Communication Skills in the Workplace

What Does “Communication Skills” Actually Mean? Non-verbal communication skills (NVCS) refers to the ability to convey a message without words through facial expressions, body language, eye contact, etc. Communication skills (CS) refer to the ability to speak, listen and write carefully, with particular attention to the message and the audience. ext=1&list=PL342797B4A74C5711

Communication Skills: Why Do They Matter? Effective non-verbal and communications skills (CS) enable your audience to understand your precise message, thoughts and feelings. For example Ineffective CS: “We have to make sure we get the paperwork to administration.” Effective CS: “The 5 th week progress reports must be delivered to administration by 8:30am on Tuesday.”

Non-Verbal Communication Skills (NVCS) One of the most powerful forms of communication. NVC often sets the tone for verbal communication.

NVC Elements of NVC – Facial Expressions Identifying facial expressions – poll everywhere

NVC People all over the world can identify the primary 6 emotions regardless of culture (happy, sad, anger, fear, surprise, disgust) – Why do you think this is? When and then texting became more and more popular there grew a need for emoticons because people were lacking NVC in order to decode tone Has anyone ever experienced some sort of miscommunication while texting or ing because your tone could not be conveyed accurately without nvcs?

NVC Elements of NVC – Body Language (the way people stand, sit, walk and gesture) Identifying Gender and Emotions Ex. Men and women who have a youthful walking style (sway their hips, bend their knees, lift their feet, and swing their arms) are seen as happier and more powerful then people who walk slowly, take shorter steps, and stiffly drag their feet Open vs. Closed body language Everyone examine your own body language right now – what does it say about you? Share.

NVC Elements of NVC – Eye Contact Avoiding Eye Contact = evasive, cold, fearful, shy, indifferent Frequent Eye Contact = intimacy, sincerity, self-confidence, respect Constant Eye Contact = tense, angry, unfriendly

NVC Elements of NVC – Touch An expression of friendship, nurturance, sexual interest but also perhaps power and dominance

What is the NV message being sent?

Examples of NVCS Think-Pair-Share Brainstorm 1 example from your own lives of NVCS. Ex: I stand in front of the class and wait when I want your attention Key Issues to Consider: What is the non-verbal action? What were you trying to communicate? Was your non-verbal action successful? In other words, was your action understood? You will have 2-3 minutes to complete this task

Importance of NVC We make judgments constantly based on NVC (who to hire, date, trust…) – 1 second clips of political candidates faces strongly influence people’s attitudes towards those candidates Standing confidently can actually make you more confident – how is this information useful?

Communication Skills An essential skill in the workplace is the ability to SPEAK, LISTEN and WRITE clearly. How can you speak clearly? Remember Bert and Ernie – What was their problem? Speak slowly and clearly Remember your tone of voice Consider what your message is before you deliver it. You want to ensure the message you are trying to send is not lost in translation! Ex: Two friends, Jack & Robert, go hunting. Jack accidently shoots Robert. Jack immediately calls 911 and says, “Oh my goodness, I think I killed my friend!” The 911 operator says, “Well, go make sure your friend is dead.” Jack says, “Ok, give me a second.” Jack then walks over and shoots his friend. “ Jack comes back on the phone and says, “Ok, I’m sure he’s dead.”

Communication Skills How can you listen well? Be an active listener! Pay attention when someone is speaking to you! Maintain eye contact When appropriate, repeat back what has been told to you If you are asked a question, do not feel you have to respond right away. Think about it!

Communication Skills How can you write well? Use proper English – not the following: g2g, l8tr, ha ha ha, any1, r, u, gotta, i etc. “Hi…I gotta go 2 the meeting 2night but I’ll c u l8tr.” What is the impression that is made if the above language is used in your writing? Grammar is important: A panda bear eats shoots and leaves vs. A panda bear eats, shoots and leaves What is the difference between these two statements? How was the meaning changed?

Communication Skills Fully express your ideas, do not assume the reader knows what you are talking about. “Why weren’t you in class?” vs. “I noticed that you were absent from Careers on Dec. 3 rd and was just wondering if everything was ok, where you were at that time and whether or not you had permission to be away.” What is the difference between these two statements? Provide a list so your needs are clear “Hello John, I require the following: pencils, erasers, etc.”

Communication Skills Why is it important to know non-verbal communication? How is this lesson on communication important in a careers class?

Reflection Write a brief, 2 paragraph reflection detailing how you can improve your communication skills. Discuss what you need to improve. Discuss how you can improve it. Let’s Brainstorm some examples together first THIS WILL HELP YOU WHEN IT COMES TO INTERVIEWING SKILLS, AS WELL AS EVERYDAY COMMUNICATION.