In Japan a culture of “reading the situation” exists. This refers to interpersonal communication; deciding how to act based on the particulars of place and circumstance. The other day I entered a coffee shop with a member of my staff and an American client. Unfortunately there was no space available for three people to sit together. When I looked around a young man using a smartphone was in a booth that sat four. Next to him was an empty booth that sat two, so if he moved there, we would be able to speak comfortably. The young man looked noticed us, but feigned indifference. Angry that the young man couldn’t read the situation, I said to the waitress “Could you ask him to switch seats?” Then she said, “I can’t say such things,” and left to fetch an extra seat. Irritated at the young man and the waitress for not picking up on my signals, I said to him, “Excuse me. Would you mind to moving over to the next seat?” He looked at me blankly and did not move. I muttered, “This young man lacks consideration for others,” but my staff pacified me, saying in a quiet voice, “Now now please calm down.” We ended up sitting down at the booth that sat two with extra seating attached. It seemed that the American client did not understand why I was irritated. Sometime after we began talking, the smartphone of the young man next to us rang. Then he began to have an enjoyable conversation in a language I had never heard. I realized that though the young man had appeared to be Japanese, he was a foreigner. And, realizing that I had misread the situation, I became even more irritated.