Test 1 Notes PDF

Why effective communication is important to success in today's business environment - help your company become more efficient, innovative, and responsive - Communication skills become more important as you advance in your career - Employers will recognize your communication abiliti...

Why effective communication is important to success in today's business environment - help your company become more efficient, innovative, and responsive - Communication skills become more important as you advance in your career - Employers will recognize your communication abilities and value you as an employee The communication process: 1. The sender has an idea: 2. The sender encodes the idea in a message: 3. The sender produces the message in a medium: 4. The sender transmits the message through a channel: 5. The audience receives the message: 6. The audience decodes the message 7. The audience responds to the message. 8. The audience provides feedback to the sender. 8 communication skills that successful employers expect from their employees. 1. organize ideas and information effectively 2. express and present ideas coherently and persuasively 3. Listening to others effectively 4. Communicating effectively with people from diverse backgrounds and experiences 5. Use communication technologies effectively and efficiently. 6. Follow the standards of correct writing and speaking. 7. Communicate respectfully according to modern business etiquette 8. communicate in an ethical manner Five characteristics of effective business communication 1. Supply information that helps others complete tasks 2. Provide factual support for opinions 3. Present information in a concise, efficient manner 4. clarify + summarize info to help audiences comprehend documents quickly 5. Offer compelling, persuasive arguments and recommendations 6 factors that make business communication unique 1. Globalization and diversity: Opportunities to learn abt markets and communicate effectively with various segments 2. Increased value of business information: created the function of knowledge workers, who acquire, process, and communicate information 3. Technology: challenges workers to use it intelligently and keep up to date with innovations 4. Flatter organizational structures: reduce # of management layers, increasing employee responsibility for communication 5. Teamwork: companies increasingly rely on teams and expect each member to communicate effectively in a team  6. Cybersecurity: increased awareness and education is needed to protect intellectual property and individual privacy 7. These factors increase the need for effective business communication skills, including managing barriers like information overload and language differences that affect message successful transmission and reception of msgs. 5 strategies for communicating more effectively on the job 1. reduce distractions caused by technology, sounds, and emotional concerns. 2. focus on needs of audience and adapt to their communication styles. 3. practise communication skills at every opportunity 4. provide constructive feedback or support continuous improvement 5. learn the norms of business etiquette in a variety of situations 5 strategies for using communication technology successfully 1. adapt to needs: Tailor use of tech for both you and your audience recognizing it doesn’t replace traditional communication 2. understand the social communication model: customers and groups are active, influential participants in communication 3. Keep technology in perspective: be familiar with its strengths and weaknesses for specific purposes 4. Guard against overload: Avoid overwhelming others with too much information 5. in-person interactions: remember it adda a crucial human touch Importance of ethics in business communication - Ethics are crucial to effective business communication bc they can support or damage a company's reputation - Ethical communicators do not deceive their audiences through language, images, and behaviours that manipulate, discriminate, or exaggerate - Ethical communicators ensure that they follow the various laws and regulations that govern business communication - ethical dilemma: is choosing between two or more options that are neither clearly ethical nor clearly unethical - ethical lapse is choosing an alternative that is clearly unethical or illegal, Advantages and disadvantages of working in teams - Advantages: - Higher Performance: Teams can achieve more than individuals due to combined intelligence and energy. - Sense of Purpose: Individuals perform better in teams as they gain a sense of belonging. - Diverse Input: Teams bring more input and diverse views, leading to better decisions - Disadvantages: - If poorly managed, teams can be a waste of everyone's time - Groupthink: Pressure to conform can lead to groupthink which results in poor decisions and actions. - Private Motives: Members may let personal motives interfere.  - Unequal Contribution: Some members may not contribute their fair share. How group dynamics can affect team effectiveness - The roles that group members take on, determine whether the group successfully solves problems and makes decisions - As teams go through formation phases (orientation, conflict, brainstorming, emergence, and reinforcement), the members who prioritize team goals over personal ones contribute to team success Effective approach to team communication - Effective team communication is collaborative - Despite different backgrounds and concerns, team members must accommodate others’ opinions and focus on team objectives over individual priorities - Effective team communication includes agreeing on team goals before beginning the project, allowing for early social interaction to create a comfortable work atmosphere, clarifying the work process and schedules, and frequent checking on the group's progress - If team members use technology to share information, they must ensure the system is functional Benefits of collaboration technologies - help professionals plan, prepare, and produce reports, presentations, and other communication efforts anywhere, anytime - Wikis allow online editing from any team member and permit review of previous page versions - Groupware lets ppl work on documents simultaneously and connect using social networking tools. - Shared workspaces are online offices providing teams with access to common resources like databases and project plans Key steps needed to ensure productive meetings - Clarify its purpose: is it an informational or decision-making meeting? - Select the essential participants. - Choose the location and time, making sure the environment is suitable - Set the agenda, which is the basis of a productive meeting - As the meeting progresses, be sure to keep it focused, follow a designated procedure, encourage people to talk, and summarize the key points at the end Listening process - Involves five activities: - (a) receiving (physically hearing the message), - (b) decoding (assigning meaning to what you hear), - (c) remembering (storing the message for future reference), - (d) evaluating (thinking critically about the message) - (e) responding (reacting to the message, taking action, or giving feedback) - Three barriers can interfere with each stage of the listening process:  - Selective listening: prevents the listener from retaining the real message; can be overcome by listening actively - prejudgment: involves holding assumptions and sometimes even distorting messages if they don't conform to what you want to hear; can be overcome by practicing active listening strategies and listening with an open mind - memory barriers: can be overcome with techniques like organizing information into patterns and taking notes Importance of nonverbal communication - Nonverbal communication is important because actions may speak louder than words - Body language is harder to control than words and often reveals true feelings, motivation or character, making people trust nonverbal signals more the spoken msg - Nonverbal communication is more efficient - with a wave of your hand or a wink, you can streamline your thoughts and do so without much thought. - Types of nonverbal expression include: facial expressions, gesture and posture, vocal characteristics, personal appearance, touching, and use of time and space Major presentation types - Excellent presentation skills are sought by employers and will benefit you at any career stage - Presentation types include briefings, reports, podcasts, and webinars; they can be informative or persuasive, face to face or virtual, and complex or simple - Savvy speakers know what they want to accomplish and are able to adjust to friendly, neutral, uninterested, and hostile audiences Organize a presentation effectively and build audience rapport - In the opening, capture the audience's attention, introduce yourself and establish your credibility, and preview your talk - Organize the body using chronology, space, function, comparison/contrast, a journalistic pattern, value/size, importance, problem/solution, simple/complex, or best case/worst case - In the conclusion, summarize the main topics of your talk, leave the audience with a memorable takeaway, and end with a statement that provides a graceful exit - Build rapport by using effective imagery, verbal signposts, and positive nonverbal messages Use presentation aids - Your audience is more likely to retain what you say if you use well-prepared visual aids - Good visuals emphasize and clarify main points, increase audience interest, prove you are professional, illustrate your message better than words alone, and serve to jog your memory - Common visual aids are multimedia slides, zoom presentations, videos, handouts, flipcharts and whiteboards, and props - Slides are vital presentation aids, and today the focus is on using more images and less text Design effective visual presentations - The purpose and the audience determine the slide design, which includes colour, images, and special effects - Building a presentation involves organizing and composing slide content, avoiding overused templates, and revising, proofreading, and evaluating the final product - The eight steps to creating impressive multimedia slides are as follows: - start with the text, select a template, choose images, create graphics, add special effects, create hyperlinks, engage your audience with interaction, and consider posting online Effective presentation delivery techniques - Don't memorize, speak naturally using cue cards - Prepare and rehearse, time yourself, dress professionally, request a lectern, check the room, greet members of the audience, and practise stress reduction - During the presentation deliver your first sentence from memory, maintain eye contact, control your voice, show enthusiasm, slow down, move naturally, use visual aids skillfully, and stay on topic - After the presentation distribute handouts, encourage and repeat questions, reinforce your main points, avoid Yes, but answers, and end with a summary and appreciation Overcoming Fear and Anxiety - vast majority of people encounter fear and anxiety when they have to speak in front of an audience or during an interview - Negative Consequences: - It limits you, and keeps you in your dysfunctional comfort zone - It erodes your self-esteem, and reinforces your belief that you speak poorly - It causes you to make unnecessary mistakes - It stops you from building your confidence 4 Most Common Fears - Fear of Fainting – You may FEEL faint, but it is highly unlikely that you will - Fear of Being Boring - Fear of Your Mind Going Blank - Fear of Being Judged Overcoming Stage Fright - ACCEPT that Stage Fright is a NORMAL FEELING, experienced by most people - explore ways to handle your anxiety - Focus on your STRENGTHS, to Compensate for your WEAKNESSES - PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE - Can manage stage fright by practicing exercises: The Rag Doll, Head Rolls, Arm Swings, Shoulder Shrugs, Yawning, Abdominal Breathing Superficial vs. Diaphragmatic Breathing - Superficial (Shallow, Rapid) Breathing undermines any performance – AND YOUR HEALTH  - Average Breath Rate is 12-15 times per minute, but many of us breath faster - than that - It Reduces the flow of blood throughout your body, restricting the oxygen that flows to your brain making you feel anxious and less likely to think clearly - Slow/Deep Breathing reduces ANXIETY, PAIN, DEPRESSION, ANGER, FEAR, and more benifits Breathing DEEPLY from the Diaphragm - Find You Diaphragm - Test Your Breathing Technique - Practice Breathing from the Diaphragm Voice Pitch - ALL Voices have an OPTIMAL PITCH - Optimal pitch is the healthiest speaking range for your voice, offering the most resonance, comfort, and flexibility - Find your natural pitch by humming - Speaking voice should match humming voice; practice speaking at humming voice - Speak from body not head Voice Tension (Breathiness) - Can be a credibility killer - You expel a lot of air when you speak, making them difficult to understand - caused by: lack of muscle tension in vocal folds, habitual speaking patterns, or a medical condition - CAN improve the way you sound, by training yourself to control the amount of air you expel during speech Voice Tension (Nasality) - CAN improve the way you sound, by ear training, mouth opening, and muscle strengthening exercises Pause and Word Phrase Emphasis (wpe) - Incorporating pauses and WPE into your text makes it more powerful and engaging - PAUSE helps you slow down, gather your thoughts, and keep the attention of the audience - Can be natural or choreographed - Pause before or After CRUCIAL POINTS, At the end/start of each major section, After significant or difficult names or terms, After an important statement or call-to-action - Dont overdo - Use wpe (voice projection variation, tone variation, time variation) to bring your text to life - Varying your VOLUME, PITCH, and TONE, to EXPRESS EMOTION, so hat you don’t sound flat Effective Communication - CONTENT – What you say - Structure: - WHAT? (Introduction)  - SO WHAT? (Content) - NOW WHAT? (Conclusion) - Keep it simple for profesonalism, simplicity - DELIVERY – How you say it MODES OF DELIVERY - Memorized, manuscript, Extemporaneous (USING KEYWORD NOTES), impromptu 3 Key Strategies to STORYTELLING - WIIFT – What’s In It For Them - Paint A Picture – Make Your Story RELATABLE - Propose – What Do You Want From The Audience Introverts and Extroverts - Extrovert: a person who is ENERGIZED by being around other people, and BORED by being alone - tend to think AS they speak - are more interested in the external world around them - are naturally more adept to small talk - Introvert: a person who is ENERGIZED by being alone, and DRAINED by being around other people - tend to think BEFORE they speak - are more interested in the inner world of the mind - are naturally less adept to small talk - ~40% of the General Population, and ~60% of the Gifted Population - One is not better/worse than the other PROGRESS, NOT PERFECTION