Quad Meeting Keynote: “How to Strive, Survive, and Thrive: Interweaved Diverse ‘Connections and Cultures’ “

Today started first full day of the 2012 Quad Chapter meeting.  After some introductory remarks by a couple of the chapter chairs and a rendition of “Here Comes the Sun,” keynote speaker Souzan Hawala-Druy started her interactive talk about working with diverse cultures and communities, effective communication techniques, and the particular challenges with the Millennial generation.

Highlights from the talk include:

  • Remember to ask “What is the part of culture, not personality, that’s affecting that person’s choices?”
  • Sandwich your communications with a pleasant tone (bread layer) before getting to the meat (or tofu) of the communication style issue, and end with another positive summary (bread layer)
  • Cultural competency involves various theories, such as
    • Organizing phenomena of culture (involving time and space)
    • LEARN (listen, explain, acknowledge, recommend, negotiate)
    • ASKED (awareness, skills, knowledge, encounter, desire)
  • Culture doesn’t change easily in older generations but changes easily for younger generations
  • Millennials tend to:
    • Be civic-minded, trust in leaders, be team oriented
    • Are not followers. Prefer to start their own trends
    • Turnaround behavior and attitude – hard to change things that don’t affect you
    • Their community is the global world
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