Enhancing Our Global Communication Skills

　On the sidelines of an international meeting where I attended, a question became a conversation piece for participants during a coffee break. “What makes an ideal chairperson of international meetings?”

　“Excellent listening skill,” one pointed out, while the other stressed “strong persuasive skill.” Although a variety of opinions came up as to the eligibility and requirement for an excellent chair, we ended up with laughing at a joke. “A good chair must be the one who could open up the mouth of the Japanese and shut that of Indians.”

　Japanese delegates at international conferences were once given the nickname “the 3S” by foreign journalisms for their typical “smiling”, “silence”, and “sleeping,” although that is not the case anymore.

　In this global age, international communication skills have become of increasing importance, because communication is a vital tool to keep good international relations, enhance mutual trusts, and take a leadership role in world opinion.

　Unfortunately, however, Japanese people are not necessarily good at communicating people from other nations. Their poor communication has contributed to compromise the brand value of the nation of Japan at international fora, far from bolstering credibility and trust in Japan in the international arena.

　Take Japan-China relations, for example. They still embrace old scores and grudges sixty years after the war, dragging on political strains over historical perception and the so-called textbook issue. Japan-Korea relations have also been soured with frictions over the similar textbook issue and territorial claims. We could have seen a different outcome on the issue to have the permanent seat of the United Nations Security Council in line with the U.N. reform, had we advocated our position successfully at an earlier stage and laid groundwork to gain more understanding and support from the international community.

　Then, why are the Japanese weak in communication? First of all, there is no Japanese expression equivalent for “communication.” Communication means: 1) the activity of conveying information and intention, 2) the way of building mutual understanding, and 3) the activity of fostering empathy. Japanese language has no vocabulary to describe such an encompassing notion.

　Japan has a long tradition to underestimate positive effects of communication, as seen in following sayings. The phrase, “silence is golden,” reflects that tacitness has been regarded as a virtue. As in “eyes can tell better than a mouth,” the importance of non-verbal communication is stressed. “No pheasant could be shot down if it hadn’t cried,” by which we learnt being quiet and keeping low-profile is a good way of self-guarding.

　We, the Japanese, have no education whatsoever on how to enhance communication skills at schools or elsewhere. By contrast, the Americans, among others, have been trained well to debate on specific topics with an aim to enhance logical structuring and persuasive skills. Further, they have been coached as to how to deliver convincing presentations.

　Japanese society is originally homogenous where many people share a common way of thinking, lifestyle and practices. Naturally, Japanese people are inclined to believe that they can be understood without saying anything.

　Thus the key to successful management of Japanese organizations is backstage consideration and a bit of laissez-faire attitude, but the key to failure is “square and logical discussion”. The latter may go far beyond the goal of the discussion, because it could simply result in ad-hominem argument and backlash. That is why we tend to act on reciprocal approach or split-the-difference approach, instead of through discussion.

　There are three key points to improve the skills required for international communication.
　First, language skill is necessary. Unfortunately, Japan ranks almost at the bottom among Asian nations in terms of English proficiency. Not surprisingly, many European and American companies will soon head for China or Korea.
　Second, the logical ability is required. Although language ability is an essential factor, it is not enough. People get no less convinced at the logical explanation than the fluency of the language. In addition, we need to stand on a global standard or a universal principle, as the common sense in Japan does not always work in the rest of the world.
　Third, the humor comes. It is said that Westerners start their speech with humor, while Japanese start with apologies. A touch of humor would bring a sense of unity. Decent humor would elicit respect and veneration from others.

　In the age of globalization, everyone needs to communicate with people from different cultures, ideologies and backgrounds. To make ourselves fully understood, we need to enhance general skills to think clearly and articulate what we think logically. Our failing to do so will lead to invisible state of Japan and lost confidence of the world.