The Do’s and Don’ts of Multicultural Communication: Part 1 – The Don’ts

When people from diverse cultural backgrounds interact within an organization, the chances of saying or doing something that can offend another person increases significantly. Fortunately, there are several steps we can take to minimize this possibility. I refer to these steps as the Do's and Don'ts of Multicultural Communication. In coming weeks, I will post specific tips describing what we should and should not do to improve communication and develop positive relationships in diverse organizational settings. I will start with the Don’ts, which include the following:

1. DON’T talk to anyone in a patronizing manner.  
   
2. DON’T make assumptions about people, especially those who are culturally different.  
   
3. DON’T assume a culturally different person is an expert about his or her cultural group.  
   
4. DON’T assume a culturally different person is typical of all of the members of his or her cultural group. 
   
5. DON’T engage in behaviors that single out a culturally different person, especially if that person is in the minority at your workplace.  
   
6. DON’T ask inappropriate questions or engage in inappropriate behaviors, especially of a personal nature.  
   
7. DON’T try to speak or act like a culturally different person if it is not YOU. 
   

Next Post: September 15, 2015 - The 7 Don’ts of Multicultural Communication #1