How Do I Handle a Thick Mexican Accent?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Okay…so two new guys have been added to the team of technicians I work with. They’re very capable IT techs and they’re in Mexico. I need to communicate instructions and discuss things with them. It’s never more than about 3-5 minutes. We have instant messaging, email, and telephone as our means of communication.

Here’s the problem: neither of these guys types at conversational speed (I do). So rather than IMing me, they want to talk to me on the phone. Their grammar is excellent and they know what they’re doing, job-wise. I have something of a hearing deficit. Nothing drastic…I attribute it to too much rock-n-roll. but I sometimes have difficulty in less-than-optimum conditions (like on the phone for instance). They both have very thick accents. I have trouble with accents to begin with.

Here are my questions:

  1. Sometimes they’ll IM me and ask if they can call me (a wave of panic usually flows over me at that time). Can I politely refuse?

  2. Should I tell them why?

  3. Should I just grin and bear it and struggle through the conversation. I invariably have to ask them to repeat themselves.

I know this isn’t the end of the world. I’m just curious as to how others might handle this situation. Thanks!

2

You could try saying “¿Que?” a lot.

3

I found that spending a little time with someone in person helps later when you speak with them later.

4

Ain’t gonna happen. I’m in Chicago and they’re in Mexico. I’ve never even met my boss or any of my co-workers, and I’m with this group for nearly a year now.

5

Just stretch the truth a little and tell them you’re kinda deaf and prefer communicating in writing.

6

You could try a hybrid phone/IM conversation. That way if there is a particular word or phrase you can’t understand, they can type that. We did that sometimes in my last job, more to send numbers to each other than due to language, or to “coach” each other on conference calls. But it might be helpful. Otherwise, remember the basics–use a good phone, eliminate background noise, speak a bit slowly. I don’t recommend telling them you only want to communicate in writing. That will probably make it difficult to build a good working relationship, and might make them inclined not to share info with you.

7

That would be a great idea for someone who had a more profound hearing loss or for someone who had to interact with these guys all day, but it’s very infrequent. Maybe 15 minutes per week. But thanks for the input!

8

I have tinitus pretty bad and my phone listening skills are horrible. I can’t hardly understand my friend, who speaks perfect English, when he calls from his cell phone.

I’ve also had to deal with accents over the phone. My solution was to hire someone to answer the phone for me :wink:

But seriously…one thing I have had to do is completely drop everything and shut my eyes and listen hard. I can’t look at the computer screen and talk, or write or do anything else. If you’re dealing with code and they tell you to find such-and-such a line, say “holdon, let me get to that line” and then continue the conversation.

I also talk slow…I figure they can’t understand me if I can’t understand them. I also do it in hopes that it makes them feel like they have to talk slow too.

So…listen hard, talk slow. That’s the best I got.

I am also not adverse to telling my clients to email me things. It’s just as instantaneous as the phone, and when I am checking email I can multi-task. Not while I’m on the phone. You could just tell them that it’s easier for you to get to their problem when you have it sitting in your inbox. If they call you can’t always give it your full attention.

9

Then when they start speaking spanish he’s really screwed.

Alot of my customers speak english as a second language and I’ve found that after saying “what” a few times it’s just easier to bite the bullet and say “I still didn’t understand that word/phrase/sentence” Or just tell them that their accent is to thick and they need to slow down so I can understand it.

10

Tell them that you are deaf as a post. It will save you hours a day.

hh

11

Explain to them that you can’t hear very well, and could they please enunciate very carefully if they must speak on the phone with you, to avoid you having to say “Otra vez, por favor?” (Say that again, please?) again and again. Speak up, it is not rude, and will make things go smoother for everyone if you do. There is no shame for anyone in this.

12

Adding, I’d write them this and keep a copy of it for my files. Emphasize that you need them to say words more clearly. If you also need them to say things a little slower, add that too. This way they won’t be shouting so that you can hear. I don’t know why some people think that this is the way to be understood, but they do.

13

I can’t imagine an office too much more international than ours and have, Kalhoon, every so often been subject to the same problem you describe. While I much prefer a one-on-one, hands on, intimate communication, sometimes it just can’t be accomplished without risking either them getting offended or me losing my mind trying to comprehend what they’re saying.

In those rare situations, I just ask that they send me the information digitally so that they can continue to work on something else while I find resolution back on my machine. I ask them to send me all the pertinents via email or ftp and armed with that it’s usually no problem to comprehend, replicate and resolve the issue.

You’re not only not ducking an issue but actually getting them a quicker fix. While they’re not owed a reason, can’t really imaging anyone getting offended that you’d share that your hearing is at fault and that it’s nothing personal. They’re big boys… or should be.

14

I think there’s a big difference in pride at stake between asking a person in Mexico and a Mexican-American in America to repeat themselves. Maybe I’m a bit off here, but I would feel a bit rude/uncomfortable, as you’ve mentioned, asking someone to repeat themselves if they were living in the US, using English on a regular basis. However, I think that for the most part foreigners speaking English as a distinctly second language probably wouldn’t be offended by the insinuation that they have a thick accent.

15

I think this is quite true.

For what it’s worth, when I have trouble, I preface my request to speak more slowly and clearly with the phrase,

“Hey, you speak English much better than I speak Spanish (or whatever), but I still have trouble understanding some things you say, so…”

16

Seconded. And thirded.

I’m pretty much deaf. I have about a 90% loss in my right ear, and the left ear was starting to fade badly, to the point where I only had about 50%.

Even with hearing aids, it is sometimes difficult for me to understand people. I’ve had the aids for about 8 months and I still haven’t gotten used to how loud the world around me really is. I have no hesitation to tell folks that I have a hearing difficulty and could they speak louder/slower/more clearly/whatever I need them to do.