A Small Idea for Creating Meaningful Intercultural Relationships

Here's a simple idea for bridging cultural differences. 

Be interested. Be interested in ‘who’ the other person is, and be prepared to share a little about who you are too.

I’ve just spent a couple of days with a client to help them kick off a global project team, and I really believe that the bulk of the work was done when the group spent 30 minutes sharing in an open and unstructured conversation what they were passionate about outside of work.

It sounds simple, but each time I do this exercise at the start of a workshop with a globally diverse group it becomes abundantly clear, very quickly, that we are more alike than we are different.

This week the common themes for pretty much all participants were the outdoors (hiking, swimming, gardening), family and food.  And we learnt that one or two of the team have some pretty cool hobbies, like making electrical testing equipment so that home appliances can be tested and repaired, or last week with another group we had a recreational pilot. I've not had a group yet where there is not a bunch of interests, hobbies or passions that unite the group.

The reality is that if we take the time to connect, the only real risk is that we may find that we have more in common than not. So it makes sense that, where possible, global organisations should create the opportunities for real connection between global/virtual team members. Don’t take this step for granted, especially in Anglo countries where the natural urge is to just get on with business. Because irrespective of where we come from, we all like to be acknowledged; whether it’s for what we’ve done in the past or for who we are. Both are equally valid, and the only way either can be properly acknowledged is to build in opportunities for connection, and for the organisation and its leadership to endorse and actively support such a measure.

So, this is a small idea, but I've seen it have really positive and significant impacts in a culturally diverse groups. If you aren't doing it already, why don't you give it a go?

David is head of Ponte Valle, a consultancy that helps develop global mindsets, optimises global leadership performance, and creates teams that succeed beyond borders, culture and complexity in settings such as multi-national, project, matrix, joint ventures and M&A's. He is also an Associate Partner of the Hofstede Insights Group.