Ataallh Alatoai

Three years ago, I traveled to Malaysia; it was a nice place, and Malaysia people are very respectable. However, I ran up against a problem. It was a bout some types of nonverbal communication. For example, I went to a store to buy some gifts for my family. I saw a man who waved his hand from right to left. In my country that gesture means "good bye". My reaction was like him; I waved mine to the right and left. Unfortunately, in Malaysia that gesture has different meaning. It means "come here". When I knew its meaning, I was really embarrassed. In fact, after that experience, I believe that knowing common nonverbal signals in a country which you will visit is important, so I became careful about learning common nonverbal communication.