I place myself somewhere over the Mid-Atlantic - based on my view of the differences in communication styles between the UK and US.
Before going any further - I should highlight that these distinctions are 1) based on very big generalizations, and 2) informed simply by my own personal experience as a UK coach working with American colleagues and companies.?
Why do I see myself somewhere in the middle!?
- Directness: I find the American style wins here. I have noticed in the UK a tendency towards opaqueness in difficult situations, a reluctance to clearly say 'no' which creates issues all by itself. Having worked extensively with American companies - I don't feel they have the same issues with 'being direct' or 'getting to the point'! ?
- A polite formal style: There are times, at the start of my relationship with a client, when I feel the classic UK style works really well.? The often critiqued 'email sandwich' using conventions such as 'Dear' , utilizing some polite opening and closing expressions like 'I hope your week is going well'.. and finishing with 'Best regards' or 'Kind regards' works well in the very early stages of a professional relationship.
- Over-familiarity: My critique of the American style is that, sometimes, to my English eyes/ears! - there is an over-familiarity - a tendency to speak in a relaxed way to a client that you barely know.? I see this over-familiarity in other ways - for example in describing something as 'awesome' when I might say 'quite good'! It is here that my American collaborators might say Toby - you need to chill out (relax) a little!?
- Owning mistakes: I have been really impressed with some of the American companies I have worked with in terms of simply owning mistakes. I have also been inspired by how American entrepreneurs freely talk about what they learnt from business failures. Ok we failed, we made a mistake - it is what it is - let's move on. My sense is that 'failure' feels heavier and more tangled up in 'shame' in the UK.
- Gravitating to a warmer communication style: Ultimately I find the formal UK style - for example - in business email writing - can go a little stale over time. Always greeting my client with formal and polite expressions can become robotic and even cold. Expressions such as 'Hi', coupled with friendly expressions and lots of phrasal verbs ('go through, put back, send over etc...) feel quite 'American' to me. It also aligns with how I want to communicate to most of my customers - who I have typically known for a long time. I want my style to be warm, semi-formal and reflective of the trust between us.?
- Finally the language can simply be different! I remember being challenged by an American collaborator because I always advocated 'Best regards' as a formal sign off for emails and that 'Yours sincerely' was essentially a letter writing convention. She highlighted that 'Sincerely' is often used in business emails in the US! This is not to mention all the differences in everyday English - from 'trousers' to 'pants' and 'biscuits' to 'cookies'. For more info have a look at my newsletter here.?
While a sense of cultural awareness in how you communicate really matters! - it also feels very fluid and inexact. Ten years ago, I would not have guessed that some of my clients would communicate almost exclusively to their customers by chat/messenger function - which really does challenge the applicability of my classic UK style email sandwich! There is also a danger of being a cultural chameleon! Identifying your own style based on the values that matter to you needs to be your starting point and anchor as you navigate working across different cultures!
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