Have you ever been told that you have to adapt? Whenever the word “adapt” is used within intercultural contexts, people often interpret that to mean they are “wrong” and that someone else is imposing what “right” is. As a result, resistance to adapting is common. Even when they accept that they need to adapt, they are confused about exactly what…read more →
Do you experience not being listened to or being misunderstood by your colleagues from other cultures when you speak and write in English as a foreign language? Are you frustrated by that? Do you blame yourself or others? Frustration and blame do not lead to improved communication — helping others to hear you differently, does. Are you aware that within…read more →
When I am asked to explain how my five-step CLEAR method can be helpful to a client in a single sentence, this is what I say: it is a way to build bridges, instead of walls, when communicating across cultures. I have observed, from decades of experience in a variety of cultures, that most of us have been conditioned to…read more →
Are you currently working within an intercultural business context, using English as a foreign language at an intermediate level or higher? And are you struggling with intercultural communication challenges? By that I mean the difficulties in communicating that we all experience when working in English as a foreign language with people from different cultural backgrounds. Having worked with non-native English…read more →
After a recent session a client told me that, “You’re a magician. I understand others better and feel much more comfortable using English during meetings, thanks to you.” While I appreciated his comment, the truth is that the magic my client experienced was due not to me but to the speech acts that form the central part of my training…read more →
Within your particular intercultural business context, do you have discussions about the need to adapt? If so, do these discussions include comments on how successful some people are at adapting, while others resist changing? Unfortunately, many such conversations remain at a superficial level. Rarely do people within intercultural business contexts get down to the specifics of what needs to be…read more →
In an earlier article I gave an example of how we interpret what others say differently when cultures mix, because we listen with cultural ears. In what follows I will explore the act of listening from two other perspectives, which are also important to communication — tone of voice and body language. We react differently to what we hear, depending…read more →
Last week Lady Gaga performed her Born This Way Ball concert in Nice at the Palais Nikaïa. At one point in her spectacular show she apparently tried to connect with her audience by saying a few words in French. After declaring that she liked eating “sandwichs au jambon” (ham sandwiches), she then pointed to her disheveled hair and said, “J’ai…read more →
The existential question of “Who am I?” is not new. However, in the twenty-first century, which requires so many of us to work within intercultural business contexts, we have to revisit the question from a new perspective: exactly who am I when I communicate using English as a second language for my work in intercultural environments? In such situations most…read more →
As with all consultants and seminar leaders, I am always in the position of selling my skills and expertise. In that regard, one of my strengths is my ability to meet the needs of each client, by adapting for them what I do best—which is to help people see and then solve their intercultural communication challenges. I have been wondering…read more →
This is the year you have decided to become a more effective intercultural communicator? Bravo! You can purchase and download my eBook, along with an 80-page workbook. Not sure? Read a free extract. Questions? Just ask.
