| Using an appropriate
vocabulary is part of the process. I have found that I do this with no
conscious effort on my part. If talking to a group of rough-talking laborers,
I automatically adjust my vocabulary to the one they are using. Minutes
later, if I'm talking to elderly refined ladies my vocabulary automatically
shifts gears. Using little-old-lady talk to the laborers, or roughneck
talk with the ladies would create real communications problems.
The speed of talking is also important. I think one of the reasons the North and the South have had difficulty communicating over the years is the machine gun rapidity of the Northerner's speaking and the painfully slow speech pattern of those from the South. If the other person speaks with short, precise sentences, switch to that style. If they are slow talkers, talk slowly. I had an interesting experience while in Australia. I was speaking to a group, and knowing their different pronunciation of some words I switched to theirs. I would say "SHED-ULE" instead if "SKED-ULE" to ease their listening burden and to my surprise I heard them using "SKED-ULE" out of respect for me! There is an "anecdote" about a door-to-door salesman who
outsold everyone in the territory because he had an uncanny way of making
everyone like him. Why? Because he was able to become "their kind
of people" within a flash. And it's a talent that can be learned.
It just takes practice. And it is magic. Beware of overdoing it which
can sound condescending. |
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