Communication Skills - 3 Periods
Period 1
Introduction to communication – differentiate between communication and language proficiency.
Body language plays an important role in communication. – Good open Body language.
LISTEN - this is the essence of communication
How to Be a Good Communicator
Give full attention to people while they are talking to you.
Encourage other people to talk, and ask appropriate questions.
Present your ideas so that others are receptive to your point of view.
Treat people fairly and let others know how you want to be treated.
Value teamwork and know how to build cooperation and commitment.
Show respect for people’s ideas and feelings, even when you disagree with them.
Accept differences and conflict as a normal part of any work environment, and know how to address them constructively.
Strive to understand other people and to be empathetic.
Be open to negative feedback, and communicate difficult truths in a respectful way.
Be able to easily win people’s trust and respect.
Check to make sure you have understood what other people are trying to communicate.
Be confident and at ease giving a presentation.
Avoid making absolutist judgments about people (e.g. “He/she is always that way.”)
Follow through on your commitments.
Be able to work with people you have difficulties with without becoming negative yourself.
How to Communicate Effectively
Connect
Establish rapport with people
Pay attention to people’s facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice.
See things from the other person’s point of view.
Adjust your communication style to match theirs.
Avoid criticizing, making negative judgments, or saying that the other person is wrong.
Show interest in the other person’s interests and concerns.
Listen
Encourage people to talk.
Show your willingness to listen. Minimize distractions. Attend to the otherperson with your whole body (your body language, eyes, facial expressions). Nod your head and give verbal cues to communicate that you are paying attention.
Ask open-ended questions.
Listen to what people are trying to communicate, not just to what they are saying. Listen to their emotions. Listen also to what they want.
Check to make sure you understand. Use your own words to reflect what you have heard and noticed.
Communicate
Speak with sincerity and conviction.
Be sensitive to other people’s communication style.
Know what you want to accomplish. Do you want people to understand your position? Lend their support? Approve your request?
Listen at least as much as you talk.
Attune what you say with how you say it. Keep your message fitting with your tone of voice, facial expression, and body language.
Speak
Project confidence.
Connect with your audience.
Know what you want to accomplish. Do you want people to understand your position? Lend their support? Approve your request?
Keep it short and simple. Most communication can accomplish only one objective, develop three main points, and hold people’s attention only so long.
Ask for feedback; was the message understood.
How to Present
Establish rapport/bond with your audience and they become your partners in a dialog, allies in your presentation. They will want you to succeed. They will overlook your nervousness and lack of polish. And they will give you the benefit of the doubt even if they
lose thread of your logic.
1. Talk to people before your presentation.
Introduce yourself as people begin gathering. Ask them about themselves, what they do, and why they are there. Smile.
2. Have your audience’s best interests at heart.
See your presentation as an opportunity to serve your audience, not to impress or “sell” them.
3. Establish eye contact.
Look people in the eye one at a time. Hold each person’s gaze for 5 to 10 seconds and then look someone else in the eye. We distrust people who will not look us in the eye. A word of caution – some cultures consider such eye contact intrusive and rude.
4. Speak simply and with conviction.
Do not give a speech. Have a conversation with your audience. Say “I’, “we” and “you” when appropriate.
5. Approach your presentation from your audience’s perspective – not yours.
Address their concerns. Speak to their interests, values and aspirations. Avoid words they might not understand. Cite evidence they find credible. If you have to use words or acronyms they might not understand, explain them immediately.
The Conclusive Remarks
· Pay attention to your body language, it can communicate more than you think.
· Do not try to get too many messages across. People do not retain more than threeideas from a presentation or a discussion.
· Use face-to-face communication as much as possible as people generally preferthat type of communication.
· Be aware of the danger of misinterpretation or misunderstanding while communicatingin a multicultural environment.
· Effective communication is timely and open.
· Share the thinking not just the conclusion.
· If there are no bad news or issues, it does not mean there is nothing to communicate.
· Communication is a process not a product (information needs interaction).
Period 2 & 3
EXERCISE – Ask the students to come to the dias and make a presentation for 2 to 3 minutes and give them feedback on their mannerisms body language and subject of the speech.
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