Communication

Today’s Goals We want you to be able to: Identify two ways you can develop your Communication strength. Identify two valuable things about the Communication theme in action Feel comfortable working with others with the Communication strength towards a positive goal in a group setting. Facilitator Notes Welcome Introductions (name, title, department, fun fact) If there are 10 or less participants in the session who are not familiar with one another, ask them to introduce themselves. Share that this session is a part of the Be Better @Iowa Initiative [insert blurb about BBI] Learning Goals Share the takeaways Ask students if they have additional things they’d like to learn about the Command strength Engagement Ask students to silence and put away electronic devices Make sure everyone has something to write with. Ask who is and who is not an Achiever. If applicable, ask Achievers to sit next to someone who is not an Achiever.

People who are exceptionally talented in the Communication theme generally find it easy to put their thoughts into words. They are good conversationalists and presenters. Facilitator Notes You like to explain, to describe, to host, to speak in public, and to write. This is your Communication theme at work. Ideas are a dry beginning. Events are static. You feel a need to bring them to life, to energize them, to make them exciting and vivid. And so you turn events into stories and practice telling them. You take the dry idea and enliven it with images and examples and metaphors. You believe that most people have a very short attention span. They are bombarded by information, but very little of it survives. You want your information -- whether an idea, an event, a product's features and benefits, a discovery, or a lesson -- to survive. You want to divert their attention toward you and then capture it, lock it in. This is what drives your hunt for the perfect phrase. This is what draws you toward dramatic words and powerful word combinations. This is why people like to listen to you. Your word pictures pique their interest, sharpen their world, and inspire them to act. words too. Group Discussion: What are some ways you’ve seen your Achiever strength show up in your life and interactions with others? Either inside or outside of the classroom. Provide an example to get the conversation started.

What’s Your Perspective? Balcony Easy to talk to Energizing and entertaining Charismatic Storyteller Basement Poor Listener Needs to be center of attention Self-absorbed Show off Facilitator Notes Time : 7 minutes A barrier label describes when a talent is mistakenly devalued and dismissed as a weakness. Remember: Nobody is perfect. Nobody can always be in the balcony. Everyone finds themselves in the basement from time to time. Group Discussion: Do you agree with the balcony and basement/barrier labels associated with Communication? Now that you are aware of the basement or barrier labels. What are some things you can do to manage and/or avoid them? If you do not have Communication as a strength, how would you work with someone knowing this information.

Communication Pathways Facilitator Notes Material Needed: A flip chart, markers, a few bandanas, clipboards, pen and paper Time: 20 minute Preface the game with a brief discussion about the various ways in which people communicate with their friends, professors, colleagues, etc. Tell them that in this activity, they will discuss and determine key aspects, pros/cons and guidelines for a specific type of communication. Three different communication methods will be explored: Face to face, telephone, and e-mail. 2. Divide the group members into three groups. The first group represents the face to face communication environment. These people do not have any controls on their communication. They should sit in one area of the room and use pen and paper to write their findings during the activity. 3. The second group represents the telephone environment. These group members should be blindfolded in order to replicate the telephone environment (in which they cannot see the person they're talking to). They should sit together in one area of the room. One person will act as the scribe for the group's findings and will not wear a blindfold. 4. The third group represents the e-mail environment. These participants should sit back to back and may not speak. They should each have paper, pens, and clipboards. In order to communicate, they must write notes and pass them to one another. 5. Give them about 7 minutes and then ask each group member to make its report. (Participants can now be free of the blindfolds, clipboards, and other constraints). 6. Capture the findings and guidelines on a flip chart. Source: https://sixth.ucsd.edu/_files/_home/student-life/icebreakers-teambuilding-activities-energizers.pdf

Next Steps for Communication If you enjoy writing, consider publishing your work. If you enjoy public speaking, make a presentation at a meeting or conference. Use your talents to summarize the various points in a meeting and to build consensus by helping others see what they have in common. Facilitator Notes Time : 15 minutes Intensify Strength (handout –Supplemental Activity 2.K: Intensify Strength p. 38 of StrengthsQuest Activity workbook) Ask the students to develop talent based actions to respond to each touchpoint on the worksheet. Debrief this activity by asking students to share their responses with a small group. As with so many others, the positive effect of this activity can be enhanced by having students discuss their work in small groups and/or report to the entire group.