Review of The Ten Commandments of Intercultural Communications

The Ten Commandments of Intercultural Communication can be summarized by Martin Hahn (2005) when he says:

Learning as much as possible about another culture will enhance your ability to communicate with its members. Read books and articles about the culture and talk to people who have done business with that culture's members. Concentrate on learning something about the culture's history, religion, politics, values, and customs. Find out about a country's subcultures, especially its business subculture, and any special rules of protocol.

These “commandments” can apply to many communication situations in addition to intercultural communications. In some ways, I observe these commandments in my communications through our business’s online sales. We sell items internationally and I take care to try and understand the nonverbal communication (which can be difficult when communicating via email and when the person’s English is broken).

I also try to imagine what they would be saying if speaking to me in person to try and avoid taking something the wrong way- I try to keep written communications in context. Usually customers only contact me if they are unhappy with the item they received or the shipment is taking too long. In either case, they are frustrated with the transaction and just want it completed, so they may be “snippy” to begin with.

The key is staying calm, keeping it in context and avoiding taking it personally. However, being aware of the commandments would help in keeping communications in context. They remind you that the person you are speaking with is different from you in many ways. They probably vary in religion, values, ethics and concepts of the importance of time. To me, “time is money” as the saying goes. To them, their time is just as valuable, but their particular culture may not appreciate being seen as just a customer in line that I get paid to “deal with.” No one really appreciates that type of treatment and even in written communications, it will show if that is my approach.

References

Hahn, M. (2005). The ten commandments of intercultural communications. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from: http://ezinearticles.com/?Ten-Commandments-of-Intercultural-Communication&id=120247.