https://www.livescience.com/44007-german-culture.html Values Germans place a high priority on structure, privacy and punctuality. The German people embrace the values of thriftiness, hard work and industriousness and there is great emphasis on making sure that "the trains run on time." According to Passport to Trade 2.0, an online business etiquette guide by the University of Salford in Manchester, England, "Germans are most comfortable when they can organize and compartmentalize their world into controllable units. Time, therefore, is managed carefully, and calendars, schedules and agendas must be respected." Germans are stoic people who strive for perfectionism and precision in all aspects of their lives. They do not admit faults, even jokingly, and rarely hand out compliments. At first their attitude may seem unfriendly, but there is a keen sense of community and social conscience and a desire to belong.