How 'Bout D'em Cowboys (And That Business Culture)

Remember how I promised that I would post in the color blue one time only? Well, I lied. Since posting in Giants-blue brought the New York Giants good luck last week, I've decided to do it again in advance of their game against the Dallas Cowboys this Sunday.

I should probably hate the Dallas Cowboys as much as I do the Giants' other rivals in the NFC East, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins. Except I don't. I really like Terrell Owens and Tony Romo. And, of course, I just adore Jessica Simpson, Tony Romo's girlfriend (her "I Think I'm In Love" video which you can check out at www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHMpaZ90ptQ&feature=related is a true classic).

I've only been to Dallas once. In July 2001, I was part of the team advising one of the world's largest integrated oil companies in connection with its friendly, $2.9 billion tender offer for another integrated oil company headquartered in Dallas. We flew from Teterboro, NJ to Dallas on board one of our client's Gulfstream IV corporate jets--a truly AWESOME experience in every respect. We were met on the tarmac by a fleet of three cars and three drivers, each driver wearing black pants, a short-sleeved white dress shirt, a skinny black tie and Blues Brothers-style sunglasses. I thought their dress shirts particularly odd. Short sleeves?

When we arrived at the offices of the lawyers for the target company, I was surprised to see that they were wearing suits with short-sleeved dress shirts as well. I quickly figured out that business people in Dallas dress a little differently in July than those of us from New York. I also noticed some non-sartorial distinctions as well. The lawyers from Dallas were tough but fair-minded. There was none of the shrill, whiner, weasel-outbursts done for dramatic effect that I often encountered in New York. Over the course of the next few days, I became really good friends with the Dallas lawyers. I got a particular kick out of the stuffed deer heads mounted on the walls of their offices--trophies from the hunting trips that they had been on. My Upper West Side living, espresso drinking, Hillary Clinton-voting friends back in New York would have died! I loved it.

My experience in Dallas was a good reminder of how vast the United States really is, not just in terms of geography, but also in terms of business culture. I've worked with people from all over the United States and, in future posts, I plan to explore the regional business culture distinctions that I've encountered.

Getting back to the game on Sunday, I hope that the Cowboys totally implode. I won't feel too bad for Tony Romo, though--maybe he'll get some extra consolation lovin' from Jessica Simpson!