Recommended Focus Area #1: polishing your communication ability But, if you want to improve, there are several ways to do this, one is to start reading English for about 15”-20” every day, Monday through Friday. Without a dictionary. Look up any words you don’t know on the weekend. Make sure the book is fiction and includes dialogue. It must be interesting reading. Another way could be to join one of the twenty or so Toastmaster Clubs in the Tokyo area. This will give you a lot of practice for impromptu speaking. (http://www.toastmasters.org/) At this web page click on the red “find” button then scroll down to select “Japan” and then “optional” to scroll to “Tokyo”. Each of these clubs has their own “character” or culture. Try a few and pick the one you like. This will give you an excellent opportunity to practice organizing your ideas. Yasuda-san, you realize that language is only one component of successful communication. Culture poses a major part of the miscommunication that constantly occurs in international business. Please remember that without confirming the expectations of all parties there is a high chance for disappointment on either side. When the logic behind your or their expectation is not clear then try to discover the underlying assumptions behind the expectations. Clarifying and negotiating around the assumptions will very often give all parties a more productive way through the process you need to reach understanding and agreement. Recommended Focus Area #2: saying what you want to in meetings, etc You may feel that you have difficulty saying what you want. I don’t think this is so much an issue of vocabulary as it is one of simply organizing your thoughts before you speak. Before you begin to speak, get into the habit of noting (jotting down) on a piece of paper the key ideas you want to bring up. Not in sentences, just key words. This may help you organize your thoughts before speaking. In other words, I don’t think you’re trying to catch the right word, rather you’re trying to catch the right idea. Also, remember the logic Pyramid (page 13 in your workbook) and review the section on Structuring Opinions. Recommended Focus Area #3: email You make small mistakes in writing such as subject-verb agreement, singular-plural and use of articles. These will not often cause misunderstanding so they are not a serious issue. I am going to guess that most of these mistakes are due to lack of attention. Which means, if you pay more attention to your writing then you will easily reduce them. You may not realize this but good native writers ALWAYS review-check and often rewrite their important emails several times. Good luck Recommended Focus Area #1: entering a discussion with native speakers You mentioned that it’s been hard for you to join into conversations in English. Over the two days your use of “Active Listening” skills (see workbook and ppt slides) improved dramatically. Asking questions and sometimes restating the speaker’s opinion, allowed you to enter the conversation effectively. Also you applied the methods given in “Structuring an Opinion” to your advantage. Please continue to review these skills from time to time by referring to the workshop handouts. Recommended Focus Area #2: culture and communication Iguchi-san, you mentioned you want to learn about both culture and law in countries you will be doing business with. This is an excellent way to begin. As we mentioned in the workshop there are many online sources for country-specific information. Geert Hofstede, who’s Cultural Dimensions were part of this program is one of many such sites (http://geert-hofstede.com/ ) Also E.T Hall who developed the “High Context/Low Context” model in the textbook has written many of the best and simplest books on cross-cultural communication. Some of his books have been translated into Japanese but his English writing style is clear, simple and interesting to read. Also, Sumitomo is not likely to send you to a country that no other Sumitomo employee has had experience with. So I strongly recommend that when you need to do business with any country, that you find some of the people in your company who are experienced in that country and talk to them. Recommended Focus Area #3: listening skills and pronunciation You have demonstrated in this workshop that your listening skills are reasonably effective. But if you still want to improve in this area you might try out this website: ( www.learnerstv.com ) This is a free website that contains thousands of short video lectures. Some aimed at native speakers and some for non-natives. Look for some interesting topics and download. There are also some tests on this site. For pronunciation you could have a look at ( www.soundsofenglish.com ) which will explain how to pronounce clearly with some recordings to guide you. Good luck! Recommended Focus Area #1: Variety & Flexibility You need to develop more variety in your communication style and be able to very your style depending on whom you are speaking with. One way to do this is to review the section on “Discussion Skills” in the Handout materials. Recommended Focus Area #2: Listening The most important skill for international business is not speaking- it’s listening, You need some practice in this skill. Your objective should be not to just understand what they say but to understand what they think. It takes time to develop this level of relationship and it’s called “empathy”. It needs to be two-way. To practice the “Active Listening” skill introduced in the workshop is a good way to improve this skill. Be careful not to interrupt the speaker in a way that is not accepted by the country culture. Recommended Focus Area #3: logic and persuasion Re-read the section about the logical Pyramid and consider using “5 Whys” for deeper understanding. I noticed that your hesitation in speaking is not because you need vocabulary but because you’re searching for ideas. I recommend you don’t try to be perfect with your ideas. Don’t “over-think” (think too much) before you speak. And don’t worry- “Just Do It”. Adjust your ideas as you go along. Don’t wait too much to say what you’re thinking. Good luck! Recommended Focus Area #1: Vocabulary For vocabulary, try reading English fiction. There are many book titles in most of the larger bookstores. “Graded Readers” are one type published by four or five companies. I recommend those by Yohan Publishing which has the “Ladder Series” of books that are graded from 1 to 5. You could start with level 3 or level 4. The most important point is that the story is interesting for you. Read 20” every day. Do not use a dictionary from Monday to Friday. Mark the words or phrases you don’t know and look them up on Saturday. In the Ladder Series each book has a “word list” at the back with Japanese translation. Recommended Focus Area #2: Fluency When you first studied English you were taught to translate sentences from Japanese into English. Unfortunately this habit has stayed with you too long. Your usual style is to think of what you want to say in Japanese and then translate (in your mind) into English and then to speak the words. This old habit is preventing you from speaking fluently in even simple conversations. You do not need to do this any more because you can think directly into English without a middle step. You are exactly that good. Jut like in your final presentation. If you feel more comfortable to prepare before speaking than write down a few key words (not sentences) on a piece of paper so you can remember what you want to say. Recommended Focus Area #3: Assertiveness If you believe your opinion or idea is correct, I recommend that you stick to it and don’t give way too easily. Use the “Diplomatic Disagreement “ technique that we practiced in the workshop. Please review this chapter in your workshop handout material. Also you can try to take a more leading role in discussions. Try being a “facilitator” by asking questions and gathering information then summarizing and comparing opinions of the other members. This will help you to develop the skill of managing discussions. One last idea- Fukuoka-san, you asked for a technique to “break the ice” when you first meet someone or before begining a conversation. I have a coffee cup that was given to me more than twenty years ago by a native Canadian aboriginal friend. We were studying conflict management techniques. On the side of the cup in large letters are written these words: “A smile in any language comes from the heart”. A smile from the heart is the best “ice-breaker” you can ever find. Good luck! -gordon Recommended Focus Area #1: useful phrases As you mentioned, having a larger number of key business phrases will help you to express your opinions and improve your fluency. A good place to begin is the “Communication Handbook” at the back of your workshop handout. If you learn the phrases there and start using them, not only your spoken fluency will improve but also your written communication. Practice, practice, practice. Recommended Focus Area #2: study the culture of your target country & Japan There are many sources on the internet which have information about almost every country. In this program we used Hofstede’s Dimensions. There is a huge body of data available from His research. (http://geert-hofstede.com/ ). Another site is here: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/country-profiles.html There are many of these. Yes they are in English but if you search you can find data in Japanese as well. The more you know the better you will understand and manage the relationship. But remember- people are personalities as well as culture. And no to people are exactly the same so be careful about using stereotypes. Take each person case by case within the context of their country and your business. As we said in the workshop, understanding their culture, style and beliefs is not enough. You must also understand your culture, style and beliefs too. Please use the Japan country profile we gave you as a place to begin understanding Japan and keep working to improve what you know about yourself. Recommended Focus Area #3: manage expectations and assumptions Remember that everyone makes assumptions. And assumptions are never facts- only guesses. And those guesses are the basis of our expectations. Misassumptions and wrong expectations can do a lot of damage to a business relationship so one of the fundamental rules of cross-cultural communication in business is: always know what your expectations are and what their expectations are. The sooner the better. And when they don’t match- find out why not. Sometimes the problem is in the underlying assumptions. So, when necessary, check out the assumptions to see if they match or not. These are some of the first steps to managing intercultural communication in business. Anywhere, any time. Good luck! Recommended Focus Area #1: Although you did a great job communicating in the final interview, you took a long time to overcome your hesitation speaking in English. Show confidence by asking lots of questions as soon as you meet a new person. First impressions are very important so always use active listening from the very beginning of every new business relationship Recommended Focus Area #2: You could benefit from brushing up on some basic grammar and improving your vocabulary. When you study English grammar and new vocabulary it is very common to worry too much about making mistakes which can make you more hesitant to speak. A better way to study is to adopt a positive attitude. Try to use as many new vocabulary words as possible and then ask the listener if they understood! Recommended Focus Area #3: Interrupting- I feel you started to be more pro-active giving your opinion and interrupting but if you are going to be in a teleconference you will need to interrupt much more frequently and much more quickly. Never hesitate to interrupt speakers from most Western countries more. This will show your interest in the speaker and the topic. Recommended Focus Area #1: Although your strength is your confidence to manage and lead discussions, you have a great opportunity to improve even further. Actually, for those of us who manage and lead discussions, we have an obligation to always try to be better. Remember to lead discussions by asking good questions and truly trying to understand participant’s responses. Recommended Focus Area #2: Strong emotional appeal is important when you want to persuade a Western audience. When you feel strongly about you opinion (or product) your enthusiasm should show in your words, facial expressions, eye contact and gestures. Recommended Focus Area #3: Fluency-Small Talk: This is something that can only be achieved through practice and experience. On the question of how to gain experience communicating with foreigners in English. Joining an English conversation class is probably not the answer for you because it will not be spontaneous or challenging. An excellent alternative is to join international groups in Tokyo that interst you. There is a website called www.meetup.com which has numerous groups in Tokyo and there is also a restaurant bar in Omotesando called the Pink Cow. They have events just about 7 days a week. Each night they have different mixed groups of Japanese and foreigners who get together for various purposes. A link to this bar is: www.thepinkcow.com. Recommended Focus Area #1: You expressed an interest in learning more business analytical tools and becoming a more critical thinker. I suggest the following two websites: http://www.12manage.com/ and http://www.mindtools.com. Also the best way to become a critical thinker is to practice active listening by yourself, when you are thinking. Recommended Focus Area #2: You also expressed an interest in improving your business vocabulary. The best place to learn vocabulary for free is www.ted.com. They have many presentations on business and social topics which have English transcripts (sometimes they even have Japanese translations). Watch videos on topics which interest you, print out the transcripts and highlight new vocabulary. Recommended Focus Area #3: You also expressed a desire to be more persuasive in negotiations. Simulating business negotiations is not easy so I would again recommend Ted.com. The presenters are chosen because they are excellent speakers who have an important message and can inspire their audience. Watch how they support their arguments. It’s usually very persuasive. Recommended Focus Area #1: Continue to work on your confidence. Remember that your ideas and opinions are important and the listener will benefit from talking with you. If you remember to use Pyramid logic and always support your opinions you will gain respect. Recommended Focus Area #2: Use active listening much, much more and remember not to wait. You must ask more question, more specific questions and ask them more quickly! Also don’t forget emotion. You started to show real emotion in the final presentation and it made an impact on the audience. Recommended Focus Area #3: Fluency-Small Talk: This is something that can only be achieved through practice and experience. On the question of how to gain experience communicating with foreigners in English. Joining an English conversation class is one way but it is not very spontaneous or challenging. An excellent alternative is to join international groups in Tokyo that interest you. There is a website called www.meetup.com which has numerous groups in Tokyo and there is also a restaurant bar in Omotesando called the Pink Cow. They have events just about 7 days a week. Each night they have different mixed groups of Japanese and foreigners who get together for various purposes. A link to this bar is: www.thepinkcow.com. Recommended Focus Area #1: Variety & Flexibility Recommended Focus Area #2: Adapt to Different Cultures Recommended Focus Area #3: Vocabulary Recommended Focus Area #1: Build Confidence and Fluency Recommended Focus Area #2: Improve Cultural Knowledge Recommended Focus Area #3: Preparation
Recommended Focus Area #2: Vocabulary
Recommended Focus Area #2: Preparation Recommended Focus Area #3: Vocabulary Recommended Focus Area #1: Listening Recommended Focus Area #2: Building Relationships Recommended Focus Area #3: Interrupting |
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Seminars & Workshops run by experienced Business Professionals that improve the skills necessary to sucessfully communicate and conduct Business in English.
