Courageous Conversations

"What? You think I can't read this properly?"

Nancy is working in an international company and has a colleague in their Brazilian subsidiary. They communicate by phone or by email only. Nancy conveyed some important facts by CAPITALIZING these facts in an email. Shortly afterwards her boss Michael called her into his office. Nancy learned that Raul had badly complained about her. (14.55)

I speak with Regine Albrecht of ExpatLinQ about this conversation. Regine and ExpatLinQ provide services to executives who are relocating cross-culturally and want help in smoothing the transition. She is generous enough to share with me some of the cultural missteps she has seen happen which we practice in the Coffee Conversations.

Click here to download as an MP3

Lessons Learned:

• Define expectations upfront - When it goes wrong, you have neutral, agreed upon place to return.
• Check-in Points - Don't assume everything is OK. Double-check. Make sure.
• Speak face-to-face - The words, the tone, the inflection - all valid elements of communication. But none of those can beat body language and facial expressions.
• Speak directly - twice - Give each person a chance to describe the situation in his/her native tongue.

Download Lessons Learned

...'cause you may have a small fit"

Jake is the project's leader. He need to let Randy, his boss know that the budget and the deadline will slip. Randy is not known for being open to this kind of news. Jake’s challenge will be to make sure he does know, does understand the situation and especially what help Jake needs to get back on time and budget. (13:06)

Click here to download as an MP3

Lessons Learned:

• Setup a meeting - Find a time - asap - that works for the two of you.

• Have alternatives - Walk into the meeting with 2-3 things Randy could do.

• Stay on task - Can easily degenerate into blame rather than fixing the issue.

• Take responsibility - Jake is the team lead. It is his job to stay on budget and time.

Download Lessons Learned