Interpersonal Communication Paper
Asia Lipanovich
October 18, 2013
MGMT3640
Gerald Alcantar
Improving Interpersonal Communication in Today’s Diverse Workplace
Sometimes even when you think you are giving a positive statement such as, “I have a friend who’s [gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender] that you should meet,” it might not be taken as positive to the receiver. In today’s world we live and work in an extremely diverse atmosphere. Sayings such as the one listed above can lead others to have hasty feeling towards each other. This, in turn, leads to unwanted hostility and could be detrimental to the workplace. Everyone either consciously or subconsciously is at fault of using one or more of these statements. We need to learn that by asking these questions it not only hurts and offends others but it makes us look stupid and uneducated. As stated above we live in an extremely diverse workplace and being culturally aware is a must in order to have an effective communication process and more specifically in order to run a successful business. Every single person in this world will come into contact with someone of a different race or culture. This is why it is crucial to be educated on cultural differences; communication with others of different backgrounds is inevitable. The ten commandments of American culture are not just for others to understand the American culture but for Americans to be aware of as well. Americans are all bout being successful and in other cultures this might not be as important. Take for example Hispanics who are more about the team and success of the team. Americans might think that Hispanics are lazy and unmotivated while working by themselves. However, this is simply just a cultural difference but it old lead to an actual lack of motivation and poor productivity because the odds are against them. Another American value is their use of time. Americans highly use the frame “time is money” and for anyone to waste their time is unacceptable. This is a huge
October 18, 2013
MGMT3640
Gerald Alcantar
Improving Interpersonal Communication in Today’s Diverse Workplace
Sometimes even when you think you are giving a positive statement such as, “I have a friend who’s [gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender] that you should meet,” it might not be taken as positive to the receiver. In today’s world we live and work in an extremely diverse atmosphere. Sayings such as the one listed above can lead others to have hasty feeling towards each other. This, in turn, leads to unwanted hostility and could be detrimental to the workplace. Everyone either consciously or subconsciously is at fault of using one or more of these statements. We need to learn that by asking these questions it not only hurts and offends others but it makes us look stupid and uneducated. As stated above we live in an extremely diverse workplace and being culturally aware is a must in order to have an effective communication process and more specifically in order to run a successful business. Every single person in this world will come into contact with someone of a different race or culture. This is why it is crucial to be educated on cultural differences; communication with others of different backgrounds is inevitable. The ten commandments of American culture are not just for others to understand the American culture but for Americans to be aware of as well. Americans are all bout being successful and in other cultures this might not be as important. Take for example Hispanics who are more about the team and success of the team. Americans might think that Hispanics are lazy and unmotivated while working by themselves. However, this is simply just a cultural difference but it old lead to an actual lack of motivation and poor productivity because the odds are against them. Another American value is their use of time. Americans highly use the frame “time is money” and for anyone to waste their time is unacceptable. This is a huge