Friday 31 October 2014

10 Points to remember while preparing for a Group Discussion

Whether it is for MBA entrance exams like CAT or Bank PO exams or UPSC exams, Group Discussions are an important part of the selection process. Check out our tips for preparing for group discussions:
Interview Preparation Classes Online

  1. Read at least one newspaper and 1 weekly on a regular basis for at least a month before your GD. You need to be aware of a broad range of topics if you want to contribute meaningfully in a GD.
  2. Speak in a clear voice – loud enough to be heard clearly around the room but not so loud that you seem to be shouting.
  3. Address everyone while speaking – when making a point, avoid keeping eye contact stuck on one person. Instead, have brief eye contact with everyone around the room while speaking. This achieves 2 important objectives: it shows everyone that you are talking to the group, not to one person and it also lessens the chance that someone will interrupt you while you are speaking.
  4. Be an active listener. Ways to show you are listening actively include: nodding while someone is speaking, keeping your sight on the speaker, leaning towards the speaker, referencing a past point while making your own, etc. A group discussion is as much about listening as it is about speaking. It is a big plus if you meaningfully relate your own point to past point made.
  5. Don’t interrupt when others are speaking. Wait for appropriate pauses or “troughs” in the discussion to enter and make a point.
  6. Do not get personal. Remain objective, and feel free to contradict others on the basis of facts, not opinions. Make sure your phrasing is respectful. For example, instead of saying “You are completely wrong!” say “Actually, a recent study by CII has shown that the proportion is 85%, not 20%.”
  7. Do not argue. You are not in the room to pick fights, even if others are being aggressive towards you. Do not get caught in an argument with individuals.
  8. Use the first few minutes that the panelists have given you to make notes. After that, however, only refer to your notes and avoid making more notes as others are speaking – once a GD has started, you should be focusing on the discussion at hand.
  9. If you are a very shy or introverted person, you need to make an extra effort in order to not be lost in the room. In such cases, set yourself a target to at least make 2 meaningful contributions to the GD – one within the first 2-3 minutes of the GD and the second within the last 2-3 minutes of the GD. This ensures that your points are at least heard, and your visibility spans the length of the GD.
  10. Practice, practice, practice!
iRikai helps students polish their interview and GD skills in the comfort of their homes – all you need is a broadband internet connection! No more commuting, no more missing classes when you travel and no more waiting for batches to start! 

Thursday 23 October 2014

Deal With The Japanese Business Partners by learning their Etiquette


Doing Business in Japan can be very daunting. Having a right business etiquette is a must to deal with the Japanese. Japanese Business Etiquette course lets you learn the nuances of  their business and maximize your chance of success in dealing with Japanese firms.

Japanese Business Etiquette
The business market in a country like Japan is the most vital thing.  The business market of Japan has widespread itself to such an extent that today this country is the world market of export and import. The business market of Japan has reached far of places that many business contacts across the globe have been established. However to be able to conduct business in the Japanese market there are namely some of the Japanese business etiquettes that needs to be followed strictly. Given below are little such hard and fast etiquette that need to be followed in order to conduct a progressive and smooth business.


The Japanese people lay a lot of significance on the exchange and the presentation of the meishi which is a business card. When a business partner is meeting his/her colleague for the very first time to initiate the business then it is very compulsory to present the business card or the meishi to the other partner with both hands outstretched in a very respectful manner. On the other hand the partner receiving the business card should also do the same with utmost respect. Also, one should handle the business card very carefully.

The Japanese language is very different when it comes to using the honorifics in their language. This makes the Japanese language quite complicated when it comes to the usage of –san. People meet and greet each other in a very different way. It is acceptable in the Japanese culture to call the counterpart as –san but then doing the same with yourself or your colleagues is considered a foul practice in Japanese culture. This is because the use of -san is supposedly for the people who belong to the other group or who are above one’s own stature. On the other hand if one addresses himself/herself or his/her group members as –san then this considered an ill omen in the Japanese business practice.

One another rule that needs to be followed when conducting business with the Japanese partners is that if one is travelling from another country then the business partner should make it a compulsory act to get gifts for the Japanese partner. The gift should be something that represents the country’s culture or depict the origin. The gift can be of any kind but not something that might offend the Japanese culture. The gift can be any chocolate or any clothing line or fruits or any handloom work.  Some may even prefer alcohol as a gift if that is what you think might please your Japanese partner.

These are some of the
Japanese business etiquettes  that need to be followed so that the Japanese don’t get offended and the business runs at a very smooth and faster pace. These are few of the many rules that should be adhered to if others are skipped by mistake. Also Japanese people entertain people who speak very politely and treat each other with respect. Once the business deal is cracked following these guidelines then your business is going to take a leap of faith in the business market.
iRikai is India’s leading Japanese Business Etiquette trainers located in New Delhi. iRikai Maximize the chances of success in dealing with Japanese firms. 


Wednesday 15 October 2014

Learn To Speak Fluent English Online with a professional Tutor

Language can sometimes be a barrier to communication which widens the gap between two communities or even countries. A need is often felt for one unifying language that is widely enough spoken and understood to be able build bridges between people. English, given its widespread use around the world often performs this function. In addition, it is the favored language for international trade and in multinational corporations. In India too, it is one of the official languages and much government work is performed in English.
It is imperative if one wants to be a competent professional or a global traveler to be able to speak English fluently. If you haven’t had the opportunity to learn English as part of your schooling or if you are not confident about your English language skills, you can choose the option to learn English online with tutor. There are plenty of resources to learn English online. Some of these are passive, that is, there is content which you can read at your own pace and exercises. Other ways are more active – such as, live online tutors.

Learn English Online with Tutor


Try it! Search for learn English online and you will see several websites that offer great services.
These websites are easy to access and available to all. Man of them are completely free. Some may charge nominal fee. However, while doing your research, make sure you don’t end up on spam websites which may not benefit you but may rather carry malicious software or serve up advertisement after advertisement.

Among the trustworthy websites that teach English online, many begin with teaching the simple use of verbs, adverbs, noun and adjectives. They then progress to explaining the meaning of words and how they are used in the sentences. The course then progresses to making short phrases and helping students understand sentence structure. Many websites also have the feature of online help desk which in simple language means a tutor or teacher. These tutors are available 24x7 to help the students with any difficulties if they may face. Other websites offer dedicated online English tutoring services where a live tutor takes you through the course step by step and teaches you English just like you would at a regular school. The added benefits of learning online, of course, are that you don’t have to travel anywhere but can learn from the comfort of your own home. You may even be able to save money as you don’t have to commute to get to classes and online tutoring is usually cheaper than hiring a personal home tutor.
Several online resources can help learners learn English. On their part, learners need to ensure that they maintain discipline (e.g. no skipping classes!) and take their lessons seriously, just like they would at school. Especially with self-paced online learning, a lot of discipline is required. With online English language tutors, learners can get some help from a structured program which maintains a certain pace and tests progress regularly.

iRikai is India’s most innovative and Flexible online language training solutions. Communicate better by Learning English Online and achieve more by learning business English in India.

Wednesday 8 October 2014

Online Interview preparation Classes for Successful interviews

The job market is expanding, but so is the demand for the right candidate for the job. For every single vacancy there are sometimes thousands of candidates who apply (consider bank PO exams, for example!)
Interview preparation Classes Online
Many of these candidates are equally qualified for the post if we look at their past qualifications and experience. Selection of these candidates therefore is a very tough and competitive. Recruiters have to put in a lot of effort to select the right candidate. After short listing candidates on the basis of their written profiles or performance on tests, comes the final step of separating the grain from the chaff – i.e. the interview process.


Just like written exam preparation centers, there are no plenty of institutes which offer services for interview preparation. While these may benefit some students, these courses do not often provide the flexibility required by busy professionals or working students. For example, the ability to schedule mock interviews on demand or the ability to start the course on any day of your choosing. These shortcomings can also be addressed by using online resources. There are numerous sites that help candidates prepare for the interview. These sites conduct many
interview preparation classes online from which the candidates can take benefit. All a candidate has to do is go through the various questions and read the numerous answers people have replied. This may get the candidate a fair idea about what questions can come his/her way.

There are also online tutoring companies that can help candidates prepare for an interview. Online interview preparation courses can assist you with end to end preparation for a job interview, including: refining your resume and statement of purpose (SOP), providing you with a checklist of commonly asked questions for that particular industry and/ or job function, helping you prepare answers which assess your personality (for example, tell me about yourself, your strengths) and your motivation (for example, why do you want to join this company) and so on. They also guide them how to confidently answer questions and how to avoid common pitfalls. They also pinpoint all the negative answers by telling them how to answer even a negative question such as about your weaknesses in a way that is neither fake nor puts you at risk of losing out on a job. Online interview preparation classes also typically include mock interviews with qualified panelists, where candidates can answer questions in real time. These also allow panelists to judge the candidates verbal and non-verbal communication (e.g. tone, body language etc.). At the end of the mock interview, detailed feedback is provided which includes an action plan on how to improve your performance for the actual interview. Such mock interviews can be scheduled as often as one likes – at the end of the day, if one candidate has practiced for the interview and another candidate has not, the first candidate will surely enjoy an upper hand. Therefore, online interview preparation courses can help you hone and perfect your skills before the big day and ensure that you do not leave your career to chance.

iRikai is India’s most flexible and innovation online language training solutions. Interview preparation classes online is a custom designed course which helps you equip with the tools and techniques that you need to succeed.