Hey guys,
Thursday night is our Choir Rehearsal. In every choir member's pigeon hole are 20 or more song sheets. Of the 20, we usually practice about a dozen. So, 15 minutes before the rehearsal starts, all members have to arrange the song sheets based on what the choir conductor is planning to have us sing that night.
One Thursday, as we were sorting our individual song sheets, a Caucasian guy sitting near me was having problem looking for one of the songs. He was about to give up, when I stood up to help. The song sheet was right on his nose, on top of the others song sheets, which he placed aside. I said, "Be thankful that I have a broad nose!" and we all laughed our hearts out.
Now, listen to this very brief You Tube clip on Carlos Mencia's humor on the Filipinos. (Oh, sorry guys, when I checked it on You Tube again, the clip was deleted.)
However, if you would still like to listen to it, check it out by entering on search, video detective:Carlos Mencia in The Best of Funny is Funky Scene.
Anyway, Carlos Mencia's joke was like this:
Filipinos!
What's your name? (Talking to a Filipino in the audience)
John. (The guy's response)
What are the original Filipino names? You don't know? Is your father from the Philippines? Does your father still not pronounce the /f/?
(The audience laughs)
No, people from the Philippines have no /f/ in their vocabulary. So, that's why when you ask them, they'll say, "I'm prom the Pilippines!"
(The audience laughs)
Carlos humor is based on truth. However, would you find it funny if you are a Filipino?
Would you still consider it funny if you'd know that Carlos Mencia is Latino? (Yes, his father is Honduran; his mother is Mexican.)
Kindly write me your thoughts, either right under this blog or through my email, edMindustan@gmail.com. I would like to have a hearty discussion on joking-down and joking-up on one's identity and what it's got to do with "being comfortable in your own skin".
Have a good weekend, guys.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
SUPPORTING CLIPS ON PAST COMMUNICATION BLOGS
Hi guys,
I hope you're not tired yet of reading a blog on the barriers to effective cross-cultural communication.
Now, here are three clips from You Tube, which I would like you to see.
Again, these clips prove our points in previous blogs.
Employees of call centers usually follow a script when interacting with clients. The script, which is a coherent sequence of events that they expect to follow, seemingly makes their job easy. Having a script allow them to become more conscious of their diction (slang as many non-native English speakers erroneously calls it).
Nevertheless, there comes a time when relying in script does not help at all. Second clip proves that. The agent tried to follow the script;however, the client doesn't want to. The client has been frustrated. The client wanted to have an immediate solution to his problem. It is in this scenario that the work in a call center doesn't look easy. Tension builds up, as a result, agents get's rattled. Agents become conscious of their behavior. At a call center, usually such behavior may generally be interpreted as your speech pattern. Agents, himself, becomes at the witting end of frustration. Slurs and other expletives could be thrown at each other. Composure would be out of line (clip #3). Unconsciously, non-native English agents would resort back to their normal diction, even hurl local expletives to a client.
According to Berger and Douglas (1982) these unconscious behavior may happen at these following scenario: 1) When a novel situation exist. 2) Where an external factors prevent completion of a script. 3) When scripted behavior becomes so difficult to enact. 4) When a discrepant outcome is experienced, or 5) When multiple scripts come into conflict.
Call center agents, therefore, cannot just rely on the script, which they learned and memorized during training. They have to learn the language and the culture of their clients by heart. The agent on clip#3 definitely might have thought that to be cute is the same as geniality. When the outcome was negative, he got rattled and ended up losing his "cool".
I hope that these clips would challenge those who are considering to in a call center to be seriously ready. Definitely, with the outsourcing of big industrial companies, more call center agents are needed. Are you ready?
I hope you're not tired yet of reading a blog on the barriers to effective cross-cultural communication.
Now, here are three clips from You Tube, which I would like you to see.
Again, these clips prove our points in previous blogs.
Employees of call centers usually follow a script when interacting with clients. The script, which is a coherent sequence of events that they expect to follow, seemingly makes their job easy. Having a script allow them to become more conscious of their diction (slang as many non-native English speakers erroneously calls it).
Nevertheless, there comes a time when relying in script does not help at all. Second clip proves that. The agent tried to follow the script;however, the client doesn't want to. The client has been frustrated. The client wanted to have an immediate solution to his problem. It is in this scenario that the work in a call center doesn't look easy. Tension builds up, as a result, agents get's rattled. Agents become conscious of their behavior. At a call center, usually such behavior may generally be interpreted as your speech pattern. Agents, himself, becomes at the witting end of frustration. Slurs and other expletives could be thrown at each other. Composure would be out of line (clip #3). Unconsciously, non-native English agents would resort back to their normal diction, even hurl local expletives to a client.
According to Berger and Douglas (1982) these unconscious behavior may happen at these following scenario: 1) When a novel situation exist. 2) Where an external factors prevent completion of a script. 3) When scripted behavior becomes so difficult to enact. 4) When a discrepant outcome is experienced, or 5) When multiple scripts come into conflict.
Call center agents, therefore, cannot just rely on the script, which they learned and memorized during training. They have to learn the language and the culture of their clients by heart. The agent on clip#3 definitely might have thought that to be cute is the same as geniality. When the outcome was negative, he got rattled and ended up losing his "cool".
I hope that these clips would challenge those who are considering to in a call center to be seriously ready. Definitely, with the outsourcing of big industrial companies, more call center agents are needed. Are you ready?
Monday, March 16, 2009
PRAISING ALL..: Featured Book in 9 Local Papers
"Haiku Verses Offer Inspiration", the title of Michelle J. Mills feature column on Pasadena Star News, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Whittier Daily News, and 5 other local papers here in So. California on Sunday, March 15th. Then, she opened her column with a question: "Need a snippet of inspiration or an entire book?"
Reading the words was a joy to me. Why? I tell you why. She was talking about my book, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, which has been in the market this month.
Ms. Mills article went on: "Praising All Seasons Long" offers both snippet of inspiration and a book as it is comprised of 145 haiku verses praising God and His gifts throughout the year.
It's true. PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, is a small gift book. It only has 56 pages, but it depicts different events from winter to fall. There are 3-line verses on the shedding of the leaves, the melting of the snow, the blooming of the flowers, the chirping of the birds, the celebration of the resurrection, the observance of Christ's death, the weddings in June, even of gnomes and leprechauns. Spring chapter has these two(2) verses:
Welcome, weather spring
Hot and cold, tornadoes scare.
We are in God's care.
Life springs up so fast.
Wonder how it comes about?
Miracle and love!
Then, as if Ms. Mills thought that I wasn't satisfied already with what she printed, she sent me an email to affirm that her review was honest and sincere. Here's the portion of it:
...I shared your book with my mother and she loved it so
much that she asked to hold on to it for a while. She wants to read
your poetry to one of her friends who is losing her sight. She hopes
it will provide her with inspiration and encouragement.
Thank you,
Michelle
Certainly, I was overjoyed. Nevertheless, I have to give the honor to God. The idea of this book was all coming from Him. I also was having problem at the time God had me wrote the verses. It was a therapy. It was a healing balm. I even didn't know what I was writing when I first got up that night. I was in tears. It was my first time to hold a pen for serious writing after almost three (3) months. Just before I finished writing the last few verses, all my body pain were gone. Joy had shown in my face. I started doing my long distance run again. I was completely healed. PTL!
If you would like to read more of the story behind the writing of PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, kindly visit my new Facebook publisher page, Edmund Melig Industan. I hope and pray that may these haiku verses be a blessing not only to me, but to all who have the chance to read them.
If you have friends and family members who need comfort and encouragement at this time of economic uncertainties, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG is a good gift book to share to them. Priced at $ 9.99, it is cheaper than a dozen roses. It is a good eternal investment.
PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG was published by Comfort Publishing. It can be ordered on Comfort Publishing fb page or online store. It also can be ordered through Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, and Target.
Reading the words was a joy to me. Why? I tell you why. She was talking about my book, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, which has been in the market this month.
Ms. Mills article went on: "Praising All Seasons Long" offers both snippet of inspiration and a book as it is comprised of 145 haiku verses praising God and His gifts throughout the year.
It's true. PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, is a small gift book. It only has 56 pages, but it depicts different events from winter to fall. There are 3-line verses on the shedding of the leaves, the melting of the snow, the blooming of the flowers, the chirping of the birds, the celebration of the resurrection, the observance of Christ's death, the weddings in June, even of gnomes and leprechauns. Spring chapter has these two(2) verses:
Welcome, weather spring
Hot and cold, tornadoes scare.
We are in God's care.
Life springs up so fast.
Wonder how it comes about?
Miracle and love!
Then, as if Ms. Mills thought that I wasn't satisfied already with what she printed, she sent me an email to affirm that her review was honest and sincere. Here's the portion of it:
...I shared your book with my mother and she loved it so
much that she asked to hold on to it for a while. She wants to read
your poetry to one of her friends who is losing her sight. She hopes
it will provide her with inspiration and encouragement.
Thank you,
Michelle
Certainly, I was overjoyed. Nevertheless, I have to give the honor to God. The idea of this book was all coming from Him. I also was having problem at the time God had me wrote the verses. It was a therapy. It was a healing balm. I even didn't know what I was writing when I first got up that night. I was in tears. It was my first time to hold a pen for serious writing after almost three (3) months. Just before I finished writing the last few verses, all my body pain were gone. Joy had shown in my face. I started doing my long distance run again. I was completely healed. PTL!
If you would like to read more of the story behind the writing of PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG, kindly visit my new Facebook publisher page, Edmund Melig Industan. I hope and pray that may these haiku verses be a blessing not only to me, but to all who have the chance to read them.
If you have friends and family members who need comfort and encouragement at this time of economic uncertainties, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG is a good gift book to share to them. Priced at $ 9.99, it is cheaper than a dozen roses. It is a good eternal investment.
PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG was published by Comfort Publishing. It can be ordered on Comfort Publishing fb page or online store. It also can be ordered through Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, and Target.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Attitude Affects Effective Cross-cultural Communication
Here's a clip from You Tube that summarizes the point I mentioned in my previous blogs. Hope you'll enjoy it.
I apologize for the cuss words. It is not my cup of tea, because I don't cuss at all. However, I decided to show the clip to bring home the message of my previous blogs. So now, we understand each other.
This clip from You Tube does not only tells us why we need to have clear diction and cultural knowledge, we also have to take very special consideration on the psychological aspect of communication across culture.
Psycholinguists and cognitive anthropologists point out that the way a person organizes his thoughts reflects on what he thinks about the world. A narrow-minded or conceited person would view the world through a small mirror, that how he/she would perceive the world and how he/she would put meaning into what he/she would see and hear would often times unwelcoming to others.
Definitely, such cognitive process would affect his/her attitude towards somebody and, ultimately, would translate to the tone of his/her voice. We don't need to read a book to be aware of this. We all have been victimized with this.
Probably those non-native English speakers, who now are employees of call centers, could attest that they have interacted with clients who cuss and use ethnophaulism. Ethnophaulism could either be name-calling or slur of ones nationality, explicit group devaluation, or disparaging nicknames. Others would slammed the phone at them. Actions like these are not only products of frustration and disgust. They also are a product of anger. Globalization have taken away some opportunities for their children, relatives, and friends to find jobs. Globalization has been giving them difficulty to immediately get their thoughts across, because those persons at the other end of the phones are having problem communicating with them. Instead of the "world getting smaller everyday", in terms of understanding and goodwill, the world has created a chasm of indifference.
Cases of anger and indifference always happen. The way to offset these could be the following: Swallow your pride and ignore those negative responses. Remember that your client has a different cultural and psychological make-up. Also, remember the maxim that a client is "always" right. So, don't hurl fire with fire. You'd get fired if you'd do that. Be patient. Don't take the negativity to heart. You'd get over it. If the client pauses, butt in by expressing an apology using your sweetest tone and clearer diction. Say the sentence normally; don't slow it down. Slowing the sentence down would aggravate your client all the more, because slowing down would mean that you are treating him like a stupid person. And I cannot reiterate this enough: Practice and more practice. Learn the culture and the language very well.
For those who are still preparing for a job, begin to double your effort to learn. Be serious with your studies. Realize that it is not only those who are preparing for a teaching job that need to communicate effectively. Everyone who would like to get a job needs to have a good command of the English language. It is your key to a successful job hunting and a joyous life.
I apologize for the cuss words. It is not my cup of tea, because I don't cuss at all. However, I decided to show the clip to bring home the message of my previous blogs. So now, we understand each other.
This clip from You Tube does not only tells us why we need to have clear diction and cultural knowledge, we also have to take very special consideration on the psychological aspect of communication across culture.
Psycholinguists and cognitive anthropologists point out that the way a person organizes his thoughts reflects on what he thinks about the world. A narrow-minded or conceited person would view the world through a small mirror, that how he/she would perceive the world and how he/she would put meaning into what he/she would see and hear would often times unwelcoming to others.
Definitely, such cognitive process would affect his/her attitude towards somebody and, ultimately, would translate to the tone of his/her voice. We don't need to read a book to be aware of this. We all have been victimized with this.
Probably those non-native English speakers, who now are employees of call centers, could attest that they have interacted with clients who cuss and use ethnophaulism. Ethnophaulism could either be name-calling or slur of ones nationality, explicit group devaluation, or disparaging nicknames. Others would slammed the phone at them. Actions like these are not only products of frustration and disgust. They also are a product of anger. Globalization have taken away some opportunities for their children, relatives, and friends to find jobs. Globalization has been giving them difficulty to immediately get their thoughts across, because those persons at the other end of the phones are having problem communicating with them. Instead of the "world getting smaller everyday", in terms of understanding and goodwill, the world has created a chasm of indifference.
Cases of anger and indifference always happen. The way to offset these could be the following: Swallow your pride and ignore those negative responses. Remember that your client has a different cultural and psychological make-up. Also, remember the maxim that a client is "always" right. So, don't hurl fire with fire. You'd get fired if you'd do that. Be patient. Don't take the negativity to heart. You'd get over it. If the client pauses, butt in by expressing an apology using your sweetest tone and clearer diction. Say the sentence normally; don't slow it down. Slowing the sentence down would aggravate your client all the more, because slowing down would mean that you are treating him like a stupid person. And I cannot reiterate this enough: Practice and more practice. Learn the culture and the language very well.
For those who are still preparing for a job, begin to double your effort to learn. Be serious with your studies. Realize that it is not only those who are preparing for a teaching job that need to communicate effectively. Everyone who would like to get a job needs to have a good command of the English language. It is your key to a successful job hunting and a joyous life.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Clear Diction and Tone: Essentials to Effective Communication
Thursday night is our Sanctuary Choir rehearsal. The 150 members, who are either music educators, music artists, former ministers of music, or members of the Los Angeles Opera Chorus, and a few, like me, ordinary singers, sang their hearts out as they learned 10 songs, from classics to Oratorio, from old hymns to contemporaries, and from English to German and Spanish.
You're asking for my qualifications for joining this group of professionals? Well, let me put it this way. I and a few others are the thorns in the bush. hehehe... Unfortunately, with my height, I have been assigned in the first center row...so conspicuous to thousands of church goers even with the presence of the church symphony orchestra; hence, I have to fake sometimes. When there's a grave at the very end of our song and I already run out of gas, I would just open my mouth as wide and beautiful, shape as precise as possible to the sound of the word, voiceless, just waiting for that kettle drum to be struck, so that I could change the placement of my lips to produce the last phone.
I actually know how to "sight read"; I know all those musical notations. Besides of my mom's guidance, while I still have runny nose, I attended a Bible College in the Philippines for a year, where I formally learned how to sing well. Now don't ask for more; otherwise, I would be telling you that I am a videoke addict and the neighbors' "grammy awardee". Honestly, I am just waiting for some rocks to rain over our rooftop. Those rocks would indicate that my neighbors are bestowing that laurel to another competing neighbor in our ghetto. hahaha..
Anyways, during rehearsals, the music director always reminds us on basic things so that we can effectively convey God's message through our songs.
Last week, our music director reminded us that an expert singer must have the following:
1) Clear diction
2) Beautiful Tone
3) Good Posture
4) Markings on his musical scores
5) Watches the conductor's directives
He reminded us that as singers, we are setting a tone, conveying a message, and expressing a feeling that would prepare the hearts and minds of the congregation to listen to the Word of God.
Now, what's this got to do with effective communication in a regular setting?
I just would like to emphasize that, if in a choir a clear diction, beautiful tone, and paying attention are very essential, it is far more important to apply these daily at our workplace.
The message, when talking over the phone, may be misconstrued if we don't have a clear diction. We have to pronounce those letters well, so as not to be misunderstood. Most of our church choir members are native English speakers and music professionals, and yet our music director cannot just have enough to pound our head to enunciate the words clearly. This Sunday, our song has a phrase, "All Christ is, He is within us". We were reminded, time and again, to produce the sound of /t/ final in "Christ", because we don't want to convey the message that "All cries is He is within us". See the difference? Omitting the /t/ final would completely send a wrong message. With a 50-man symphony orchestra providing the accompaniment, we have to produce /t/ as loud as we could. In fact, I am a little nervous on Sundays. I'm afraid that my denture would fall off and it would hit either one of the violinists or the pianist who are sitting and playing right in front of me. It would be a disaster. hehehe.
Beautiful tone must be emphasized even in our daily conversation. Definitely, the tone has something to do with ones culture. That's why we hear some people commenting that 'he/she talks like a chirping bird', or 'he/she talks like a drum'. Others are turn off immediately even before someone opens his/her mouth, because the tone of his/her voice doesn't appeal to them. We sometimes say that a person is mad, even if he/she is really not, just because he/she drops his/her words like a bomb, or he/she shouts every time he/she talks. Honestly, I often times have to remind myself to tone down my voice when talking. Sorry, it is cultural for me to talk loud. Consequently, I sometimes forget that in some societies, the tone will either give a "green or red signal". Am I a good person? Absolutely; however, those who are not used to my culture would think otherwise.
I know... I know...it's a little difficult to polish the manner of speaking that has been ingrained in our psyche since birth, but constant practice has been a big help to me. Why not try it? You would see the difference.
P.S
For those who already have bought my gift book, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG: Haiku Verses, I thank you very much.
Also, I found out that Barnes & Noble has posted that they're now out of stock. I believe you could still place a pre-order with them. However, if you would like to have your copy very soon, you could place your order on Amazon.com, Target.com, and to the publisher, Comfort Publishing online store. Those who are considering to get their copy, I thank you very much. "PRAISING..." is only $9.99, "KOILAWAN" is $ 13.99, but you can get a discounted price in some online outlets.
You're asking for my qualifications for joining this group of professionals? Well, let me put it this way. I and a few others are the thorns in the bush. hehehe... Unfortunately, with my height, I have been assigned in the first center row...so conspicuous to thousands of church goers even with the presence of the church symphony orchestra; hence, I have to fake sometimes. When there's a grave at the very end of our song and I already run out of gas, I would just open my mouth as wide and beautiful, shape as precise as possible to the sound of the word, voiceless, just waiting for that kettle drum to be struck, so that I could change the placement of my lips to produce the last phone.
I actually know how to "sight read"; I know all those musical notations. Besides of my mom's guidance, while I still have runny nose, I attended a Bible College in the Philippines for a year, where I formally learned how to sing well. Now don't ask for more; otherwise, I would be telling you that I am a videoke addict and the neighbors' "grammy awardee". Honestly, I am just waiting for some rocks to rain over our rooftop. Those rocks would indicate that my neighbors are bestowing that laurel to another competing neighbor in our ghetto. hahaha..
Anyways, during rehearsals, the music director always reminds us on basic things so that we can effectively convey God's message through our songs.
Last week, our music director reminded us that an expert singer must have the following:
1) Clear diction
2) Beautiful Tone
3) Good Posture
4) Markings on his musical scores
5) Watches the conductor's directives
He reminded us that as singers, we are setting a tone, conveying a message, and expressing a feeling that would prepare the hearts and minds of the congregation to listen to the Word of God.
Now, what's this got to do with effective communication in a regular setting?
I just would like to emphasize that, if in a choir a clear diction, beautiful tone, and paying attention are very essential, it is far more important to apply these daily at our workplace.
The message, when talking over the phone, may be misconstrued if we don't have a clear diction. We have to pronounce those letters well, so as not to be misunderstood. Most of our church choir members are native English speakers and music professionals, and yet our music director cannot just have enough to pound our head to enunciate the words clearly. This Sunday, our song has a phrase, "All Christ is, He is within us". We were reminded, time and again, to produce the sound of /t/ final in "Christ", because we don't want to convey the message that "All cries is He is within us". See the difference? Omitting the /t/ final would completely send a wrong message. With a 50-man symphony orchestra providing the accompaniment, we have to produce /t/ as loud as we could. In fact, I am a little nervous on Sundays. I'm afraid that my denture would fall off and it would hit either one of the violinists or the pianist who are sitting and playing right in front of me. It would be a disaster. hehehe.
Beautiful tone must be emphasized even in our daily conversation. Definitely, the tone has something to do with ones culture. That's why we hear some people commenting that 'he/she talks like a chirping bird', or 'he/she talks like a drum'. Others are turn off immediately even before someone opens his/her mouth, because the tone of his/her voice doesn't appeal to them. We sometimes say that a person is mad, even if he/she is really not, just because he/she drops his/her words like a bomb, or he/she shouts every time he/she talks. Honestly, I often times have to remind myself to tone down my voice when talking. Sorry, it is cultural for me to talk loud. Consequently, I sometimes forget that in some societies, the tone will either give a "green or red signal". Am I a good person? Absolutely; however, those who are not used to my culture would think otherwise.
I know... I know...it's a little difficult to polish the manner of speaking that has been ingrained in our psyche since birth, but constant practice has been a big help to me. Why not try it? You would see the difference.
P.S
For those who already have bought my gift book, PRAISING ALL SEASONS LONG: Haiku Verses, I thank you very much.
Also, I found out that Barnes & Noble has posted that they're now out of stock. I believe you could still place a pre-order with them. However, if you would like to have your copy very soon, you could place your order on Amazon.com, Target.com, and to the publisher, Comfort Publishing online store. Those who are considering to get their copy, I thank you very much. "PRAISING..." is only $9.99, "KOILAWAN" is $ 13.99, but you can get a discounted price in some online outlets.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Language & Culture: Essential for Effective Communication
An Asian crooner was just picked up by her host at the Los Angeles International Airport. Feeling tired and sleepy, she decided to pass, when her host invited her to come with them to their concert. Just as her hosts left, the telephone rang. She picked it up.
"Hello! This is the coroner speaking," she said thinking that it was her host calling.(She had that nickname, because she used to sing in a small bar.)
"Hi,", a woman's voice answered. "May I talk to Tommy?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, mom, but Tommy just pass away."
"WHAT?" Shocked, the woman asked. "What about Linda?"
"I'm sorry, mom, Linda also pass away."
"You mean, my daughter also passed?"
"Yes, mom. They have a cancer."
"WHAT? May I know again who is talking?"
"This is Alona, the coroner.
********
An absolute mess. Certainly, the guest meant it well, but the message was not communicated well. Now, put yourself in the shoes of Linda's mom. How would you feel?
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis theorized that language is not only a tool to express ideas, it is itself the shaper of ideas. We express and shape ideas based on our culture and language ability. Definitely, Linda's mom was devastated after that short conversation.
What about when you are manning a call center? The call center agent interacts with a stranger everyday. Yes, he/she had a month of intensive training, but it certainly was not enough to know everything. And I am pretty sure, the trainer (hopefully a native English speaker or if not, has lived and interacted for many years with a native English speaker)have not taught them everything. The would-be agent must keep on practicing and learning the English language and the culture of his/her clients.
I will give myself as a case in point. My mother tongue or first language is Binukid, which is an indigenous language. My second language is Binisaya, which is also the lingua franca in southern Philippines. My third is Tagalog, which is the Philippine national language that I learned from school. My fourth is English, which I also learned alongside with Tagalog. So, I linguistically grew up with only four vocoids: /a/,/i/,/u/, and /e/. The sound of my /e/ is like that of /oo/ in "book"; however, when I produced the sound, my lips are unrounded. Instead, I produced /e/ with my mouth slightly stretch sideways, like posing a trace of a smile.
The sounds of my consonants are produced pretty much the same as in any other Philippine languages. Unlike in English, I produced my /t/ with the tip of my tongue touching the front of my palette, and voiced, not at the back of my teeth, and voiceless. Unlike in English, I produced my /d/ with the tip of my tongue touching the mid-section of my palette and voiced, not touching the back of my teeth, and voiced.
With such pronunciation used from childhood to college, it was a painstaking effort for me to unlearn and relearn. I felt bad that my English teachers from elementary to high school did not teach the proper English pronunciation, while my tongue was still soft and supple. I felt real bad, because my English Communication college professor, who earned his English degree from a very reputable private university in Manila, did not meticulously and exaggeratedly teach the class on phonics. All the while, I thought that my English was okay, because I was getting "A's" and "A minuses" in my English courses.(Definitely, my English, when written, was alright. Unfortunately, writing is different from speaking.)
I realized my shortcoming in the English language, when I took Orthography and Phonology courses in my graduate studies in applied linguistics. Slowly, but surely, my pitfall began to unravel. Often times, I stirred misconception and I vehemently reacted to the culture of my Australian colleague. In fact, I have been feeling embarrassed to say that I have caused them to end their work in southern Philippines 25 years ago after I wrote a despicable letter in reaction to one natural, idiomatically correct, English statement. I was very close to this couple. Matter of fact, they were one of my wedding sponsors. And I blew away my relationship with them. I ended their love to live and work in southern Philippines.
I have to unlearn my "carabao English". Sorry for the description. I don't want to label it as a "Filipino English", because there are Filipinos, who have been trained to speak the English language properly even when they were still in their mom's belly.
I have to learn the proper production of my vowel and consonant sounds. And, oh boy, despite several applied linguistic courses in graduate school, I didn't learn the proper English pronunciation overnight. Quite frankly, traces of my "carabao English pronunciation" still lingers unwittingly sometimes. That said, I still practice. My wife and my grandchildren still see me learning the nasal twang as I watch, listen, and mimic my favorite TV personalities. I still am learning.
I hope those call center aspirants, who are non-native English speakers, will do the same. Well, they have to double their effort, because they don't rub elbows with native English speakers most of the day. Nevertheless, they should not be discouraged. Just keep on learning both the English language and the culture. Practice, practice, practice! Exaggerate, exaggerate, exaggerate! Use the English language when talking either to yourself or friends. Definitely, you have to speak English to your teachers. Ignore those who laugh at you and label you as "trying hard" or "keeping up with the Joneses". You need it when applying for a job that requires a good command of English.
"Hello! This is the coroner speaking," she said thinking that it was her host calling.(She had that nickname, because she used to sing in a small bar.)
"Hi,", a woman's voice answered. "May I talk to Tommy?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, mom, but Tommy just pass away."
"WHAT?" Shocked, the woman asked. "What about Linda?"
"I'm sorry, mom, Linda also pass away."
"You mean, my daughter also passed?"
"Yes, mom. They have a cancer."
"WHAT? May I know again who is talking?"
"This is Alona, the coroner.
********
An absolute mess. Certainly, the guest meant it well, but the message was not communicated well. Now, put yourself in the shoes of Linda's mom. How would you feel?
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis theorized that language is not only a tool to express ideas, it is itself the shaper of ideas. We express and shape ideas based on our culture and language ability. Definitely, Linda's mom was devastated after that short conversation.
What about when you are manning a call center? The call center agent interacts with a stranger everyday. Yes, he/she had a month of intensive training, but it certainly was not enough to know everything. And I am pretty sure, the trainer (hopefully a native English speaker or if not, has lived and interacted for many years with a native English speaker)have not taught them everything. The would-be agent must keep on practicing and learning the English language and the culture of his/her clients.
I will give myself as a case in point. My mother tongue or first language is Binukid, which is an indigenous language. My second language is Binisaya, which is also the lingua franca in southern Philippines. My third is Tagalog, which is the Philippine national language that I learned from school. My fourth is English, which I also learned alongside with Tagalog. So, I linguistically grew up with only four vocoids: /a/,/i/,/u/, and /e/. The sound of my /e/ is like that of /oo/ in "book"; however, when I produced the sound, my lips are unrounded. Instead, I produced /e/ with my mouth slightly stretch sideways, like posing a trace of a smile.
The sounds of my consonants are produced pretty much the same as in any other Philippine languages. Unlike in English, I produced my /t/ with the tip of my tongue touching the front of my palette, and voiced, not at the back of my teeth, and voiceless. Unlike in English, I produced my /d/ with the tip of my tongue touching the mid-section of my palette and voiced, not touching the back of my teeth, and voiced.
With such pronunciation used from childhood to college, it was a painstaking effort for me to unlearn and relearn. I felt bad that my English teachers from elementary to high school did not teach the proper English pronunciation, while my tongue was still soft and supple. I felt real bad, because my English Communication college professor, who earned his English degree from a very reputable private university in Manila, did not meticulously and exaggeratedly teach the class on phonics. All the while, I thought that my English was okay, because I was getting "A's" and "A minuses" in my English courses.(Definitely, my English, when written, was alright. Unfortunately, writing is different from speaking.)
I realized my shortcoming in the English language, when I took Orthography and Phonology courses in my graduate studies in applied linguistics. Slowly, but surely, my pitfall began to unravel. Often times, I stirred misconception and I vehemently reacted to the culture of my Australian colleague. In fact, I have been feeling embarrassed to say that I have caused them to end their work in southern Philippines 25 years ago after I wrote a despicable letter in reaction to one natural, idiomatically correct, English statement. I was very close to this couple. Matter of fact, they were one of my wedding sponsors. And I blew away my relationship with them. I ended their love to live and work in southern Philippines.
I have to unlearn my "carabao English". Sorry for the description. I don't want to label it as a "Filipino English", because there are Filipinos, who have been trained to speak the English language properly even when they were still in their mom's belly.
I have to learn the proper production of my vowel and consonant sounds. And, oh boy, despite several applied linguistic courses in graduate school, I didn't learn the proper English pronunciation overnight. Quite frankly, traces of my "carabao English pronunciation" still lingers unwittingly sometimes. That said, I still practice. My wife and my grandchildren still see me learning the nasal twang as I watch, listen, and mimic my favorite TV personalities. I still am learning.
I hope those call center aspirants, who are non-native English speakers, will do the same. Well, they have to double their effort, because they don't rub elbows with native English speakers most of the day. Nevertheless, they should not be discouraged. Just keep on learning both the English language and the culture. Practice, practice, practice! Exaggerate, exaggerate, exaggerate! Use the English language when talking either to yourself or friends. Definitely, you have to speak English to your teachers. Ignore those who laugh at you and label you as "trying hard" or "keeping up with the Joneses". You need it when applying for a job that requires a good command of English.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
On Call Centers and Effective English Communication:
Yesterday, I was surfing again hoping to find more websites and blogs with the song,"Bukidnon, My Home". While doing so, I happened to see a blog on the need for more call center employees. With economic crunch and company downsizing, posting of job is what our society needs.
I scrolled down to read some of the feedback and comments. Instead of comments, I saw resume, request for the agency's address, and messages with an intention to apply. I sympathized with those who left messages, because I read desperation. I also felt sad, because I saw proofs why those who were needing the job would never be hired.
Communication is getting one's idea across verbally or non-verbally. We communicate not only through a spoken language, but also through body stance, gesture, and tone of voice. All these have to be taken into serious consideration if we wanted to communicate effectively, especially to strangers.
One component of communication effectiveness is cognition. Cognition involves the manner in which we process and disseminate information and the knowledge we have about the stranger's culture. Therefore, cognitive process involves description, interpretation, and evaluation. And to effectively describe, interpret, and evaluate is to learn the language and the culture of the person that we are communicating with.
In a call center, body stance and gesture are not necessary; however, the spoken language ( in most cases, the English language) and the tone of voice, plus the knowledge of the client's culture, are a must. So, if somebody would like to work as a call center agent, he or she should try his/her very best to impress the would-be employer that he/she could execute the job very well.
Definitely, a call center is looking for workers who have good command of the English language. Applicants need not have a perfect English, because there is no such thing as perfect English. In the U.S.of A., many are using double negatives. For example, " I am not doing that, no more." Also, subject-verb disagreement is very common. For example, "They was here a minute ago." Accented English is very common, too. Accent of Texans is different from the Californians; accent of Tennesseans is different from Texans. However, once an American moves to another state, he/she tries to adapt the accent of his/her host. How? They try his/her best to reduce the nuances of his/her accent. This certainly is for the purpose of effective communication. Let me emphasize, though, that there is what we call informal and formal English; street or schooled English, and native-born and foreign-accented English. So, which one would you think is best for a call center agent? The answer, most definitely, is a good command of formal and educated English, with reduced traces of foreign accents.
I was disappointed that almost all those messages posted on that call center blog did not meet the requirements.
Here are some pieces of advice:
1) I encourage non-native English speakers to read, read, and read English books and magazines. Put away vernacular books and magazines for some time (Bisaya, Liwayway, etc.) and read more English books. Reading books is a big help to minimize subject-verb disagreements, dangling sentences, etc.
2) I also encourage them to tune in to TV channels with native English speakers or radio programs (Voice of America or BBC, for example)and, while they listen to that native English speaker, they should try to mimic and emulate the accent or the tone of that speaker's voice. Be keen when listening to and producing those diphthongs (long e's, short e's, oi, the schwa sound, etc.). For consonants, please pay attention particularly the beginning and final. Like vowels, consonants can be produced properly by the placement of your lips and tongue. For example, /b/ which is bilabial plosive can be produced properly by having your lower and upper lips touch each other before you let out that booming sound. Phonic /v/ can be produced by having your upper teeth touch your lower lip before you let out the sound. Produce the sound /t/ by placing the tip of your tongue at the back of your teeth before you say the letter.
3) English teachers must emphasize the importance of teeth, lips, tongue, palate, and glottis when teaching phonics to their students.
4) And students or parents, you should demand a good English teacher from the school administrator. This does not mean a charismatic or likable teacher. I mean a teacher, who knows the craft. English teachers with good command of the language, both in grammar, phonics, and accent reduction, are not only a must in college, they are a must in elementary grades, because that's where the language learning has to start.
Remember, it is not only a good command of grammar that a call center needs; a good pronunciation is also very much needed. Once you have the confidence in your grammar and phonics, reduction of foreign diction and accent will be as easy as eating an apple pie.
5) PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. EXAGGERATE, EXAGGERATE, EXAGGERATE. Twist, stretch, and curl that tongue to the max.
6) AND PLEASE LEARN TO ELIMINATE CODE-SWITCHING, when speaking. Using English as your initial phrase and completing the sentence in vernacular, or vice versa (code-switching), will not do you any good. It would become your habit; it would prevent you from speaking English fluently; it surely would be a dead-end in getting that job in any call center.
I scrolled down to read some of the feedback and comments. Instead of comments, I saw resume, request for the agency's address, and messages with an intention to apply. I sympathized with those who left messages, because I read desperation. I also felt sad, because I saw proofs why those who were needing the job would never be hired.
Communication is getting one's idea across verbally or non-verbally. We communicate not only through a spoken language, but also through body stance, gesture, and tone of voice. All these have to be taken into serious consideration if we wanted to communicate effectively, especially to strangers.
One component of communication effectiveness is cognition. Cognition involves the manner in which we process and disseminate information and the knowledge we have about the stranger's culture. Therefore, cognitive process involves description, interpretation, and evaluation. And to effectively describe, interpret, and evaluate is to learn the language and the culture of the person that we are communicating with.
In a call center, body stance and gesture are not necessary; however, the spoken language ( in most cases, the English language) and the tone of voice, plus the knowledge of the client's culture, are a must. So, if somebody would like to work as a call center agent, he or she should try his/her very best to impress the would-be employer that he/she could execute the job very well.
Definitely, a call center is looking for workers who have good command of the English language. Applicants need not have a perfect English, because there is no such thing as perfect English. In the U.S.of A., many are using double negatives. For example, " I am not doing that, no more." Also, subject-verb disagreement is very common. For example, "They was here a minute ago." Accented English is very common, too. Accent of Texans is different from the Californians; accent of Tennesseans is different from Texans. However, once an American moves to another state, he/she tries to adapt the accent of his/her host. How? They try his/her best to reduce the nuances of his/her accent. This certainly is for the purpose of effective communication. Let me emphasize, though, that there is what we call informal and formal English; street or schooled English, and native-born and foreign-accented English. So, which one would you think is best for a call center agent? The answer, most definitely, is a good command of formal and educated English, with reduced traces of foreign accents.
I was disappointed that almost all those messages posted on that call center blog did not meet the requirements.
Here are some pieces of advice:
1) I encourage non-native English speakers to read, read, and read English books and magazines. Put away vernacular books and magazines for some time (Bisaya, Liwayway, etc.) and read more English books. Reading books is a big help to minimize subject-verb disagreements, dangling sentences, etc.
2) I also encourage them to tune in to TV channels with native English speakers or radio programs (Voice of America or BBC, for example)and, while they listen to that native English speaker, they should try to mimic and emulate the accent or the tone of that speaker's voice. Be keen when listening to and producing those diphthongs (long e's, short e's, oi, the schwa sound, etc.). For consonants, please pay attention particularly the beginning and final. Like vowels, consonants can be produced properly by the placement of your lips and tongue. For example, /b/ which is bilabial plosive can be produced properly by having your lower and upper lips touch each other before you let out that booming sound. Phonic /v/ can be produced by having your upper teeth touch your lower lip before you let out the sound. Produce the sound /t/ by placing the tip of your tongue at the back of your teeth before you say the letter.
3) English teachers must emphasize the importance of teeth, lips, tongue, palate, and glottis when teaching phonics to their students.
4) And students or parents, you should demand a good English teacher from the school administrator. This does not mean a charismatic or likable teacher. I mean a teacher, who knows the craft. English teachers with good command of the language, both in grammar, phonics, and accent reduction, are not only a must in college, they are a must in elementary grades, because that's where the language learning has to start.
Remember, it is not only a good command of grammar that a call center needs; a good pronunciation is also very much needed. Once you have the confidence in your grammar and phonics, reduction of foreign diction and accent will be as easy as eating an apple pie.
5) PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. EXAGGERATE, EXAGGERATE, EXAGGERATE. Twist, stretch, and curl that tongue to the max.
6) AND PLEASE LEARN TO ELIMINATE CODE-SWITCHING, when speaking. Using English as your initial phrase and completing the sentence in vernacular, or vice versa (code-switching), will not do you any good. It would become your habit; it would prevent you from speaking English fluently; it surely would be a dead-end in getting that job in any call center.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
