7

Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help
Page 2: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

i

Communication SkillsUnit 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1

Unit 1 Goals and Objectives ................................................................................................................... 1

I. Effective Communication Skills .................................................................................................. 2

CommunicationSkills......................................................................................................... 2

ElectronicCommunicationSkills......................................................................................... 5

Project:RevisingE-mail....................................................................................................... 8

SelfTest1:OverviewofEffectiveCommunicationSkills.................................................... 10

II. Desirable Workplace Skills, Habits, and Attitudes................................................................... 13

WorkplaceSkills,Habits,andAttitudes............................................................................. 13

ActiveListening................................................................................................................ 16

ConstructiveFeedback..................................................................................................... 18

Project:EmployeeActionPlan.......................................................................................... 21

SelfTest2:DesirableWorkplaceSkills,Habits,andAttitudes............................................. 23

III. Using Written Information ....................................................................................................... 27

FindingReliableInternetResources................................................................................... 27

ParaphrasingandSummarizing........................................................................................ 30

OrganizingInformation.................................................................................................... 33

SelfTest3:UsingWrittenInformation.............................................................................. 37

Report:BusinessSkills....................................................................................................... 41

IV. Review Communication Skills ................................................................................................... 43

Unit 1 Test: Communication Skills ................................................................................Pull-Out

BUSINESS COMPUTER INFORMATION SYSTEMS

UNITONE

Page 3: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

1

Successintheworkplacerequireshabitsandskillsyoumustdeveloptobeaneffectiveandvaluableemployee.Afoundationaljobskillistheabilitytobeagoodcommunicator.Thisunitexploreseffectivecommunicationskillsandconsidershowthesetranslateintoandshapedesirableworkplaceskills,habits,andattitudes.

• Understandandapplyeffectivecommunicationskills.

• Demonstrateproductiveworkhabitsandattitudes—forexample,dependabilityandpunctuality.

• Demonstrateactivelisteningthroughoralandwrittenfeedback.

• Locateandinterpretwritteninformation.

• Incorporatesupplementaryresourcesandreferences.

• Organizeideaslogicallyandsequentially.

• Identifycharacteristicsofeffectiveandineffectivecommunication.

• Evaluateyourowncommunicationskillsandcreateanactionplanforimprovingyourcommunicationskills.

• Writeandreviseprofessionalemailmessagesfollowingcommonnetiquetteguidelines.

• Identifyproductiveworkhabitsandattitudes.

• Employactivelisteningtechniques.

• Giveandacceptconstructivefeedback.

• DeterminethesuitabilityandreliabilityofInternetresources.

• Paraphraseandsummarizewritteninformation.

• Organizeinformationlogicallyandsequentially.

The objectives for this unit include the following:

Your goals for the unit include the following:

Unit 1: Communication SkillsIntroduction

Page 4: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

2

Verysimplyput,communicationistheexchangeofinformation.Whenyoucommunicate,youmaysendamessage,oryoumayreceiveamessage.Thegoalistohavethemessage

thatissentbyPersonA(thesender)beclearlyandeasilyreceivedbyPersonB(thereceiver).Thesendercreatesorcomposesthemessageanddeliversit,eitherorallyorinwriting,tothereceiver,whoshouldbeabletoclearlyunderstandtheintentofthemessage.Whenthishappens,successfulandeffectivecommunicationhasoccurred.

Barriers to Communication Havingaclear,two-wayexchangeofinformationisn’talwaysaseasyasitsounds.Sometimestherearebarrierstocommunicationthatinterferewithorblockthemessage.Barriersareanythingthatinterfereswithamessagebeingsentorreceived.Somebarriersmightbecausedbythesender,suchasaconfusingmessage,hard-to-understandwordsorlanguage,oranaccentorunfamiliardialect.Otherbarriersmaybecausedbythereceiver,suchasdistractionorinattentiveness.Therearealsobarrierstocommunicationthatarenotthefaultofthesenderorthereceiver,suchasnoise.

Effective Communication Butremember,thegoalofeffectivecommunicationisforthemessagetotravelclearlyandeasilyfromthesendertothereceiver.Itisimportantwhencommunicatingtoreduceasmanybarriersaspossible.Beginningwithaclearmessagethatislogicalandorganizedandeasytounderstandisagoodfirststep.Makingsuretherearefewdistractionstointerferewiththemessageisanotherimportantstep.Ifthereceiverreplieswithanewmessage,thiscommunicationhasbecomeinteractive. Intheworkplace,communicationbecomesevenmoreimportant.Often,businessgoalsandtimelinesdependonclearcommunication.Forexample,imagineanewcomputerizedcashieringsystemwillbeinstalledinthestoreatwhichyouworkinthenextfewmonths.Communicationaboutthischangeiscritical.Employeesmustbetoldwhenthenewsystemwillbeinplace,andtherealsoneedstobecommunicationaboutthehighlightsofthenewsystem.Theremustbecommunicationabouttrainingforemployeesonthisnewcomputerizedsystem.Andifclearcommunicationdoesnotoccurbeforethisnewsystemisactivated,thischangecouldbringbusinesstoahaltwhentheemployeesareunpreparedtouseit.

I. Effective Communication Skills Communication Skills

Imaginethatyouhavebeenapplyingforjobsallovertown,andyoufinallygetcalledforaninterview.Whenyoufirstlistentothevoicemailmessage,youarereallyexcited.Butwhenyoulistenagaintogetthedetailsabouttheinter-view,thisiswhatyouhear:

"Hi.Yeah,wegotyourapplicationaboutthejob.Um,we'dliketogoaheadandinterviewyou.Canyoucomeinforaninterviewlater?Thatwouldbegreat.OK,I'llseeyouthen."

Didyougetclearinformationabouttheinterview?Doyouknowwhotomeetwithandwhentobethere?Areyouevensurewhichplaceyouappliedtoistheonethatisinterestedininterviewingyou?

Thislessonwillfocusoneffectivecommunicationskills.Youwillaccomplishthefollowingduringthislesson:

• Define communication and identify barriers to communication.

• Compare and contrast effective and ineffective communication skills.

Objectives:

Vocabulary:

barrier -anythingthatinterfereswithamessagebeingsentorreceived.

communication - anexchangeofinformation.

receiver - thepersonwhoreceivesamessage. sender - thepersonwhocreatesorcomposesamessageanddeliversiteitherorallyorinwriting.

Page 5: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

3

Butclearcommunicationisnotalwaysaseasyasitsounds.Sometimes,therearebarrierstoclearcommunication.Whataresomeworkplacebarrierstoeffectivecommunication?Theyincludethefollowing:

• Thesendermaynothaveenoughtimetocreateaclearmessage.

• Thesendermaynotspeakclearlyoruselanguagethatcanbeeasilyunderstood.

• Thereceivermaynothavetheknowledgeorinformationtomakesenseofthemessage.

• Thereceivermaynothavetimetocarefullyreadthemessage.

• Itmaybetooloudforclearcommunicationtooccur.

• Itmightbetoobusyforeffectivecommunicationtooccur.

Manytimes,communicationdoesnothappenface-to-face.Alotofbusinesscommunicationwilltakeplaceby telephone,soemployeesmustbeabletocommunicateclearlyusingthephone.Butthetelephoneitselfcansometimesbeabarriertoeffectivecommunication.Whenyouarenotspeakingdirectlytoanotherperson,itcanbeeasiertobecomedistractedandnotconcentratefullyonthecommunication.Itcanalsosometimesbehardertounderstandspokenwordsoveratelephone.Whenamessageisleftonvoicemail,communicationcanbecomeeven moretricky.

Example: Imaginethatyouareamanagerwhohasposteda “HelpWanted”advertisementsothatyoucanhiresomenewemployees.Whenyoureviewyourvoicemailmessages,youhavemessagesfrominterestedprospectiveemployees.Howapersonpresentshim-orherselfoverthephone,evenonavoicemailmessage,cangoalongwaytowardcreatingafirstimpression,eitherpositiveornegative.Clickonthefirstvoicemailmessagetolistentoit.Whatimpressiondoyougetofthisjobcandidatebasedonthewayshecommunicatesinherphonemessage?

Nowclickonthesecondmessageandcompareittothefirstone.Whatfirstimpressiondoyougetofthesecondcaller?

Whatdidyouthinkofthepersoninmessage1?Asamanager,doyouthinkyouwouldcallthispersonforaninterview?Itdidnotseemthecallerwaspreparedwithaclearandorganizedmessage.Thecallerdidnotspeakslowlyandclearly,andsheseemednervousandconfused.Partsofthemessagewereunintelligible.Theineffectivecommunicationskillsshownbythiscallerprobablyaffectedyourfirstimpression.Amanagermaynotbeinclinedtohireanemployeewithpoororalcommunicationskills. Thesecondcaller,ontheotherhand,probablydidimpressyou.The callerwasconfident,clear,andreadytocommunicate.Themessagewaslogicalandorganized.Becauseemployersliketohirepeoplewithgoodcommunicationskills,asamanager,youwouldprobablybeinterestedinthisjobcandidate.

Nowthatyouhavehadachancetothinkaboutthedifferencesbetweeneffectiveandineffectivecommunication,let’smakealistofthemaincharacteristicsofeach.Inthefollowingactivity,youwillbeshownalistofdescriptivewordsrelatedtocommunication.Ifyouthinktheworddescribesgoodandeffectivecommunication,drag-and-dropitintothe“CharacteristicsofEffectiveCommunication”column.Butiftheworddoesnotdescribeeffectivecommunication,drag-and-dropitintothe“CharacteristicsofIneffectiveCommunication”column.

Remember,effectivecommunicationistheclearexchangeofinformation.Whenyouareinvolvedinacommunicationexchange,youmaysendamessage,oryoumayreceiveamessage.Sometimes,theremaybebarrierstocommunicationthatinterferewithorblockthemessage.Someofthesebarrierscannotbeavoided(suchasnoise),butotherscanbereducedifyoupayattentiontothecharacteristicsofeffectivecommunication.

Your Turn

Lets Review!

PleaserefertothemediaCDtolistentotheVoiceMessagesinthisexample.

PleaserefertothemediaCDtocompeteComparingCommunicationSkills.

Page 6: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

4

1.4 True/False Oralcommunicationskillscanpresentapositiveornegativefirstimpression.

1.5 True/False Barrierstocommunicationalwayscanbeeliminated.

1.6 True/False Effectivecommunicationskillsareadesirableworkplaceskill.

1.7 True/False Communicationistheexchangeofinformation.

1.8 True/False Thetelephonecanbeabarriertocommunication.

1.1 Bryanhase-mailedhisboss,Shauna,askingifhecanleaveworkearlynextFriday.WhichchoicebestdescribesBryaninthiscommunicationscenario?______

A. thesenderofthemessageB. thereceiverofthemessageC. abarriertothemessageD. asourceofthemessage

1.2 Jamieworksasareceptionistforasmallbusiness.Fridaysarealwaysachallengeonthephone,sincethefrontentranceseesalotmorecustomertraffic.Jamie’scommunicationchallengeisduetowhichfactor?______

A. effectivecommunicationB. ineffectivecommunicationC. barrierstocommunicationD. workplacecommunication

1.3 Lizaispreparingamemotoheremployeesthatexplainsthenewprocedureforaskingfortimeoffandswitchingshiftswithanotheremployee.Bymakingsurehermemoiswell-prepared,logical,andorganized,Lizahasmade surehercommunicationhasthecharacteristicsof_____.

A. effectivecommunicationB. ineffectivecommunicationC. barrierstocommunicationD. workplacecommunication

Multiple Choice

True or False

Page 7: Communication Skills - Exodus Books · I. Effective Communication Skills ... Barriers to Communication ... reading your message. Knowing your audience will help

5

Whenwethinkaboutcommunication,weoftenthinkaboutwords.ButaccordingtoA.Barbour'sbookLouder than Words: Non-verbal Communication,communicationisonlysevenpercentthewordsweuse.Thirty-eightpercentofcommunicationisrelatedtohowwespeakourmessage—includinghowloudlyorhowquicklywespeak—andfifty-fivepercentofcommunicationinvolvesbodylanguage,suchasgesturesandfacialexpressions. Communicationisn'tlimitedtojustoral,orspoken,communication.Effectivewrittencommunicationskillsarealsoimportant.Howcanwecommunicateeffectivelywhenwedonothavethebenefitofnonverbalcommunicationcues?

Preparation and Planning Writtencommunicationrequiresspecialpreparationandplanningtobeeffective.It'sagoodideatostartbythinkingaboutthepurposeofyourmessage.Thepurposeiswhyyouarewriting.Doyouwanttogiveinformation?Doyouneedtopersuadeyourreader?Areyoutryingtoentertain? Next,youmustconsidertheaudience,orwhowillbereadingyourmessage.Knowingyouraudiencewillhelpyouchoosetherightvocabularyandlanguagetouseinyourmessage.

RIGHT WRONG

Whileyouwereout

Date:3/25 Time:4:00p.m.

To:CraigJones

From:MattPeterson

Message:Wantedtotalkaboutthe

SalesMeetinghemissedyesterday.

Telephone:555-555-1234

Operator:Ali

Telephoned ReturnedCall

Calledtoseeyou WillCallYou

Wantstoseeyou PleaseCall

URGENT

Whileyouwereout

Date: Time:

To:

From:

Message:MattCalled

Telephone:

Operator:

Telephoned ReturnedCall

Calledtoseeyou WillCallYou

Wantstoseeyou PleaseCall

URGENT

X

X

Electronic Communication Skills

Objectives:

Vocabulary:

Youlikelyengageinelectroniccommunicationonadailybasis.Wheneveryousendorreceiveane-mail,textmessage,orIM,youareusingelectroniccommunication.Intoday’sglobalworkplace,theseelectroniccommunicationtoolshavebecomeveryimportanttobusinesses.

Thislessonwillfocusoneffectivecommunicationskills.Youwillaccomplishthefollowingduringthislesson:

• Identify guidelines for effective electronic communication, including netiquette.

• Determine how to ensure e-mail messages are appropriate for the workplace.

asynchronous communication-communicationthatoccurswhenthesenderandreceiverareseparated

bytimeand/orplace.

audience-thepersonorpeopleforwhomyourmessageisintended.

netiquette-guidelinesforcourteouselectroniccommunication.

purpose-thereasonforcommunication,suchastoinform,topersuade,ortoentertain.

synchronous communication-communicationthatoccurswhenthesenderandreceiverare

communicatingatthesametime.