Be careful spending time on the phone with someone with a strong accent. It can put a serious burden on the brain. I refuse to work with people with strong accents (India or Philippines). They just fry my brain too fast.

We can either use our brain's power to translate their heavily accented words or understand the sentence and what they are telling us. But, not both.

Plus, if they talk too fast or there is too much 'announcements on hold' that are repetitive, our brains get fried.

I explain that I have an auditory processing disorder and need to speak to someone who speaks slow with good pronunciation. I often get a response of, "I speak good English." I reply that another Indian or Filipino may understand their English but I don't. It can be a big hassle but worth it to get the right person on the phone.