Bird's Eye View: Is Super Bowl Football A Universal Language?

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From global dialogues engaging thousands, to tete-a tetes, to everything in between, I’ve got the greatest gig in the world: I get paid to engage the world’s greatest business and thought leaders in conversation. Significant conversation. I do a lot of other stuff, too, but basically I’m obsessed with conversation.

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February 04, 2013

Is Super Bowl Football A Universal Language?

This picture says it all. Elation. Exhaustion. A winner enjoying the first taste of the spoils.

We have a new intern at Wf360, Isabelle Bartlome, from Bern, Switzerland. Isabelle speaks German, English, French and Spanish.

It was a surprise to me to learn, this morning, that Isabelle speaks fluent football, too. Not soccer. U.S. football.

It's a long story, but it has made for an interesting conversation here at Wf360. I once again learned that assumptions are often wrong. And I had assumed that Isabelle would have little if any interest in who won the Super Bowl yesterday. Really wrong. She tells me that for several years, while in Switzerland she would plan Super Bowl day around the game. And it was important to plan because it starts late at night there, if you want to watch the live programming and Isabelle wanted to be awake for every minute of the game.

Isabelle says she was pretty much watching alone when in Switzerland. But her mother--totally uninterested in the game--baked a special cake for her last year because Isabelle is a serious Giants fan. And her Mom watched the game with her. So last year's game was a truly big deal for Isabelle Bartlome.

(Fact is, Isabelle tells me some of her Swiss friends also watch the game but not for the game...they watch for the commercials.)

Isabelle is still a Giants fan but she was glued to the screen last night. And when the blackout occurred in New Orleans, Isabelle could wait out the delay here in New York...at least it wasn't the middle of the night, as it would have been in Switzerland..

She tells me the Giants will be back next year. And she'll for sure be watching again, probably in Switzerland.

Posted at 02:21 PM | Permalink

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Comments

So happy to hear Giants will be back on the game next year. I am so excited!

Posted by: Tillamook Hotels | February 07, 2013 at 03:57 AM

Same here I really like the Giants hope they can wig big next season, It's a fact that the USA Super Bowl had been famous all over the world no wonder why advertisers risk paying a huge amount for their products to be advertise during the season.

Posted by: Football | February 20, 2013 at 05:43 AM

Wow! I wish I could also experience that! :) I'm looking forward to see the Giants play again.

Posted by: football team | March 03, 2013 at 11:16 AM

This post just excites me! I am a Giants fan. So happy!

Posted by: Renton Auto Service | March 11, 2013 at 03:58 AM

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About Susan W. Bird

Author of I is for Intercourse: The ABC's of Conversation, Susan Bird is the visionary behind Wf360, and a sought-after speaker around the world for her views on leadership, the strategic importance of conversation, entrepreneurship, and the role of women business leaders.

Susan's provocative addresses are geared toward helping people and organizations use conversation strategically to achieve no less than the transformation of their businesses, their careers, and the world. Learn more about Susan

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February 04, 2013