Examples of Miscommunication!

Five Skills of Communication

Speaking
Listening
Reading
Writing
Nonverbal

Communications

The Power of Listening

Seek first to understand, then be

understood.
- Stephen Covey
4

Listening vs. Hearing

Hearing- Physical process;
natural; passive
Listening- Physical & mental
process; active; learned process;
a skill
Listening is hard!
You must choose to participate in
the process of listening

Percentage of Communication
Mode of
Communication

Formal Years
of Training

Percentage of
Time Used

Writing

12 years

9%

Reading

6-8 years

16 %

Speaking

1-2 years

30%

Listening

0-few hours

45%

Why Be A Good Listener?

Needs of others

To be recognized and remembered

To feel valued
To feel appreciated
To feel respected
To feel understood
To feel comfortable about a want or need

Effective Listening
Avoid
Interrupting
Speakers

Paraphrase

Avoid Distracting
Actions or
Gestures

Dont Over
Talk
Be Empathetic

Active
Listening

Ask Questions

Make Eye
Contact

Exhibit Affirmative
Head Nods and
Appropriate Facial
Expression

Speaking

A2F Method of Speaking

A= Appreciate the organizers
B= Best thing to do today.
C= Care about the topic being discussed
D= Danger is that we may forget and not apply
the learning..
E= Electronic communication is the way of the
world
F= Finally, I believe you will learn many things
from this discussion and will apply at least
one thing in your personal or professional life!

Tips For Effective Speaking1/2

Regulate your pace of talking
Modulate your voice
Use intonation
Maintain eye contact

Learn to Listen and not hear

Take short pauses

Tips For Effective Speaking2/2

Think before you talk

Use facial expression
Use wide range of vocabulary
Understand and respect your audience/the
person
Learn to read and understand non verbal
language
Keep it short and simple (KISS)

Reading

Writing

A True Story1/3
A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He
held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were
only a few coins in the hat
A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and
dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around,
and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who
walked by would see the new words

A True Story2/3
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money
to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign
came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps
and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning?
What did you write?"
The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a
different way."

A True Story3/3
What he had written was: "Today is a beautiful day and I
cannot see it."
Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying
the same thing?

Nonverbal Communication:
One cannot not communicate!
1. Body Language

2. Eye Contact
3. Space Communication
4. Touch/Handshakes
5. Facial Expression
6. Paralanguage
7. Silence
8. Appearance

9. Body Odor

Body Language

Posture

Gesture

Eye Contact

Angry stare

Hiding

Glance

Gaze

Peep

Space Communication

- 0-18

Intimate Space

Personal Space

- 18- 4

Social Space

- 4 12

Public Space

- 12>

Touch/Handshake

Dead fish handshake

Electrifying handshake

Fingershake

Facial Expressions

Happy

Sad

Surprised

Fear

Angry

Confused

Paralanguage

Volume

Tone

Pitch

Silence
Silence can mean:
Ignorance/inattention
Anger
Depression
Romance!

Appearance

Body odor

Interpersonal
Communication Barriers
National
Culture

Language

Filtering
Emotions

Interpersonal
Communication

Defensiveness

Information
Overload

Barriers to Effective
Interpersonal Communication1/2
Filtering

The deliberate manipulation of

information to make it appear more
favorable to the receiver
Emotions

Disregarding rational and objective

thinking processes and substituting
emotional judgments when interpreting
messages

Barriers to Effective
Interpersonal Communication2/2

Information Overload

Being confronted with a quantity

of information that exceeds an
individuals capacity to process it

Defensiveness

When threatened, reacting in a

way that reduces the ability to
achieve mutual understanding

Barriers to Effective
Interpersonal Communication2/3

Language

The different meanings of and

specialized ways (jargon) in which
senders use words can cause receivers
to misinterpret their messages

National Culture

Culture influences the form, formality,

openness, patterns and use of
information in communications

Overcoming the Barriers to Effective

Interpersonal Communications

Use Feedback
Simplify Language
Listen Actively
Constrain Emotions
Watch Nonverbal Cues

The Grapevine

An informal organizational communication

network that is active in almost every
organization

Provides a channel for issues not

suitable for formal communication
channels

The impact of information passed

along the grapevine can be countered
by open and honest communication
with employees

Politically Correct Communication

Do not use words or phrases that

stereotype, intimidate, or offend
individuals based on their differences

Instead, choose words carefully to

maintain as much respect and clarity as
possible in communications