CHAPTER 1

Career Success Begins With Communication Skills

Communication Skills:
Your ticket
to work...
OR
Your ticket out the door!

Good communication skills

are essential for
Job placement
Job performance
Career advancement
Success in the new world
of work

Writing skills are increasingly

significant.

"Businesses are crying out

they need to have people who
write better.
Gaston Caperton, business
executive and
president,
College Board

Build Your Career

Communication Skills
Textbook

Your
Your Guide
Guide

Instructor

Your
Your Coach
Coach

Bonus
Resources

See
See
http://www.meguffey.com
http://www.meguffey.com

Information
Information
as
asaa
corporate
corporateasset
asset

New
New
work
work
environments
environments

Flattened
Flattened
management
management
hierarchies
hierarchies

Trends
Trendsin
in
the
thenew
new
workplace
workplace

Innovative
Innovative
communication
communication
technologies
technologies

More
More
participatory
participatory
management
management

Increased
Increased
emphasis
emphasis
on
onteams
teams

Heightened
Heightened
global
global
competition
competition

The Process of Communication

The Process of Communication

How may the sender

encode a message?

Verbally or nonverbally.
By speaking, writing,
gesturing.

What kinds of
channels carry
messages?

Letters, e-mail, IM,

memos, TV, telephone,
voice, body. Others?

The Process of Communication

How does a receiver
decode a message?

Hearing, reading,
observing

When is
communication
successful?

When a message is
understood as the sender
intended it to be.

How can a
Ask questions, check
communicator
reactions, dont dominate
provide for feedback? the exchange.

Barriers to Effective Listening

Physical
barriers

hearing disabilities, noisy

surroundings

Psychological
barriers

tuning out ideas that counter

our values

Language
problems

unfamiliar or charged words

Nonverbal
distractions

clothing, mannerisms,
appearance

Barriers to Effective Listening

Thought speed

our minds process

thoughts faster than
speakers say them

Faking
attention

pretending to listen

Grandstanding

talking all the time or

listening only for the next
pause

Ten Misconceptions
About Listening
1. Listening is a matter of intelligence.
FACT: Careful listening is a learned
behavior.
2. Speaking is more important than
listening in the communication
process.
FACT: Speaking and listening are
equally important.

Ten Misconceptions
About Listening
3. Listening is easy and requires little
energy.
FACT: Active listeners undergo the
same physiological changes as a
person jogging.
4. Listening and hearing are the same
process.
FACT: Listening is a conscious,
selective process. Hearing is an
involuntary act.

Ten Misconceptions
About Listening
5. Speakers are able to command
listening.
FACT: Speakers cannot make a
person really listen.
6. Hearing ability determines listening
ability.
FACT: Listening happens mentally
between the ears.

Ten Misconceptions
About Listening
7. Speakers are totally responsible for
communication success.
FACT: Communication is a two-way
street.
8. Listening is only a matter of
understanding a speakers words.
FACT: Nonverbal signals also help
listeners gain understanding.

Ten Misconceptions
About Listening
9. Daily practice eliminates the need
for listening training.
FACT: Without effective listening
training, most practice merely
reinforces negative behaviors.
10.Competence in listening develops
naturally.
FACT: Untrained people listen at
only 25 percent efficiency.

Keys to Building
Powerful Listening Skills
Stop talking.
Control your surroundings.
Establish a receptive
set.
Keep an open mind.
Listen for main points.
Capitalize on lag time.

mind-

Keys to Building
Powerful Listening Skills
Listen between the lines.
Judge ideas, not
appearances.
Hold your fire.
Take selective notes.
Provide feedback.

Nonverbal Communication
Eye contact, facial expression,
and posture and gestures send
silent messages.

Nonverbal Communication
Time, space, and territory
send silent messages.
Time (punctuality and
structure)
Space (arrangement of
objects)
Territory (privacy zones)

Nonverbal Communication
Appearance sends silent
messages.
Appearance of business
documents
Appearance of people

Four Space Zones for Social

Interaction Among Americans

Four Space Zones for Social

Interaction Among Americans

Keys to Building
Strong Nonverbal Skills
Establish and maintain eye contact.
Use posture to show interest.
Improve your decoding skills.
Probe for more information.
Avoid assigning nonverbal meanings out of
context.

Keys to Building
Strong Nonverbal Skills
Associate with people from diverse
cultures.
Appreciate the power of
appearance.
Observe yourself on videotape.
Enlist friends and family.

Culture and Communication

Good communication
demands special
sensitivity and skills
when communicators
are from different
cultures.

2008 Image Source Black/Jupiter Images

Dimensions of Culture

Dimensions of Culture
Context
High-context cultures (those in Japan, China,
and Arab countries) tend to be relational,
collectivist, and contemplative.

Dimensions of Culture
Context
Low-context cultures (those in North
America, Scandinavia, and
Germany) tend to be logical, linear,
and action-oriented.

Dimensions of Culture
Individualism
High-context cultures tend to prefer group
values, duties, and decisions.
Low-context cultures tend to prefer
individual initiative, self-assertion, and
personal achievement.

Dimensions of Culture
Formality
North Americans place less emphasis on
tradition, ceremony, and social rules.
Other cultures prefer more formality.

Dimensions of Culture
Communication
Style
High-context cultures rely on
nonverbal cues and the total
picture to communicate.
Meanings are embedded at
many sociocultural levels.

Dimensions of Culture
Communication
Style
Low-context cultures
emphasize words,
straightforwardness, and
openness. People tend to be
informal, impatient, and
literal.

Dimensions of Culture
Time Orientation
Time is precious to North
Americans. It correlates with
productivity, efficiency, and
money.
In some cultures time is
unlimited and never-ending,
promoting a relaxed attitude.

Comparison of High- and

Low-Context Cultures
High-Context
Cultures

Low-Context
Cultures

Relational

Linear

Collectivist

Individualistic

Intuitive

Logical

Contemplative

Action-oriented

Proverbs Reflect Culture

What do these U.S. proverbs indicate
about this culture and what it values?
1. The squeaking wheel gets the grease.
2. Waste not, want not.
3. He who holds the gold makes the rules.
4. If at first you dont succeed, try, try again.
5. The early bird gets the worm.

Proverbs Reflect Culture

What do these Chinese proverbs
indicate about the Chinese culture and
what it values?
1. A man who waits for a roast duck to fly
into his mouth must wait a very long
time.
2. A man who says it cannot be done
should not interrupt a man doing it.
3. Give a man a fish, and he will live for a
day; give him a net, and he will live for a
lifetime.

Proverbs Reflect Culture

What do these proverbs indicate about
their respective cultures and what they
value?
1. No one is either rich or poor who has not
helped himself to be so. (German)
2. Words do not make flour. (Italian)
3. The nail that sticks up gets pounded
down. (Japanese)

Improving Communication With

Multicultural Audiences
Use simple English.
Speak slowly and enunciate
clearly.
Encourage accurate
feedback.
Check frequently for
comprehension.

Creatas / Photolibrary Group / Index Stock Imagery

Oral Messages

Improving Communication With

Multicultural Audiences

Observe eye messages.

Accept blame.
Listen without interrupting.
Smile when appropriate.
Follow up in writing.

Creatas / Photolibrary Group / Index Stock Imagery

Oral Messages

Improving Communication With

Multicultural Audiences
Written Messages
Consider local styles.
Consider hiring a
translator.
Use short sentences and
short paragraphs.
Avoid ambiguous wording.
Follow up in writing.
Cite numbers carefully.

Improving Communication Among

Diverse Workplace Audiences
Understand the value of differences.
Seek training.
Learn about your own cultural self.
Make fewer workplace assumptions.
Build on similarities.