For weeks the German government was reluctant to commit to including stopping North Stream 2 as a key element in sanctiones against Russia should it invade Ukraine.
BERLIN, Feb 22 (Reuters) – Germany on Tuesday halted the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, designed to double the flow of Russian gas direct to Germany, after Russia formally recognised two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine.
Europe’s most divisive energy project, worth $11 billion, was finished in September, but has stood idle pending certification by Germany and the European Union.
The pipeline had been set to ease the pressure on European consumers facing record energy prices amid a wider post-pandemic cost of living crisis, and on governments that have already forked out billions to try to cushion the impact on consumers.
February 2022. Politicians and business leaders call for alternatives to Putin’s pipelines.
The country gets a whopping 55 percent of its gas imports from Russia. With the crisis triggered by Vladimir Putin’s belligerence toward Ukraine prompting renewed questions about the reliability of that supply, politicians and business leaders have begun calling for the country to urgently find ways to diversify its energy mix.
“Well. Welcome to the brave new world where Europeans are very soon going to pay €2.000 for 1.000 cubic meters of natural gas!” Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president and prime minister who is now deputy chair of the country’s Security Council, tweeted in reaction to Scholz’s move. Just to make sure the message got tweeted in German, too.
In this episode we find out what people in Berlin think about Elon Musk. Musk has just been named Person of the Year by Time Magazine and is known as an entrepreneur and visionary but also for causing controversies.
On the outskirts of Berlin, he is currently building the European headquarters of his car brand Tesla – a good moment for us to find out what Germans think about Elon Musk. Our friend Emanuel from yourdailygerman is with us on the streets today to ask the people!
Interestingly, but not suprising, most of the Germans are negative about Musk: egocentric, unrealistic, etc. Whereas as the non-Germans are more positive.
“Given Silicon Valley is in Germany, you’d think the Germans would be more open to innovation and the fruits of capitalism. Hmmmm.” (a comment on YouTube. Irony at its best.)
Frankfurt. Handelsblatt. September 13, 2025. Forget “keep it simple”: according to a recent study (in Germany), start-up founders raise more funds when they express themselves in a more differentiated way. What makes a good pitch.
When start-up founders want to convince investors of their idea, they often receive the same advice: keep it simple. Messages should be as clear as possible, with few foreign words and no frills. However, a new study by researchers at the Technische Universtät Dortmund, the Universtät Passau, and the Technische Universtät Munich, published in the journal Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, shows that it’s not quite that simple.
According to the study, the use of cognitively complex language leads to greater financing success: those who expressed themselves in a more linguistically sophisticated manner during their pitch received an average of more than seven percent or approximately $125,000 in additional investment in the twelve months that followed.
November 12, 2024. Bill Anderson, CEO of Bayer, reports on the company’s progress. A video with the title “90 days in 90 seconds.”
However, many Germans were not convinced. Not because Germans are mean people. Not because Germans are negative, destructive, or pessimistic. But instead, because they have a different approach to persuasion. How they persuade. How they allow themselves to be persuaded.
See the Anderson-video and the comments on LinkedIn. Here are some of the German comments:
“Dear Bill Anderson: I know that you have a difficult job, and I don’t want to blame you for the mistakes of your predecessors. Nevertheless, you should be able to honestly tell employees, shareholders and the German public, how things are going at Bayer. Your above statement is in my point of view misleading and irresponsible.
Bayer’s existence is threatened and you and the top management (seem) have not yet understood this. Stop being the Olaf Scholz (German Chancellor) of the German industry and please switch from Disney Land mentality to the necessary crisis mode. If you and management are unable to recognize, communicate and resolve the realities, please clear the way for leaders who can. And please stop sugarcoating terrifying realities ASAP!!!”
The commenter is a Ph.D. university professor in Pathology and Immunology. And the commenter is a German who has also become an American citizen.
Another comment from a German on LinkedIn: “‘We’re making great progress in some areas.”‘ You cannot be serious! The share price is at a 20-years low. It is true that you cannot be blamed for your predecessors’ mistakes, but where was the share price at, when you started as CEO at Bayer?”
And this from a Bayer-employee: “With this performance and a drop of more than 10% in share price today, I would be surprised if you survive another year as CEO. Be honest and inform the public that the Bayer Monsanto merger is a huge insolvency risk. It is time for a rescue plan to save at least parts of the company.” The commenter is German.
Small talk in the USA gets communication going. Small talk allows people to get a sense for the overall atmosphere. Americans seldom jump directly into serioius business subject matter. Examples
Americans link the personal with the professional. Feedback addresses primarily performance, but takes into consideration how it will be received. Feedback on one’s work is feedback on that individual. It is by its very nature personal. Examples
A no in the American context is more the exception than the rule. Americans pride themselves on being can-do people. They feel uncomfortable saying no. They couch their no in affirmative words. Examples
In the U.S. an imperfect but fast decision is often preferred over a perfect but slow decision. Imperfect decisions can be corrected. For Americans speed is always of the essence. Examples
Americans expect the initial parts of a deliverable as quickly as possible. A partial deliverable early often meets the needs better than the complete product later. Speed beats completeness. Examples