1. Interpersonal Skills
Practicum in LPSCS

2. Positive Personal Traits
Good relationships at work can help you enjoy your work and do your job more effectively
Assess your own traits as a starting point to developing good work relationships
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3. Positive Personal Traits (continued)
Responsibility – dependability, punctuality, and positive motivation
Self-esteem – confidence
Self-management – self-control and tact
Integrity and honesty – loyalty and trustworthiness
Dressing appropriately
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4. Positive Personal Traits (continued)
Sociability
Be friendly and enthusiastic
Respect others
Have a sense of humor – be able to laugh at yourself
Be courteous
Greet coworkers, addressing them by name when possible
Don’t talk so loudly as to disturb others
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5. Positive Personal Traits (continued)
Self-awareness
Be aware of your strengths and weaknesses
Use this information to help you develop the personal traits that need improvement
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6. Being an Effective Coworker
Working effectively with others is part of doing your job well
Essential traits
Respecting others
Understanding others
Communication skills
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7. Being an Effective Coworker (continued)
Respect others – show by your actions and words that you value your coworkers
Be courteous
Tolerate differences
Respect privacy – i.e., treat others’ , faxes, phone calls, etc. as you would treat private mail
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8. Being an Effective Coworker (continued)
Understanding others
Show interest in coworkers by asking about their interests
Empathize
Be open to suggestions and change
Pay attention to body language and facial expressions that can express emotions
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9. Being an Effective Coworker (continued)
Communication skills
How well you listen is as important as what you say
Failure to convey information clearly can cause problems
Speak up if you need help
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10. Negative Traits and Habits to Avoid
Arrogance – conveys that you feel superior to others
Prejudice – a negative attitude toward a certain group of people
Jealousy – can be damaging in the workplace
Negative attitudes and complaining
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11. Negative Traits and Habits to Avoid (continued)
Revealing too much about your private life
Gossiping – wastes time and can result in rumors
Interrupting private conversations
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12. Valuing Diversity
Today’s workforce is becoming more diverse, with people from different countries, cultures, backgrounds, and generations.
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13. Benefits of Diversity
The workplace can benefit from the ideas and perspectives of many different people
Working with people who are different from us makes us less likely to rely on old assumptions that might be wrong
Opens us up to considering new ideas and points of view
Leads to new discoveries
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14. Benefits of Diversity (continued)
Respect differences in culture, religion, age, gender, and viewpoint
Aids communication
Shows that you are part of a community of workers with common needs and goals
Helps employees relate to each other and be more accommodating to others, which spills over to the people they serve
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15. Look Beyond Stereotypes
To take advantage of a diverse workforce, look beyond stereotypes
Cultural differences
Gender distinctions
Generational distinctions
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16. Look Beyond Stereotypes (continued)
Cultural differences
People from different ethnic backgrounds have different customs; what is polite in one culture may be rude in another
Cultural blunders happen, even when you have the best intentions
Learn by reading and observing, and apologize, even if you are unintentionally impolite
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17. Look Beyond Stereotypes (continued)
Gender distinctions
Have mutual respect for others regardless of gender
It is illegal to harass or discriminate against someone because of gender
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18. Look Beyond Stereotypes (continued)
Generational distinctions
Young people and old people can have different points of view
Bridge differences by listening carefully to the other person’s viewpoint and finding areas of agreement
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