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Workplace Communications: Seven Simple Rules for Getting Along at Work

Workplace Communications: Seven Simple Rules for Getting Along at Work
By Jackie Jordan Davis

Workplace communications. It's the foundation of all work place relationships. When you factor in the fact that most professionals spend at least a third of their time at work, being an effective communicator becomes a core competency that everyone should work to improve. Developing good communications and workplace relationships can often, however, be difficult to achieve. Here are 7 simple communications rules to help you improve your relationships with co-workers...and raise your quality-of-life-at-work.

• Observe boundaries.
People have different comfort zones regarding their personal space, inquiries about their personal lives, and their personal property that deserve your respect. For example, a civil office relationship can quickly turn nasty if a colleague's desk space is raided for candy without their permission.
• Fulfill commitments.
The currency of most relationships is based on whether your "word is your bond." In other words, be trustworthy. Follow through on your personal and professional commitments to your colleagues. If your reputation at work is ever on the line, your co-workers will be more likely to reserve judgment and grant you the benefit of doubt...just when you need it the most.
• Respect time.

  Some people you work with are social animals who enjoy the banter and casual conversation that goes on in every office. Others can live without it. Notice the rhythm and ease that co-workers exchange pleasantries with you, and engage them up to but not exceeding their comfort zones. When they get antsy or start glancing at their watches, move on and let them get back to work.

• Pay attention.
Many of us talk more than we listen. Practice active listening and learn to process what is said and unsaid (i.e., consider a colleague's voice inflection, body language, etc.) in order to improve the quality of your communication in the work place. Is there an introvert in your midst? Someone who reflects first and then speaks? Ramp-up your listening and processing skills with these colleagues so that they know their thoughts and feelings are appreciated and accepted.
• Avoid gossip.
Those who talk about others will talk about you, too. When you or others are being damned by faint praise, (it happens!), or falsehoods about you are being spread like wildfire, you will want a colleague with the backbone to nip that gossip in the bud. That means you have to walk away from gossip when you encounter it, in spite of how appealing it may be.
• Ask questions.
When in doubt, ask! Find out whether a colleague prefers to hit the ground running or ease into the morning slowly. Ask your co-workers in the next office whether they prefer a phone call, an email, or a face-to-face visit if you have a quick question in the middle of the day. Then, demonstrate that you respect their preferences by acting on them.
• Check-in.

  Listen to what your gut is telling you about your work place relationships. If anything in your communication with a colleague feels out of order, check to see how you can iron it out in order to get back on track with each other. Addressing miscues and miscommunications in your work place relationships when they first occur is much easier than waiting until the problem escalates into open hostilities.

  Effective communication in the work place is vital to improving personal productivity and attaining a high quality-of-life-at work. Strengthening your communications skills and work place relationships takes both time and effort. And...it's worth it.

  Jackie Jordan Davis is an executive coach who has been in private practice since 1997. Visit www.voicelessons.ws for more information on the executive coaching, consulting and communications training she offers for women in the workplace.

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  http://EzineArticles.com/?Workplace-Communications:-Seven-Simple-Rules-for-Getting-Along-at-Work&id=299514

Say What?!

Say What?!
By Grace Judson

For some strange reason, most of the corporate world thinks that long words and lots of jargon is the way to communicate.

Even those of us who know better fall into this trap. It's kind of like when you were a kid. "But MOOOoooom, all the OTHER kids are doing it!"

Remember what your mother said?

"If all the other kids jumped off a bridge..."

Peer pressure is just as tough to fight as an adult as it was when you were a kid.

In high school, you tried hard to fit in and be cool. As an adult, you're trying just as hard to fit in by following the corporate norm, using the official presentation templates, avoiding wheel reinvention by starting out with someone else's "canned" report format.

And just as you were then, you're squashing your personality in favor of going with the crowd. It feels safer, even when the crowd is balanced on the bridge railing ready to jump. If you do what everyone else does, you can't be wrong - or so says the voice of peer pressure.

But really living up to your values means letting your personality come through in your communication. It means being honest and straightforward instead of confusing and vague. It means taking off the corporate mask and using simple, understandable language instead of hiding behind industry jargon and polysyllabic words. It means trusting your audience to receive your message and respond appropriately. It even means trusting yourself to write with an authentic voice that people will want to read.

None of that feels comfortable in today's corporate environment. You face a conflict between your desire to act within your own integrity and be noticed and recognized, and your desire to keep your head down and out of danger.

Building your career and learning how to operate in the political workplace (and all workplaces are political!) requires a certain level of risk. Writing effectively and in your own voice is one of those risks. Like many of the risks you face in life, it looks bigger than it is.

Jargon and Corporate-Speak

It seems as if some dreadful Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde transformation takes place whenever anyone is promoted to a management position, and the more senior the position, the worse the transformation.

Suddenly people begin going on about leveraging synergistic relationships between operational divisions, and how strong human resources are a value-added asset for corporate stakeholders, but at the end of the day we must remain aware of the impact of each key performance indicator (KPI) to the bottom line.

(Translations:
- Would the two divisions please stop operating in silos and start sharing information, already!?
- We're not making our numbers and we're going to have to lay off staff.)

If you catch yourself hiding behind jargon and corporate-speak, ask yourself why you don't want to write your message in plain English. You may just be tripping over a habit, but you may also be deliberately obfuscating* to hide the real impact of your message.

(Obfuscate: to make unclear or bewildering.)

Put some character into what you write instead of using corporate jargon and cookie-cutter templates. Become known for your clarity and honesty. And review, proofread, and edit everything, even your emails (especially your emails!).

Overly Complex Language

Especially when they're insecure, people like to sound as if they know what they're talking about. They like to sound important. Often that means relying on long words, long sentences, and long paragraphs.

Let's be very clear: long words, long sentences, and long paragraphs don't get read. If that's what you want, go for it. But if you want to write emails and reports that say something, then drop the thousand-dollar words and the lengthy pontifications.

Your readers will thank you for using short words, short sentences, and short paragraphs. Put a blank line between your paragraphs while you're at it. Aaaahhh. The eye relaxes, the mind perks up, and all of a sudden you'll find that people are reading and responding to your emails and reports.

(Pontificate: to pompously hold forth, to be dogmatic.)

Develop your own voice. It can be a little startling when you're quoted back to yourself ("As (your name here) always says..."), but it's also sort of fun - and you know you're making an impression on your audience!

Much of this seems self-evident, but I'm continually surprised by the extent to which people think that jargon is acceptable and complex language makes you sound more erudite*. Nothing is further from the truth. Everyone will thank you - and remember you - for being clear.

(Erudite: learned, scholarly. Interestingly enough, it shares its Latin root with "rude"!)

"Quit your jibba-jabba, foo!" Mr. T, from the 1980s television show The A-Team

(c)Grace L. Judson

Helping professionals who loathe corporate politics and want to lead with integrity and compassion.

About the Author

I'm Grace Judson, the founder of and driving force behind Svaha Concepts.

Feeling trapped between your career goals and your loathing for "playing politics"? You can remain true to your values and integrity and still be politically savvy. For more information or to access my free resources (including my free workbook "The Five Deadly Shoulds of Office Politics that Maul, Mangle, and Murder Careers (and what to do about them)," please visit Svaha Concepts' website.

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Beige or Brilliant? A Recipe for Success

Beige or Brilliant? A Recipe for Success
By Tracy Mcilrath

"Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision for the limits of the world" - Arthur Schopenhauer

Okay, you have gathered the best and brightest employees. You know their skills are top notch. They know what needs to be done. So why are results mediocre? Why is so much time and energy wasted in low level abrasion and posturing? Why do you have to re-address the same issues over and over again? Maybe knowing the right amount is as important as knowing what ingredients you need to create your masterpiece.

Issues of organizational structure and triage can be narrowed down and focused through a concept called Reframing. Reframing is useful for viewing situations through various filters in order to extrapolate pertinent patterns, characteristics and elements. Each frame focuses on a different set of significant factors, that when taken together, offer a more holistic view of a given situation, as well as offering remedies and options for difficulties. Use of framing models can provide great insight into complex and challenging organizational situations.

The four avenues utilized are: 1) Structural 2) Human Resources 3) Political 4) Symbolic.

This practice is useful in sorting the primary from the secondary causes and issues of various situations, and allows the examiner to assume a balanced posture when addressing the overall situation. The advantage to this balance is a more complete address of the current problem or challenge. When all contributing aspects are taken into account and appropriately addressed, odds improve dramatically for an enduring resolution.

Structural Frame

The Structural frame is interested in rules, roles, goals, policies, technology and environment.

This is the discipline of streamlining and standardizing work processes in the most efficient manner and then plugging personnel into this mechanistic/rational structure. The Structural perspective utilizes organizational charts to plot formal chains of command, responsibilities and relationships between individuals and departments throughout organizations. Advantages of Structural framing include provision of a clear understanding of the seniority/power structure of an organization and a mapping of the informational and decision making chain of command. Drawbacks to sole reliance on the Structural frame include a tendency toward decision-making bottlenecks, a lack of personal investment by staff (due to very structured and limited authority and self-direction), and a predisposition toward bureaucracy.

Human Resources Frame

Examining situations from a Human Resources frame involves looking at the needs, skills and relationships of employees.

This frame recognizes that people are more satisfied, and therefore function better, when they have a sense of ownership regarding their work. This includes commitment to a purpose, providing input on decision-making regarding their efforts, and the ability/authority to act utilizing their own best judgment/experience/skills to some degree. This frame requires the examiner to peer into the nature of the relationships between people and departments, to gain an understanding of the motivational factors for participants, and to manage the very real role of emotions in the workplace.

Political Frame

The Political frame looks at issues involving coalitions of diverse individuals and interest groups, enduring differences between coalition members, scarce resources, conflict, bargaining, negotiation and jockeying for position among competing stakeholders. Each of these are very important and influential factors in corporate life, however, when all our decisions and actions are based on political affect, we lose our humanity, compassion and numinous connection to our work.

Symbolic Frame

The Symbolic frame embraces the influences and impacts of how events are interpreted within an organization, the overt and covert rules and norms of a group, and the socio/emotional continuity of a group with shared symbology and identity. Emotionally what is most important is not what happens but what it means. Activity and meaning are loosely coupled; events have multiple meanings because people interpret experience differently. This frame recognizes that culture is the glue that holds an organization together and unites people around shared values and beliefs. When the team is all pulling in the same direction, it is much more effective than when each person is headed off on his/her own.

Each of these perspectives is a powerful factor missing from formal organizational charts, but which guide and flavor decisions and processes on a systemic level. Wise managers are aware of the impact and benefit that proficiency with these tools offer. In a world where employee experience, knowledge and commitment are precious resources, learning how to maximize organizational loyalty and employee satisfaction is paramount. Reframing techniques offer leaders an engaging and useful topographical map for organizational life. And after all, who doesn't prefer brilliant over beige!

Copyright© 2007. Tracy McIlrath, Emergent Leadership Partnering, Inc. All rights reserved. Even when everyone is trying to solve the same issue, different perspectives and values can derail the best of teams. Tracy McIlrath has the extensive training, experience and enthusiasm to help organizations minimize problems with strategic planning, conflict resolution and team building through Reframing techniques and coaching. For information on maximizing your organization's potential visit http://www.emergentleadership.net

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Communicating in the Workplace - The 5 C's of Becoming an Effective Communicator

Communicating in the Workplace - The 5 C's of Becoming an Effective Communicator
By Heather Hansen

Truly successful professionals are leaders who have mastered the art of effective communication. They are well-liked by colleagues (including subordinates and superiors), your company's clients seem to love them too and they always seem to close the major deals.

It may seem like these individuals were blessed with a natural talent for speaking well - and maybe they were. But everything can be learned, including how to speak like a star.

Apply these 5 C's of effective communication to enhance your relationships and get on the road to greater professional success:

1. Articulate Clearly

If your listeners can not understand what you are saying, your message will never be effective. The easiest way to instantly improve the clarity of your speech is to slow down. When we get nervous or stressed our rate of speaking often increases. And these are the times when calm eloquence and tact are most needed. Take a deep breath, slow down and speak clearly.

It is also important to formulate your thoughts in a clear manner so that other people can understand your message. Stick to your main point, be as concise as possible and back up your arguments with examples and stories that make sense to your listener.

2. Speak Correctly

Whether you like it or not, you will be judged based on how you speak. Individuals with poor grammar and sloppy speech patterns are often viewed as being lazy, uneducated and even disrespectful.

Make proper speech a priority. Polish up your grammatical skills and build a healthy vocabulary. Read as much as you can, ask your friends, family or colleagues for help or join a grammar refresher course.

You may not see this as a very important point, but as our world becomes more global, just speaking English isn't enough. You need to speak it really well.

3. Be Considerate

Before you even open your mouth, focus on being considerate towards everyone you meet. Make eye contact with people when they approach you. Have a good attitude and show your winning smile.

Show that you care for others by asking questions and showing interest. Remember personal details that are important to them, and build a relationship that consists of more than just the work at hand. Limited small talk is imperative to building rapport and stronger relationships in the workplace.

If you are considerate towards others, they will also treat you with care and respect. We all like working with people we like, so your goal should be to be well-liked by others. The way you achieve this is by being friendly, considerate and showing you care.

4. Give Compliments

In addition to being considerate, another way to build instant rapport is to give sincere compliments. Recognize those around you for a job well done. Show interest by congratulating others on their accomplishments.

If your colleague mentions that he finally finished that big project that you know he was slaving over for months, respond with a sincere "Great job!" or "Good for you!" These types of remarks are always appreciated.

Keep in mind that compliments should be subtle and appropriate and the closeness of your relationship also determines how a compliment will be received. Commenting on a colleague's physical appearance for example, may not be acceptable in the modern workplace, unless you are also very close friends outside of the office.

5. Have Confidence

In the end, a successful communicator is a confident communicator. It is hard to take someone seriously who doesn't seem to believe in his own words.

Confidence does not just come from what you are verbalizing (saying), but also what you are vocalizing - in other words, the pace, pitch and volume of your voice. A calm, steady voice we can hear always sounds stronger and more confident than a quiet, mousy squeak.

Your visual appearance can also exude confidence or draw from it. Make sure you stand straight and make firm eye contact when you address other people. Even the least confident individuals can "fake" a confident image simply by forcing themselves to do these two simple things.

Heather Hansen, founder of Singapore-based Hansen Speech & Language Training, is an executive speech and language coach, writer and trainer. If you want to boost your linguistic abilities and become a powerful speaker, visit her website http://www.hansenslt.com now for free information on how to speak clearly, correctly and confidently! Join her mailing list to receive your free special report, Speak Clearly! and as a special bonus you'll also receive her monthly newsletter, Speak like a Star!

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Communicating In Today's Workplace

Communicating In Today's Workplace
By Joe Love

In the Industrial Age, the lines of communication in the workplace were clear and simple: Executives and managers told employees what to do. If a boss wanted information he (and it was usually a he) asked for it. Communication was vertical, and most of it was top-down.

Today, in the Information Age, the lines of communication are much more complex. Information now flows;

" From top management down to employees.

" From employees upward to top management.

" Horizontally among individuals and departments within a company.

Top-down communication in the Industrial Age was limited to commands from executives and managers to employees and lower-level managers.

In the Information Age of today, employees aren't just looking for direction from the top. They also want information, what the company is doing, how it is doing, and what they can do to help.

Good managers use a range of channels to reach their employees, from company newsletters and magazines to interoffice memos and emails. Small group meetings with speeches from executives also allow employees to get information from the top.

Business leaders have come to realize that the line managers and employees are the ones closest to the customer. They are the ones who can tell top management what customers are thinking, what products they might be buying in the future, or what problems they are having with the company. Line managers are also the first to hear about employee problems.

As a manager, encourage upward communication. Listen to your employees. Break down hierarchies so that employees and lower-level managers don't have to go through "channels" to get to you. Make sure you don't have a "kill the messenger" attitude that discourages employees from bringing you bad news. It's a good idea to set up formal upward communication systems, such as suggestion boxes.

Communication between people at the same level is also very important, as witnessed by the increasing popularity of cross-functional teams. Communication across the company helps departments pool their diverse talents and resources to find solutions or avoid work duplication. It's important to break down the walls that impede this type of communication.

Departments must have the systems in place to communicate directly with other departments without going through top-management. Information that must painfully climb levels of hierarchy won't reach other departments in time to make a difference. To successfully communicate in today's workplace you must also overcome the gender trap and other challenges. For example, it is no longer appropriate to say spokesman when in many cases a woman fills that duty. Female as well as male examples should be used in stories and illustrations and executive assistants or office managers are not "secretaries."

Men and women do have different communication styles. For example, what a woman perceives as politeness, a man might interpret as indecisiveness. While women don't have to sound like "one of the boys," they should always speak in a calm but authoritative and assertive voice, while on the other hand, some men need to tone down their macho aggressiveness and cultivate tact.

At some point during the 21st century non-Hispanic whites will be just the largest of several minorities, which will also include Hispanics, African-Americans and Asian Americans.

This diversified workplace must offer an environment where people are respected regardless of gender, skin color, language, background, or national origin. Cultural prejudice, even unintended, must be purged from all communications.

Perhaps the biggest challenge of the Information Age is the globalization of business. Managers working with people from other countries have the responsibility to learn and respect the different ways of communicating in different cultures.

In the era of empowered employees and cross-functional teams, workplace communication is no longer limited to the top-down commands and instructions of the past. It involves bottom-up and lateral exchanges as well. It also involves effectively communicating with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures.

Copyright©2008 by Joe Love and JLM & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.

Joe Love draws on his 25 years of experience helping both individuals and companies build their businesses, increase profits, and success coaching programs He is the founder and CEO of JLM & Associates, a consulting and training organization, specializing in career coach training Through his seminars and lectures, Joe Love addresses thousands of men and women each year, including the executives and staffs of many businesses around the world, on the subjects of leadership, achievement, goals, strategic business planning, and marketing. Joe is the author of three books, Starting Your Own Business, Finding Your Purpose In Life, and The Guerrilla Marketing Workbook.

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http://EzineArticles.com/?Communicating-In-Todays-Workplace&id=912394

Active Listening

Active Listening
By Don Grimme

Our article on "The Inquiry Skill" revealed why it is such an important part of the two-way communication process and so critical a skill for a workplace leader.

Inquiry and listening go hand in hand. If you don't really listen to what the other person has to say in response to your inquiry, you deny yourself and the other person of all the potential positive outcomes.

And really listening is not a passive process. You need to actively engage with the other person.

The Challenge of Active Listening

Most people are not very good listeners. Why is that? We believe there are three underlying reasons:

1. We're all pretty busy juggling myriad priorities in our work and personal lives. These engage a great deal of our attention; and it's a challenge to put them to the side and focus fully on the other person's issues.
2. Because of this, we tend to take shortcuts -- leaping to conclusions and assumptions, based on insufficient information.
3. Active listening is a learned skill, in which most people have had little or no training.

6 Elements of Active Listening

1. Stop what you are doing and give the person your full attention.
2. Use silence ... and don't complete the other person's sentences.
3. Collect the facts on the issue at hand.
4. Then go deeper. Listen to what is really being said. What does s/he want you to understand?
5. Use reflective questioning -- paraphrase/restate comments to get confirmation.
   • "Let me see if I understand you. Are you saying...?"
   • "You want.... Is that right?"
6. Ask clarifying and open-ended questions to inquire:
   • "Give me an example."
   • "What would you like to see happen?"
   • "Anything else?"; "Tell me more."

If what the other person is saying is very simple and with little emotional content, you may need to apply only the first two elements, i.e., shut up and listen.

Although adding a reflective question at the end is always a good idea. For example: "You need to leave work a half-hour early today for personal business and will make up that time by coming in a half-hour early tomorrow. Right? OK!"

However, for anything more complex -- and especially if there are emotions involved (e.g., as in a complaint or a personal problem) -- you'll definitely want to apply all six elements.

The Grimmes conduct customized onsite training workshops and large group presentations for organizations in every sector of the economy. Their groundbreaking book on managing people in today's workplace will be published by AMACOM in the second half of 2008. Visit their main website at http://www.GHR-Training.com and topic-specific http://www.Employee-Retention-HQ.com and read issues of their own e-newsletter at http://www.WorkplacePeopleSolutions.com

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http://EzineArticles.com/?Active-Listening&id=921754

Seven Top Tips for Effective Communication

Seven Top Tips for Effective Communication
By Christine Chin

You no longer have to rely on recall to remember discussions. By using these seven top tips you will become a better communicator.

If you are undertaking an assignment in an allotted time and your client is out of the country you may not have contact until his or her return. If there is a third party involved it is of paramount importance to ensure that s/he is aware of all discussions. If the third party cannot be contacted for whatever reason then you can exhaust all contact numbers until such time that you speak with the individual.

In order to save valuable time there are key principles that need to be applied:

1. Get it right from the outset as time is money. If you are working within tight time constraints then all parties need to be assured that what is been agreed upon is clarified from the outset

2. Write down the salient points of the discussion and place on file for future reference

3. Reiterate what has been stated and agreed upon and clarify any points

4. Never take things for granted as both parties may be agreeing on two different things

5. If you are awaiting a letter or package in the post it can take several days to be delivered so prioritise tasks in order to accommodate your new assignment

6. Obtain personal details, address, mobile and landline numbers and alternative numbers for all parties involved, and email address; keep a backup copy of contact details

7. Send an email to follow-up the discussion.

Christine M Chin

Life Coach

http://www.christinemmchin.blogspot.com

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http://EzineArticles.com/?Seven-Top-Tips-for-Effective-Communication&id=924722

Engaged? How To Develop Communication Skills and Engagement in Management and Staff

Engaged? How To Develop Communication Skills and Engagement in Management and Staff
By Paul Stevens

The events sector has been successfully creating platforms for businesses to share its' vision and plans with audiences for decades now. It is clear that audiences are becoming more and more sophisticated; you cannot just impress them with creative stages and amazing lighting. If you need a return on your investment it is essential to engage your audience early, which is not always easy with information packed sessions and limited time frames. The more engaged the workforce is, the greater the impact on their motivation and ultimately the bottom line.

The big question is, to what extent is your workforce engaged? Workforces that have a higher percentage of employees who feel engaged with the vision and direction of the business will outperform those who feel disengaged. Standard Chartered Bank, is one business who are striding ahead in this arena, they use measures of engagement and have found that there is a strong correlation between performance and engagement.

Some studies show that less than 20% of staff are actively engaged at work, with over 40% actively disengaged, that leaves a big percentage of the workforce ready and waiting to be activated in the right way, so they are engaged to use their resources and deliver on the companies objectives.

One of the main issues for poor staff engagement is unskilled and poor managers. Managers are now said to be 'very weak', nor just 'weak', in a studies done in the UK and States, notes John Shenton of HR Evaluate. Weak and unskilled managers cost business £220bn through misunderstanding, poor communication, personality clashes and lack of leadership!

So how do you train your managers to ensure that they can engage, inspire and lead their teams? How do make sure the communication skills and strategies they use are effective across all levels?

One way to motivate your staff for the long term is to make use of a skilled facilitator and trainer, who specialises in soft skills, motivation and communication strategies. If team leaders can use language that really "speaks" to team members they are much more likely to engage them - an objective outsider can more easily highlight and develop constructive language and communication patterns with your workforce for everyone's benefit. Over the last 10 years PJ Stevens, of LEAP, has worked with businesses, teams and leaders to help them create positive and engaging communication strategies, through conference presentations, seminars, development workshops and coaching sessions.

With conference presentations, you can reach hundreds of people with the same message with potentially huge impact. PJ has 'a great stage presence and charisma, which is utterly infectious, you can't help but get caught up in it' said one satisfied company sales director. Givenchy were blown away when he presented at their last conference, but more importantly 9 months on the attendees are still using the Champion Behaviours from the conference speech. And one top UK agent says of PJ's training and development, 'We trust him with our best clients in the full knowledge that he will deliver results'.

'If businesses are serious about building teams and being more successful a hands on approach will get the results you need' note Emma Palfrey, Director of Penguins. She continues, 'Running interactive workshops, including Ice-Breakers, Outstanding Teamwork, Leadership Development and Winning Relationships will give you the opportunity to explore the teams' areas for development and skill them to take performance and productivity to the next level.' To measure the improvement in key competencies such as communication, difference management, trust, motivation and leadership; An Even Better Place to Work website offers fabulous interactive measurements, activities and development tools.

If you want to engage with your most valuable resource - people - and have them fully engaged with their roles, goals and responsibilities then engage the services of a professional (external) facilitator, presenter and trainer and measure the positive results for yourself. As with any training, development and teambuilding, measurement, quantifiable results and return on investment is becoming more and more important. Team building for fun is important, team development that supports people, performance and productivity is vital!

PJ Stevens, is a motivational speaker, presenter and facilitator working across the UK, Europe and Middle East, specialising in soft skills, teambuilding and management development. pj@leapplc.com http://www.leapplc.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paul_Stevens
http://EzineArticles.com/?Engaged?-How-To-Develop-Communication-Skills-and-Engagement-in-Management-and-Staff&id=931634

Listening - An Overlooked Business Strategy

Listening - An Overlooked Business Strategy
By Gretchen Hirsch

Listening is something most of us don't do very well. In this multitasking world, we answer our e-mail while we attend a teleconference or even when we talk with colleagues on the phone (and by the way, those colleagues can hear the tap-tap-tap of the keys, and they know we're no longer interested in what they have to say).

We slap on earphones to drown out the cacophony that's part of life in a cubicle farm. We rush to poorly planned meetings where there may be lots of discussion about nothing. Hurried, stressed, and often overworked, it's no wonder we're not very attentive to what others are saying. Experts tell us we listen only about fifty percent of the time. That is, we process about half of what people say to us.

But listening with intention pays big dividends in the workplace. The first, of course, is that courtesy breeds courtesy. If you are polite to your co-workers, making eye contact with them as they speak, checking to make sure you understood what they say, and giving some visual cues that show you're paying attention, you gain a reputation as someone who is interested in other people's opinions and viewpoints.

That reputation will build relationships. Healthy relationships result in a greater flow of useful information--and good information is the key to advancement. If you listen twice as much as you talk (that is, keep your ears open and your mouth shut), you'll probably move up the organization faster than the colleague who reverses the ratio.

In addition, when you really listen, you'll make fewer mistakes. You're less likely to hear fifty when the customer said fifteen or to order the product in blue when the client wanted it in green. You'll know that the pitch meeting is Thursday, not Tuesday. You won't show up for the meeting with your boss at 2 p.m. when it was scheduled for 1 p.m. You'll save yourself-and your company-time and money by getting things right the first time. And since time and money are the two resources business values most, you'll have produced measurable results.

Really listening is hard work, but here are some tips to polish your skills:

Shut out distractions. While you are engaged in an important conversation with a colleague or a customer, let the phone go to voice mail and your computer to screen saver. Face the person you're talking with. By signaling your intention to concentrate on him or her, you make your conversational partner feel valued.

Be aware of your body language. Lean forward a bit and make appropriate eye contact to show that you're interested in what the other person is saying.

Watch the other person's body language, too. Note facial expressions and gestures. Is he or she looking everywhere but at you, blinking rapidly, or tapping a foot impatiently? These may be hints that the other person is ashamed, anxious, or irritated, and the nonverbal cues help you understand the underlying messages as well as what's being conveyed in words.

Stay in the moment. Try to keep your mind from wandering. This can be difficult, but being fully present when talking with another person is powerful-and it's a very efficient use of time as well.

Detach gracefully. If you must cut a conversation short to go to a meeting, return to work on a report, or get busy on another task, do it gently. "Bob, I'm really interested in what you're saying, but Jack needs this report in two hours. Could we reconvene after that? I'd really like to finish this discussion. Do you have time after three?" That's much more effective than looking distracted or glancing repeatedly at your watch.

Try listening effectively for six months and watch your office life improve.

Copyright 2008

Gretchen Hirsch is a writer, speaker, and trainer. The topic above and many others are treated extensively in her books Talking Your Way to the Top: Business English That Works and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Difficult Conversations.

You are welcome to use this article without modification. Please do not shorten or edit it and please credit the author and her URL, http://www.midwestbookdocs.com

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Effective Communication - Email Because Its Right For The Situation, Not Because It's Convenient

Effective Communication - Email Because Its Right For The Situation, Not Because It's Convenient
By Martin Rola

THEMES

Use the proper communication tool based on the situation and objectives.

Sending an email may be convenient at times, but if it is not the right tool it can reduce your productivity and that of others.

Would you use a wrench to pound a nail? Many of you who have done home improvement projects, worked in your garage or even hung a picture have probably been in this situation before. You need to pound in a nail, but you don't have a hammer nearby. I personally have turned a crescent wrench around and given a galvanized 2-inch 8d a few whacks instead of going to the basement to get a hammer. I've also used a shoe, a rock, and my wife's favorite vase to sink nails on various occasions when I just couldn't muster up the energy to get the right tool. At the time, I really thought I was being efficient by using what was convenient.

What were the results? In most cases, I was able to eventually get the nail in without the hammer but often was only marginally successful. I achieved the goal, but not efficiently or effectively. In every case, I had to hit the nail more times than if I had used a hammer. When I used the wrench, I bent the nail. When I used the shoe, I left a dent in the wall when the heel slipped off the nail head (which I had to patch later). When I used the rock, I smashed my finger. And after reading this article, my wife will finally know how the vase got chipped!

What most people don't realize is that they make the same mistake almost every day in the business world. They use the wrong communication tool because it is convenient for them at the time. But really, they are reducing productivity in the process.

What are the typical results of using the wrong communication tool? In most cases, the message does eventually get through. But the sender's and other people's time may be wasted in the process, the message may not get through correctly the first time, it may not generate the right results, or it may even cause damage to relationships along the way that need to be later repaired (like the dent in the wall). When these things happen frequently in an organization, the results can really hurt productivity.

The most common example of this today is the overuse of email. You're sitting in a meeting, and you receive an email with a list of questions for you and others. The meeting discussion isn't directly focused on you, so you decide that you can read it on your PDA without missing out on anything important (a likely mistake we'll address in a future article!). The email is from someone you'll see tomorrow in another meeting, and it has a 12-person distribution list. The question asked of you is a bit unclear, but you're pretty confident that you understand what is being requested. It is also a somewhat sensitive issue that people feel strongly about. The sender needs a response with in 48 hours. Only two people on the list other than the sender need to know your response, and they'll be in the same meeting as the sender tomorrow.

What do you do?

What you should do is go in the basement and get the hammer! In this case, this means you should not respond immediately. Instead, you should bring a copy of the message to your meeting tomorrow and request clarification from the sender to be sure you understand the question. Then, you should respond while paying attention to the others in the meeting to make sure the negative emotional reaction you are concerned about doesn't happen.

But unfortunately, if you were like many people today, you would instead respond to the message right away. You would peck in an answer on your PDA or pound one in on your laptop. With so many emails coming in, you just don't want to leave this one sitting there. Since it's too hard to reduce the distribution list (especially on the PDA) you just hit the Reply All button, figuring the others will just disregard the message. You're also confident that if you misinterpreted the request, the sender will get back to you and clarify (likely also with a Reply All). Finally, you figure that if there's an emotional reaction, you can deal with it in the meeting tomorrow.

What's the worst-case scenario with this approach? First, you missed out on an important part of the meeting you were in since you weren't paying attention. You'll end up redoing some work as a result of this. Second, you did misinterpret the request, and it took two more emails with the entire distribution list to achieve clarification. Third, your response triggered a strong emotional reaction with one of the people. This person will be in the meeting tomorrow, but by that time they'll have repressed their feelings. Since you didn't get the visual or verbal clues from their initial response, you'll never know that you upset them. This will hinder your relationship with them moving forward.

In summary, 45 irrelevant messages were sent to people, an informal network got damaged, you wasted two hours redoing work, and you spent 20 minutes on all of the emails that were generated on the subject. Had you just brought it to the meeting tomorrow, your initial response and the required clarification would have taken one minute. Also, you would have observed the emotional response from one person and clarified your position to resolve their concern. Or maybe you would have even integrated their feedback into your response to make it better!

Because PDA's and email systems make it so convenient to use email, mistakes like this are often made. What's worse is that there's a multiplying effect in an organization since emails beget emails beget emails. The basic rule to remember in this specific situation is to email because you should, not because you can. In a more general case, you should select the right communication tool based on the situation. If you are in doubt of which one to use, use direct verbal communication.

Email because you should, not because you can

• Think about what is most efficient and effective for all parties involved, even if it means slightly more work for you. A voicemail, phone call or a live conversation may be a better way to communicate.

• One inefficient email from you can create a lot of work for others, especially if a large distribution list is used.

• If a response isn't needed in the immediate future, consider other ways and opportunities to communicate the information such as in an upcoming meeting.

• This approach will likely save you time because you'll select the most effective way to communicate instead of the most convenient at the time.

Don't send messages just because it is easy or convenient.

• Avoid the urge to send an email on an issue that should be handled with discussion or other means just because email is most convenient at the time.

• Don't send an email just because you are in a meeting and that is the only way you can communicate.

• While it may seem convenient for you at the time, it can often slow down the overall process and may actually make more overall work for you and others involved if the issue is not resolved effectively. It can also be distracting and counterproductive for the meeting you are in.

• Give yourself a task or action item to follow-up in person if that is the appropriate response instead of sending an immediate email.

• Often emails sent on PDAs in meetings are not well written due to the difficulty of typing on the small devices and the partial focus of the person composing the email. This can lead to misinterpretation of the message being sent.

Please visit http://www.emailless.com/ for information on this and related topics.

Martin Rola is the author of Email Less -> Talk More: Building Productivity and Job Satisfaction - Yours & Others

Please visit http://www.emailless.com for information.

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