Communication For International Business. Rus Slater

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ very different circumstances.

      Then try to remember this each time you speak with them or send them an email or text message.

      You dialled their number and they answered but it is easy to forget that they may be in a completely different environment to you.

       1.5

       Beware generalizations

      OK, that is ironic; to start a section warning of the danger of generalizations with a generalization. This book contains plenty of generalizations; it talks about people from specific countries as if they were stereotypes. It talks about media of communication as if everyone used them in exactly the same way. Clearly that is dangerous … so beware these generalizations.

      When we accept any generalization as a ‘rule’ we are bound to make a massive mistake somewhere down the line. This relates to generalizations about people:

      ▪ Not all people of a particular race behave in exactly the same way; they will have been exposed to a greater or lesser degree to people from different cultures. They will base their opinions on different life experiences. They will have read and followed different ‘thought-leaders’.

      ▪ No one person from any particular race or culture can be deemed to speak for their entire nation, regardless of their position in their national hierarchy. Neither will they know what everyone else in their native country thinks about any given topic.

      ▪ It can be deeply insulting to make assumptions based on national stereotyping; so don’t.

      ▪ Beware also generalizations regarding generations; not everyone under the age of 25 is on Facebook. And some people over 50 are.

      Beware generalizations about methods of communicating:

      ▪ Not all international phone carriers charge the same rates.

      ▪ Calls from Country A to Country B may be charged at a different rate to calls from Country B to Country A.

      ▪ VOIP may work brilliantly between two specific areas, but may be appallingly ineffective between two other specific areas.

      ▪ Some people are brilliant at running virtual meetings using conference call or VOIP, other people are absolutely useless (trust me, I’ve ‘attended’ some fantastic international remote meetings and some complete wastes of time!).

      ▪ Sometimes a phone conversation is the best way to communicate and sometimes an email is actually much, much better.

      ▪ International call routing now means that a call can show on your phone as originating in London, but the caller may be in Lahore.

      When communicating internationally it is really important to engage your brain before operating your mouth.

      

      Now it is time to open your mouth or put ‘pen to paper’. This chapter contains nine simple and straightforward ‘rules’ that, if followed, should help you to get your message across to others over the seas. Some of these rules are of the ‘thou shalt not’ variety; things to avoid like the plague (for example, using idioms such as ‘avoid like the plague’).

      Some of them are exhortations to consciously do something; such as explaining acronyms and testing readability!

      Some are caveats or warnings which highlight things that you probably wouldn’t need to think of when communicating with your own nationality.

       2.1

       KISS – Keep It Short and Simple

      When you are communicating with people who are not native speakers of your own language, remember that in their heads they may have to translate every word you say. Then, once they have translated the words themselves, they have to analyse the meaning. This is not an easy process. It takes time.

      Keep it short:

      If I’m trying to translate what you just said, and at the same time you say something else, it can become very confusing.

      I’ll probably miss one thing completely.

      Or I might lose both!

      So when speaking, keep your interjections short. Only cover one topic per ‘soundbite’.

      Leave a pause for people to absorb what you have said.

      Ask for confirmation that that part of the message has been understood.

      “I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead” Blaise Pascal (1623–62)

      This is also good practice with written communication. Try to keep texts or emails to a single screen (bearing in mind that many people read their email on a smart phone, so a ‘screen’ may be only 50 or 60 words).

      This will take more effort on your part; it is actually easier to ‘ramble’ than it is to be concise, so plan enough time to think about paring your communications down for the international audience.

       Keep it simple:

      This isn’t a matter of dumbing-down or being patronizing. However, try to use simpler words rather than longer or more complex ones; so for example:

Use …	Instead of …
Make happen	Facilitate
Lose value	Depreciation
Belief	Paradigm
Combined effect	Synergy

      Short and simple is harder than long and freewheeling, but it is worth it in the long run.

       2.2

       Explain TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms)

      Most industry sectors and organizations abound with acronyms (not necessarily three-letter ones). They are a useful and usually valid way of saving time when constantly referring to something that СКАЧАТЬ