Category: podcast

Job Applications +++ Job Interviews +++ Taboos +++ Absolutely Intercultural 276 +++

Hello and welcome to show 276 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we are going to talk about “Job Applications” in different cultures. Most countries have their own work cultures, you can sometimes tell from the layout of office spaces, behaviour in the workplace and even the application processes may differ. How can the application process for jobs be different in different cultures when the final aim to get the best person for the job seems to be the same? Let’s hear from the experiences of our guests.

absolutely honest

In our first story, “absolutely honest”, Meaghan from Canada talks about why in the past she kept some things about her personal life hidden during job interviews and how she has just had her first experience of mentioning her daughter in this situation.

absolutely prepared

In our second story, “absolutely prepared”, we hear from Yarub, a student from Jordan, who explains how his university helped prepare him specifically for the German job market.

absolutely curious

In our last story “absolutely curious”, Ashlin shares with us that at some job interviews in India you should be ready for some very personal questions, even about your religion or caste.

What about you? Have you ever applied for a job or been an interviewee for a job interview? Or, maybe, you have even applied for a job in a different country? Feel free to share your story with us.

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 5 August.

Until then –prepare yourself well for job applications and –
Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Natalia Obikhod

Assistant Editors: Carlos Fuch, Lars Felder, Shelbi Ankiewicz

Adulthood +++ Independence +++ Responsibilities +++ Absolutely Intercultural 275 +++

Hello and welcome to show 275 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we are going to talk about “Adulthood”. Is adulthood about our age and the national law in the country we live in, or is it about our maturity – our social or financial status? Is it just a number on your passport or our level of responsibilities? Does it have anything to do with the fact that we perhaps still live with our parents? I am sure that each and every one of you has your own unique answer- as do our guests today.

absolutely unfair

In our first category, “absolutely unfair”, Leo from Germany is sharing how disrespectfully he was sometimes treated by other people because he was just a kid. Leo could not wait to become a legal adult, in Germany this is at the age of 18 years old, and finally, be taken seriously by people around him.

absolutely misjudged

In our second category, “absolutely judged”, we hear from Huriye, a caring mother from Turkey who was judged by a dentist in Norway for accompanying her 16-year-old daughter to the dentist’s appointment. Poor Huriye looked like a helicopter mother in the doctor’s eyes because she treated her daughter like a child.

absolutely independent

In our last category, “absolutely independent”, Eleonora from Bulgaria tells us how proud she is of making independent adult decisions on her own, for example studying in a foreign country. Her parents had taught her how to be independent since she was a child and they allowed Eleonora to find her own way in life, like a true adult.

What about you? What does it mean to be an adult in your culture? At what age do you become an adult in your culture? Feel free to share your story with us.

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 1^st July.

Until then – no matter how old you are, allow yourself to make grown-up decisions and –

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Natalia Obikhod

Assistant Editors: Carlos Fuch, Lars Felder, Shelbi Ankiewicz

Culture change +++ Creating yourself +++ Learning new perspectives +++ Absolutely Intercultural 274 +++

Hello and welcome to show 274 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Our topic for today is “Culture change”. Cultures and people who live in them are interconnected and influence each other. For some people, it is easy to adapt to a new environment and accept the challenges of culture change. They see new experiences as an opportunity to learn and grow personally. Some people, however, are rather careful about exposing themselves to new cultures and as a result are less likely to be influenced or changed.

In this show, we try to figure out how cultures influence us, what impact they have on us, and how we can create better versions of ourselves by adapting to cultural changes.

absolutely direct

In our first category, “absolutely direct”, Carlos speaks to Sandie, a guest lecturer from Australia who came to Germany to exchange teaching practices and learn new teaching approaches, which however may not be suitable for her own students back home.

absolutely influenced

In our second category, “absolutely influenced”, Natalia talks to Shelbi, an Exchange Student from the United States who let herself dive completely into the new German culture and is soaking up new cultural influences.

absolutely alien

In our last category, “absolutely alien”, Jan from Germany shares with Lars the story of how he moved from the countryside to the big city of Bonn, former capital of West Germany, and how he noticed that his own culture was different from the people around him in the street – and he felt like an outsider.

What about you? Have you ever experienced culture change? How did you deal with it and what impact did it have on you and your life? Maybe you are in the middle of adapting to the new environment right now? I am sure you are not alone, so please, feel free to share your story with us.

Please write a comment or mail us, we could do a follow-up interview with you in one of our next shows. On our web page, absolutely-intercultural.com, you can get more information about this show and previous episodes and you can leave comments. And if you enjoyed the show, please like us on Facebook too. 

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 3rd June.

Until then – allow yourself to dive into another culture and –

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Natalia Obikhod

Assistant Editors: Carlos Fuch, Lars Felder, Shelbi Ankiewicz

What is home? +++ Origin +++ Belonging +++ Absolutely Intercultural 273 +++

Hello and welcome to show 273 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Our topic today is “What is home?”, a question that has many interpretations and potential answers. Is it the place in which we were born or the place where we live now? And is it actually a place at all? For some people, home is connected to their family roots. At the same time, others find it hard to identify themselves with their country or region of origin – they have moved on and made their home in other corners of the world. Some people had to leave their home, some may never even have had a real place to call home.

In this show, we tried to figure out where is home or more importantly, what is home? To find out the truth, we asked our guests what the word home means to them.

absolutely displaced

In our first category, “absolutely displaced”, Arina from Ukraine reports how she had to escape from her home town Kyiv after the war started in Ukraine five weeks ago.

absolutely belonging

In our second category, “absolutely belonging”, Teresa shares with us how she found a new home where she truly belongs.

absolutely alien

In our last category, “absolutely alien”, Sebastian, describes how he moved only a couple of hundred kilometers from his home city and suddenly felt like a complete stranger.

What about you? What does home mean to you? Your place of birth? A place where you feel comfortable, a circle of friends, or a beautiful memory? Tell us about how and where you experienced this feeling of belonging, of being truly at home.

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 6th May.

Until then – cherish your home and if you have not found home yet, get up, start looking for it and

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Natalia Obikhod

Assistant Editors: Carlos Fuch, Lars Felder, Shelbi Ankiewicz

Apology Culture +++ Making mistakes +++ Forgiveness +++ Absolutely Intercultural 272 +++

Hello dear listeners, and welcome to our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. This is show 272, and our topic today is “The Apology Culture”. Are you the kind of person who easily and quickly apologizes? Or do you have a sleepless night when you know that you should apologize to your boss the next morning? Making mistakes may be painful, but it is the fastest way towards getting it right. Some people can admit their mistakes quite easily, they apologize and move forward. On the other hand, there are people who are stuck in their guilt for what they have done; people, who find it very hard to say sorry to others, and sometimes, even to forgive themselves. Is there any universal formula for how to apologize properly? Are there any paths for moving from guilt to self-improvement more quickly?

absolutely absent

In our first category, “absolutely absent”, Lars from Germany shares with us how he forgot to attend an important business meeting with his team and this almost cost him his job.

absolutely forgiven

In our second category, “absolutely forgiven”, Safi, a student from a German-Libyan family, tells us about an embarrassing situation where he had forgotten to cancel a one-to-one zoom meeting with his university lecturer. However, as he apologized very thoroughly, his lecturer was so disarmed by his honesty, that Safi was completely forgiven.

absolutely guilty

In our last category, “absolutely guilty”, Fernanda, a former medical student from Mexico tells us about how terribly sad and guilty she felt when a patient had died in her care in a very busy emergency room.

What about you? Have you recently been in a situation where you where you had to apologize to someone? Did you do what our guests today advise us to do in order to be forgiven or even to forgive yourself?

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 1st April.

Until then – allow yourself to make mistakes – but be prepared to fully apologize for them and

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Natalia Obikhod

Assistant Editors: Carlos Fuch, Lars Felder, Shelbi Ankiewicz

Uncertainty +++ Decision-making +++ Semester abroad +++ Absolutely Intercultural 271 +++

Hello and welcome to show 271 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Our topic today is “Uncertainty”. We are all faced with uncertainties every day, but the way that we deal with them and the way we feel about them makes us unique. Some of us feel terribly helpless in situations of uncertainty. On the other hand, there are people, for example those who enjoy playing poker, who think that certainty is boring and are always looking for the adrenaline which uncertainty provides them with during their adventures. Are there any tricks, for those who don’t like uncertainty to be able to take decisions and feel safe with their choices? Or for those who seek uncertainty as a thrill in life and enjoy weighing up different probabilities?

absolutely homeless

In our first category, “absolutely homeless”, Elene from Georgia shares with us how she left her lovely, predictable and comfortable home in Georgia and ended up sleeping rough in a car in Amsterdam together with three friends.

absolutely uncertain

In our second category, “absolutely uncertain”, Adika, a student from Azerbaijan, tells us about a situation where she observed a man well because she was not so sure whether she should accompany him to his house for CouchSurfing.

absolutely open

In our last category, “absolutely open”, Amauri, a student from Brazil tells us about how he resolved the uncertainty of living with a roommate from an Arab country. Amauri had read on the internet that single Arab men do not like to have girls around their house and feel a little awkward when there are female visitors at home.

What about you? Have you recently experienced uncertainty in your life? How did you feel about it? Will the tricks that we shared help you when you face uncertainty?

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 4 March.

Until then – allow a little more uncertainty in your lives – and

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta

Assistant Editors: Natalia Obikhod, Elene Mikeladze

Managing Cultural Diversity +++ Sprachen/Internationales +++ Sustainable Innovation+++ Absolutely Intercutural 270 +++

Hello and welcome to show 270 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will talk about the biggest intercultural event of Sprachen/Internationales during the Winter Semester which is called the Managing Cultural Diversity Seminar. Every year – for the last 20 years we have invited guest lecturers from our partner Universities from literally all around the world to join our seminar. The main idea of the Managing Cultural Diversity Seminar is one intercultural topic that is discussed in detail by participants from every part of the World. This semester we looked at Sustainable Innovation. Local and international students together with the guest lecturers were divided into groups to work on Sustainable Innovation ideas and at the same time collaboration intercultural teams.

absolutely entrepreneurial

In our first category, “absolutely entrepreneurial”, we will listen to the conversation of two international students who both participated in the seminar. Carlos from Brazil and Lorena from Albania went out of it, motivated to take initiative and to start their own business ideas just because of having listened to the stories of the other participants in the seminar

absolutely project-oriented

In our second category “absolutely project-oriented”, we speak to guest lecturer Vilmante from our partner university in Lithuania. Vilmante has generously contributed to the Managing Cultural Diversity seminar for more than 10 years now and for her MCD is not only the place where she will meet old and new friends but also the place where great projects with other guest lecturers from all around the world are conceived and planned.

absolutely innovative

Finally, in our last category “absolutely innovative”, we listen to Tea, a guest lecturer from our partner university in Tirana, Albania. She held a workshop about Sustainable Innovation in Crisis, and gave a simple solution to a topic which sounds as if there cannot be a simple solution. She gave Esjona an insight before her own workshop took place.

What about you? Have you thought about finding a way to stay connected to people who live far from you? Have you started thinking of your own sustainable innovation business idea?

Please write a comment or mail us, we could do a follow-up interview with you in one of our next shows. On our web page, www.absolutely-intercultural.com, you can get more information about this show and previous episodes and you can leave comments. And if you enjoyed the show, please like us on Facebook too. 

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 4th of February.

Until then – start formulating your next sustainable innovation idea – and Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta

Assistant Editors: Natalia Obikhod, Elene Mikeladze

Internalization +++ Erasmus Experience +++ Life In a Cultural Exchange +++ Absolutely Intercutural 269 +++

Hello and welcome to show 269 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will listen to our Chef Editor, Esjona Musta from Albania who will share with us the biggest step in her internationalization story so far. Have you got any plans for internationalizing yourselves? What can you do to have a multitude of intercultural challenges? How does an Exchange program like ERASMUS change young people’s lives? How did Esjona manage to integrate herself so quickly and learn about traditions of a new culture and religion?

absolutely integrated

In our first category, “absolutely integrated”, Esjona will take us into the Carnival Celebrations in Cologne. Imagine her in a crowded train full of Germans dressed as Movie characters, such as Pocahontas, but also as the Christmas Grinch, next to Santa Claus, and the whole zoo.

absolutely traditional

In our second category “absolutely traditional”, Esjona will get an unexpected Christmas present while she is describing how it feels to celebrate a traditional Christmas in Germany.

absolutely Erasmus

Finally, in our last category, “absolutely Erasmus”, Esjona makes a toast with mulled spiced wine to the most valuable lesson she learned during her ERASMUS semester.

What about you? Have you had intercultural experiences which changed your mind set or your behavior? Have you thought about starting your own internationalization story in your own country or abroad?

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 7th of January.

Until then – start formulating your next steps in your own internationalization – and Bleiben Sie absolutinterkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta

Assistant Editors: Natalia Obikhod, Elene Mikeladze

Intercultural Stereotypes +++ Nationality Stereotypes +++ Absolutely Intercultural 268 +++

Hello and welcome to show 268 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Sometimes we are the objects of other people’s stereotypes and sometimes, we are, in fact, the people who actively use overgeneralizations to simplify our social lives. When we use stereotypes, we instinctively categorize others using shared beliefs about a certain target group. But do cultural stereotypes really always make our lives easier, or do they sometimes ruin relationships and harm the relationship between two different cultures? Our mothers told us, not to use stereotypes, but then, some people tell us that stereotypes may be a great trigger for small talk ?Are cultural stereotypes the bridge that connects two cultures, or are they the reason why this bridge between two different cultures is never built?

In our show, three students tell us about concrete situations, where they were the objects of stereotyping and how those stereotypes affected their personal lives.

absolutely Christian

In our first category, “absolutely Christian”, Berla, a student from Iraq tells us about being stereotyped as a Muslim by her fellow classmates before they had even seen her in her new school in Germany. They were in for a surprise.

absolutely secular

In our second category, “absolutely secular”, Erta tells us how a friendly bus driver in her university town wished her Eid Mubarak just because he knew that she is Albanian. In his mind all Albanians are Muslims.

absolutely white

Finally, in our last category, “absolutely white”, Ali from Yemen remembers a story where a girl he met in a club was a little surprised by his skin color.

What about you? Have you been the object of a stereotype? How did you react? Do you try to use these situations to connect to others or do you just ignore them and move on?

Please write a comment or mail us, we could do a follow-up interview with you in one of our next shows. We could go deeper into other categories such as Heterostereotypes which we have about the others and Autostereotypes which we have about our own cultural group. On our web page, www.absolutely-intercultural.com, you can get more information about this show and previous episodes and you can leave comments. And if you enjoyed the show, please like us on Facebook too. 

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment.

Our next show will be coming to you on 3 December.

Until then – try to watch out for stereotypes – and

Bleiben Sie absolutinterkulturell!

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta

Assistant Editors: Natalia Obikhod, Elene Mikeladze