This last week has been crazy for a lot of reasons - coordinating with some colleagues in the US has led to early mornings and late nights. I've also been called in to help manage a regional client, so getting up to speed has taken quite a bit of time. In the middle of all of this I had a client ask me straight out in an email, "Are you fluent in Mandarin?"
Although I have had friends ask the question, it's normally not direct like that and it took me aback. The first thought that flew through my mind was, "No way!" Then, though I took a step back and after a while composed the answer below:
“As far as my Mandarin, no, I'm not fluent. My listening skills are pretty good as I hear Chinese everyday, I can carry on a conversation, attend a meeting in Chinese and understand most of what is going on (60-80% normally depending on the topic and the speaker) although I normally use English when I need to clarify my points to make sure I am as clear as possible. I am still studying and continue to work on improving my overall communication skill in Mandarin.”
Initially I was embarrassed as I wrote the above, the perfectionist in me still has problems admitting shortcomings. Now, I'm not embarrassed at all. A year and a half ago I didn't speak any Chinese. Instead of looking at my faults, I'm going to focus on how far I've come.
Question - Any thing that you've done the same with? To looking forward...
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2 comments:
Yeah, I think there is no need to be fluent in your non-native language as long as you can make your point. Being fluent is a plus though. :-)
你很棒！真的！
I've been stalking your blog for a new post, so I'm glad to finally see another entry :) Greta, your language skills have always amazed me. I know from seeing you in action that you can communicate with people in Chinese so hold your head up high!
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