In business, even a single misunderstanding can have a significant negative impact. Poor internal communication can lead to missed deadlines, lost opportunities, wasted time and resources, and employee and customer attrition, to name just a few consequences. There is a wide range of communication issues that inevitably arise within an organization composed of individuals from a variety of religious, social, ethnic, and educational backgrounds. Each of these individuals brings a unique set of experiences and values to the workplace, many of which can be traced to the culture in which they grew up and currently operating. There are many barriers that can arise in the communication process between individuals who share the same culture and nationality, let alone between people from different cultures. Let’s mark some of them:
- Physical barrier - it is very common barrier and often it is a main reason for people to face difficulties in finding mutual understanding. Since we are in a global pandemic and the physical contact is avoided this barrier is palpable and people are struggling to overcome it.
- Personal barrier - People differ in the way they judge other people. They also have different social values, biases, attitudes etc. What they say and what they do often have nothing in common.
- Semantic barrier - Sometimes the same words and symbols don`t have the same meaning to different people. People often interpret the received message based on their own perceptions and unfortunately the sender`s intention could be understood in a wrong way.
- Premature conclusion - Some people tend to judge before listening to the entire message. Some languages have specific structures and to understand the meaning you have to listen the whole sentence which sometimes leads to the fact that one word can change the main idea.
- Fear of conflicts - Sometimes we are afraid to share the entire information because we are anxious that we wouldn`t have been understood, but actually this can lead to the opposite and may escalate into conflict.
As the popular quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry states— 'Language is the source of misunderstandings.' the communication barriers mentioned above prove this and give food for thought. There is no doubt, that there are some people who are extremely successful communicators. They always find the right approach towards everyone and are able to adjust to the different people, situations, and cultures. Life always seems easier for them than for others. The truth is, though, that nobody was born like that. This is a skill and it can be develop. It requires time, desire, and open mind. The ability to interact and communicate with people from different cultures is always a big challenge especially when it comes to work. Our colleagues, managers and partners play a vital role in the proper execution of the working process, we are involved in, so to manifest ourselves into the intercultural environment, we have to keep in mind the following important rules related to communication:
- Become more culturally and self-aware – you should make an effort to acknowledge your own implicit biases and assumptions that affect the way you interact with others. Afterwards it is good to get to know the other cultures and to bear in mind the key distinctions.
- Being a good observer is often more valuable than being a good speaker.
- Be an active listener. This is probably one of the best advice in the process of manifestation in the work place. Let’s point out 7 key active listening skills:
- Be attentive
- Ask open ended questions
- Ask probing questions
- Request clarification
- Paraphrase
- Be attuned to and reflect feelings
- Summarize
- Choose your words carefully and the way you give feedback, because sometimes you can unknowingly offend someone.
- Pay attention to how other people convey ideas and following this you can be more convincing.
- Learn how to adapt your style towards different people. Adaptability is one of the most valuable skills among business these days.
- Bear in mind, that people have a different way of decision making and absorbing information. According to Holliday (2001) there are six ways of thinking and processing information:
- Authority driven - when the thinkers are not driven by any other triggers except who gives the information.
- Deductive Thinkers – These people need to understand each and every step of the process.
- Sensory Thinker – Called “Hands on” people. They need to so see, touch, and hear everything.
- Emotional Thinkers – They need to feel good doing their job.
- Intuitive Thinkers – These people rely on their intuition and sometimes experience the “eureka” moment.
- Scientific Thinkers – They are questioning even their own theories.
- Don’t forget to build trust – Trust is something that rarely exists initially without being built in time. Different people and different cultures have different degrees of trust in each other. However, communication is always easier if the participants have already built this trust.
- Find a proper way to disagree. Disagreement might be quite beneficial for each of the parties in the communication process but always this disagreement should be in a diplomatic and tactful manner.
- Keep in mind that different cultures have different perception of time and don`t be judgmental.
- Be careful with humor you use – there are some culture, that are very sensitive to humor. So feel the ground before joking inappropriately.
- Keep it simple – don`t complicate the communication too much. Try to avoid slang or dialect - Even the most educated non-native speaker will have some difficulties in understanding of different slang or, idioms and sayings. They may understand the individual words you have said, but not the context or the meaning. As a result you could end up confusing them or at worst, offending them. When it comes to dialect it also makes the process harder. The more you try to adhere to literary language, the easier communication would be.
- Maintain etiquette – there are some written and unwritten rules how to behave in society. Different culture and nationalities have their own etiquette and when interact with others is good to be aware of it.
- Be supportive - Effective cross-cultural communication is about all parties feeling comfortable. In any conversation which includes native and non-native speaker must have an understanding from both sides. On the one hand, if you are a native speaker you have to encourage the other party as you show him/her your readiness to help. One the other hand if you non-native speaker you have to demonstrate your willingness to give your best despite the language barrier.
- Last but not least, never forget that your nonverbal communication matter! According to Albert Mehrabian only 7% of the effective communication process are words. He states that 55% of communication is body language. If a speaker’s words and body language differ, listeners are more likely to believe the nonverbal communication of the speaker, not his words. The pitch and tone of his voice, the speed and rhythm of the spoken word, and the pauses between those words may express more than what is being communicated by words alone.
The cultures we are surrounded by and grow up in have a huge impact on how we perceive the world. From the way we talk and walk to how we resolve conflicts our cultural backgrounds determine how we behave. By interacting with people from different cultures, we are better able to recognize an understand contrasting behaviors and communicate with individuals of all backgrounds. In every culture, we are conditioned to see communication styles as more desirable than others, which can lead to conflict. It’s amazing how often the same workplace communication blocks pop up. If you recognize in your working environment any of these common issues, don’t despair! When we take some time to understand a person's cultural background and his corresponding worldview, we will be able to communicate with him more effectively and avoid the risk of misunderstanding. Therefore, we should look for these differences and to find the most suitable way to approach them. This will help us in establishing a rapport with others, building trust, and positioning ourselves properly. Although there are so many differences between people from different cultures and nationalities in the way they behave and think, primarily we are all humans and each of us brings our own uniqueness to the world.
