Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Ingenuity May Be Needed
Sometimes you need to look beyond the obvious if you want to solve a pressing problem. Sometimes, way beyond.
For the last week or two we've had a Japanese student staying with us. Our Japanese language skills are non-existent; her English language skills are basic.
And with all the best will in the world, sometimes communications get tricky.
At such times, ingenuity comes into play.
Speaking louder makes no difference to understanding.
Speaking slower sometimes helps.
Using different words helps.
Hand-signals and other visual aids definitely help.
And sometimes, approaching things from a totally different perspective can pay real dividends.
Who would ever have connected beaches and tinea?
I'll leave you to ponder :)
For the last week or two we've had a Japanese student staying with us. Our Japanese language skills are non-existent; her English language skills are basic.
And with all the best will in the world, sometimes communications get tricky.
At such times, ingenuity comes into play.
Speaking louder makes no difference to understanding.
Speaking slower sometimes helps.
Using different words helps.
Hand-signals and other visual aids definitely help.
And sometimes, approaching things from a totally different perspective can pay real dividends.
Who would ever have connected beaches and tinea?
I'll leave you to ponder :)
