1. Speaking and Listening

2. Speaking and listening Why are communication skills important? Communication is the heart of every organization. Everything you do in the workplace results from communication. Therefore, good reading, writing, speaking and listening skills are important if tasks are going to be completed and goals achieved. As you developed your career, you will find different reasons why successful communications are important to you. For example:

3. O To secure an interview O To get the job O To do your job well O To advance in your career In business area, oral communication can take variety of forms it can be over the telephone or face-to-face. It can also be: O A private discussion O A conversation over lunch O A gossip in the lift O A telephone conversation O A chance meeting in the corridor O An informal gathering of staff O Instructing subordinates O Dealing with clients O Formal meetings

4. O Interviews O Training sessions O Giving a presentation O Conferences /seminars Most people find talking easier than writing because phrases can sometimes be used in speech that would not be appropriate in a written communication.

5. Basic listening skills Listening means (decoding and interpreting correctly). Good listeners are rare these days. In fact, some researchers suggest that we listen at only 25 percent efficiency. Studies have shown that most listeners retain less than 50% of what they hear. Imagine what that means when it comes to a conversation that you might have with your boss, a colleague or a customer. If you speak for ten minutes, chances are that you have only heard about half of that conversation-and so have they. No wonder miscommunications happen so frequently.

6. Listening skills If you are to understand why oral messages are so often unsuccessful, you must understand the listening process. Here are six stages of listening process: O Receiving O Interpreting O Remembering O Evaluating O Responding O Acting

7. Barrier to effective listening If you are to become a good listener, it’s important to be familiar with and conquer a number of physical and mental obstacles. These include: Pre-judgment Selfishness Selective listening Language problems Non-verbal distraction Thought speed Faking attention

8. The difference between a good listener and a bad one. A bad listener O Is easily distracted O Daydream O Fakes attention O Tunes out dryer subjects O Tunes out if delivery is poor O Tends to argue O Reacts to emotion

9. A good listener O Makes the most of the opportunity O Fights distractions O Make an effort to concentrate O Uses body language to show attention O Asks “what is in this for me”? O Considers the facts and data O Forgives delivery errors O Judges content over the delivery O Interrupts only to clarify O Gives speaker a chance before judging O Is not obsessed with emotional words O Considers evidence

10. Techniques for effective listening Prepare to listen: clear your mind so that your attention is assured. Avoid pre-judgment: don’t pre-judge the speaker because of appearance Be opened mind: appraise the speaker’s point of view. Establish eye contact: this shows the speaker that you are listening when you give facial expressions Don’t interrupt: to keep your argument until the speaker finishes his point. Watch for signals: pick up some aspects that the speaker considers important by watching his body language and listening his intonation of voice Judge for content: appraise the content instead of the speaker. Consider the main points and ask if they make sense. Extract points: pick out and repeat to yourself some keywords Give feedback: learn to give positive feedback by nodding or smiling Block out distraction: fight distractions by working hard at listening, closing the doors, turning off the TV, or radio.

11. END QUESTIONS ?