Ø    Be lucid
English is the language used mainly for cross cultural understanding. This doesn’t mean that you have to be fast and fluent in your language. All you have to do is to slow down the language that you say and make it much clear and ensure the pronunciation that you make is lucid.

Ø    One at a time
Never ask too many questions to the listener at a time. For example avoid questions like “shall we stop here or should we move on?”  While you are in a cross cultural situation make sure either of the questions is asked and let the listener make his choice in giving the answer.

Ø    Evade off-putting queries
Use of negative queries have created many misunderstandings in the cross cultural communications. In certain yes/no queries the answer for a negative question may be ‘yes’ showing the response for the question. For example consider the “question are you not eating?” may be ‘yes’ which means ‘yes, I am not eating.’ But while giving an answer simply as ‘yes’ the listener may be confused thinking that you might have  meant that you are eating. So better avoid such off-putting queries.

Ø    Take turns.
In cross cultural communication, you make take turns i.e. once you make your point clear then you must wait for the response of the other.

Ø    Note down
If you couldn’t get the proper idea of what is being explained then do have a habit of writing it down so that you can refer it later. This will be in the case of large figures like a billion in UK means 1,000,000,000,000 whereas in USA means 1,000,000,000.

Ø    Be compassionate
The main essence for the cross cultural communication is being relaxed at its most. If you are willing to give an encouragement to those who are weak at English then it will help to develop a confidence, support and a deep trust in you.

Ø    Verify gist
While communicating across cross cultures never make any assumptions about what the other person has understood. Always try to be a good listener and make sure you make a summary of what you explained before you stop so as to verify. To ensure the cross cultural communication this is an effective way.

Ø    Shun jargon
Idioms, slang and sayings are something which can’t be completely grasped by even the most well educated foreigner. So the problem which is to arise is that the words will be tacit with its missed meaning.

Ø    Stare at the humor.
Business is considered with much of seriousness in almost all the cultures. Etiquette and professionalism will be observed all the time. While using humor or joke in any of the business context think about how the other culture understand that and in reason for that many of the cultures do not appreciate them. An example is that, the sarcasm of brutish mainly creates a negative impact abroad.

Ø    Maintain etiquette
Almost all cultures have different etiquette while communicating. So the best way is to undergo an awareness training on cross cultural communication or some research on the target culture.

Cross cultural communication is the way which is used to minimize the misunderstandings and maximize the understanding to create strong relationships.

The following six steps are the basic batons which all teams should be aware about to ensure rather than a barrier culture becomes a guide for affirmative progression.

Ø    Break assumptions
Every person, even without knowing others in personal have some assumptions                    about them. These are beliefs rather than objective truth and are formed mainly based on numerous prejudiced factors .
For the intercultural communication to work truly, people has to self examine themselves on the matter why are they holding such ideas or beliefs too end up in wrong assumptions. The preliminary hurdle to cross cultural communication can be removed only by openly examining them with others or self assessment.

Ø    Empathize
Empathy is the most important factor which enable a person to understand and appreciate people from other cultures. If you try to put ourselves in the position of other, we will gradually learn to appreciate the things that they do.

Ø    Involve
If we try to involve others in the works that we do, it will help to empower the decision and create a strong relation. As intercultural diversity incorporates diverse point of views, it is more innovative approach to solve many of the problems.

Ø    Discourage herd mentality
Naïve or closed approach is mainly defined as herd mentality. Such a mentality always holds back innovation, creativity and progression since restrictions are being introduced in the way of thinking. To overcome this the only way is to go to people and get engaged with many others or challenges.
If people are made think individually, the intercultural communication can be flourished and make them share their cultural ideas and influences that may be off the shore.

Ø    Avoid numb behaviors.
People behave in may behave culturally insensitive ways b attacking someone’s person and intern their dignity and culture which can only be discordant.
Intercultural communication is mainly to ensure that people do not act improperly through words or actions. It’s the responsibility of all people to avoid such mannerisms and guarantee it stays unacceptable.
Ø    Be shrewd
Astuteness for nothing is not defined as acumen. People need to be aware on how to deal with other people with knowledge and respect. Intercultural communication means the way of showing maturity of actions and thought in approaching with various people. The proper awareness on intercultural communication can avoid certain communication problems which are witnessed in many of the businesses.

One such recent event that stirred many silent leaves through out the world was the episode in the “Celebrity Big brother saga”. The Celebrity Big Brother experience was such a public expression of racial discrimination that it covered the central headlines in the major newspapers world wide for over a month.

The celebrity Big Brother is in fact a reality show that was held in the UK which involves a selected group of celebrities living together with cameras constantly observing their each move and action in a shared house. The show proceeds with the public opinion on which celebrity is to be voted out of the house and which celebes can continue their stay in the house till the end of the show. During one series of this show Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty who was also a competitor among the big brother contestants was faced with violent bullying and abuse from few other housemates the main offender being Jade Goody.

Goody having a short tempered nature ended up with public ill-treatment towards Shilpa that were labeled as racist actions. The following confrontation led to over 30,000 complaints to the various officials dealing with the show. Large protest against Jude rose up with protests and objections that sprung up from all parts of India alike. The incident covered the newspapers daily columns with widespread protest not only from India but also from other parts of the world.

Racism is a critical topic that has such an ugly face that it causes many a head and face to distort with resent. Difficulty persists in determining whether the actions of Goody were meant to be racist actions or not. However the spice of the story lays in the fact that the root cause for such a commotion was the troubles that occurred in intercultural communication.

Inter cultural communication involves the study of the diversity in the characteristic traits of people in their manners of behaving, thinking, eating, speaking, etc. Trainers in intercultural communication seek to smoothen the relations among people coming from different cultures and countries so that intercultural associations exist in harmony.

Misunderstandings among people coming from different cultures and countries are the root cause for such scenarios that also occurs in multinational companies. Every person’s actions are misunderstood or misjudged by the others due to their ignorance of cross cultural differences.

The events and the final break out in the big brother house can be summarized as follows on the basis of Indian and English culture differences:
1. Communication styles: a communication gap that occurred between Shilpa and goody was the backbone for all the problems. Indians communicate in such a manner that no offence is meant to any other person especially in public and the honor and reputation of the other person is give the desired importance or significance. Their tone of speaking is softer with diplomatic words and well phrased sentences.
On the other hand Goody with an opener and more aggressive expressing manner constantly threw out remarks that were hurting and shocking to Shilpa. Her quiet nature was misunderstood as tactfulness and secrecy by Goody who called her a liar publicly and was used to swearing constantly.
2. Food: Shilpa ate her food using hands and this mostly common occurrence was given a foul meaning by stating that the places where the hands have been were unknown. The direct implication of Shilpa being dirty that was declared so openly was an open offend thrown on each other.
3. Accent was ridiculed by the team of Goody and her close mates though fact states that Shilpa had a better accent than the others. Her countrymen were labeled as skinny people based on the fact that the people in her country were constantly

The high importance of intercultural communication among the current generation forced the experts in the international business media to think about the requirement of intercultural communication consultants. These people have to work as an interpreter between the different cultured people having different languages. To perform this successfully they must know everything about the intercultural communication.

Intercultural communication has now become an academic field of study due to its high demand in the global business field. Here they have to study how people of the world behave, communicate and make views about the world around them. They have to conduct research on these subjects and to apply this in real life, so that they can find out timely alternatives to sort out the difficulties in the cultural communications. The experts in this field give different definition about this subject depending upon the way they conducted the research. From all definitions we can conclude that it is inter personal interaction between peoples of different religions and culture having different mother-tongue.

The international business media allover the world has recommended to use the intercultural communication skills in the business. According to them it is an unavoidable factor to manage the difficulties they usually face while dealing the business matters between different countries having different culture and languages. Successful dealing of this in the business field can minimize the chance of misunderstanding and can avoid the possible negative effect in the business, which may arise due to poor communication. The theory of intercultural communication can be applied to various business media such as business management, marketing, advertising and website designing.

When the business becomes more and more complicated and challenging internationally many multinational companies are forced to make experiments on how they can shape up their business and companies. As a part of this the HR departments of most of the multinational companies suggest to train their management staff in different cultural Medias of the world and make them aware about the theories of intercultural communication, so that they can come up to the standard of the new generation business requirements of the multinational companies.

Another important thing to be considered by the multinational business centers is about the translation media. In this fast moving world, experts in translating documents, texts and statements are highly welcome. As a requirement of the current generation these translating experts have become automatically an integral part of the intercultural communication of the business world. Hence to deal the intercultural communication media successfully, there need a high class coaching, research and practice of the individuals who are authorized to enter in to this field by the multinational companies.

The outcome of restricted cross cultural communication leads to a number of problems such as loss of influential and prospective clients/customers, unmanageable staff maintenance, downfall in the competitive field, internal misunderstandings/ power struggles, unhealthy working conditions, stress and tension, low outsource along with poor income and shortage of cooperation and understanding.

The hurdles that exist in the path of cross cultural communication can be outlined as follows:

·    Communication deficit: scarcity of mutual communication and understanding can stand as a large problem in any business field resulting in the breakdown of the stability and permanence of that area. Spoken dialogue scarcity is not the main problem, on the other hand absence in sharing of important information, not giving any sort of positive or negative feedback, lack of exchange of decisions or actions that have been taken/done, expectations that have been put forward by the management etc. when withheld from each other leads to scratches that can totally shake off the balance of the business company. Management which shows partiality in the passing of information provides the path for suspicion, jealousy, lack of interest, respect and trust among the staff and the management. Lines of communication must take place in all directions so that each and every person is informed about the status of the company without having to ask their colleagues at crucial times.

·    Language: language related problems in cross cultural communication existing in the business field can be briefly split in to the following two forms:
·    Inappropriate language usage: misplaced words and emotions when made use of at the wrong places and inappropriate times can result in degradation of the inter relations, while positive words/emotions has a supportive effect on the interrelations among company staff.
·    Foreign languages: in a place where cross cultures exist together with each other a main language should be finalized so that all major communication whether among staff or office personals of different ranks take place by means of this main language. Coaching on a main language for inter communication is a necessity for a successful business ahead.

·    Culture: fields where international business takes place people from diverse cultures are involved so that cooperation has to be established over the differences in languages, business ethics and practices, values, beliefs, behavioral characteristics and expectations. Such companies can approach the help of consultants who can guide cross culture people in to mutual communication and team work in a productive manner.
·    Company culture: the various sectors in a company have to be operated as open systems so that the drawbacks caused due to the presence of closed systems can be brought down thereby strengthening the productivity that can be availed from such cross cultural companies. The various sectors of each company namely sales, administration, HR and production have to be made open systems as a result of which team cooperation, work and spirit is encouraged taking the company to higher levels of success.

Realization of the root problems in the field of man-management and communication affecting the financial and strategic areas of a company functioning helps to reduce similar business tribulations and promote the success of the company in international levels.

Any visit to a new place requires means of proper communication so that things can work out smoothly as desired. In cross cultural communication language takes up only 7% of communication. Apart from language there are a number of other ways in which cross cultural communication can be carried out, some of which have been described below:

§    Communication without words: God has blessed us with hands, arms and legs for actions, facial expressions and many other hidden tips that can be put forward just to make understand our point of view.
§    Emotions: emotions from the face and body language are one and the same in almost all regions irrespective of the difference in cultures. Anger, sorrow, joy, fright etc. have similar expressions and can be understood by all sorts of people alike.
§    Trial with words: similarity might exist in the words that are used by different cultures. Usage of such words by trail and error method might turn helpful under fortunate situations so that the idea can be portrayed at least to a minimum level.
§    Picture the idea: in cases where words can help us no more, a picture or imaginative drawing might reveal the complete idea to the listener.
§    Seek help: there might be many a person who has faced such situations who are viewing your actions and despair. A direct request might help in finding a willing helper who can translate your feelings across to the listener.
§    Meanings should be confirmed: when communication of an idea has taken place the speaker must be assured that the idea has gone across in its true meaning and that no misunderstanding has taken place. For that the thought has to be rephrased and confirmed.
§    Patience: inability to understand the other person’s language is the same trouble that the other person is also facing, they cannot understand us. So be patient and try to get the thought across to the other person without causing any annoyance.

Following these points helps for a better cross cultural communication even in the absence of words.

The occurrence of very fast changes and variations in the global economy has an anchor role in the developmental influence of the cultural communication media of the world. The Multinational business centers to make profit out of this phenomenon start to diversify their business areas to new countries and continents of the world.

The high class business magnets and software professionals of the multinational firms, for studying the business matters and to exchange the ideas or to seek sponsorship of their products and materials start to travel world wide. This brings the need of cross cultural communication globally.

To know so many languages of the world by a single man is not practical. So the language interpreters start to dominate to sort out these difficulties. There aroused a number of agencies world wide who are committed to supply the communication consultants of the required languages to the business centers. These interpreters who are the key factors of the business communication between the two differently cultured countries are now termed as ‘Cross cultural communication consultants’ in the modern language of the business.

The cultural communication consultants must have a broad view point about the culture of various religions of the world and their corresponding mother tongue. This ability of the cultural consultants enables them to assist the multinational business centers to overcome the difficulties of communication and cultural differences. They have to use the tone and style of their voice intelligently on the language they are handling to over come the difficulties and cultural differences in the business field. For this the communication consultants need one or two years of practical experience from a reputed international company.

The cultural communication consultant must have a sound educational back ground on cultural communications and business management or any other subject to suit the requirements. The knowledge on international relations can be considered as an added advantage in securing the same job. The practical experience enables the candidate to have self confidence and to know the business techniques and mechanics. This makes them familiar with the business challenges and difficulties which usually come across in such competitive field. The academic and practical experience in this field brings the skills on communication, presentation, application and utilization of different techniques in the business field. This also makes them capable to face different critical problems in international business which usually comes across.

The chance to live abroad is very vital as far cultural communication consultations are concerned. This will help them to come in to contact with people of different culture and languages. They can make a brief study about the matter from different countries and can become very proficient in different foreign languages.

The complexity and diversity of the cross cultural challenge has reflected through out internationally, especially in the business field. This brings the need to expertise in cross cultural consultancy, which is considered as a high requirement of the modern generation

Intercultural communication is an integral part of the international business field. While entering into the global business field people can understand that it is not so easy to perform since there are so many barriers, regulations and limitations to overcome successfully. The one and the only alternative to sort out these difficulties are to practice the intercultural communication skills to international standards. With out knowing at least the fundamentals regarding the intercultural communication skills people may commit some serious faults which cannot be restored in any way. So, a very good knowledge about the intercultural communication is very essential for the beginners of the global business field to avoid the intercultural communication gaps.

There are so many theories to sort out the difficulties arising duo to the intercultural communication gaps. A very good knowledge of these theories will enable the beginners to face the adverse conditions arising due to the misunderstanding and misperceptions of the cultural media. These theories are universally approved by different religious and cultural Medias to deal the difficulties of the cultural limitations. The very appreciable thing in the intercultural communication skills is that it warns the media of people not to make any judgment or repetition on anything unless they make a referendum on themselves about the subject.

The economy of the world has been changing and the same has a master role in controlling the multinational business centers, organizations, populations and the view point of the ruling governments of the countries of the world. This also persuade the people to migrate to different countries and continents to withstand the fall and rise of the economic state of the world. Thus a situation of mingling each other of all religions and cultures occur and for a very smooth movement of this process, the awareness about the cultural communication skills is found most essential. Thus the cross cultural communication has become an unavoidable media in the international business and market places.

The multinational business organizations who want to diversify their area of business in the world has now started to specialize their employees in the cross cultural communication skills because they have come to know that it is inevitable for those who want to achieve higher goals in the changing field of the global business. So many high class business professional from various business centers of the world meet each other to discuss the matter of diversification of their business areas. For this purpose currently the organizations are using interpreters who has specialized and in various languages of the world. To meet this requirements there are agencies who can supply the interpreters of various languages to the organizations of the world.

The facilities of the intercultural communication skills are developed to an extent, it is not sufficient according to the requirements. So the same has to be modernized too much in the global business.