How Eurovision increases my Cultural Intelligence

Last weekend we enjoyed watching the Eurovision Song Contest.  It was a Eurovision  (EV) Party. We sang along, we danced, we laughed with some competitors, shouted when the ones we liked didn’t get the points we felt they deserved, and ate and drank in Australian/ European party style.  Like many Australians we enjoy the crazy, cheesy, festival of song and each year learn a little more about the countries that host and compete.

It is a perfect vehicle for increasing all four factors of cultural intelligence (CQ). 

The CQ Drive component is about motivation and confidence;

Click to read more ...

It doesn’t have to be a lonely planet - Global networking skills

So you’ve moved overseas.  You need to build relationships.  Work relationships and social relationships. There may be barriers of language and culture; there will be barriers of unfamiliarity.  Unless you have connections that know and trust you –you will be seen as a newcomer, an outsider. 

How can you bridge that gap to effectively build relationships?

Click to read more ...

What are shared mental models and do your teams have them?

In the last newsletter I wrote about cultural integration.  I was preparing to speak at the Washington FIGT conference entitled Cultural Integration and the Illusion of Closeness.

At the same time I was working on a paper reviewing the research into teams, multi-cultural teams (MCT) and cultural intelligence as part of my professional development for the Australian College of Organisational Psychologists.

Both the MCT research and the FIGT conference have left me reflecting on mental models and the extent to which they are shared, or we assume they are shared, with those around us. 

The teams’ literature places a great deal of emphasis on shared mental models as one of the critical cognitive factors that influence a team’s effectiveness.  Team members who think alike about their work are more likely to be effective as they can anticipate the way each other will work and back each other up in critical situations.

Click to read more ...

Book Review: A Career in your suitcase

For many expatriates and those of us supporting them this book has been a staple on the ‘must-read’ list ever since it’s first edition in 1998.  This is the 4^th edition, not just reprinted but fully revised and updated. 

In this edition original author and prolific expat writer, Jo Parfitt, has been joined by career development expert Colleen Reichrath-Smith in a re-branded version that will speak to many in situations of career transition. Expat partners, global migrants and those considering a portable career doing work they love will find this book invaluable.

Click to read more ...

What's new for CIC members?

NEW eBook

• The Careers and Job Searching in Australia eBook is for those of you who are moving to Australia and who will be looking for work.  Covering aspects such as how resumes or interviews might be different than in your home country and also reminding you of some of the key things you need to be doing to gain a new role in Australia.

Saved Webinar

We’ve uploaded the saved version of February's Thrive in Tough Times webinar into the Resource Library under audio as it is a recording you can listen to.  There is also a link to the slides so you can look while you listen if you prefer.

• Thrive in Tough Times discusses the challenges faced in the culture shock stage and how you can build resilience and thrive through those tougher times until you begin to feel more "at home'.