A lot of companies are coming out with their formal response to the Coronavirus, along with sage advice on what to do. Thinking of that reminded me of the time I worked for the Department of Aviation. Among other things I managed the contract for services for people who were homeless. I got a call…
A mandatory half-day outing to the Shedd Aquarium. On Ash Wednesday. “This employee felt anything but appreciated,” said a friend about the recent “Employee Appreciation Day” event hosted by her company. Beyond not feeling appreciated, she was mad. “Here I was, standing alone in the aquarium, and all I could think of was how much…
“Love what you do and you will never work a day in your life.” That quote has always seemed a little “baloney-ish” to me, the purview of the privileged. Even a google search for the source of the quote suggests that it’s not really a thing. It’s attributed to both Confucius and singer Marc Anthony—how…
Boost your Energy and Creativity! Learn, Do Something New before Summer Ends With kids home and vacations and nice weather beckoning outside windows, the end of summer may be a welcome hearkening to buckle down and get back to work. Why not take advantage of the “extra space” of summer to get out of your comfort…
It’s official. My 13 year old son is a better cook than me. And, it’s not just him who says so. An objective panel in a blind taste test (aka guests over for dinner on Saturday who didn’t know who made which pasta dish) ate all of the pepper pasta dish he made, with barely…
I volunteered to man the water table at International Night at my son’s school the other night. I joined the other parents lingering back behind the self-serve station. For fun, I decided to spell “SAA” (acronym for the Science and Arts Academy) with the water bottles, and ‘voila!’, the quiet water station became a spark…
Lessons in intercultural communications abound every day, everywhere. Over the past few days, “my friend” learned how orientation to different jobs/careers fields can yield the same intercultural snafus found in cross cultural communications. Whether it’s Jargon (think SEO, CEO, B-Hag, NGO, HACE), written communication styles (think Engineer vs. School Teacher) or simply the anticipated protocol…
I caught this version of Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason” on the radio today, that she did with Eric Clapton, and it was great. Her sultry tones complemented by his distinctive blues guitar were wonderful. Each was able to bring her/his unique style to the table to produce a fantastic product in a spirit…
Intercultural Talk had a chance to catch up today with Lynn Walker, Interim President at Truman College in Chicago, to talk about how she draws upon intercultural communications skills to lead a 10,000+ student organization with students from over 100 different countries. Her leadership role requires the ability to shift from speaking to administrators, students, community members,…
It’s funny that after presenting a workshop on communication styles, I’m obsessing about my communication style. I think it’s because I’m more aware now that I’m an “emotive-intuitive” communicator (I speak passionately about things I believe in and like to throw out big ideas as they come to me) and the “norm” for the business…
