{"id":1432,"date":"2023-07-10T10:27:31","date_gmt":"2023-07-10T14:27:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.aupairinamerica.com\/dcc\/host-family-hints-for-success-better-communication\/"},"modified":"2024-08-28T12:37:20","modified_gmt":"2024-08-28T16:37:20","slug":"host-family-hints-for-success-better-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.aupairinamerica.com\/dcc\/host-family-hints-for-success-better-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"Host Family Hints for Success: Better Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"

Au pairs often reach out to me to discuss concerns they have. The first question I always ask is whether they have brought it up to their host parents yet. The answer is normally no. I suggest to them to bring it up at their next routine check-in meeting with their host parents, because host parents can\u2019t help with problems they don\u2019t know about. A surprising number of au pairs tell me that they have no such check-in meetings with their host parents and many say they never even had them in the beginning of the match.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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A lot of communication takes place via text. It is difficult to understand the intended tone of text messages and this can lead to miscommunications. This is especially true when you add in the fact that English is not the first language of most au pairs. There are subtle nuances in language that have positive and negative connotations and it takes many years to learn those things. When speaking face to face, we can see someone’s facial expressions and body language and that helps us understand what they are trying to communicate.<\/span><\/p>\n

I realize many host parents have demanding jobs and are stretched thin, but these check-in conversations are important for a successful match. The biggest thing is putting that time on the calendar and sticking with it.<\/span><\/p>\n

With au pairs living in their\u00a0<\/span>host family\u2019s home and in many instances having two host parents, they often feel outnumbered and powerless. Many au pairs have a very hard time bringing up concerns to their host parents. And when host parents don\u2019t ask how an au pair is feeling or how things are going, they often think the host parents don\u2019t want to know.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Why is it important to create this open communication environment?<\/span><\/p>\n