25 January 2022
Have you ever thought about the complexity of intercultural and international work?
Perhaps the plethora of advantages comes to mind when you think about working with people from a different country as your own. At Taste of Malawi we get to experience the highs and lows, but mainly highs, of having part of our team in a completely different country and continent.
The struggles, or opportunities, we face come down to communication. Not only language skills, but also confidence when it comes to speaking to people from a completely different background as your own. English, being the global language that it is, is the Lingua Franca for us at Taster of Malawi; but mind you, English is not the native language in Germany or Malawi, so naturally, we face language barriers. Speaking to people in a language that is not your native language, creates its own insecurities. When you add social, economic, and educational levels to the picture, communication may seem close to impossible, but it is not! We strive to conquer these hurdles during each and every one of our communication interactions.
On the other side of the picture, we get to enjoy the plethora of advantages that come with intercultural and international work. For example, we gain lifelong skill sets that are extremely advantageous with cross-cultural communication. We learn about life in Malawi, and our students in Malawi learn about aspects of life in Germany. We tackle difficult issues like racism, discuss how that plays a role in our communication, and what we can do to make sure everyone at Taste of Malawi feels supported and accepted. As they say, communication is key, so we want to use this international work environment to our advantage and build communication skills.
What are your thoughts on international or intercultural working environments? Do you have any experience with this topic? We would love to hear from you in the comments or DMs!
We are excited to have a new #FacesOfTom interview soon. Are you curious? If you have any questions for the Offsite team, we are always happy to include them in our interviews. Just drop us a line on our social media. See you soon!
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