We need true empathy, genuine collaboration, generous cooperation, and adequate sharing. Also, we should honor each other and consider differences essential and equally prestigious. That is, we have to trust each other and believe in inclusive 'we', not 'I '.

The important first step is to understand there are differences. Many leaders, often monolingual and monocultural, cannot even conceive the concept of different thinking precisely due to linguistic differences. It is important to see and accept the lack in communication skills at first. Organisations can support language learning and further cultural differences training by sponsoring teams and individuals in their journey e.g. pay for their evening language classes, on-board experts in the business to deliver lessons, pay for language learning app memberships (Duolingo etc.), host cultural evenings and events (food sharing, quizzes etc.).

Once, I was leading a team, and when I noticed that some members of my team were struggling to keep up due to language differences, I decided to take action. Instead of singling anyone out, I quietly introduced more visuals in our presentations and made sure all our key documents were easy to understand. I also encouraged language learning, offering resources and setting aside time for anyone who wanted to improve their skills. Slowly, the atmosphere shifted. People felt more comfortable asking questions, and everyone began to contribute more, regardless of their language ability. It brought us closer as a team.

Emotional differences are often what tends to create a deeper gap than language barriers. Team building exercises are important along with occupation team dynamics analyses.

Acknowledging the differences and offering training of various types may help with bridging the gap. There is no shame in having help at hand should it be needed. The first thing to ascertain is where the gaps are. Then you can create visual aids etc and schedule regular practice in linguistics exercises. The latter can be done by the team members who need to hon their skills. Meetings are not necessary, just small notes passed on to each other. Those who are better experts can lend a hand at checking the work. There should always be a leader to make sure the whole thing is really happening. Praise and encourage everyone for what they do!