A Virtual Coffee Break
with Interculturalists Podcast
Listen to The Latest Episode

Welcome to WorldWork’s podcast “Virtual Coffee Break with Interculturalists”, hosted by Seiji Nakano & Gabriela Weglowska.
This podcast features intercultural practitioners who do varied and interesting work in the field. We share stories, perspectives and tips on training, living and working abroad, and anything else in between that will help you to become a better intercultural practitioner. We are on a journey to bring the intercultural world closer to you.
In each episode, we will be joined by a special guest from the field. Each conversation lasts 30-45 minutes and new episodes are released usually in the first week of each month.
Feel free to pick up a topic and continue discussing it on a dedicate podcast page on LinkedIn. We will be there too to offer additional perspectives. This is a great way to facilitate social learning in a truly international environment.
You can also subscribe to this podcast on the following platforms:
- Apple – https://pcr.apple.com/id1548274551
- Google Podcast – http://bit.ly/35T4WzD
- Spotify – http://spoti.fi/3sLH7nh
- Amazon Music – https://amzn.to/3nUbB2w
- Stitcher – https://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=600990
Archives

Christmas traditions in Poland and Japan
In this last episode of the first season, the hosts will be reflecting on 2021 and looking forward to 2022, as well as discussing Christmas and NYE traditions in their countries – Poland and Japan.

Trust in Japanese Culture
In this episode, Seiji Nakano speaks with Kawatani Takashi about trust in Japanese culture. Listen to learn about how building trust in Japan differs from the rest of the world, why is trust the base and the start of any business and personal relationship, and what the attitudes to building trust have to do with the Japanese constitution. Reference: Click

Effective International Influencing – PART 2
This is part 2 of effective international conversation with Bob Dignen and Richard Lowe. Listen for insights on the challenges of influencing, common mistake, resistance to influencing, as well as practical tips you can try to become a better influencer. If you are interested in Influencing Topic, please click here (https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MGTPL9R) to be kept in touch!

Effective International Influencing – PART 1
In this episode, Seiji & Gabriela are speaking with Bob Dignen (Director of York Associates) and Richard Lowe (Managing Director of WorldWork). They are addressing the topic of effective international influencing. Influencing is one of the key business and leaderships skills which international organisations look for in new employees. It is also a highly sought-after skill amongst English language learners

Building Trust in Multicultural and Virtual Teams
One of the most essential characteristics of a well-functioning team is trust. However, trust is challenging to build and sustain, especially when working virtually, in a remote and multicultural team. In this episode, Seiji & Gabriela chat with Chris Massey – intercultural trainer and facilitator who is also certified to use WorldWork’s Team Trust Indicator (TTI) psychometric tool. Listen for

Reflections from three interculturalists on life in a Covid-19 lockdown
As interculturalists, we are used to travelling, meeting people from different cultural environments and basically living in a ‘global village’. In the last twenty months or so all of that was taken away. However, many of us developed new habits instead which we now want to keep. But, as the Covid-related restrictions ease down and we are all much busier

Intercultural Training – Unravelling the Challenges and Solutions
If the future of work is global then is the path to success through developing intercultural competence? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela speaking with their special guest, Michelle Bradley – owner and intercultural consultant at Elephant Communications. They share practical tips on how to get your training participants curious, how to create those priceless aha moments, and how to communicate

Creating Cultural Synergy for Maximising a Global Success
This is the first episode of the new series of monthly intercultural conversations with guests and experts from the intercultural field. This month, our podcast features Joyce Jenkins, a co-founder and managing director at Expert Humans – professional skills development organisation based in Singapore. Listen for insights on the topic of cultural synergy: what is it and what’s the research

A Day in Life of an Intercultural Learning Designer
Here is an interesting story of Seiji & Gabriela, who at some point realised that they can combine their passion for learning & development with their backgrounds in the intercultural field. Tune in for great insights on various roles and activities in the world of instructional/learning design.

Living Across Cultures: Eurolatinocanadian Perspectives
This episode’s guest speaker has had an extraordinary life. Meet Pavle Luger. He was born in the former Yugoslavia, now Croatia, in a very Austro-Hungarian family tradition but later immigrated to Germany and then to Venezuela, and now he lives in Canada. Listen to Seiji & Gabriela chatting with Pavle about his “eurolatinocanadian” perspectives on life.

Emotional Changes After Relocation
What happens to our confidence, self-worth and mindset when we move? In this episode, Angelic Ingram, Mindfulness Coach for Expats, chats with Seiji & Gabriela about the emotional changes her clients experience after relocation. She also offers a few suggestions on what to do to move out from the feelings of anxiety, frustration or loneliness.

Change of Language, Change of Personality?
The Czech proverb does say, “Learn a new language and get a new soul”. So, do you feel like a different person when you speak a foreign language? Many bilinguals report being different in each of their languages, and some researchers have attempted to get to the bottom of this. Seiji Nakano is one of them.Listen to Seiji & Gabriela

Negotiating Across Cultures
We all negotiate something every day. However, cultural differences can influence business negotiations in significant and unexpected ways. That’s why it is vital that we become more aware of the impact we have on others as well as understand what drives our counterparts’ opinion and position. So, in this episode, we dive a bit deeper into the topic of negotiating

On the integration of ‘the locals’ towards ‘minority’ groups’ cultures
Research tells us that in every society, minority group members (e.g., immigrants) can integrate towards majority group members or locals’ culture (e.g. White UK nationals). New work has demonstrated that locals can actually integrate towards minorities, too – and when they do, they seem to be more likely to experience benefits and fewer problems when it comes to overall prosperity, health

Rethinking intercultural communication from the perspective of language
Have you ever considered exploring how intercultural communication can be rethought from the perspective of language? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela chatting with Dr Doris Dippold from the University of Surrey. With her motto, “it’s all about language”, Doris is introducing more language-awareness into university education as well as applying the same perspective to Artificial Intelligence. Fascinating work!

How did we land in the intercultural field?
Are you considering a career in the intercultural field? Interculturalists often get asked about how they got into the field. As you can guess, everyone’s career story is different – which makes it even more interesting to ask this question to as many interculturalists as you can when considering your own career moves. Listen to Seiji & Gabriela sharing their

The reality of learning how to communicate internationally
English language is everywhere. It’s easy to assume that in order to communicate internationally, one needs to learn to speak English. However, every interculturalist will know that English language fluency isn’t enough. In order to succeed in the international arena, one must also develop intercultural fluency. Listen to Seiji & Gabriela, and this weeks’ special guest – Vanessa Paisley, as

Working in small vs large organisations
Do you prefer working in a small or a large organisation, and why? We once heard that large organisations have more cultural diversity and small organisations have fewer development opportunities? Hm…isn’t that the other way round!? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela discussing their personal experiences. We would love to hear your own preferences and reasons behind them. Join the chat

What makes you multicultural?
Is it the knowledge of different countries, is it a feeling of belonging to more than one culture, or is it when your values and beliefs are influenced by other cultures? Or does being multicultural involve all these things? And can you be multicultural to varying degrees? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela sharing some thoughts on their own multicultural identities.

Have you ever explored the links between culture and mythology?
There’s plenty of mythology in our culture. Maybe the mythical creatures, legends and heroes could be explored more often in intercultural training? Even when culture no longer believes that its myths are true, these stories often survive as vessels for important cultural values. Listen to Seiji & Gabriela, and Richard Lowe – WorldWork’s CEO, having a very interesting chat about

Cultural clusters – helpful or harmful?
Is clustering nations into culturally similar groups helpful for summarising their similarities and differences, or is it harmful because of stereotyping and missing on the key differences among societies? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela, and this week’s special guest – Joyce Jenkins discussing this vast topic and sharing their views. We would love for you to join the chat and

Being an intercultural generalist vs. specialist
Would you describe yourself as a generalist or a specialist? What’s the difference? Is one more important than the other? What do employers and clients want? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela, and this week’s special guest – Bill Reed. They are discussing their own career journeys and share perspectives on this popular topic. We would love for you to join

Finding small happiness in lockdown
How are you dealing with lockdown? Are you focusing on your wellbeing? Have you considered how your cultural background influences how you see and seek happiness? Listen to Seiji & Gabriela reflecting on what makes them happy and motivated every day during the pandemic, and sharing what they’ve observed or read about happiness in different cultures. We would love for

Emotional Intelligence & Cultural Intelligence
What emotional intelligence (EQ) and cultural intelligence (CQ) have in common? It is a huge and a very interesting topic. Listen to Seiji & Gabriela trying to explore it. This is just a conversation starter. We would love to continue this conversation with you on LinkedIn – please join in.

I had an argument with my flatmate…
Intercultural gaffes, miscommunications and arguments are very human. But…as interculturalists, are we always expected to keep it perfectly together? We are the ones who teach others how to avoid gaffes and clashes, at yet… Listen to Seiji & Gabriela revealing their own challenges of living up to the expectations of a flawless intercultural communicator. We would love to hear examples

New Year’s Resolution
In Japan, a person who sets up their New Year’s resolutions but fails to fulfil them is called a 3-day Monk. Do you set up and stick to your resolutions or are you like the 3-day Monk? Maybe the New Year’s resolutions are just not your thing and you prefer to reflect on your circles of influence or create a

Introducing a Virtual Coffee Break with Interculturalists
Introducing a Virtual Coffee Break with Interculturalists Podcast hosted by Seiji Nakano & Gabriela Weglowska.We will be chatting about life as an expat, working in the intercultural field, and sharing our go-to resources for developing intercultural competence! We are also hoping to chat with guest intercultural practitioners so please do get in touch!