This hits home in so many ways. I'm scandinavian, working in SF. For the first 4 months, I hardly got a single word in in our meetings, and when I did I was immediately talked over.<p>This was really frustrating until I learned it was just the conversation style and I just had to adopt it. I still find it very exhausting, since I essentially have to force myself to be what to me feels unreasonably aggressive.
Sometimes I listen to Americans and it just sounds like their thoughts are being verbalized. Like their stream of conscious thought coming from their mouth. I don't feel the need to verbalize every thought that comes along.