Tag: intercultural communications

Perceptions: Road Blocks or Stepping Stones

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Stepping StonesThe recent global events as well as a blog post from Dr. Milton Bennett about tolerance makes me think along the following lines: all humans have an automatic tendency to judge their own experiences.

Instead of simply noticing what is there in the present moment, unfolding and happening, we think about what needs to be changed, how things could or should be different. Something is not quite right in a way, not good enough, not what we had expected and wanted.

Often these thoughts will take us, quite automatically, down on some fairly well-worn paths in our minds. In this way, we lose awareness of the present moment and the ability to freely choose if and how to react. We  jump quickly on to conclusions, which seem to be the right ones and by doing so, trigger behaviors and actions from ourselves and others around us.

Relating to the idea of tolerance we might want to ask ourselves where our threshold lies.

  • How do we really feel deep inside us?
  • What type of experiences deplete us and which ones make us happy?
  • Where do we feel comfortable and where uncomfortable?

We can regain our freedom from automatic thoughts and reactions, if as a first step we simply acknowledge the actuality of the situation we find ourselves in, without being automatically hooked into tendencies to judge, fix, or want things to be different from the way they are.

How do we do this?

  1. Notice what is going on
  • How did your body feel in detail during the experience?
  • What thoughts and images accompanied the experience?
  • What moods, feelings and emotions accompanied the event?
  1. Explore the effects of bringing awareness to the direct experience
  • What do you notice?
  • Is your mind wandering away?
  • Is bringing awareness to the experience affecting it in a way? If so, how?
  1. Accept what is there without wanting to change anything
  2. Let go and simply acknowledge the arising and passing of emotions and thoughts without becoming entangled in the content of it.

Next time you’re confronted with a pleasant or unpleasant experience, try writing down what happened especially in steps 1 and 2. Exploring our own sensations, limits, beliefs, emotions, moods and thoughts is not easy and change doesn’t come over night. It comes with a lot of training and attention.

And of course, change starts with yourself and with how you experience and react to a situation and not with other people around you!

 

 

 

 

Trust: An Important Ingredient for Effective Communications

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Touching the stone wall
Having worked lately with various groups of people on effective internal communications and  team building it struck me again how the trust factor remains of major importance for any successful intervention.

Not only trust and confidence in the capabilities of the facilitator but also trust in team members, collaborators and most and foremost trust in the participants themselves and in their own capabilities. Obviously, this trust has to be established and participants need to be ready to listen to their inner feelings and intuitions….this sounds like an easy exercise but as a matter of fact, for many it is the most difficult  – as the most unusual – part.

As we all know, it is not possible not to communicate: our non-verbal signs and behaviour already give clues to our counterpart about what is going on (even if this often happens unconsciously), before the conversation per se has started. Being aware of how your own body behaves and moves in space and how others might perceive this, is in fact a first step towards more self-awareness and from that to trust in your own abilities and capacities. Adding empathy, curiosity and openness to others, you will have a strong basis for building relationships of trust and thus effective communications and effective intercultural communications.

Are you willing to trust and be mindful about how your own body relates to external stimuli and how you and your actions are perceived by others?

 

 

Diversity not Always Leads to Innovation and Creativity: The Damaging Effects of Indirect Cultural Disharmony

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See on Scoop.it – Mindful Leadership & Intercultural Communication

Jenny Ebermann | Communications | Services

Jenny Ebermann | Intercultural Communications | Services

Organizations strive to be innovative and creative. For that reason, they invest in diversity management, because innovation and creativity can be increased through diversity.

 

Jenny Ebermann‘s insight:

I completely agree! Diversity has to be actively managed to be able to harvest its benefits such as more creativity and innovation…

See on ingostolz.wordpress.com

Bruxelles, Belgique

Brussels – A Cultural Potpourri

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During this holiday season, I had the pleasure of going home again. To those of you who are following this blog on a regular basis, you might know that ‘home’ for me is quite an interesting term. Usually, I use it for Brussels, the town where I grew up in and where I still feel very attached to.

For the first time in a while, I noticed something new when listening to the people in the streets, restaurants and other locations where crowds meet: even more languages than ever before. More worrying for me: I was not even able to recognize some of them, hence would not be able to say from which country the people speaking them would come from.

Since I lived there, many things have indeed changed in Europe’s capital. Not only have the member states passed from 12 at the time to 28 today which means a huge organization when it comes to elections; We now also have a single currency in 18 member states meaning that you don’t need to change money anymore when crossing the border… I still remember the times and even the exchange rates between the countries when this was not the case: what a complicated undertaking! I also remember having to show passports at borders and the need to explain what my different grades were worth in various countries to have the right to study there as no credit system existed at the time…. Wow, either I am getting old or things change fast 😉

What also struck me over the holidays was the fact that all these different people with different habits, worldviews, behaviors are living and working together in one city, bringing their own traditions, norms and values with them. What a colorful potpourri of people and truly something making the heart of a European Intercultural Chameleon like me beat faster. How enriching those encounters are but how full of problems and misunderstandings they can be if not lived and accepted with patience and a non-judging and open attitude.

2014 begins in the heart of Europe for me and who knows where my intercultural and mindful path will lead me this year. Maybe to you! Don’t hesitate to contact me if your teams are not working well together or you need to understand what motivates people from a different culture to become more efficient. My up-bringing and years of experience coupled with various languages and other skills will surely be able to bring you further on your path. Looking very much forward to it!

Jenny

Forum Theatre – A powerful tool

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Intercultural CommunicationsWhile attending the SIETAR Conference in Tallinn, Estonia last week, I came in contact with a very interesting form of expression: the “Forum Theatre“. Originally created by Augusto Boal, the Forum Theatre or ‘Theatre of the oppressed” proposes a way of teaching people how to change the situation they are in.

In fact, real life situations in which participants have observed some form of oppression are re-played and discussed within the group under the guidance of an experienced trainer or coach. Whereas this particular form of theatre does not propose direct solutions, it however allows participants and observers to directly intervene in the play, change the course of action and thus experience first hand how situations can evolve and what this feels like. Many emotions are set free and subsequently discussed and debriefed within the group.

Introduced to us by a SIETAR colleage from Poland, I found it to be a powerful way deal with difficult situations! Do you know this particular form of theatre and what are your experiences with it? Looking forward to your reactions!

Jenny

 

Congratulations ShaoLan Hsueh!

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Chinese language

Do you remember that I wrote about an amazing woman, ShaoLan Hsueh, some time ago, who illustrates the Chinese language to make it easy and fun to learn? Well, she continues on her path and just successfully raised funds for her Chineasy Book on Kickstarter.com.

This truly is a very exciting project and undertaking and once I have a bit more time, I will definitely look into it more deeply as her method really makes learning all the different characters engaging and definitely easier!

Have a good start in the new week! Jenny

Innovation

Internal (intercultural) communications: Secret Ingredients for Innovation

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Henry Doss has recently published an article on Forbes entitled: “Innovation: Leadership is always the key”. He rightly says that if an organisation is struggling with innovation it might be focussing on systems and processes rather than on the development and nurturing of powerful individual leaders. Whereas I certainly agree that (mindful) leadership is a very important factor when creating and fostering a culture of innovation, I also believe that communication, especially internal communications and intercultural communications are key ingredients that cannot be missed out.

Why? Imagine how many different teams in diverse functions such as marketing, sales, research&development etc. have to work together to predict trends and think about new products/services that could succeed in their specific market(s). Without effective internal communications including discussions, feedback, questions and so on, an idea will never get through the funnel and be tested in the end.

Likewise, if the various team members are lacking intercultural communication skills, they will not only fail to identify how a specific customer need could be successfully met in their identified target market; they will also fail to communicate the creative input or idea to the respective teams and functions which very often are globally spread out and staffed with people from around the world. An idea needs clear communication and a tailored approach to market so that it can be successful and developed further by all relevant internal stakeholders.

Of course teams and organisations need visionary and powerful leaders who are able to put their ‘creative thinking cap’ on and translate sometimes vague and ‘fancy’ ideas into real products and services adapted to customer’s needs and markets. Nevertheless, in my experience, effective internal (intercultural) communications, mixed with a culture of trust and appreciation are really the “secret” ingredients for successful innovation.

Do you have any experience with innovation and what works/what doesn’t? Looking forward to reading/hearing about it!

Have an excellent weekend and please follow me per mail or in your WordPress reader to learn more on intercultural communications and mindful leadership! Jenny

Intercultural experience in Italy

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Italy

During the holidays, I had the pleasure of spending some time in Italy. As some of you will know, at the seaside, you cannot bathe everywhere you want (you would have thought the sea is for free). You have the choice of either paying for a “bagni” or you desperately try to find a spot where you can plant your umbrella and sit (and swim) together with many other happy holiday makers.

Well, one day, I chose to pay for a bagni as I did not want to look around for something else (33 degrees Celsius is a bit too much for me for being adventurous). Normally, prices are indicated at the entrance, of course all in Italian with various exceptions and possibilities (like two chairs second row; or one cabin two chairs an umbrella and first row etc.). At this very bagni there were no prices written down but it looked nice, so I decided to try my luck. As I speak a little Italian, I thought that I should easily be able to get what I wanted… but no, I wasn’t as it turned out.

Here’s why: first, I met the “bagnino” or bath attendant. He told me that I had to pay 25 EUR for a day to be somewhere in the third or fourth row. He must have seen my incredulous face as I nearly swallowed what I was eating, as he then told me that the “capo” was coming… here I noticed that unfortunately there was a gap in my knowledge as I did not watch the “Godfather”, hence had no idea what “capo” meant. Quickly, I understood though, as another man was approaching who definitely looked like the boss of the bagni. He waved me in and made me wait in front of his little cabin, where he first had to take a phone call. Mindful as I am I decided not to run away but patiently waited for my interlocutor to come back to me. I then repeated my question and to my great astonishment, suddenly the price had dropped to 20 EUR. Being accustomed to travel and different cultures I then began to negotiate and finally got my spot for 18 EUR. Very proud of myself, I finally settled down at the beach…

And the moral of the story? Even as an intercultural communications expert you encounter situations that are not quite as you would have  expected them to be. Being open and mindful definitely helps overcoming obstacles and learning from the experience!

Thanks for reading and please follow me to learn more about mindful leadership & intercultural communications on a regular basis. Don’t hesitate to ask for online coaching as well, the digital age makes everything possible!

Jenny

Holiday reflections and mindfulness or would you not want to feel like on holidays all year long?

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Holiday reflections

Are you on holidays currently or will you soon be? Well, please observe the people around you very carefully. Do they look like they are enjoying the present moment, being fully present or do they seem worried, preoccupied by the things they left home?

It is an interesting exercise, also for me. Let me tell you what I have seen and observed in the mountains (at least an excerpt of it). First and foremost, I saw many parents with their children looking quite tired as their little ones, full of energy, did not leave them a lot of time for themselves. Many were permanently looking for activities and excursions to do, so that the days were filled and the children occupied.

Then there were the sports and outdoor fans, not missing a single opportunity to practice the physical activity they like. In the mountains you would see them walk past very early in the morning as they would leave to climb up their next peak.

I also saw older people who sometimes look a little annoyed because of all the noise and rush.

Not to forget the many Asian and other tourists who usually don’t have much time and want to see a maximum during their stay.

All these people seemed like they were enjoying themselves; finally being on holidays and having the time to be with family, practicing some sports and hobbies or simply changing scenery. Were they able to leave their worries at home? Switch off their mobile devices and simply disconnect? To be honest, I don’t know but from experience I can tell that most of the people cannot simply let go.

It makes me wonder why we actually have to wait for holidays to enjoy ourselves. Can we not simply live our lives to the fullest every day that comes along by fully being present in every single moment?

Mindfulness certainly gives us the tools to do so. Training our brain is like training our muscles in the gym. The more we train, the better and more skilful we become in using our brain’s capacities.

Would you not want to feel free, empowered and full of energy during the whole year whatever you are doing, instead of waiting for a couple of weeks per year? I certainly do…

If you have not done so already, please follow my blog to stay tuned on Mindful Leadership & Intercultural communication issues. I will also be looking at starting a tips and tricks series as well as adding some other interesting features to my blog. Looking forward to meeting you! Jenny

Setting up a vision for yourself

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eye of the gerberaFirst of all, when thinking about drafting your vision, you have to consider the context in which it will be used. Are you trying to establish a:

  • Personal Vision
  • Professional Vision or
  • Holistic Vision, encompassing everything you do and represent/are?

You can have several visions, depending on the different contexts you are looking at. Visions are not set in stone, they have to be revisited from time to time in order to see whether they need adjustment or whether they still feel right for you.

As you start thinking about what matters to you, putting yourself into the context, you might want to embrace the bigger picture, let yourself consider how you move through this world and who you are, i.e. what counts for you. Which qualities are important in your life? Is it empathy, creativity, openness? Try to make a list of these, max. 5 so that there still is meaning for you. Do you feel connected to these qualities? How do they feel like for you?

According to Personal Leadership, a powerful vision should have 5 Ps:

  1. Personal: it is your vision, write it with an ‘I’. You are the actor!
  2. Present: it is not a dream nor a wish list for the future. Write it in the present tense and live it NOW.
  3. Positive: as when working with affirmations, rather write I am, I do etc. than I don’t, I am not… this will have a much more powerful effect.
  4. Passionate: you need to listen to your body here; how does it feel like when you read out your vision to yourself? How does it feel like when you read it out to somebody else? Can you feel its power? Or do you need to adjust it a little bit?
  5. Purpose: It is all about being, not about doing. It is about your internal state and the bigger picture of your intentions as well as about your ‘highest and best. Try to imagine the difference your way of being will make to your environment, or even broader, the world.

As the Personal Leadership book summarizes very nicely: “The power in a vision comes from choosing to live in alignment with it. Use your vision as a beacon, a support, a compass. Live your vision in everything you do!”[1]

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need help with finding and identifying your vision. It doesn’t matter how you express it actually. You might want to draw it or paint it; maybe you want to record it or write it down. Whatever feels right to you!

Enjoy the rest of your day/evening/night. Thanks for reading, Jenny

[1] B.F. Schaetti, S. J. Ramsey, G.C. Watanabe: “Personal Leadership – Making a World of Difference”, Seattle 2008, page 118.

 

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