless world that help us fit in immediately with new surroundings. By wearing a Gap T-shirt, Levi's jeans, Nike sneakers and arming ourselves with an iPod, we are almost instantly granted "one-of-us" status and scrutinised less, as these products are all recognised as "global brands". They are names that are trusted and loved worldwide. By using them, we represent some of those qualities.

The clothes we wear and the gadgets we use go beyond functional purposes. In a truly global world, these are the visible "passports" of the 21st century, passports of the global citizen. Making friends in new places may depend more on the songs in your mp3 playlist than your nationality.

Call it brand power, Western influence or whatever you wish. None of it would have been possible if the world had not shrunk. Improved relations among nations, defunct trade barriers and state-of-the art transport systems have literally made the world smaller. Add to that the information-technology revolution that provides us everything at our fingertips. We're part of a global culture in which our surroundings are always familiar because they're the same almost wherever we are.

It is for this reason globalisation is said to dissolve not only physical but also cultural, social and economic boundaries. It gives us a point of reference from which we can make calculated decisions.

After all, if it's good enough for the rest of the world it must be good enough for you and me. Remove globalisation and we'll find the world a diverse and complicated place to live in with a myriad of variables.

The writer is an 18-year-old Singaporean currently doing his National Service