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Tag: Diplomacy (Page 2 of 2)

Jet lag: an unexpected threat for diplomats

What do the Suez Crisis and George H.W. Bush vomiting on the Japanese Prime Minister have in common? They both generated from jet lag. Years after the 1956 Middle-East crisis, John Foster Dulles recognized that cancelling the Aswan agreement with the Egyptian leader Nasser, which opened the way for the Soviet Union to improve its relationship with Egypt, was a significant mistake and was due to the effects of jet lag. Similarly, the gastroenteritis attack that in 1992 caused former President Bush to vomit on him and the Japanese Prime Minister, was brought on by the effects of the trip to Japan.

These are only two examples contained in the article “How jet lag hurts diplomats, without them even realizing it“, in which Dan Caldwell and William Hocking stress that the symptoms of jet lag – fatigue, loss of appetite, headaches and irritability – could crucially impair high-level leaders and diplomats who engage in significant negotiations and discussions. With a view to obviate to these bad effects, the authors suggest that exposure to sunlight and rest can help re-synchronize circadian clock and operate at the height of mental acuity. In this sense, the selective use of pharmacological agents including melatonin may be of benefit. As an alternative, Caldwell and Hocking suggest that policy-makers may return to rely on resident diplomats to represent their country’s interests and positions to foreign governments.

 Jet lag

Image source: Flickr – Hernán Piñera – (CC BY-SA 2.0)

 

What is Tact?

Tact is the art of telling the truth without hurting one’s sensitivity. It can be very important in negotiations and in conflict resolution. Tact encompasses many things, such as emotional intelligence, discretion, compassion, honesty and courtesy.

Mind Tool has published an article with several examples concerning the capacity of being tactful and lists 5 strategies to develop tact.

1. Create the right environment and think before you speak
2. Determine the appropriate time
3. Choose words carefully
4. Watch your body language
5. Never react emotionally

Read the full article

Broken_Egg_by_Noypi_reaverImage source: Deviant art – Noyipi-reaver  (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

The Six Rules for Disagreeing Agreeably

The Dale Carnergie Training, a leader company in performance improvement, in a post on its own blog asserts that the way in which we communicate can elicit positive or negative emotions. If we don’t have the right tact or sensitivity, people might misunderstand the message we are trying to convey. An approach that combines strength and empathy can help us keep bad emotions at bay.

Read full article at: http://bit.ly/1fCJquo

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Image source: http://bit.ly/1ebFUuP – Image by Dushan Wegner shtikl (License CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Posted by: Maria Francesca Dell’Apa

Different Country, Different Etiquette

In the 15th century, when modern diplomacy started to develop, the Italian Peninsula was fragmented into rival centres of power. Each one had his own interests to preserve and to encourage, but they shared common roots and habits.

Today the world has dramatically changed: multipolarity, globalization and shifting borders have filled international relations with cultural diversity and richness. As a result, the European-centred etiquette has been reached by a new one based on the observation of each country specificity.

In order to avoid gaffes here you find a useful link to cultural customs all around the world: http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/cultural_etiquette.htm

E-Diplomacy

Use of remote participation through videoconferencing has become a normal activity for diplomats; the use of this Internet tool is increasingly standing out to the practice of diplomacy.

This is one of the many interesting illustrations on e-diplomacy that DiploFoundation created to better describe the changing diplomatic world.

Illustrations focus on:

  • Internet driven-changes of environment in which diplomacy is conducted.
  • Impact on the two pillars of diplomacy, information and communication.

You can see some illustrations of the original gallery at: http://goo.gl/O01gC

One diplomat, many jobs

Diplomatic activities involves many jobs in one. This illustration by Diplofoundation summarizes the four different kind of working situation that any diplomat can face during the career. Each one of them requires different skills and it is a job on its own. Appropriate training and experience is needed to perform adequately and take the right decisions.

Tom Fletcher’s “Twiplomacy”

Tom Fletcher is the UK Ambassador in Lebanon and is one of the most active diplomats on social media. He has an original blog, concerning his diplomatic activities. One of his inspiring posts is titled:“Twiplomacy: riding the digital tiger”.

Here is the lead paragraph of the post:
“Diplomacy at its best has always been about both interpreting and shaping the world. Diplomats who only do the former should be in academia. Those who only do the latter should be in politics. Those that want to do both should be on Twitter.”

Read the full article at:
http://ukinlebanon.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=Speech&id=706941682

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