Nicole Barile的动态

Assignment training can be an interesting day out of the office or it can kickstart a successful transition – how you continue to use and apply your learning will make the difference. ?? We suggest journaling as a valuable addition to intercultural training programs. Keep reading to find out how this (daily) practice can make a difference to your time abroad. ?? Intercultural training provides expats and their families with the knowledge and tools they need to get off to a successful start in a new country. But how can the knowledge gained be applied in everyday life and to personal experiences? This is where journaling changes the game. ?? Invest in a beautiful journal or use an app on your phone and try writing for a few minutes every day during the first months of your assignment. ?? Consciously record your experiences: A diary makes it possible to systematically document your own impressions, successes and challenges. This way, the training is not just a one-off experience but can be reflected on and deepened in the long term. ?? Deepen cultural insights: By writing down your daily observations about the new culture, you can recognise patterns and better understand what really matters in an intercultural context. Journaling offers the opportunity to link theoretical knowledge from the training with your own experiences. ??? Overcoming challenges: A safe place to note and analyze uncertainties or cultural misunderstandings. You can record which strategies were helpful and where there is still room for improvement. ?? Emotional support: Moving to a foreign country is not only a practical challenge, but also an emotional one. Journaling helps organize thoughts and feelings, reduce stress and gain a positive view of your own adjustment. ?? Sustainable development: Over the months, a valuable collection of experiences is created that provides you and your family with guidance - not only in the current situation, but also in future intercultural contexts. With journaling, your intercultural training becomes more than just a once-off event: it becomes a long-term companion on the way to a successful and fulfilling time in the new country. Try it out - the results will surprise you! ?? Want to offer intercultural awareness training to your team? Contact us: https://lnkd.in/emaRNTxK #globalmobility #hrconsulting #tip #journaling #culturehackers #culture

What do I often hear from global leaders attending my intercultural communication training? “I joined to learn about others, but I ended up learning the most about myself. This should be compulsory.” “Over the years, I've been working extensively with up to 70 countries. I used to think I had a good grasp of it, but now I realise that I should have taken this course 20 years ago!” “It’s challenging to discuss the issues of international diversity. I enjoyed working in an international group on this course where everyone is respectful and boundaries are not crossed.” There are many myths around intercultural training. Some people still don’t even want to hear about it and get offended by the idea itself, while others expect to be told how to treat individuals based on their country of origin. National culture is only one of the many containers for difference, but it’s a great one to start with, as we often tend to focus on everyone speaking the same language as a guarantee for smooth communication. And that is a big mistake. Huge! I have lived and worked in three different countries and simply know that it’s not as simple as that. There’s a lot of exchange in the group sessions I facilitate that proves it, but I learn even more from my clients in individual work. And yes, it’s mostly the non-native speakers of English working in the UK who struggle more with cultural adaptation, but it goes far beyond language proficiency. Maybe it explains why, from my experience, it’s the native speakers who are more skeptical of the topic? I would find it hard to relate to too if it wasn't for my lived experience of culture shock(s). The best remedy for that is to get people together and talk about it. You might think international diversity is irrelevant, but why don't you listen to others to hear about their experiences? That is, in a nutshell, what intercultural training is all about. Perspective taking is so powerful! I’d love to hear your thoughts on that.

This week I enjoyed another intercultural training session with a new cohort from Gemeente Amstelveen. For me these sessions are always extra interesting as we do them in 'Dinglish'. I tend to speak in English, but I follow decently, so participants are welcome to express themselves in Dutch and we have great conversations! ???? Have you done an intercultural training session with me? I'd love to hear how you experienced it - drop a comment below! (Getting feedback is another 'should' which I am working on). Do you know a team that could benefit from having a shared vocabulary to discuss cultural differences (rather than pretend they don’t exist - or some voices never being heard)? Say: [email protected] Check out my blogpost in the comments for an insight into my flavour of intercultural training. ?? It breaks my heart to be posting about anything at all when thousands of innocent people are in fear for their lives as we speak. If you are dealing with hard conversations in your team about current global situations do get in touch. Facilitating these discussions isn't easy, but they need to happen.

"It's all for nothing! The knowledge and skills imparted during training do not last long" Stop! ? That's not right. Of course, this depends on the quality of the intercultural training and not on the expatriate himself. ?? Expats are selected for assignments because they have the potential to acquire and successfully implement cultural competencies and are therefore best suited for an assignment. ?? They also have an interest in succeeding in the work culture and familiarizing themselves with the new culture as fully as possible. ?? Once the ideal expatriate has been selected by the company for an assignment, his or her personal interest and investment will ensure that he or she will not forget the skills and knowledge acquired and will be able to apply them in future assignments. ?? Poor intercultural training, on the other hand, is the reason why the cultural knowledge already learned disappears. ?? This is often uncoordinated and one-sided teaching by inexperienced trainers, with no practical relevance for the participants and no opportunity to refresh information and knowledge after the training, e.g. online. ?? Decide carefully which training program is right for which employee so that the assignment runs smoothly from start to finish - and beyond. ?? What do you think about this? Please share your opinion. #globalmobility #hrconsulting #myth #culturehackers #culture

Cultural training IS NOT a crash course in etiquette... let me explain! We do a lot of cultural and intercultural competency training in GORM, and to be honest, when people see "intercultural training" their first thought is "tell me what X culture does, or how Y culture acts" or worse, they see me as the founder and ask "I want to recruit more African employees, can you train my staff on how Africans act" (true story). The truth is that intercultural competence isn't about memorising "do's and don’ts" or cramming country facts. Yes, we do acknowledge that knowing local etiquette is helpful in situation specific contexts (and should be facilitated by the communities that you want to learn from), but it won’t necessarily build trust or deepen connections (especially in cross-geographical exchanges e.g. establishing global teams to welcoming new migrants to your local community). Why? Because humans are forgiving of cultural slip-ups—they care more about your intentions than whether you know where to place chopsticks. Instead, we focus on the fundamentals—like understanding diverse perspectives and bridging cultural values and misunderstandings. Effective intercultural training means empowering leaders to engage meaningfully across lines of difference—a skill that transcends etiquette cheat sheets. Curious how we do it? .... best believe I'm going to share ... contact us in [email protected].

The Do or Don't List - My internal cringe I’ve been an intercultural trainer and coach for the past fourteen years, and without fail, during that small-talk moment at a dinner or cocktail party, someone asks, “So, during your training do you give a do and don’t list for dealing with other cultures?” Cue a deep breath! I didn’t come to this social event wearing my trainer hat, but here I am, G&T in hand, stepping in to explain.?It’s funny how I end up in educator mode, even in the most unexpected places! Intercultural awareness isn’t about memorizing a boring list of "do’s and don’ts." It’s about embracing the exciting, diverse world of cultures with an open mind! Instead of rigid rules, you’ll learn how to be adaptable, empathetic, and savvy in any situation - skills that help you truly connect and thrive across cultures, whether you’re at a business meeting or, yep, even a dinner party. #interculturalcompetence#interculturalawareness#intercultural https://torii.coach/

To gain a thorough understanding of intercultural communication and avoid common misunderstandings, individuals can consider enrolling in courses that focus on cultural competency, intercultural communication, or cross-cultural communication. Here are some recommended courses that can help deepen your knowledge in this area: 1. **Intercultural Communication**: This course typically covers topics such as cultural differences, communication styles, non-verbal cues, and how to effectively communicate across cultures. 2. **Cultural Competency Training**: These courses provide insights into understanding different cultures, developing cultural sensitivity, and navigating diverse environments. 3. **Cross-Cultural Communication Skills**: Courses focusing on cross-cultural communication skills can help individuals learn how to communicate effectively with people from diverse backgrounds. 4. **Global Business Communication**: For professionals in international business settings, courses on global business communication can provide valuable insights into cross-cultural communication strategies. 5. **Diversity and Inclusion Training**: Understanding diversity and inclusion is essential for effective intercultural communication. Courses in this area can help individuals create inclusive environments. 6. **Language and Cultural Studies**: Learning a new language and studying the culture associated with it can deepen your understanding of communication nuances in different cultural contexts. 7. **Conflict Resolution in Intercultural Settings**: Courses on conflict resolution tailored to intercultural settings can help individuals navigate disagreements and misunderstandings effectively. 8. **Online Cultural Competency Courses**: Various online platforms offer courses on cultural competency and intercultural communication that can be convenient for flexible learning. By enrolling in these courses and actively engaging in cross-cultural experiences, individuals can enhance their intercultural communication skills, gain a deeper understanding of cultural differences, and learn effective strategies for building positive relationships across cultures.

How did we, intercultural professionals, think about culture before we learnt the current vocabulary of interculturalism? This was a question posed by Jane Everett at the tail end of a very interesting talk by Prof. Carlos Antonio González-Carrasco at a SIETAR Polska event. And that gave me pause! It was such a profound question, especially for someone like me, who landed in intercultural coaching through accident and serendipity. My journey to becoming an intercultural coach was less about planning and more about creating an opening wherever I spotted a sliver of light.?If you look at my profile, you can see it has been a convoluted path from a girl fleeing civil war to Aerospace Engineering to software development to intercultural coaching! So how did I think about cultures and their interactions? I don't have a brilliant answer to that. Actually, it is slightly embarrassing for an intercultural/diversity coach to admit: I probably didn’t think too much about the word "culture" at all, let alone the complex role culture plays in moulding us. I grew up in a multicultural, multiethnic, multilingual environment with a family that was respectful of differences. I just assumed everyone is different anyway. Did I some times think that “they” are weird and we are “better”? Honest answer is, sometimes, yes ?? In my defence, I was a teen and I thought even city people were weird compared to us small town people! Growing up in India, I quite often heard the phrase “Unity in diversity” but didn’t always understand what it meant.?It took me years through school and college, meeting people from various societal backgrounds and cultures to appreciate the word “diversity”. That is why, when I hear “wish we had known this earlier” at the end of my intercultural workshops, it doesn’t surprise me at all! We just don’t know what the challenge is, till we actually sit with it and take it apart.?Unfortunately most of the times, the trainings and workshops are requested only when misunderstandings have already occurred ?? But, better late than never! Whatever maybe our starting point, the only way to move forward is finding a way to build real human connections and work together as equals. I always end my workshops with the motto: Cultures can be complementary! As one of my favourite comedians Wanda Sykes says: “No, we are not all the same, but we are equal”. Now I would like to put this question to you (expanding Jane’s question to include all kinds of diversity topics)? ?? How did you think about [insert diversity topic] before you adopted the vocabulary? ? #InterculturalCompetency #Diversity

I am very cautious with national / country level based cultural trainings. ??? You may be surprised reading that from an intercultural trainer. ????♀? Differences in patterns observed on group level are a helpful starting point when discussing how culture shapes the ways we perceive reality and what is or isn’t within the (social) norm. When we leave it at that though we risk perpetuating misconceptions ??and stereotypes ??that actually impaire ?? effective intercultural encounters. In my work I much prefer to talk about a dynamic and contextual view of culture as an ever evolving repertoire ??of norms, beliefs and behaviors that we each are equipped with and that we can choose to act on or not. Recognizing that at any given time we are juggling ?? multiple (often conflicting) sets of those, as members of multiple collectives (and therefore cultures), from local, regional, functional, organizational, institutional etc . The choice we make at any given time is contextual: and can differ from professional to private setting, from formal to informal relationships, etc. I therefore very much resonate with the latest piece by one of my favorite authors in the field, Andy Molinsky which inspired me to share my perspective. Check the link to the article in comment below ?? #InterculturalCompetence #Culture #Diversity #Inclusion #Learning #Training