8 things to keep in mind for effective cultural communication

• Watch your speed when speaking, slow down - talking fast is a mistake I've observed many a times especially by my partner from Yorkshire. Despite teaching English in Hong Kong, my mum has been no match for his quick speech, combined with a Yorkshire accent. Remember, even American English and UK English is entirely different, just imagine what these differences would be like for non-English speakers.
• Vary your tone and pitch, get loud on key words - so we all know about changing tones, for example, raising the pitch at the end of a sentence to make it a question. Well it certainly works - in fact, it is exactly this that changes a normal sentence into a question in Chinese.
• Use examples or ‘in other words’ to emphasise a point - metaphors and examples are the easiest to relay something. It is not about the words being said but the message we are trying to say - the concept. So what better way to get an abstract concept across than using the concept of a metaphor or example, better understood?
• Always check for understanding - it is very easy to mistake a nod of the head as a sign of understanding yet that is exactly how misunderstanding can occur. I've experienced the most bizarre case of having a coherent conversation with another, only realising at the end we had been talking about a completely different subject.
• Avoid using local sayings - Local sayings are commonly used in our everyday lives, sometimes inadvertently. As an English, you may know of "It's chucking it down", yet what would someone non-English make of that? Chucking down what? is what I would think. As an Aussie, you may know of "He got rolled". This would give me a mental image of someone rolling another down a hill, not a person being mugged. Whilst Barclays Chief, Frits Seegers at the time when I first joined as a graduate made an inspiring speech, we wondered for months to come what he had really meant by "pouring butter over our heads". Sticking to common language is best
• Get your point across using body language if possible - only 7% of communication accounts to language. 93% is from body language from visual information such as eye contact and from vocal information such as the tone of voice. In fact, from Psychology, we know that there are even 6 emotions shown physically that are in fact universal across the world - you might get your point across better using body language than by using words.
• Be careful about using humour - there's nothing worse than making a joke that no one laughs at. Only when this happens in a mixed cultural setting, it can be even worse. Receivers not only are confused by the lack of understanding, they could feel bad or embarrassed about not having understood it and might inquire and attempt to make sense of it by which time it is no longer funny. Your attempt at making conversation could also reach a dead end and make things even more awkward. Avoiding that could be useful!
• Use ‘simple’ language - Just remember that everyone will love it when you 'KISS': When you Keep It Simple Stupid!