You're working with a team of people from different cultures. How can you communicate more effectively?

A hack I usually use when working with a diverse team abroad is to leverage technology tools like translation apps or online cultural guides to quickly grasp key cultural nuances and communicate more effectively. This can help bridge language and cultural barriers, fostering better understanding and collaboration among team members.

Being aware of your cultural differences helps you adapt your working methods and communication. For example, if you come from a more "direct" culture, you may come across as rude or impatient to a person of a more "indirect" culture for an interaction that seems perfectly fine and appropriate for you. This may not have the intended result and may weight down on the overall collaboration with your colleague.

Who am I? What's the influence of my culture and my social circle on me and my way of communication? And what's the influence of a mixed background? Those are questions to reflect on first when working in an international environment. Every culture has its ways of dealing with compliments, criticism (and its interpretation of it), showing emotions, directness, and so many more aspects. Once you are aware of these aspects, you can interact in a much more reflected way.

Entender a própria cultura proporciona insights sobre nossas próprias identidades, comportamentos e perspectivas. Isso nos ajuda a reconhecer como nossa cultura molda interações sociais, nossas formas de expressão e até mesmo nossas escolhas. Ao estar consciente desses aspectos culturais, podemos desenvolver uma comunicação mais eficaz e empática com pessoas de diferentes origens culturais, minimizando mal-entendidos e conflitos.

Recognise prejudices and stereotypes from abroad about your own nationality or the country in which you work. This makes it easier to anticipate the expectations of team members. Important: Feel free to talk openly about these stereotypes. While we should take certain views with humour, it is important to reduce negative attitudes. We can only do this through clear but sensitive communication.

Learning about cultures also can be eye-opening for other forms to see the world and address problems and situations. This makes a person more versatile.

The best way to learn more about cultures is of course travelling, but I know it's hard to travel to every country that your coworkers might be from. So let's be realistic, reading is a great tool, not only Hofstede or my favourite Erin Meyer and the Culture map. But also consider reading novels or poetry, this will give a special insight about the way of thinking far from stereotypes and theoretical explanations. How many words are used to describe situations, and which words are used to express themselves? And then there is the 3rd tool. Listening, observing and asking questions.

An insightful approach I've found useful is to not only learn about the cultures of my team members but also actively engage in cross-cultural discussions. By openly discussing cultural differences and similarities, we foster an environment of mutual understanding and respect. Additionally, seeking feedback from team members about their cultural norms and preferences helps create a more inclusive and harmonious work environment.

-É essencial dedicar tempo para se familiarizar com as diversas culturas presentes na equipe, compreendendo não apenas suas tradições e valores, mas também os protocolos de comunicação e os gestos de cortesia específicos de cada cultura. -Demonstrando um interesse genuíno nas culturas dos colegas, não apenas fortalecemos os relacionamentos, mas também evitamos mal-entendidos e cultivamos um ambiente de trabalho mais inclusivo e colaborativo. -Reconhecer e respeitar as diferenças culturais é fundamental para promover a diversidade, a inclusão e a colaboração em ambientes multiculturais.

-Embraced diversity by actively learning about other cultures within the team -I usually Recall instances where cultural misunderstandings hindered effective communication -Engaged in cultural exchange sessions to understand perspectives and values -Shared personal experiences of adapting communication in diverse settings -Implemented strategies learned from cultural studies to enhance team dynamics -Fostered inclusivity by integrating elements of various cultures into team practices

From my perspective, using clear and simple language not only enhances communication but also fosters inclusivity and understanding within diverse teams. I recommend taking into account the linguistic proficiency of your audience and adjusting your language accordingly. Additionally, offering language assistance or resources, such as providing translated materials or offering language learning support, can further facilitate effective communication and collaboration across cultures.

Reflecting on my own experience, I can say that it is tempting to use your most proficient and polished English or every other language you speak. Still, in a work environment, most people are non-native speakers, meaning everyone brings in a different level of English and mixes it with their mother tongue. It certainly will not help if you stick to your excellent level and therefore speak again "another Language" and risk excluding people from a conversation. Not to mention the misunderstandings. The most successful level of language proficiency is the one that all your team members understand. So think wisely when using abbreviations, never-heard synonyms, and sayings that only native speakers are familiar with.

-É crucial demonstrar consideração pelas diferenças culturais ao se comunicar, praticando a empatia e estando aberto para ouvir e aprender com os outros. -Reconhecendo que as perspectivas podem variar devido às origens culturais únicas, evitamos generalizações e adaptamos nossa comunicação para garantir respeito e eficácia. - Essa abordagem promove um ambiente de trabalho inclusivo, fortalece relacionamentos e minimiza mal-entendidos, construindo uma equipe mais coesa e colaborativa.

-Simplified language to ensure universal understanding -Recalled instances where complex language led to misunderstandings -Practiced brevity and clarity in communication Utilize visuals or examples to enhance comprehension -Encouraged feedback to ensure clarity Respect cultural differences in language proficiency

Keeping things simple and clear at work is like giving everyone a breath of fresh air. I mean, who wants to wade through a bunch of jargon and complicated stuff, right? When we use straightforward language, it's like we're all speaking the same easy-to-understand language, which just makes everything smoother. Plus, it helps avoid any misunderstandings or confusion, and that's always a win-win in my book. So, yeah, let's keep it simple, folks!

Respect, self-awareness and empathy are vital in the process of building relationships with international team members. Remember that your way of thinking is a result of how and where you've grown up. Your way of thinking is not the single source of truth. It can be surprising how others tackle a task and what their approach is to things. Life-long learning does not only apply to theoretical concepts you learn in online courses or at University but also to what you can learn from others and their cultures.

What is fine in your culture may be completely unacceptable in another. It's hard to know where these pitfalls lie without some experience. You need to go out there and observe and make mistakes and learn.

- Reflected on personal experiences of adapting communication style in diverse settings - Remained flexible and open-minded towards cultural differences - Implemented feedback received from team members to refine communication approach

You are the result of your experiences, exposition and basically anything that happened in your life so far. Absorbing the experiences critically and changing tone, approach or other behaviors when it suits better is key for your success in cross-cultural teams.

To be specific, having cultural sensitivity and active listening is important. Above all, its good to have open-mindedness to avoid misinterpretation of body language, attitude and communication styles. It's also nice to have someone from other culture on your side to gain trust and for clarification of contentious issues.

Very good article and suggestions thank you. Self-awareness when working with people from different cultures is key, knowing amour values, beliefs, challenges. By being self-aware we can then lean in to understand others by being curious, actively listen to what they are saying to find out what their values are, beliefs etc … when starting to work with someone you can ask them about their communication preference, how would they like to receive feedback, and then dig deeper to create a connection, a relationship. I find that taking the time to build the relationship has been key to my success in working in diverse remote teams, give it a try 😉