July 2, 2023 – Chris Smoje continues his look at aspects of the service industry in Croatia. “Pamet”
We’re up to week four in the series of observations on the Croatian service culture. When we take a moment to stop with an open mind and gain insights about the service in another country, we can be more understanding and appreciative about the differences.
The internet is flooded with cultural etiquette tips that can help travellers and holidaymakers gain a glimpse into customs as a short-term visitor. These articles aim to go into greater depth based on multiple observations as a foreigner with Croatian heritage.
What I have found most interesting in writing these is that while the service occurrences are happening in 2023, the theme or bigger picture I can take from these observations are so similar to those seen in my grandparents growing up. I almost feel that each article should start off by saying “you know you’re Croatian when…” and lead in from there!
So, onto this week’s theme.
If you’ve had Croatian parents or grandparents, you’d be familiar with the phrase “pamet u glavu” which in direct translation means to “be smart” or “keep your wits about you”. However, many would recall this phrase usually yelled out as a child when you might have been playing up, or as a teenager when you’d go out.
After reading the previous few articles, there is certainly a theme that can link back to things yelled at us when we were children – and this one is no different. It’s worth considering then, that when it comes to service in Croatia it’s definitely the opposite of being silly or playing up. On most accounts through my observations, people do things in a certain way and there is an expectation of customers to play their part as well.
This week I’m focusing on “pamet” and what you can expect to hear if you’re not doing what you should be doing as a customer.
Recently I was catching a small taxi boat to my next destination which I booked for a particular time. As it got to the time of departure, I walked to the jetty to find the driver waiting for me. I told him we were on our way, but we might be running a “tad” late, which he was happy with.
Unbeknown to me, by the time we walked over, brought our luggage and loaded it into the boat, 30 minutes had passed. At this point the driver was furious! I was being as apologetic as I could, but ultimately his core message to me was “you can’t do this to other people”. There was little frustration about the lateness per-se, there were no other jobs he was late for – his emphasis was that the time of departure should be the time of departure.
At one point he even said he wasn’t angry, but wanted to let me know how to go about this in the future. While his tone may have said otherwise (which I might leave for another article), he was directly giving feedback on what he expected from me – to help me in the future.
There is a way to give feedback and a way not to, and people’s sensitivity to receiving feedback can be a hot topic on its own. But now (only on reflection), I love the way he continued to go about his job, respectfully helping my wife and children out of the boat, and carefully handling our (very many) bags. One of the words he said to me was “trebaš pamet”, which means “you need smarts”.
One of the key things that he mentioned was how important guest/passenger punctuality is especially during the peak summer season. This got me thinking that there are often many things that people tolerate usually, but when the season changes – the way customers are served changes.
It was also unlikely just me – I’m sure many passengers would have been late. Foreigners are never going to be completely in tune with the expectations of organisations in another country from day one which is why approaching every service situation with “pamet” is not necessarily bad advice. Although, the same should be said of businesses to have another sense of “pamet” when they are dealing with tourists.
It’s definitely safe to make mistakes here, and Croatians can be very warm and forgiving, even if sometimes they don’t appear to be completely understanding. It’s safe to say they care a lot about the way business is conducted. Perhaps a little bit more than the empathy of a travelling family’s situation. But as you will find in reading these articles, there is always a fine line balancing what to do in every situation as well as the fine line between the difference of what would be acceptable in Australia versus Croatia.
That is the nature of service everywhere in the world. There is no right or wrong way and often the difference between a positive or negative experience can be a fine line. Even thinking of the tone coming from my baba and dida as a child – when they yelled out “pamet u glavu” they weren’t angry. They just wanted us to think differently for ourselves.
In closing, I must make a note that the tone to have “pamet” was not sarcastic or condescending at all. And, it was after 30 minutes. I have certainly experienced a level of this at home in a sarcastic or eye-rolling manner after a lot less, so it’s safe to say Croatians are very tolerant people.
Chris Smoje is an Australian-Croatian expert educator and thought leader on customer service cultures. He is an Amazon best-selling author for his book “All-In Culture: Lead your people to be of service” and is a professional speaker delivering his programs to organisations and conferences globally. www.chrissmoje.com
Previously from Chris: Polako – the Art of Service: Slowing Down, Pazi! Croatian Service Awareness and Bjezi – When Service Comes to an End.
