COMMUNICATION Part 2 BARRIERS & MINIMIZING BARRIERS (read the following story before beginning with the lecture notes…) 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua A disappointed salesman of Coca Cola returns from his Middle East assignment. A friend asked, "Why weren't you successful with the Arabs?" The salesman began to explain… "When I got posted in the Middle East , I was very confident that I would make a good sales pitch as Cola is virtually unknown there. But, I had a problem I didn't know how to speak Arabic. So, I planned to convey the message through three posters... 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua First poster: A man lying in the hot desert sand...totally exhausted and fainting. Second poster:  The man is drinking our Cola. Third poster: Our man is now totally refreshed and full of energy. And Then these posters were pasted all over the place "Then that should have worked!" said the friend. "The hell it should have!? said the salesman. I didn't realize that Arabs read from right to left" 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

COMMUNICATION BARRIERS A great deal of unhappiness and inefficiency is caused by barriers that interfere with the message. As soon as communication takes place, communication problems occur... The more we are aware of the different barriers that hinder understanding, the better communicators we can be. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Classifying Barriers Barriers are classified into four major categories: External – external conditions Semantic – when common meaning not achieved Intra-personal – unique factors within individuals Interpersonal – Arise from communication between people 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua External Barriers visible and tangible barriers such as noise or unpleasant weather. In work situations, barriers could arise from the layout of a room, or from interference or distractions. Any distraction that causes you to miss part of the message. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua When people are transmitting a message the following are examples of “noise”: a ringing telephone or a loudspeaker announcement while you are speaking to a group. people wanting to see you urgently when you are trying to read an important letter. an interesting television commercial diverting you from a conversation. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Physical disabilities such as hearing or sight impairment which limit the reception of messages can be classed as barriers. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Semantic Barriers occurs when meaning is either present or absent from the language used and is not shared by both the sender and receiver. Different words in our language have different meanings. These difference is referred to as denotation and connotation. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Denotative – meaning created by people and understood by many, and recorded in dictionary. Connotative - refers to the attitudes or feelings a person has to a word he uses or hears e.g. RESPECT/ BEING RESPECTFUL. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Intrapersonal those that are unique to individuals and arise from our thinking. Perception Assumptions Expectations Stereotypes Prejudice 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Inter-personal arise from interaction between people. The following list is of barriers is not complete. The very length of it shows how involved communication is and how easily it can be disrupted. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua More examples of Interpersonal barriers: Inattention Poor Expression Premature Evaluation Emotions Distrust of Inconsistency Physical Barriers Insufficient warning of change Individual Differences Lack of Feedback Insecurity of Communicator Language difficulties 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua MINIMISING BARRIERS To minimise communication barriers, we need to consider ways of: changing/ controlling the physical environment to minimise distractions Using appropriate language to the audience avoid making judgements of the world and its people taking an active part in the communication process 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Strategies to minimise barriers: Individual Motivation – Are you really concerned that others hear what you think and feel about the situation in question? Audience analysis – the more we understand who we are communicating with, the more we will be aware of what is acceptable or unacceptable to them. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Listening – plays an important role. It is a skill often underestimated and underdeveloped. Empathy – to experience the world from the other person’s point of view. Successful communication involves listening and understanding rather than listening and evaluating. Empathy is different from sympathy. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua Planning Communication - Through planning you can focus on the aim of the communication and choose the best methods to achieve them. Building Redundancy into Messages – Redundancy (repetition of messages) is another way that can help to minimise communication barriers 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua

Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua CONCLUSION For communication to be effective, one has to understand that barriers exist, and therefore the knowledge of minimizing these barriers is the only way we will enable ourselves to be better effective in communication. To be good communicators plan your communication. 4/11/2018 Prepared by: Tanya Regina Vatubua