Cultural Differences and Communication: Aligning Values for Effective Connection

In this episode, Jennifer Arvin Furlong delves into the impact of cultural differences on communication. She emphasizes that culture influences our communication styles by shaping our beliefs about what is acceptable, appropriate, or valuable. By understanding the role of culture, we can become better communicators. Jen poses a challenging question that prompts self-reflection: Do our daily actions align with our core values? She encourages listeners to examine how their behavior might contribute to miscommunications and offers practical steps to bring communication habits back in line with their values. Join Jen as she explores the power of cultural understanding and its role in fostering effective connections.

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Transcript

[01:19] Jen: When we think about the friction that occurs thanks to cultural differences, it's helpful to remember that we're not just talking about the cultural differences that exist between countries, or even the differences that exist between different regions or states. Sometimes it's the differences between how men and women communicate. Or if we're talking about organizations, it can be the differences between departments or offices. Culture is at the core of each of these examples, and it will impact how we communicate. When you think of what makes up a culture at the basics, it's really just a group of people who share similar values or traditions or beliefs, or even habits. All of these things impact how we communicate based on what we believe to be good or bad, right or wrong.

[02:14] Jen: Acceptable or unacceptable, appropriate or inappropriate, and so on.

[02:20] Jen: Culture is what dictates what is considered to be, quote, normal. It helps us determine what we believe is worth dying for, and what we believe is worth fighting for. You experience culture every time you feel like you're a part of something bigger than yourself, and every time you feel like you just don't fit in. Whenever you feel friction due to your values not aligning with the values of your workplace or your boss or your coworkers or your spouse or your friends, that is the frustration arising from differences in cultural norms, differences in our values, and we've all run into this. So how can our understanding of culture help us become better communicators? That's what I want to talk to you about today. I'm going to ask you a difficult question and you might feel called out, but that's okay. Remember, I have told you before, sometimes you need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. That's if you want to grow. So before I get to the question though, let's do some brainstorming. I want you to think about your core values. I know this can be hard to start, so I'm going to share with you some ideas that might get the brainwaves moving. Remember, I want you to think about your core values. We're talking about values that are not things that are not tangible. This isn't something that can be taken away or that it fluctuates. It's at the heart of everything that you believe. It's what drives your belief. So examples of values could be something like reliability or loyalty or honesty or love or courage. So what are your core values? Think about that for a moment. Now, here's the uncomfortable question. I want you to think about your values and then think about on a daily basis do your actions align with your core values. Think about how your behavior impacts your communication with others. If your behavior does not align with your core values, is it possible if you are having difficulty communicating with others, connecting with others, is it possible that your behavior in some way is causing the misalignment? That's it. That's the only thing I want you to think about today. What are your values and how do your actions and your communication habits align with those values? If there is misalignment and you'll know if there is misalignment because you're not happy, you're frustrated, and you're probably getting into arguments, you probably want to quit your job, you probably want to break up with your significant other, or you don't want to talk to a friend anymore. What do you think if there is that misalignment? What do you think are some changes that you can make starting today to bring your communication habits and your actions back into alignment with your core values? So try this exercise out for the next week and let me know how it goes. Now tomorrow I'm going to do a deeper dive into cultural misunderstandings with a very special guest. So I hope you tune in. Take care. Now.