Building a “Culture of Why”: Communication as Culture

A rugby ball on a grass field above the words "Winners Ask Why". Based on a photo by Rorisang Ditake on Unsplash

In my new communication business, my big focus is “communication as systems and culture.”

We tend to think of communication as a skill that individuals are good or bad at. And that’s true as far as it goes…

…but whether individuals are good communicators or bad communicators doesn’t mean much if the organization’s communication systems aren’t working, or if its culture discourages good communication.

Today, I’d like to talk about an element of workplace culture no one ever seems to mention.

It’s making sure your workplace has a Culture of Why.

This one change, if done right, can drastically improve both the morale of your teams and the success of your projects.

That’s why I’m about to share some of the information that you’d normally get in several email follow-ups to my freebie 5 Communication Gaps to Look for in Your Organization. That free PDF helps teams identify their systemic communication gaps, one of which is working without the “why.”

Working without the “why” is when people assign tasks without explaining their purpose and context. And unless you’re trying to train the next Jason Bourne, this is a serious problem that needs to be fixed.

But before we talk about how to fix it, we need to understand why it’s a serious problem. Because until we understand why, we don’t get serious about fixing it.

Which is my point in a nutshell.

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New service: communication coaching! (With FREEBIE)

Communication problems making life hard in your company, organization, or group? The Detail Woman LLC now offers communication coaching! To celebrate, I’ve made a freebie to give you a small taste of how I think about communication systemically, and what sorts of problems this coaching can address for growing organizations. Communication is more than just … Read more

Some Advice for Studying Abroad

A photo of Keio University in Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Richard Liu on Unsplash

A college student recently wrote to me asking for career advice, but since she mentioned that she would soon be studying abroad, I ended up giving her exchange student advice instead. As a former exchange student at Tsuda College (now Tsuda University), I have a lot of opinions on that topic!

First of all, to all the college students out there: If you’re considering studying abroad, definitely do it. It’s one of the best things you can do for yourself if you’re a language person, a communication person, a political science person, or any person who wants a challenge.

And now for my study abroad advice…

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Japanese Explainer is Live!

This image is the Facebook Group banner for Japanese Explainer. It features the text "Japanese Explainer" in large font, with "Japanese Q&A powered by The Detail Woman LLC" in smaller font. At the bottom is a stripe with the text "Clarity on Japanese grammar," "Weekly answers," and "Low-key & low-commitment".

Calling all Japanese language learners! Want a free resource that’s low-key and low-commitment? In 2026 I am ramping up my efforts to offer learning opportunities in some of my favorite teaching areas, in channels where they can reach more people than my humble blog here. As my first initiative, I’ve just launched Japanese Explainer, a … Read more

UChi-Con 2024 Slides

Title slide of an "Anime Translation and Localization" talk that I gave at Uchi-Con 2024.

Thanks to everyone who came out to my Anime Translation & Localization panel at UChi-Con over the weekend! You were a great crowd with great questions. There’s so much we didn’t get to, like how the anime translation & localization models we discussed have changed somewhat in the post-2020 world. Still, I hope you all … Read more

Japanese Language Corner: When “But” Doesn’t Really Mean “But”

A word cloud containing the words が、けど、しかし、and それにしても Created by The Detail Woman, LLC on imgflip.com.

The Detail Woman here, back with another Japanese learning and translation post.

Have you ever felt betrayed by your introduction to Japanese words for “but”?

If so, I get it. が、けど、しかし、and それにしても are all Japanese words that first get taught to us as “but,” and yet they often seem to mean something else in context.

I’d bet that a lot of readers are already familiar with this issue when the “buts” come in the middle of a sentence. However, my Japanese Phrase of the Month for December will be the sentence-beginning それにしても, and that one is pretty tricky if you don’t already have a handle on the “buts” that occur mid-sentence.

So if you’re a beginner, or you’d just like a refresher on mid-sentence “buts,” I’ve got you covered in this post. And if you already know all about these, feel free to skip to the next post!

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Tech Tip: Converting Smart Punctuation to Straight Punctuation in MS Word

Welcome to MS Office tech tips: quotes and apostrophes edition!

As this blog has discussed before, different clients have different document formatting and commenting requirements. Most of us probably have some clients who require all “smart” punctuation and others who require all “straight” punctuation.

So, what do you do if you don’t want to turn Word’s auto-formatting on and off every time you switch projects?

Well, it can be tricky. But if you’re struggling, I hope you can use the solution I’ve found to make life easier.

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Japanese Phrase of the Month 復活!! – November 2023

Caution sign (English/Japanese) Modified from an image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

復活! Japanese Phrase of the Month is back!

Welcome to the relaunch of Japanese Phrase of the Month. Now that I own my own business and have the time, this little corner of the internet will be guaranteed monthly for the first time ever!

This month, we start out with something a little different: a dive into the word “stoic,” and how it behaves differently in English vs. in Japanese.

「ストイック」

Have you been translating it correctly?

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Happy International Translation Day!

Happy International Translation Day to translators and interpreters around the world! With every job, we bring people more of what they need or want across boundaries of language and culture. Be proud of yourselves, and have a fantastic day! To learn more, see the International Federation of Translators ITD page: https://en.fit-ift.org/international-translation-day/