How do you say “storytelling” in Japanese?

To succeed in a global business environment – you need to understand your global audience. Alon Reichman, one of our most talented storytellers here at Leave a Mark, was reminded of this during his latest work trip to Japan.

It's pretty clear that what works in Hebrew might not work in Japanese. Obviously, there are big cultural differences between Japan and Israel. There are, of course, many countries, and each has their own cultural norms and talking style.

As such, before we go ahead and give a presentation to an international audience – we need to consider this. To really reach our audience, we have to have an understanding of their culture. It's like talking to them in a dialect that they would get.

Sometimes, such cultural differences can be funny. But these differences can also prevent your message from getting across. So, before you talk to an international crowd, figure out how their culture is different from yours. And prepare for these differences – make accommodation to your presentation accordingly. And if your audience comes from many places—like Israel, Brazil, China, and the U.S.— you should consider that too. Where would the middle ground be?

When Alon visited Japan, he noticed how different the pace of life was from Israel, especially in how people respond.

Response time and conversational styles: What to think about before talking to an international audience

In Israel, we're always on the go. We speak our minds quickly. If we answer fast, people think we're smart or witty. And usually, we're not big on holding back.

But in Japan, it's a whole different story.

The Japanese really care about being careful, serious, and professional. Taking your time to answer is a way to show you respect the person who asked and that you've thought about your answer. They like to think things through and know all the details instead of just saying whatever comes to mind. In Israel, a quick answer might be good, but in Japan, it could seem rude or not serious.

There's this idea called "conversational styles" or "response time." In Israel, we often talk over each other – it's not rude, it's just how we show we're excited and into the conversation. But in Japan, people wait for their turn to talk, especially when someone important is speaking. Interrupting them can come off as disrespectful. So, the Japanese take their time answering and don't interrupt much. To us Israelis, this might feel slow and like nobody's really excited.

How to adjust your presentation for an international crowd

Before you give a talk to people from around the world, think about how fast they respond. Imagine a line: Israelis are on one end, Japanese on the other, and Americans are probably somewhere in the middle.

Slow reactivity

Fast reactivity

Japanese

Americans

Israelis

Think about this when you plan, like for the Q&A part. We Israelis don't like silence. If nobody asks questions right away, we might worry they're not interested. We might jump in with more questions or change the subject just to fill the quiet. But if you're talking to Japanese folks, it's better to just chill out and let them think. Give them time to come up with their questions without feeling rushed. Just be patient and let them do their thing – they'll appreciate it.

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