Cross-Cultural Communication 30-Day Challenge – Get Extreme With Clarity
It is not always easy to get a global vision of your cross-cultural communication. Sometimes it takes a little digging to understand the real conversation. This global vision can often show you where you need to get extreme clarity in your communication.
Clarity In Cross-Cultural Communication Tip 29
Today’s tip reminds us not to get complacent and to continually look for ways to improve our communication:
Look for reasons behind for questions especially if they are recurring questions
When a question surprises you or appears out of context, this should raise your attention. And if the similar questions pop up more than once, there is usually a need for more clarity in your communication.
It is easy to excuse these little signals as part of the cultural differences of the other person. But the cause is not always found on the other side. Remember to question your own communication. The more you become aware of your contribution to the cross-cultural conversation and how this is received, the better you will become at adapting your communication for a better understanding.
Now, this might seem very basic. And it is. The truth is that many things take place during some cross-cultural encounters and it is easy to forget some basic communication best practices. International professionals develop strong mental multi-tasking skills to monitor the cross-cultural communication as a whole. This is how you can usually pick up signals for the need for more clarity in the communication.
Use this tip as a starting point. Think about what this means to you. Not sure what you think about this? There are a few links below for suggested reading to get you started. Follow each of these tips this month to improve your cultural skills.
Further Suggested Reading & Viewing
- International Customer Experience
- Cultural Differences In Testimonials
- Who Should You Get To Write Your Foreign Language Web Content
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Where To Get Your CCCC Tips Every Day In June:
- Cross-Cultural Communication Challenge 2 – Get Extreme With Clarity
- By following me on Twitter @CindyKing
- By using the Twitter hashtag #cccctips
Get All CCCC Tips:
First Month: Short tips to think about
There are 4 Cross-Cultural Communication Challenges in 2009. Cross-cultural communication can be overwhelming. International business professionals are often too busy to take the time to improve their cross-cultural communication skills. This is why this challenge is divided into 4 specific areas of improvement and why the tips are very short.
| Challenge | Why | When |
| Mindset | It all starts here | March 2009 |
| Clarity | Your first priority | June 2009 |
| Trust | To bring in sales | September 2009 |
| Personal Development | For strong cultural skills | December 2009 |
These 4 different aspects of cross-cultural communication are what I found to be the most important to me throughout my 25 years of international sales and marketing. You can read more about the other monthly challenges here:
- 2009 Cross-Cultural Communication Challenges
- Cross-Cultural Communication Challenge 1 – Expand Your Mindset
Don’t forget to download the Free Mini-Poster from the first monthly challenge to Expand Your Mindset
Use Your Cultural Skills to Get More International Sales
Second Month: Short review on how to use the cultural tips to get more international sales
Are you an international business professional? Then don’t stop at this month’s challenge. After each monthly Cross-Cultural Communication Challenge, the following month reviews each one of these tips once again, this time together the corresponding International Sales Best Practices.
This is where things get fun. You will see where to put your cultural skills into practice to get more international sales. Turbo charge your learning by going through the cross-cultural communication tips once again, this time looking at them from a sales angle and through the eyes of an international sales professional.
 | Want to learn how to avoid cultural blunders? Subscribe to this blog feed. Need to turbo charge your cultural skills? Get my short cross-cultural communication tips. Ready for serious international marketing? Skype me or email me & let's grow your business. |
