VERBAL SIGN LISTENING

Active listening is a skill that can be acquired and developed with practice.  However, active listening can be difficult to master and will, therefore, take time and patience to develop.

'Active listening' means, as its name suggests, actively listening. That is fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively ‘hearing’ the message of the speaker.

Active listening involves listening with all senses.  As well as giving full attention to the speaker, it is important that the ‘active listener’ is also ‘seen’ to be listening - otherwise the speaker may conclude that what they are talking about is uninteresting to the listener.

Interest can be conveyed to the speaker by using both verbal and non-verbal messages such as maintaining eye contact, nodding your head and smiling, agreeing by saying ‘Yes’ or simply ‘Mmm hmm’  to encourage them to continue.  By providing this 'feedback' the person speaking will usually feel more at ease and therefore communicate more easily, openly and honestly.

Listening is the most fundamental component of interpersonal communication skills.  Listening is not something that just happens (that is hearing), listening is an active process in which a conscious decision is made to listen to and understand the messages of the speaker.  Listeners should remain neutral and non-judgmental, this means trying not to take sides or form opinions, especially early in the conversation.  Active listening is also about patience - pauses and short periods of silence should be accepted.  Listeners should not be tempted to jump in with questions or comments every time there are a few seconds of silence.  Active listening involves giving the other person time to explore their thoughts and feelings, they should, therefore, be given adequate time for that.
Active listening not only means focusing fully on the speaker but also actively showing verbal and non-verbal signs of listening. Generally speakers want listeners to demonstrate ‘active listening’ by responding appropriately to what they are saying.  Appropriate responses to listening can be both verbal and non-verbal:

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Signs of Active Listening

Non-Verbal Signs of Attentive or Active Listening

This is a generic list of non-verbal signs of listening, in other words people who are listening are more likely to display at least some of these signs.  However these signs may not be appropriate in all situations and across all cultures.

Smile

Small smiles can be used to show that the listener is paying attention to what is being said or as a way of agreeing or being happy about the messages being received.  Combined with nods of the head, smiles can be powerful in affirming that messages are being listened to and understood.

Eye Contact

It is normal and usually encouraging for the listener to look at the speaker.   Eye contact can however be intimidating, especially for more shy speakers – gauge how much eye contact is appropriate for any given situation.  Combine eye contact with smiles and other non-verbal messages to encourage the speaker.

Posture

Posture can tell a lot about the sender and receiver in interpersonal interactions.  The attentive listener tends to lean slightly forward or sideways whilst sitting.  Other signs of active listening may include a slight slant of the head or resting the head on one hand.

Mirroring

Automatic reflection/mirroring of any facial expressions used by the speaker can be a sign of attentive listening.  These reflective expressions can help to show sympathy and empathy in more emotional situations.  Attempting to consciously mimic facial expressions (i.e. not automatic reflection of expressions) can be a sign of inattention.

Distraction

The active listener will not be distracted and therefore will refrain from fidgeting, looking at a clock or watch, doodling, playing with their hair or picking their fingernails.
Learn more about Non-Verbal Communication.

Be aware that:

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It is perfectly possible to learn and mimic non-verbal signs of active listening and not actually be listening at all.

It is more difficult to mimic verbal signs of listening and comprehension.

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Verbal Signs of Attentive or Active Listening

Although some positive words of encouragement may be beneficial to the speaker the listener should use them sparingly so as not to distract from what is being said or place unnecessary emphasis on parts of the message. 

Casual and frequent use of words and phrases, such as: ‘very good’, ‘yes’ or ‘indeed’ can become irritating to the speaker.   It is usually better to elaborate and explain why you are agreeing with a certain point.

Remembering

The human mind is notoriously bad at remembering details, especially for any length of time. 

However, remembering a few key points, or even the name of the speaker, can help to reinforce that the messages sent have been received and understood – i.e. listening has been successful.  Remembering details, ideas and concepts from previous conversations proves that attention was kept and is likely to encourage the speaker to continue.  During longer exchanges it may be appropriate to make very brief notes to act as a memory jog when questioning or clarifying later.
See our page: Note-Taking.

Questioning

The listener can demonstrate that they have been paying attention by asking relevant questions and/or making statements that build or help to clarify what the speaker has said.  By asking relevant questions the listener also helps to reinforce that they have an interest in what the speaker has been saying.
See our pages: Questioning and Types of Question for more information.

Reflection

Reflecting is closely repeating or paraphrasing what the speaker has said in order to show comprehension.  Reflection is a powerful skill that can reinforce the message of the speaker and demonstrate understanding.
See our page: Reflection.

Clarification

Clarifying involves asking questions of the speaker to ensure that the correct message has been received.  Clarification usually involves the use of open questions which enables the speaker to expand on certain points as necessary.
See our page on Clarification.

Summarisation

Repeating a summary of what has been said back to the speaker is a technique used by the listener to repeat what has been said in their own words.  Summarising involves taking the main points of the received message and reiterating them in a logical and clear way, giving the speaker chance to correct if necessary.

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SIGN OF ACTIVE LISTENING

Signs of Active Listening

Non-Verbal Signs of Attentive or Active Listening

This is a generic list of non-verbal signs of listening, in other words people who are listening are more likely to display at least some of these signs.  However these signs may not be appropriate in all situations and across all cultures.

Smile

Small smiles can be used to show that the listener is paying attention to what is being said or as a way of agreeing or being happy about the messages being received.  Combined with nods of the head, smiles can be powerful in affirming that messages are being listened to and understood.

Eye Contact

It is normal and usually encouraging for the listener to look at the speaker.   Eye contact can however be intimidating, especially for more shy speakers – gauge how much eye contact is appropriate for any given situation.  Combine eye contact with smiles and other non-verbal messages to encourage the speaker.

Posture

Posture can tell a lot about the sender and receiver in interpersonal interactions.  The attentive listener tends to lean slightly forward or sideways whilst sitting.  Other signs of active listening may include a slight slant of the head or resting the head on one hand.

Mirroring

Automatic reflection/mirroring of any facial expressions used by the speaker can be a sign of attentive listening.  These reflective expressions can help to show sympathy and empathy in more emotional situations.  Attempting to consciously mimic facial expressions (i.e. not automatic reflection of expressions) can be a sign of inattention.

Distraction

The active listener will not be distracted and therefore will refrain from fidgeting, looking at a clock or watch, doodling, playing with their hair or picking their fingernails.

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ACTIVE LISTENING

Active listening is a skill that can be acquired and developed with practice.  However, active listening can be difficult to master and will, therefore, take time and patience to develop.

'Active listening' means, as its name suggests, actively listening. That is fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively ‘hearing’ the message of the speaker.

Active listening involves listening with all senses.  As well as giving full attention to the speaker, it is important that the ‘active listener’ is also ‘seen’ to be listening - otherwise the speaker may conclude that what they are talking about is uninteresting to the listener.

Interest can be conveyed to the speaker by using both verbal and non-verbal messages such as maintaining eye contact, nodding your head and smiling, agreeing by saying ‘Yes’ or simply ‘Mmm hmm’  to encourage them to continue.  By providing this 'feedback' the person speaking will usually feel more at ease and therefore communicate more easily, openly and honestly.

Listening is the most fundamental component of interpersonal communication skills.  Listening is not something that just happens (that is hearing), listening is an active process in which a conscious decision is made to listen to and understand the messages of the speaker.  Listeners should remain neutral and non-judgmental, this means trying not to take sides or form opinions, especially early in the conversation.  Active listening is also about patience - pauses and short periods of silence should be accepted.  Listeners should not be tempted to jump in with questions or comments every time there are a few seconds of silence.  Active listening involves giving the other person time to explore their thoughts and feelings, they should, therefore, be given adequate time for that.
Active listening not only means focusing fully on the speaker but also actively showing verbal and non-verbal signs of listening. Generally speakers want listeners to demonstrate ‘active listening’ by responding appropriately to what they are saying.  Appropriate responses to listening can be both verbal and non-verbal:

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THE FIVE STEPS TO BETTER LISTENING

The Five Steps to Better Listening

The listening process can be broken up into five distinct stages: receiving, understanding, remembering, evaluating, and responding. This is the model most commonly referred to when analyzing good communication, because it helps isolate the necessary skills required at each individual step in the process.
The most important thing to keep in mind though is that listening is, indeed, a process, and one that requires effort. Once you understand how each part makes up the whole, you’ll come out a better thinker, listener, speaker, and communicator. Let’s begin.

1. Receiving

This is the first and most basic stage of the listening process: the act of actually absorbing the information being expressed to you, whether verbally or non-verbally. Not all communication is done through speech, and not all listening is done with ears.
No matter how you’re communicating with another person, the key at this stage is to pay attention. Focus all of your energy on them, by following these three simple tips:

• Avoid distractions. This is obvious. Don’t have your cellphone out, or your iPod in, or the television on. Don’t try to divide your attention between the speaker and something else. You might think you’re good at multi-tasking, and perhaps you are, but demonstrating a commitment to the act of listening will make you a more respected person among your peers.
• Don’t interrupt the speaker. You might want to make an assumption about what the speaker is saying, or what they’re about to say – don’t. It’s rude, and you may find your assumption was wrong, which is beneficial to no one. You can, however, practice nonverbal feedback cue, such as nodding, to demonstrate your attention.
• Don’t rehearse your response. Not yet. At this stage, your job is only to listen. If you start to plan a speech while the other person is speaking, you’re going to miss certain points and not be able to respond to their larger message when it’s your turn to talk.

2. Understanding

This is the point in the listening process where you’re able to plan your response. Understanding takes place after you’ve received the information from the speaker, and begin to process its meaning.
You can do this by asking questions, or rephrasing parts of the speaker’s message. This allows you to demonstrate your active engagement with their words, and help you better understand their key points.

3. Remembering

What good would it do in a conversation if you forgot everything the speaker had just said? This stage of the listening process might seem very similar to the first two, but it goes beyond merely absorbing and processing information.
Remembering is about retaining that information, and the most effective way to do so in an important conversation is to move the key elements of a message from your short-term memory, and into your long-term memory.
There are numerous methods for doing this:

• Identify the fundamental points. By converting a collection of small details into a central theme, you’re able to create something potentially complicated into an easy-to-grasp general concept. The details will remain in your short-term memory, but isolating the main ideas will help you understand them better, and remember them longer.
• Make the message familiar. Relate that main idea to something you already know. This should be easy to do – there aren’t many new ideas out there, and chances are the discussion you’re having will trigger old memories and past experiences. Use those to help you retain incoming information.

Improve your memory with these courses on mastering your memory, and easy techniques to improve your memory today.

4. Evaluating

It’s at this stage where you can begin to prepare for your response, but remember: you’re still a listener, not a speaker. After the message has been absorbed, processed, and remembered, you can begin to sort the information into pieces.

• What is fact, and what is opinion?
• Was the speaker demonstrating any particular prejudice with their message?
• What portions of the message, if any, were exaggerated?
• What parts of their message were interpreted, and which parts were unbiased?
• What was the speaker’s intent with their message?

After interpreting the speaker’s message, through a combination of understanding, retention, and evaluation, you’re ready to form a response.

5. Responding

If you’ve completed the receiving, understanding, remembering, and evaluating portions of the listening process, responding should be easier than ever. You’ll be prepared to address the speaker’s most important points, with an awareness of the circumstances and context surrounding their words.
It’s important to understand the transition between listening and speaking though, and be aware of the ways responding is still a part of the active listening process.

• Don’t complete the speaker’s sentences. This is a presumptuous and rude way to segue into your own response. It impedes on the receiving process, and will make the original speaker want to listen to you less.
• Address the speaker’s points. It will make it easier for the speaker to transition into a listener when they know exactly what part of their message you’re addressing.

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LISTENING OF IMPORTANT

Why is Listening Important?

Before we start discussing listening, let's take a few minutes to reflect on the importance of the listening skill. As a language teacher and as a learner of other languages, think of one or two reasons why listening is important.

Listening is also important because it:

• occupies a big chunk of the time we spend communicating in the language. Think about the times you spend listening to others speak or listening to songs, news, lectures, YouTube, etc. Recent advances in technology have served to raise the profile of the listening skill in language teaching.
• provides input that can be very significant for second language acquisition in general and for the development of the speaking skill in particular.
• promotes non-linear processing of language and encourages learners to develop "holistic" strategies to texts.

As language teachers, we need to think of how we can incorporate listening into our teaching and provide opportunities both inside and outside the classroom for our students to be exposed to significant listening input. However, this represents a challenge as we shall see in the following section.

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Listening Is More than Just Hearing

Source: Boundless. “The Importance of Listening.” Boundless Communications. Boundless, 03 Jul. 2014. Retrieved 03 Dec. 2014 from https://www.boundless.com/communications/textbooks/boundless-communications-textbook/learning-to-listen-and-helping-others-do-the-same-5/understanding-listening-29/the-importance-of-listening-132-8285/

Listening Is More than Just Hearing

Source: Boundless. “The Importance of Listening.” Boundless Communications. Boundless, 03 Jul. 2014. Retrieved 03 Dec. 2014 from https://www.boundless.com/communications/textbooks/boundless-communications-textbook/learning-to-listen-and-helping-others-do-the-same-5/understanding-listening-29/the-importance-of-listening-132-8285/

Listening is a skill of critical significance in all aspects of our lives--from maintaining our personal relationships, to getting our jobs done, to taking notes in class, to figuring out which bus to take to the airport. Regardless of how we're engaged with listening, it's important to understand that listening involves more than just hearing the words that are directed at us. Listening is an active process by which we make sense of, assess, and respond to what we hear.
The listening process involves five stages: receiving, understanding, evaluating, remembering, and responding. These stages will be discussed in more detail in later sections. Basically, an effective listener must hear and identify the speech sounds directed toward them, understand the message of those sounds, critically evaluate or assess that message, remember what's been said, and respond (either verbally or nonverbally) to information they've received.
Effectively engaging with all five stages of the listening process lets us best gather the information we need from the world around us.


Source: Boundless. “The Importance of Listening.” Boundless Communications. Boundless, 03 Jul. 2014. Retrieved 03 Dec. 2014 from https://www.boundless.com/communications/textbooks/boundless-communications-textbook/learning-to-listen-and-helping-others-do-the-same-5/understanding-listening-29/the-importance-of-listening-132-8285/

Listening is a skill of critical significance in all aspects of our lives--from maintaining our personal relationships, to getting our jobs done, to taking notes in class, to figuring out which bus to take to the airport. Regardless of how we're engaged with listening, it's important to understand that listening involves more than just hearing the words that are directed at us. Listening is an active process by which we make sense of, assess, and respond to what we hear.
The listening process involves five stages: receiving, understanding, evaluating, remembering, and responding. These stages will be discussed in more detail in later sections. Basically, an effective listener must hear and identify the speech sounds directed toward them, understand the message of those sounds, critically evaluate or assess that message, remember what's been said, and respond (either verbally or nonverbally) to information they've received.
Effectively engaging with all five stages of the listening process lets us best gather the information we need from the world around us.


Source: Boundless. “The Importance of Listening.” Boundless Communications. Boundless, 03 Jul. 2014. Retrieved 03 Dec. 2014 from https://www.boundless.com/communications/textbooks/boundless-communications-textbook/learning-to-listen-and-helping-others-do-the-same-5/understanding-listening-29/the-importance-of-listening-132-8285/

LISTENING HABITS

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Poor Listening Habits and Good Listening Habits

Poor Listening Habits	Poor Listeners...	Good Listeners...
Criticizing a speaker	criticize the speaker's voice, clothes, or looks. Therefore, they decide that the speaker won`t say anything important.	realize that a lecture is not a popularity contest. Good listeners look for the ideas being presented, not for things to criticize.
Finding fault with the speaker	become so involved in disagreeing with something the speaker states that they stop listening to the remainder of the lecture	listen with the mind, not the emotions. Good listeners jot down something they disagree with to ask the speaker later, then go on listening.
Allowing yourself to be distracted	use little distractions -- someone coughing, a pencil dropping, the door opening and closing -- as an excuse to stop listening.	filter out distractions and concentrate on what the speaker is saying.
Faking attention	look at the speaker but don't listen. They expect to get the material from the textbook later.	understand that speakers talk about what they think is most important. Good listeners know that a good lecture may not contain the same information as the textbook.
Forcing every lecture into one format	outline the lecture in detail. The listener is so concerned with organization that he misses the content.	adjust their style of note-taking to the speaker's topic and method of organization.
Listening only for facts	only want the facts. They consider everything else to be only the speaker's opinion.	want to see how the facts and examples support the speaker's ideas and arguments. Good listeners know that facts are important, because they support ideas.
Listening to only the easy material	think it is too difficult to follow the speaker's complicated ideas and logic.A poor listener wants entertainment, not education.	want to learn something new and try to understand the speaker's point. A good listener is not afraid of difficult, technical, or complicated ideas.
Calling a subject boring	decide a lecture is going to be dull and "turn out" the speaker.	listen closely for information that can be important and useful, even when a lecture is dull.
Overreacting to "push button" emotional words	get upset at words which trigger certain emotions -- words such as communist, income tax, Hitler or abortion. Emotion begins and listening ends.	hear these same words. When they do, they listen very carefully. A good listener tries to understand the speaker's point of view.
Wasting thought speed	move along lazily with the speaker even though thinking is faster than speaking. A poor listener daydreams and falls behind.	use any extra time or pauses in the lecture to reflect on the speaker's message. They think about what the speaker is saying, summarize the main points, and think about the next points.

LISTENING

What is listening?

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Which activity involves the most amount of listening? Students spend 20 percent of all school related hours just listening. If television watching and one-half of conversations are included, students spend approximately 50 percent of their waking hours just listening. For those hours spent in the classroom, the amount of listening time can be almost 100 percent. Look at your own activities, especially those related to college. Are most of your activities focused around listening, especially in the classroom?
If you ask a group of students to give a one word description of listening, some would say hearing; however, hearing is physical. Listening is following and understanding the sound---it is hearing with a purpose. Good listening is built on three basic skills: attitude, attention, and adjustment. These skills are known collectively as triple-A listening.

Listening is the absorption of the meanings of words and sentences by the brain. Listening leads to the understanding of facts and ideas. But listening takes attention, or sticking to the task at hand in spite of distractions. It requires concentration, which is the focusing of your thoughts upon one particular problem. A person who incorporates listening with concentration is actively listening. Active listening is a method of responding to another that encourages communication.


Listening is a very important skill, especially for tutors. Many tutors tend to talk too much during a tutorial session. This defeats the purpose of tutoring, which is to allow students to learn by discussion. Rather than turning the session into a mini-lecture, tutors must actively listen and encourage their students to become active learners. Giving a student your full attention is sometimes difficult because you start to run out of time, or you find yourself thinking about your next question; however, the time you spend actively listening to your student will result in a quality tutoring session.

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NEWS 3

Newspaper reading can promote
virtues, new book says 

Reading newspapers may seem like a novelty for some, but a new book launched on Thursday argues that the habit of reading the news, whether in print or online, could be a powerful tool for schools to promote character development.Newsworthy Characters — A Practical Guide to Character Building (Karakter & Informasi) was jointly published by The Jakarta Post and Kompas newspapers as a practical guide on ways to teach virtues that help form good characters, particularly if taught at an early age. The bilingual book was launched at a seminar in Denpasar and was used immediately for a workshop involving more than 350 English teachers. The seminar opened after keynote addresses by Kacung Marijan, the Director-General for culture at the Culture and Elementary and Secondary Education Ministry, IB Rai Dharmawijaya Mantra, the mayor of Denpasar and Abdul Hamid Batubara, the president commissioner of PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia, which funded the book project.Kacung recalled how he grew up, finished school and got a scholarship to study in Australia thanks to motivation from his teacher and his mother, who never attended school, but who told him bedtime stories that imparted the values he grew up with.He also recalled how his reading of newspapers at an early age led him to dream of becoming a foreign minister, “so that I could travel around the world for free”. He is not a foreign minister, but he said he had nevertheless traveled overseas for free after he grew up and became a government official.The project was developed under the auspices of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) as member newspapers around the world struggle to keep readership or revive reading habits among people. Internet technology is changing the way people access news and information globally, but newspapers have yet to discover how to sway young audience their way. Education could give the answer, or so hoped Kompas and The Jakarta Post, through the new book.The government has incorporated the teaching of character into the school curriculum. Many private institutions have also launched schools that put the emphasis on character development.The book picks 12 virtues plus one, providing Internet links to clippings of news stories that illustrate how these virtues are very much alive in people’s daily lives. Children learn better about these virtues, their benefits and also how to develop them, by looking at or reading about living examples.Newspaper reading has never been more important and relevant, the book argues.The 12 virtues are love, responsibility, discipline, honesty, self-confidence, compassion, cooperation, tolerance, creativity, respect, humility and leadership. The book suggests that users, meaning schools, dedicate each month of the year to one virtue and create activities that promote that virtue. A 13th virtue, freedom of expression, was added to reflect the importance of this particular virtue for children’s learning and developing their creativity.

NEWS 2

Semen Indonesia chief heading Pertamina 

The government appointed on Friday PT Semen Indonesia president director Dwi Soetjipto to head state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, replacing Karen Agustiawan, who resigned for unknown reasons in October.
"As of Nov. 28, Dwi Soetjitpto is heading Pertamina," said State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno.
Dwi has spent his entire career in the cement industry within publicly listed state-run Semen Indonesia, the nation's biggest cement producer.
Prior to achieving the top job in Semen Indonesia in 2005, Dwi led the company's troubled subsidiary PT Semen Padang between 2003 and 2005.
During his term in Semen Padang, Dwi successfully brought order to the company after widespread violent opposition from its workers to the government's plan to sell the controlling stake in Semen Indonesia to Mexico's cement giant Cemex S.A.
His success in reforming Semen Padang earned him the top job in Semen Indonesia in 2005.
Dwi earned his bachelor degree in engineering from the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology in Surabaya, East Java, his masters in management from the Andalas University in West Sumatra, and his PhD in management from the University of Indonesia in Depok, West Java.
Rini said that the government had also appointed Yenni Andayani from PV Gas & Power Pertamina, Ahmad Bambang from PT Trans Continental and Arif Budimanta from Mackenzie Stuart Oil & Gas as members of the board of directors.
"The exact positions of the three new directors in Pertamina will be decided later," said Rini. (ren/nfo)(++++)

News 1

Pollycarpus gets parole

Former Garuda pilot Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison over his role in the death of human rights campaigner Munir Said Thalib, has left Sukamiskin Penitentiary in Bandung on parole.
“Pollycarpus is out of prison on parole,” penitentiary directorate-general spokesman Akbar Hadi said on Friday.
He said Pollycarpus was considered as having fulfilled all the requirements necessary to receive parole.
Justice and Human Rights Ministerial Regulation No. 1/2007 stipulates that a convict can receive parole after serving two thirds of his or her sentence.
Pollycarpus is obliged to report to the Sukamiskin prison warden once a month during his parole period, which will last until 2018. While on parole, Pollycarpus is prohibited from traveling abroad.
Rights activist Munir Said Thalib was poisoned with arsenic that, according to the court, had been mixed with orange juice that he drank during a flight from Jakarta to Singapore on September 6, 2004.
Despite Pollycarpus being sentenced, it remains unclear who masterminded the murder.
Pressure from the public and fellow rights activists has been mounting but the government has so far failed to prosecute the mastermind behind the murder, which many believe involved important people.

DEFINITION READING COMPREHENSION

Reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it and understand its meaning. An individual's ability to comprehend text is influenced by their traits and skills, one of which is the ability to make inferences. If word recognition is difficult, students use too much of their processing capacity to read individual words, which interferes with their ability to comprehend what is read. There are a number of approaches to improve reading comprehension, including improving one's vocabulary and reading strategies.

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

How Do I Manage Cultural Diversity?

We are generally aware that the first step in managing diversity is recognize it and learning not to fear it.

Since everyone is the product of their own culture, we need to increase both self-awareness and cross-cultural awareness. There is no book of instructions to deal with cultural diversity, no recipe to follow. But certain attitudes help to bridge cultures.

Admit that you don’t know. Knowing that we don’t know everything, that a situation does not make sense, that our assumptions may be wrong is part of the process of becoming culturally aware. Assume differences, not similarities.

Suspend judgments. Collect as much information as possible so you can describe the situation accurately before evaluating it.

Empathy. In order to understand another person, we need to try standing in his/her shoes. Through empathy we learn of how other people would like to be treated by us.

Systematically check your assumptions. Ask your colleagues for feedback and constantly check your assumptions to make sure that you clearly understand the situation.

Become comfortable with ambiguity. The more complicated and uncertain life is, the more we tend to seek control. Assume that other people are as resourceful as we are and that their way will add to what we know. “If we always do, what we’ve always done, we will always get, what we always got.”

Celebrate diversity. As a company find ways of sharing the cultures of your diverse workforce, i.e., in 2002 Deutsche Bank carried out multiple initiatives around the theme of “tolerance: diversity, identity, recognition” which they called “Initiative Plus 2002.” They encouraged employee projects and organized an annual colloquium of global experts.

DEGRES OF CULTURAL AWARENESS

Degrees of Cultural Awareness

There are several levels of cultural awareness that reflect how people grow to perceive cultural differences.

My way is the only way - At the first level, people are aware of their way of doing things, and their way is the only way. At this stage, they ignore the impact of cultural differences. (Parochial stage)

I know their way, but my way is better - At the second level, people are aware of other ways of doing things, but still consider their way as the best one. In this stage, cultural differences are perceived as source of problems and people tend to ignore them or reduce their significance. (Ethnocentric stage)

My Way and Their Way - At this level people are aware of their own way of doing things and others’ ways of doing things, and they chose the best way according to the situation. At this stage people realize that cultural differences can lead both to problems and benefits and are willing to use cultural diversity to create new solutions and alternatives. (Synergistic stage)

Our Way - This fourth and final stage brings people from different cultural background together for the creation of a culture of shared meanings. People dialogue repeatedly with others, create new meanings, new rules to meet the needs of a particular situation. (Participatory Third culture stage)

Increasing cultural awareness means to see both the positive and negative aspects of cultural differences. Cultural diversity could be a source of problems, in particular when the organization needs people to think or act in a similar way. Diversity increases the level of complexity and confusion and makes agreement difficult to reach. On the other hand, cultural diversity becomes an advantage when the organization expands its solutions and its sense of identity, and begins to take different approaches to problem solving. Diversity in this case creates valuable new skills and behaviors.

  In becoming culturally aware, people realize that:

 We are not all the same

Similarities and differences are both important

There are multiple ways to reach the same goal and to live life

The best way depends on the cultural contingency. Each situation is different and may require a different solution.

CULTURAL AWARENESS

What is Cultural Awareness, anyway? How do I build it?

Cultural Awareness is the foundation of communication and it involves the ability of standing back from ourselves and becoming aware of our cultural values, beliefs and perceptions. Why do we do things in that way? How do we see the world? Why do we react in that particular way?

Cultural awareness becomes central when we have to interact with people from other cultures. People see, interpret and evaluate things in a different ways. What is considered an appropriate behavior in one culture is frequently inappropriate in another one. Misunderstandings arise when I use my meanings to make sense of your reality.

As an Italian it is almost automatic to perceive US Americans as people who always work, talk about business over lunch and drink their coffee running in the street instead of enjoying it in a bar. What does it mean? Italians are lazy and American hyperactive? No, it means that the meaning that people give to certain activities, like having lunch or dinner could be different according to certain cultures. In Italy, where relationships are highly valued, lunch, dinner or the simple pauses for coffee have a social connotation: people get together to talk and relax, and to get to know each other better. In the USA, where time is money, lunches can be part of closing a deal where people discuss the outcomes and sign a contract over coffee.

Misinterpretations occur primarily when we lack awareness of our own behavioral rules and project them on others. In absence of better knowledge we tend to assume, instead of finding out what a behavior means to the person involved, e.g. a straight look into your face is regarded as disrespectful in Japan.

Becoming aware of our cultural dynamics is a difficult task because culture is not conscious to us. Since we are born we have learned to see and do things at an unconscious level. Our experiences, our values and our cultural background lead us to see and do things in a certain way. Sometimes we have to step outside of our cultural boundaries in order to realize the impact that our culture has on our behavior. It is very helpful to gather feedback from foreign colleagues on our behavior to get more clarity on our cultural traits.

Projected similarities could lead to misinterpretation as well. When we assume that people are similar to us, we might incur the risk that they are not. If we project similarities where there are not, we might act inappropriately. It is safer to assume differences until similarity is proven.[1

DIFFERENT INDONESIAN AND JAPAN PEOPLE

Comparison of Indonesian and Japanese Culture

1. Is it cultural comparison?
Culture is the crystallization of values and lifestyle adopted a community. Culture of each community grow and develop unique, because of differences in the pattern of the community life. Comparison of Japanese and Indonesian culture means finding the values of similarities and differences between the Indonesian people and the nation of Japan. By recognizing the similarities and differences between the two cultures that, we will be able to understand the diversity of existing lifestyle, which will be useful when communicating and interacting with parties coming from different cultures.
The main difficulty in making comparisons between Indonesian and Japanese culture due to the different characteristics of the two nations. Japanese people are relatively homogeneous, and only has about 15 languages (not mean 15 tribes, because including sign language for the deaf), and has a much longer history, so that the cultural values it is crystallized. The Indonesian nation characterized by a heterogeneous, multi-ethnic, has more than 700 languages, making it easy to search for fragments that represent the culture of Indonesia nationally [1]. Need separated values which are accepted nationally in Indonesia, and which is the unique character of the existing one tribe.
The discussion in this paper is limited in comparison Indonesian and Japanese culture from the following aspects. : "Name and signature", "how to use gestures to respect the older / respected".
2. Selection Tradition Name and Signature

2.1 naming tradition in Japan
Name in Japan consists of two parts: the family name and first name. This name must be listed in a government office (Kuyakusho), no later than 14 days after a baby is born. Everyone in Japan except the imperial family, has a family name. The tradition of the use of the family name is valid from the time of the Meiji restoration, whereas in the previous era generally ordinary people did not have surnames. Since the Meiji restoration, the family name became a necessity in Japan. Today there are about 100 thousand surnames in Japan, and among the most popular are Satou and Suzuki. If a woman is married, then he would change the family name, followed her husband's name. However, there are many career women who retains his family name. Of a government survey in 1997, approximately 33% of the respondents wanted to get married though, they are not allowed to change the name of the family [2]. This occurs because of the influence of social structure shifted from the concept of "ie" (家) in Japanese family tradition. More and more young people who live in a big city, so it is generally become nuclear family (father, mother and child), and there is no necessity of a woman after marriage then stay at home husband's family. The tradition in Japan in selecting first name, having regard to the meaning of kanji, and the number of strokes, accompanied by hope or prayer for the good of the child.
2.2 The tradition of naming in Indonesia
As for the people in Indonesia not all tribes have a tradition of the family name. Java community for example, does not have a family name. But tribes in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi has a family name. From the name of a person, we can estimate from the tribe where he came from, what religion professed etc. The following characteristics of the name of each tribe in Indonesia
• Javanese (approximately 45% of the entire population): usually begins with Su (for men) or Sri (for women), and use the vowel "o". Example: Sukarno, Suharto, Susilo, Joko, Anto, Sri Miranti, Sri Ning.
• Sundanese (approximately 14% of the entire population): many who have looping syllable. For example Dada, Titin, Iis, Cecelia
• Batak: some examples of surnames among others Harahap, Nasution.
• Minahasa tribe: some examples include Pinontoan surname, Ratulangi.
• Balinese people: Ketut, Made, Putu, Wayan etc. This name indicates the sequence, not a family name.
In addition to the name derived from the traditions of the tribe, many names are taken from the influence of religion. For example, Muslims: Abdurrahman Wahid, Abdullah, etc. While Catholics usually wear a baptismal name: Francis, Bonivasius, Augustine, etc.
2.3 Comparison of the two traditions
Similarities between the two traditions
Both in Japan and in Indonesia in choosing a name (first name) often choose mensimbolkan word meaning good, as prayers for the child later better way of life. Special in Japan, many stroke kanji used is also a
one particular consideration in choosing a letter to the child. Generally men in Japan ending in "ro" (郎), while women end in "ko" (子)

The difference between the two traditions as follows.
1. In Japan, the family name entered in the official civil records, but in Indonesia this family name is not recorded officially in a government office. Name of family / clan is not allowed to be listed on the birth certificate
2. In Japan after marrying a woman will officially change its name to follow her husband's surname. While in Indonesia when married, a woman does not change the family name. But there is also the husband's family name is inserted in the middle, between the first name and family name of the woman, as in the Minahasa tribe. In Indonesia, generally after marriage the husband's name is attached to the back of the wife's name. For example, Prio Jatmiko married to Sri Suwarni, then she became Sri Suwarni Jatmiko. But this addition does not go through the process of legalization / official record in a government office.
3. Kanji letters that can be used to develop the child's name in Japan is limited by the government (about 2232 letters, called jinmeiyo kanji), while in Indonesia there are no formal restrictions to choose the word that is used as the name of the child
2.4 A unique experience that arise from cultural differences
For Indonesian people who come in Japan, during registration, for example, to make ID cards are often asked which family name, and where the first name. Almost every time I have to always explain the difference between Indonesian and Japanese tradition, that in Indonesia there is no necessity to have a family name. Normally this can be understood and not cause problems. But sometimes we have to specify the name as a family name, for example, when writing a paper (formal scientific article), or for the benefit of the work. At that time I was forced to use the name "Nugroho" as a family name in order not to complicate the administration problems. Similarly, when my son was born, we named Kartika Utami nurhayati. My son's name although none length which is a family name. But the time of registration, the government of Japan (Kuyakusho) asked me to assign a name that is recorded as a family, because otherwise it would be difficult in the administrative management of insurance. Finally the name "nurhayati" located at the back of my registered as a family name. For Japanese people it will seem strange, because in our family there who have the same family name.
Still related to the name, is a matter of signature and Inkan (stamp). In Indonesia in various formal administrative affairs as a sign of approval, each person signing. This signature must be constant. Many people who have a signature derived from the initials of the name, but with a unique way of writing which differentiate with other people who may have the same name. This signature is also to be affixed at the time of an Indonesian passport will leave for Japan. But once he was in Japan, the original signature has an important role, becoming lost perananannya. Signature in Japan does not have the formal power. The tradition of Japanese society in his signature is to wear Inkan (stamp). Usually this Inkan bearing the family name. There are several types of Inkan used in Japan. Among others:
1. "Mitomein" (認 印) used for everyday purposes that are not too important, for example, when receiving a shipment, fill out an application.
2. "Jitsuin" (実 印) used for important purposes, such as buying a home, buying a car. Inkan this type should be listed in a government office.
3. "Ginkoin" (銀行 印) is used to open a bank account
"Jitsuin" and "ginkoin" very rarely used and should be stored carefully. Because if lost will cause serious problems in the business.
For foreigners when entering Japan must make Inkan. To create a bank account, we can not use a signature, and must wear Inkan. Unless yubinkyoku still allow the use of signatures. Because it does not have the habit of signatures, a lot of the Japanese people when asked to sign a hand (in the passport for example), generally they write their full name in kanji. Perhaps because of this that when I asked an officer delivery of goods, to sign a receipt, he said, "please write your full name", even though it's in the signature column. It seems to them, together with a written signature full name.

3. The use of gesture / motion of the body to give respect and affection
One of the interesting topics to be discussed is how to use body language to express respect. Japan and Indonesia have different ways of expressing gratitude, apology, etc.
Ojigi
In Japanese culture is a way of saluting ojigi with bow, for example, when to say thank you, apology, give a diploma at graduation, etc. There are two types of ojigi: ritsurei (立 礼) and Zarei (座 礼). Ojigi Ritsurei is done while standing. While doing ojigi, for men usually while pressing the ass to maintain balance, while women usually put both hands in front of body. While Zarei is ojigi performed while sitting. Based on the intensity, ojigi divided into 3: saikeirei (最 敬礼), keirei (敬礼), eshaku (会 釈). The longer and more in a bent body indicates the intensity of feeling to be conveyed. Saikeirei is the highest level, the body was bent about 45 degrees or more. Keirei around 30-45 degrees, while eshaku about 15-30 degrees. Saikeirei very rarely done in everyday life, as it is used when expressing profound apology or to perform prayers. To further intensify, ojigi done repeatedly. For example, when I want to convey a feeling of profound apology. As for the Indonesian culture, unknown ojigi.
handshake
The tradition of the handshake is done both in Indonesia and in Japan symbolizes hospitality and warmth. But in Indonesia, sometimes this is done with a handshake should join hands. If done by two people of the opposite sex, there are times when their hands are not touching. Location of hands after the handshake is done, was different. There are some people who then put a hand on his chest, there are also placed on the forehead, as saying that it is not merely physical, but also of the mind.
kiss the hand
The tradition of kissing the hand commonly done as a form of respect from a child to a parent, from a layman to community leaders / religion, from a student to teacher. It is not clear where this tradition originated. But there is a suspicion comes from the influence of Arab culture. In old Europe, known tradition of kissing the hand as well, but as a tribute to a man against a woman who dignified the same or higher. In the Roman Catholic religion, kiss the hand is also a tradition that is carried out of a race to the boss (Pope, Cardinal). In Japan unknown culture kiss hands.
kiss on the cheek
Kiss on the cheek common in Indonesia when two people meet friends or relatives, or as an expression of the love of a child to his parents and vice versa. This tradition is not found in Japan.
sungkem
Sungkem tradition prevalent in Javanese society, but may not be prevalent in other tribes. Sungkem done as a sign of devotion of a child to his parents, a student to teacher. Sungkem wont to do if a child is going to get married, or when Eid (for Muslims), as an expression of apology to the parents, and asked for his blessing prayer.
Both the Japanese and Indonesian culture is unique in expressing respect, sorry. Handshake is the only tradition that applies both in Japan and Indonesia. Mistakes that often occur when a new Indonesia is familiar with Japanese culture while doing ojigi, the face does not come subdued but looking at the other person. This may occur because the affected style prevalent handshake while looking at each other's eyes. Another mistake is to mix ojigi frequent and handshakes. It is also not appropriate in light of the Japanese tradition.
4. Cover
Comparison between Indonesian and Japanese culture is useful to know the thinking pattern of the Indonesian people and the nation of Japan. One of the main difficulties is the different characteristics of the two nations: the Japanese are relatively homogeneous, whereas the Indonesian people are very heterogeneous. Therefore, the comparison would be easier if it is focused on the tribes in Indonesia. For example, Japanese culture with the culture of Central Java, or Japanese culture with Sundanese culture.







1. When in public transport:
Japan: People in reading a book or sleep.
Indonesia: People in chat, ngegosip, laugh-ketiwi giggling, daydream, and sleep.

2. When eating dikendaraan general:
Japan: Trash leftover food is stored into a pants pocket or put in a bag, then just dumped after find any trash.
Indonesia: The innocent face, junk food scraps thrown away just like that under the bench / thrown out the window.

3. When the class:
Japan: The blank is most rear college.
Indonesia: The blank is the next college.

4. When the professor giving a lecture:
Japan: All students are silent listening intently.
Indonesia: Look to the left, there is a chat. Look to the right, there is a read comics. Look back, on the bed. Just wrote a calm front row to listen to, it was because sitting right in front of the nose faculty!

5. When given the task by the lecturer:
Japan: Today was also the day or malemnya directly invade the library or browse the internet for searching the data.
Indonesia: If there's no tomorrow, why dikerjain today!

6. When late to class:
Japan: Begging pardon bowing 90 degrees, and the expression of shame and regret not going to repeat again.
Indonesia: Slonong boy & girl slonong enter just like that without asking permission to lecturers at all.

7. When on the highway:
Japan: The car is very rare (except in big cities). Though Japan the country's largest car manufacturer in the world, his car on where ya?
Indonesia: The streets were jammed, to the extent that people often difficult to cross and which way the motor keserempet inconsiderate.

8. When the office hours:
Japan: The road sepiiiii really, like a ghost town.
Indonesia: There Unscrupulous use coklat2 uniform in wandering in malls.

9. When the trash:
Japan: Waste disposed of according to its kind. Organic waste disposed of in special bins of organic, non-organic waste disposed of in a non-organic waste.
Indonesia: organic Want kek, kek non-organic, animal bangke kek, all tumplek together in plastic bags. (make it simple hahahaa)

10. When leaving the office:
Japan: Departing take a train / bus. The car is used only when a family vacation or event urgent wrote.
 Indonesia: Prestige dooonk ... Future ride public transportation ?!

11. When agreed to meet:
Japan: Ting ... tong ... everything comes right at the agreed hours.
Indonesia: One party must be allowed to mildew and rust over time because of the wait!

12. When walking in the morning:
Japan: People on the street super fast kayak pursued doggy, fearing late to work or school.
Indonesia: nyantai wrote cyinn ...! The boss also the coming of late!