http://www.today-magazine.

com/lifestyles/dealing-differentpersonality-types-workplace/
working in an office environment (or any type of workplace really) means
having to deal with all different kinds of people; and sometimes getting
along with all of them can be a bit of a challenge, and when people are
hard to deal with, it can lead to slower productivity and missed deadlines.

Different people need to be dealt with in different ways and as individuals;

you would deal differently with a touchy-feely person, than you would with
a no-nonsense type of person.

What follows are some tips on how to deal with all different personality types.
Find out how other people like to work and adapt accordingly
If someone would rather be emailed than have you stop by his or her office,
or vice versa, take note. Do what you can to not interrupt other peoples
processes (when it can be avoided) and you will be looked at as a team
player. Find out what personality types people have, and adapt your behavior
towards them accordingly.
Everything is not a battle
When you make the decision to engage in a workplace conflict, it causes
work to get delayed and people to become stressed. You need to decide what
your priorities are, and let all the other things go. Not everything has to be a
battle, and you need to figure out when you should push something and
when you should let it go.
Realize that everyone is in this together
Different personalities can be great for a workplace because it allows there to
be many different opinions and ideas. Its just important to remember that
everyone is working towards the same thing: the success of the company. Its
ok for people to be passionate and have opinions about work; it means they
care.
Be prepared
For the most part, people will repeat patterns and behave predictably. If you
can prepare yourself with a response to a certain behavior, youve won half
the battle. Play out the situation in your mind or with a friend, and come up
with a solution that will resolve the issue in a mature and rational way.

Dont take it to heart

More often than not, people act the way they do because of something
personal that is going on with them. The same thing goes for difficult coworkers. It likely doesnt have much to do with you, even though it may feel
that way. It doesnt excuse bad behavior, but it can help to explain why it
may be happening. Find some common ground somewhere with them,
something that will at the very least help you to exist together civilly.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Above all, most people just want to know they are being heard. People have
different areas of expertise, thats the value of working on a team. One
person cant know it all or do it all, so everyone needs to respect each others
strengths, ask others for input and work together.

Different Countries,
Different Work Cultures
https://www.credit-suisse.com/us/en/articles/articles/news-andexpertise/2014/04/en/different-countries-different-work-cultures.html

As globalization advances, it is becoming increasingly

important to understand how working cultures differ.
Is this the wonderful new global business world that we've heard so much
about? Where every manager uses the same electronic tools and the same
English acronyms? Where everyone thinks alike and wears the same
clothing brands? Far from it. Cultural differences are as large as they ever
were, and as the world becomes increasingly "flat," their importance is
growing. With globalization leading to more interactions among cultures, it
is crucial to be familiar with the preferences and behavioral patterns of your
boss, your colleagues, your subordinates particularly when those
individuals come from a different continent.


If we are aware of those differences, we will be able to take advantage of
each culture's strengths. Efficiency, for example, requires a high degree of
hierarchy, while flat hierarchies are important for innovation. If every culture
had the same set of values, we would inevitably lose variety, and it is
variety that gives us the strength to adapt to new situations and to find
entirely new solutions.

cultural configurations

Work with people from different countries or

diverse cultures
http://nos.ukces.org.uk/PublishedNos/CFAIWS7.pdf

Knowledge and understanding

how your use of language, body language, gestures and tone of voice may
appear to people from different countries or diverse cultures and how theirs may
affect your perceptions of them
ways to minimise () misunderstanding and improve communication
with people with a different first language to you (for example taking the time to
listen closely to what they are really saying, learning the conventions for
introductions and greetings, not using your own fluency as a way to overpower
others, learning some simple phrases in their language, gesturing, avoiding
idioms, explaining acronyms, using pictures and diagrams, learning their
language.)
the challenges in communicating with people from another culture who
share the same first language with you. (for example differences in vocabulary,
spelling, accent, expressions and directness.)

that people from different countries or diverse cultures will have different
attitudes, expectations and service ethics than those you are used to. (for
example different timekeeping, timescales, decision-making processes,
perceptions of status and role, attitudes to men and women, communication
styles and conventions, business relationships, business meeting conventions,
attitudes to emotion, levels of hierarchy and formality.)

H O W D O YO U L E A R N A B O U T P E O P L E ' S C U LT U R E S ?
H O W D O YO U B U I L D R E L AT I O N S H I P S W I T H P E O P L E
F R O M O T H E R C U LT U R E S ?
http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/culture/culturalcompetence/building-relationships/main

Relationships are powerful. Our one-to-one connections with each other

are the foundation for change. And building relationships with people from
different cultures, often many different cultures, is key in building diverse
communities that are powerful enough to achieve significant goals.
there is a good chance you will need to work with people from several
different racial, language, ethnic, or economic groups. And in order to
work with people from different cultural groups effectively, you will need
to build sturdy and caring relationships based on trust, understanding,
and shared goals.

Why? Because trusting relationships are the glue that hold people
together as they work on a common problem. As people work on
challenging problems, they will have to hang in there together when
things get hard. They will have to support each other to stay with an
effort, even when it feels discouraging. People will have to resist the
efforts of those who use divide-and-conquer techniques--pitting one
cultural group against another.
Whether you are Vietnamese, African American, Caucasian Protestant,
Irish Catholic, Jewish, or from any other racial, ethnic, religious, or
socioeconomic group, you will probably need to establish relationships
with people whose group you may know very little about.

HOW DO YOU LEARN ABOUT PEOPLE'S

CULTURES?
S TA RT BY B E C O M I N G AWA R E O F YO U R O W N C U LT U R E .
It may seem odd that in order to learn about people in other cultures, we
start by becoming more aware of our own culture. But we believe this is
true. Why?
If you haven't had a chance to understand how your culture has affected
you first hand, it's more difficult to understand how it could affect anyone
else or why it might be important to them. If you are comfortable talking
about your own culture, then you will become better at listening to others
talk about theirs. Or, if you understand how discrimination has affected
you, then you may be more aware of how it has affected others.
Here are some tips on how to becoming more aware of your own culture:

W H AT I S YO U R C U LT U R E ?
Do you have a culture? Do you have more than one? What is your cultural
background?

Even if you don't know who your ancestors are, you have a culture. Even if
you are a mix of many cultures, you have one. Culture evolves and
changes all the time. It came from your ancestors from many generations
ago, and it comes from your family and community today.
For example, if you are Irish American, your culture has probably
influenced your life. You parents or grandparents almost certainly handed
down values, customs, humor, and world views that played a role in
shaping your growing-up environment and your life today. Perhaps your
views towards family, work, health and disease, celebrations, and social
issues are influenced by your Irish heritage or by the experiences your
family had when they immigrated to the U.S.
In addition to the cultural groups we belong to, we also each have groups
we identify with, such as being a parent, an athlete, an immigrant, a small
business owner, or a wage worker. These kinds of groups, although not
exactly the same as a culture, have similarities to cultural groups. For
example, being a parent or and an immigrant may be an identity that
influences how you view the world and how the world views you.
Becoming aware of your different identities can help you understand what
it might be like to belong to a cultural group.

HOW DO YOU BUILD REL ATIONSHIPS WITH

PEOPLE FROM OTHER CULTURES?
Make a conscious decision to establish friendships with people
from other cultures
Conscious
Making a decision is the first step. In order to build relationships with
people different from yourself, you have to make a concerted effort to do
so. There are societal forces that serve to separate us from each other.
People from different economic groups, religions, ethnic groups, and races
are often isolated from each other in schools, jobs, and neighborhoods. So,
if we want things to be different, we need to take active steps to make
them different.
Put yourself in situations where you will meet people of other
cultures; especially if you haven't had the experience of being a
minority, take the risk.
One of the first and most important steps is to show up in places where
you will meet people of cultures other than your own. Go to meetings and
celebrations of groups whose members you want to get to know. Or hang
out in restaurants and other gathering places that different cultural groups
go. You may feel embarrassed or shy at first, but your efforts will pay off.
People of a cultural group will notice if you take the risk of coming to one
of their events. If it is difficult for you to be the only person like yourself
attending, you can bring a buddy with you and support each other in
making friends.
Ask people questions about their cultures, customs, and views
People, for the most part, want to be asked questions about their lives and
their cultures. Many of us were told that asking questions was nosy; but if
we are thoughtful, asking questions can help you learn about people of
different cultures and help build relationships. People are usually
pleasantly surprised when others show interest in their cultures. If you are
sincere and you can listen, people will tell you a lot.
For example, you might ask a person of African heritage if they want to be
called, Black or African-American. Or you can ask a Jewish person what it
is like for them at Christmas time when practically every store, TV
commercial, and radio station focuses almost entirely on Christmas.
Read about other people's cultures and histories

It helps to read about and learn about people's cultures and histories. If
you know something about the reality of someone's life and history, it
shows that you care enough to take the time to find out about it. It also
gives you background information that will make it easier to ask questions
that make sense.
However, you don't have to be an expert on someone's culture to get to
know them or to ask questions. People who are, themselves, from a
culture are usually the best experts, anyway.

Don't forget to care and show caring

It is easy to forget that the basis of any relationship is caring. Everyone
wants to care and be cared about. Caring about people is what makes a
relationship real. Don't let your awkwardness around cultural differences
get in the way of caring about people.
Listen to people tell their stories
If you get an opportunity to hear someone tell you her life story first hand,
you can learn a lot--and build a strong relationship at the same
time. Every person has an important story to tell. Each person's story tells
something about their culture.

Examine your biases about people from other cultures.

Biases
Stereotypes

We all carry misinformation and stereotypes about people in different

cultures. Especially, when we are young, we acquire this information in
bits and pieces from TV, from listening to people talk, and from the culture
at large. We are not bad people because we acquired this; no one
requested to be misinformed. But in order to build relationships with

people of different cultures, we have to become aware of the

misinformation we acquired.
Another way to become aware of stereotypes is to talk about them with
people who have similar cultures to your own. In such settings you can
talk about the misinformation you acquired without being offensive to
people from a particular group. You can get together with a friend or two
and talk about how you acquired stereotypes or fears of other different
people.

Motivating Employees from Other Cultures

Differences in cultural values require extra skill when attempting to motivate changes
in behavior. Managers need to accurately interpret the situation and design a
strategy that fits an individual's values and needs. This process is fairly
straightforward when working with people of similar backgrounds, but is much more
difficult when attempting to understand and motivate employees whose values and
backgrounds may be different from your own.
The three steps listed below will help you design motivation strategies that are
culturally-aware and, therefore, useful in your efforts to maintain a harmonious and
productive multicultural workplace.
Get an Accurate Interpretation

Effective behavior change begins with accurately interpreting why an individual is

involved in undesired behavior. Understanding why a person behaves in a particular
way makes it easier to modify that behavior. For example, it is common for managers
to misinterpret the speaking of a foreign language in the workplace as a sign of
laziness, rudeness and disrespect. In fact, most often, using another language is an
effort to communicate a job-related message accurately, a sign of extreme stress or
fatigue or an effort to speed up the communication process.
You might be wondering, "How can I possibly know enough about cultural differences
to accurately interpret all the different behaviors I may encounter?" The answer is
simple: Ask. Ask the employee why he is late for work or why he failed to get the job
done on time. If you do so with respect, you gather valuable and accurate
information that will help you motivate the change you desire.

Set Expectations
Explain your expectations in a way that can be understood by someone who was not
raised in US culture. You would be surprised how often employers and managers fail
to explain what they want and why they want it. Immigrant workers are rarely
formally instructed in the values of US culture and even less often in the desires of
US management.
Explaining what we want from others is not easy. Often, the most familiar
procedures, policies and expectations are the most difficult to articulate. One
example is the need for team members to voice their problems and complaints. A
noncomplaining staff could be a hindrance, because you do not have the information
you need to solve problems.
Many immigrants have a great deal of respect for their managers and feel it is
inappropriate or a sign of disloyalty to complain. Your employees will never know

what is expected of them until you take the time to spell out that you need to know
about problems to do your job well and that a good employee brings difficulties to the
manager's attention.
Offer Positive Reinforcement
Reinforce desired behavior. Most of the time, this is simple. Notice that workers are
doing what you want and praise them for it. When it comes to motivation across
cultural boundaries, however, this step becomes a bit tricky.
Behaviors such as expressing problems or admitting lack of understanding can be
difficult to reinforce because there is the temptation to shoot the messenger. It is
understandably difficult for managers to praise the worker who arrives bearing news
of a missed deadline or a broken piece of equipment. Even though it isn't easy, try to
distance yourself from the problem long enough to praise the staff member for
keeping you informed and to encourage him to continue to do so.
Another problem with reinforcement is the danger of taking certain behaviors for
granted. US managers, for example, may not realize how difficult it is for non-English
speakers to consistently speak English in the workplace and will, therefore, fail to
compliment them on that effort. Try to be aware of behaviors that are easy for you
but may be difficult for others. People are different, but they all respond to kind words
and thoughtful praise.