building your career success with communication skills
TRANSCRIPT
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BUILDING YOUR CAREER SUCCESS WITH COMMUNICATION SKILLS
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The Importance of Communication Skills to Your Career
Communication skills are critical to job placement, performance, career advancement, and organizational success.
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Succeeding in the Changing World of Work
Trends in the new world of work emphasize the importance of communication skills.
Today’s employees must contribute to improving productivity and profitability.
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Business Trends Illustrate the Importance of Excellent Communication Skills Flattened management hierarchies More participatory management Increased emphasis on self-directed
work groups and virtual teams Heightened global competition Innovative communication technologies New work environments Focus on information and knowledge as
corporate assets
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Developing Better Listening Skills
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers: hearing disabilities, poor
acoustics, noisy surroundings, illness, tiredness, worry, uncomfortable feeling
Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers: different set of
cultural, ethical, and personal values
Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems: unfamiliar
words
Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions: unusual
clothing, speech mannerisms, body twitches, radical hairstyle
Thought speed Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed: listeners process thoughts
faster than speakers can say them, they can become bored and allow their minds to wander
Faking attention Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention
Grandstanding
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Barriers to Effective Listening Physical barriers Psychological barriers Language problems Nonverbal distractions Thought speed Faking attention
Grandstanding: fail to listen carefully because we’re just waiting politely for the next pause, so that we can have our turn to speak
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Active Listener Tips
Stop talking Control your surroundings Establish a receptive mind-set Keep an open mind Listen for main points Capitalize on lag time: reviewing
speaker’s points (keep focusing) and anticipating what’s coming next. Don’t allow yourself to daydream!
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Active Listener Tips
Listen between the lines: Focus both on what is spoken as well as what is unspoken.
Judge ideas, not appearances: concentrate on the content of the message, not on its delivery.
Hold your fire: force yourself to listen to the speaker’s entire argument or message before reacting.
Take selective notes Provide feedback: let the speaker know
that you are listening by using eye contact, nod your head, ask questions
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Nonverbal Communication Skills Can Send Silent Messages
Eye contact Facial expression Posture and gestures Time: length of time spending in communication Space: furniture arrangement or design around
us Territory: zones of privacy in which we feel
comfortable Appearance of business document: how neat
in paper works Personal appearance
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Tips for Improving Nonverbal Skills Establish and maintain eye contact to show your
interest, attentiveness, strength, and credibility Use posture to show interest Improve your decoding skills Probe for more information Avoid assigning nonverbal meanings out of context:
don’t interpret nonverbal behavior if you don’t understand situation or culture
Associate with people from diverse cultures Appreciate the power of appearance Observe yourself on videotape Enlist friends and family: ask them to monitor you
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How Culture Affects CommunicationComparing Key Cultural Values1. Individualism2. Formality3. Communication Style4. Time Orientation
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Comparing Key Cultural Values:Individualism
Individual action Self-reliance Personal
responsibility Independence Freedom from
control
Membership in org., group, and team
Group values, duties, and decisions
Individualism Group or Team
While North Americans value individualism and personal responsibility, other cultures emphasize group-and team- oriented values.
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Comparing Key Cultural Values:Formality
Less emphasis on tradition, ceremony, and social rules such as casual dressing or a first name basis w/ others
Lack of formality: directness i.e. in business, they will come to the point immediately
Emphasis on tradition, ceremony, and social rules
Formality
Informality and Directness
Tradition and Indirectness
Although North Americans value informality and directness, other cultures may value tradition and indirectness.
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Comparing Key Cultural Values:Communication Style
Straightforward: they tend to suspicious of evasiveness and distrust people who might have hidden agenda. They tend to be uncomfortable with silence and impatient with delays.
Indirectness Silence and
delays are common
Straightforwardness Indirectness
North Americans tend to be direct and to understand words literally.
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Comparing Key Cultural Values:Time Orientation
Consider time a precious commodity to be conserved. Keeping people waiting for business appointments wastes time and is also rude!
Punctuality
Consider time as unlimited and never ending resource to be enjoyed
Being late for an appointment is not a grievous sin
Time Patience
North Americans correlate time with productivity, efficiency, and money.
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Communication Across Cultures
U.S. American Japanese Arabs
1. Freedom 1. Belonging 1. Family security
2. Independence 2. Group harmony 2. Family harmony
3. Self-reliance 3. Collectiveness 3. Parental guidance
4. Equality 4. Age/Seniority 4. Age
5. Individualism 5. Group consensus 5. Authority
6. Competition 6. Cooperation 6. Compromise
7. Efficiency 7. Quality 7. Devotion
8. Time 8. Patience 8. Patience
9. Directness 9. Indirectness 9. Indirectness
10. Openness 10. Go-between 10. Hospitality
Comparison of Cultural Values Ranked by Priority
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Controlling Ethnocentrism and Stereotyping
Ethnocentrism Stereotypes Tolerance
The belief in the superiority of one’s own culture and group
An oversimplified behavioral pattern or characteristic applied to entire group, which may not accurately describe cultural norms
Having sympathy for and appreciating beliefs and practices different from our own by practicing empathy, being nonjudgmental, and being patient
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Tips for Effective Communication with Diverse Workplace Audiences
Understand the value of differences Don’t expect conformity (agreement): differences can
be positive Create zero tolerance for bias and stereotypes Practice focused, thoughtful, and open-minded
listening Invite, use, and give feedback Make fewer assumptions: don’t think for the others Learn about your cultural self Learn about other cultures and identity groups Seek common ground: mutual goals or similar values
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Tips for Minimizing Oral Miscommunication Among Cross-Cultural Audiences Use simple English Speak slowly and enunciate (announce) clearly Encourage accurate feedback: ask probing questions and encourage
the listener to paraphrase what you say Check frequently for comprehension: avoid waiting until you finish a
long explanation to request feedback. Instead, make one point at a time, pausing to check for comprehension.
Accept blame: if a misunderstanding results, graciously accept the blame for not making your meaning clear.
Observe eye messages: Be alert to a glazed expression or wandering eyes. These tell you the listener is lost.
Listen without interrupting Remember to smile Follow up in writing: After conversations or oral negotiations, confirm
the results and agreements with follow up letters. For proposals and contracts, engage a translator to prepare copies in local language.
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Tips for Minimizing Written Miscommunication Among Cross-Cultural Audiences
Consider local styles: learn how documents are formatted and how letters are addressed in each country
Consider hiring translator: if your document is important, or will be distributed to many readers, or must be persuasive
Use short sentences and short paragraphs: for most readable (sentences: fewer than 20 words/ paragraphs: fewer than 8 lines)
Avoid ambiguous wording: avoid idioms, slang, acronyms, abbreviations, jargon. Instead, use action specific verbs (purchase rather than get).
Cite numbers carefully
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Reference
Essentials of Business Communication, Mary Allen Guffey’s, 2007, Thomson South-Western.