Communicating interculturally is an important skill Intercultural communication is becoming more important as globalisation takes hold. And we make more business and negotiate with people from other countries and cultures. Five Obstacles to Communication and Understanding: LANGUAGE – Vocabulary, syntax, idioms, slang and dialects all cause difficulty. But the person struggling with a different language is at least aware when he/she is in difficulty.  A more pronounced problem occurs when they think they understand.  The person clings to the meaning of a word or phrase in the new lan ..read more

Seven ways to enhance your enjoyment at work Flow is when we are immersed  in an activity with a feeling of energized focus. We feel full involvement, and success in the process of the activity. Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced CHICK-sent-me-high-ee) coined the concept of flow experience defining flow as a state of optimal experience. Which he described in his books: ‘Flow – the Psychology of Optimal Experience” and the sequel ‘The Evolving Self’. He says that life is shaped as much by the future as by the past and the best moments of experience occur when a person’s mind ..read more

1   Win-Loss Instructions A Win-Loss template is a guide when reviewing the outcome of a bid for a contract. You use it when you have won the deal or a post mortem if you have failed. Question: When is it most essential to do a Win-Loss review? Answer: When you have won! You use it obviously when the deal has been lost and especially when this was a ‘must win’ a review is essential. But the most useful time is actually when the deal is won. A debrief enables you to understand the reasons for your win and also the review might reveal hidden dangers. Such as: You are an incumbent and ..read more

Introduction The jury is still out as to whether the outsourcing contract can deliver measurable business improvement and better-cost performance. Many outsource contracts fail to live up to the grand promises made in the press releases and back-sourcing or early closure of deals is becoming common. However, there are key principles that if followed can greatly increase the chances of success of the whole process. 1.0 Scope the demand We need a clear scoping of the demand and what is being put to the market. This needs to be based on knowledge of what and how the service is being carried out ..read more

Managing in a workshop Managing or facilitating a workshop is something we are all called on to do at some time in our careers. Following a few simple rules will make the experience rewarding and sometimes even enjoyable. I cover the specifics for certain types of workshop, such as: RACI charting, Brown paper exercises and general brainstorming. But for now let us look at the general rules: Objectivity – It is critical to remain objective at all times. Do not be tempted to respond to or defend anything said. The focus should be on listening, acknowledging, probing for understanding and root c ..read more

Running a brainstorming session The purpose of any brainstorming session is to surface the knowledge of a team. And use this to make explicit what consensus there is and to use this knowledge to drive action. This technique and workshop plan aims to get a team from the initial ideas right through to the start of the action plan. The facilitator first introduces the problem or issue to be considered. The agenda of the workshop, its objectives and expected outcome are outlined. The role of the facilitator is discussed in my post on how to manage a workshop take a glance at this. The workshop sho ..read more

Moral codes and ethanasia Euthanasia is an act that prematurely ends a life as a result of a request to end suffering. Usually release from a debilitating disease that has no positive outcome. What does the main theories of ethics have to say about how we should respond to such a request? Relative morality refers to an ethical code that is dependent upon the situation in question. This varies between cultures. It allows maxims that do not have to be made universally true, unlike those within absolute morality. Whilst ethical theories such as Natural Law and most Christian Ethics and other reli ..read more

How to do a Force Field Analysis A Force Field Analysis is used to identify factors that help or hinder the solution to a problem. Showing the positives to be reinforced and/or the negatives to be eliminated/reduced. It can also be useful as a way of thinking about a difficult negotiation. And even for interpersonal relationship such as getting your daughter to do her homework. It is based on field theory. Which suggests the current situation in an organization is held in place by a set of restraining and promoting forces. By changing these forces we can change the state of the system. In gene ..read more

How to prepare and deliver a good presentation I have sat through and given a few conference presentations in my time so based on my experience of sitting through a conference or two I have put together a few tips: Preparing For The Event Read the proposed conference flyer and match your points to the theme. The flyers can help on setting the direction of the content – it is always a good idea to discuss the content further with the Conference Producer before you prepare ‘it’. Cicero over two thousand years ago said a good speaker learns fast and is knowledgeable and expert about the subject ..read more

Writer’s block what is it? Writer’s block is when I just can’t think of a single darn thing to say. We’ve all experienced this phenomenon when we absolutely have to write something, like copy, particularly on deadline. I’m talking about….uh, I can’t think of what the word is… oh, yes, it’s on the tip of my tongue… it’s: Arghhh! WRITER’S BLOCK!!!! Whew! I feel better just getting that out of my head and onto the page! Writer’s block is the patron demon of the blank page. You may think you know EXACTLY what you’re going to write, but as soon as that evil white screen appears before you, your min ..read more