A surprising number of smart, competent business people don’t understand why small talk matters to them - and to their success in business. They think it is something you just do and don’t think much about.
Today’s world seems to be louder than ever before. Lots of different sources of noise distract you when you try to listen.
Listening to an English speaker with a strong accent or in an online setting is a challenge.
You are afraid that you are not competent enough. And you’re worried you might not be able to get your job done.
Does speaking about delicate matters in English in business feel like walking on eggshells?
Do you feel like you might crash the conversation with every word you say. The atmosphere is awkward and tense and you feel uncomfortable.
How can you build a business relationship with your client when you have the feeling you can’t get into the conversation? Your conversation partner talks and talks and you lose interest in the conversation.
This could just be the way your client communicates. But it might also be related to his/ her culture.
This is just one communication style you can encounter when dealing with different cultures in business.
January is a month that feels like the start of something new. You can read everywhere about new year’s resolutions and how they will turn your year into something special.
But we are now almost at the end oft he month and do you still stick to new year’s resolutions or have you already forgotten about them? Has everyday life got the better of you?
A lot of my students hope to become fluent in Business English so that they can communicate as competently as in their native language at work. Sure it is an important aim because who wants to struggle in a conversation in business?
Intercultural communication: when I first started working in Ireland, I had no real understanding of the subtleties of this kind of communication. But, as I quickly learned, what you don’t know can hurt you.