Effective Communication Portfolio

Words: 1846
Introduction
Communication has been passed down through generations and even all stages of
evolution. It comes in many tones, forms and deliveries. It is said that communication is ‘the
process by which an individual transmits stimuli to another to modify the receiver's
behavior’ (Joyner 1956: 2). This can be done in the form of speech, body language or even
written language. Although it is conveyed in one way by the sender, it may be interpreted in
another way by the receiver. Over the course of this semester, I have had the opportunity to
learn new communication theories to better one’s transmission of information and ideas, as
well as improve and modify their behaviours to achieve desired outcomes. Such theories
consist of Neuro-linguistic programming and Transactional analysis, the two theories I will
be analysing in this portfolio. I will also get the opportunity to reflect on my recent
communication encounters between peers, academics and professionals. I will also devise a
full plan on how to improve on my weak points identified from my reflections.

Part 1 – Communication Theories

Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) was a theory devised by Richard Bandler and John
Grinder in the 1970s (Mathison and Tosey 2003: 373). This theory is based around self-
determination to improve one’s behaviour and live better, more successful lives (Dar 2018).
This idea consists of 4 main pillars, which must be met to carry out this theory correctly:
rapport, outcomes, sensory acuity and behavioural flexibility. This theory has a strong
scientific background with multiple tests carried out on it. For example, the ‘Classic Code’
originally devised and the ‘New Code’ devised in the 1980s involving Carmen Bostic St. Clair
(Burton and Ready 2008: 12), increasing its validity. Also, the aim of this theory involves
replicating specific behaviours, so individuals can get a better understanding of one another
and learn from each other (Craft 2001: 131), potentially bringing them closer together.
Although that is the intention, this theory can also be seen as manipulative to either
yourself or others as you may end up giving a false representation of yourself to achieve
your desired outcomes. The saying ‘the map is not the territory’ by Alfred Korzybski
meaning that everyone sees the world differently. Through NLP, one must model someone
else’s ‘map’, abandoning your own. Also, for NLP to be fully in motion, an individual’s
‘desired state must be something we really want’ (Joseph O’Connor and John Seymour
2002: 15). In order to achieve their goals, they must have high levels of motivation and
commitment, which is quite lacking in the 21st century compared to previous generations.

Transactional Analysis is the theory explaining the different states of mind people are in
during communication. There is the parent, adult and child state. The parent state
complements the child state and an Adult-Adult interaction is also complimentary. These
are psychologically stable transactions. (TheraminTrees 2010). Any other transactional pair
would be considered unstable. With this theory is use, one can seek stable communications
with one another by decoding what state the other party is in, not only avoiding instability
but also achieving desired outcomes from the communication, for example avoiding unrest
in an argument. Likewise, one could be able to identify confidence levels within themselves
from their previous encounters. For example, it was found that the adapted child, which
was bound by parental influence, has less confidence than the free child, which follows its
own curiosity (Booth and Manning 2006: 280). By being able to identify where your
confidence level currently lies, one can appropriate their conversations to suit the
complementary transactions. With a more stable conversation comes more confidence. This
will likely increase the chances of the user’s desired outcome from the interaction.
On the other hand, unlike neuro-linguistic programming, this theory lacks any
scientific background so it is not as widely accepted. Therefore, some people will be
doubtful in considering transactional analysis in their communication. Also, to carry out
transactional analysis properly, one must have assertive behaviour. This is ‘pursuing your
own needs and outcomes, whilst taking the other person into account’ (Dar 2018). To be
assertive, one must be able to identify another person’s state and get an idea of their
outcomes from the communication. This could prove quite difficult as you would have to
interpret one’s tone and body language.

Part 2 – Communication Activities

In week 8 of our effective communication skills module, we had the task of conducting a
group presentation, putting forward our ideas to try and attract students to engage in the
enterprise hub in front of academics. The feedback provided suggested that we showed
great understanding of the task at hand and presented some very convincing ideas in which
some of those ideas were taken into strong consideration by those running the enterprise
hub. This shows how much we were able to convince others that our ideas were
appropriate and plausible. In addition, our introduction and conclusion was of high
standard. This was important as the introduction is key for the audience to be engaged. In
addition, our speak was fluent and very clear to understand, maintaining full engagement of
the audience.

As well as the presentation went, a few, unnamed, students were too reliant to relay
information from the board. This meant that eye contact between them and the audience
was restricted. If eye contact is reduced between you and the audience, this makes the
audience feel that you’re not fully engaged with them. You couldn’t possibly have the full
attention of the audience if you don’t frequently communicate directly with them. Also, the
presentation lacked structure, as each point didn’t link perfectly into the next point, so it
was not as free-flowing as it could be. This was mainly due to the fact that we had little time
(around 30 minutes) to plan a 5-minute presentation. If more time was allocated, this
wouldn’t have been as much of an issue.

On April 9th, 2018 I had an interview for an industrial placement with the School of
Investment Banking in London. It was important that I established a strong rapport with the
interviewer, which I did so with a firm handshake. This shows that I have a welcoming
presence and I am eager to engage with him. This ties in well with neuro-linguistic
programming, as it is one of the 4 main pillars, using rapport to gain a desired outcome (in
this case the analyst role). Overall, I had a good Physiology about myself. During our
conversations, I demonstrated great understanding of the concepts of investment banking
such as interest rates and option derivatives. This shows the amount of preparation I did
prior to the interview and displays how greatly I wanted the analyst role.
As knowledgeable as I was on the day, I still managed to crumble under pressure. For
example, I was asked to multiply 19 by 18 unexpectedly. I gave 352 as my answer instead of
342. Whilst trying to calculate it in my head, he was saying that it is not that difficult which
pressured me into giving a quick answer. As a result of being under pressure, this reduced
how much information I took in when he asked me questions and I ended up
misunderstanding questions. For example, I was asked about recent news regarding
investment banks. Instead I said news about the ‘trade war’ currently happening between
the USA and China. This may have given him the impression that I am not as observant as he
would have wished.

Part 3 – Reflecting on my experiences

Looking back on my past communication encounters, I discovered that I have a good depth
of knowledge on the topic at hand and feel confident that my information is nothing but
correct. Showing confidence in the knowledge that you have will reassure the observer and
show them that you know what you are talking about.

On the other hand, due to being under pressure, my listening skills are not as acute as they
should be. This only increases my ‘barriers to listening’ since we only retain only 25-50% of
what we hear (Dar 2018). In order to build on this, I have applied for the role of senior
course rep within the Coventry Business School. Assuming that I get the role, I will be able to
heighten my listening skills and increase how much information I retain, as I will regularly be
put under pressure to chair student forums, collecting the feedback that other student reps
had gained from their peers, and engagement in meetings with academics on how one can
put the feedback gathered into motion. This will require me to pay attention to detail so
that students’ requests are fully satisfied. This ties in well with the theory of neuro-linguistic
programming, as the aim of this is to improve my sensory acuity (how observant I am of my
surroundings), one of the 4 main pillars. I recently had an interview for the role and will find
out by May 14th. If I do not get the role, I can still assume my current role as course rep and
instead get more engaged in collecting feedback. My plan is to hold presentations during my
classes to acquire feedback during feedback week. This way, I can become accustomed to
being under pressure, increasing my intake of information. Therefore, through increased
interactions, I can reduce my ‘barriers to listening by ‘paying attention seeking clarifications
and giving feedback’ (Tyagi 2013: 6-7).

Another weakness of mine was within the presentation, there was a lack of
engagement with the audience on my part. This was in the form of reduced eye contact.
This is a big issue as if you are not engaged with the audience, they will not engage with you
and you will not be able to get your points across strongly. In order to improve on this, I plan
to choose the optional advantage module, ‘Presentation Skills for Successful Graduates’, for
the next academic year. This module will allow me to work on my visual skills and ‘how well
you can communicate your project’ by presenting a topic of my choice to the audience.
(Coventry University 2018). Though this I have another opportunity to focus on my audience
engagement. By choosing a topic of my choice, there will be little need for me to look at the
information on the board and my attention can be focused on the audience in front of me.
After my presentation is done, I will produce a 500-word reflective essay of my experience
and also receive feedback from the academics in the audience in which I can further build
on.

Conclusion
Over this semester, I have had an excellent opportunity to learn new and interesting
theories I never knew existed, which I could utilise to improve my communication skills
overall and reflect on my previous experiences, as well as devise plans on how I could
improve on them in the future. Through this module, I believe I can now communicate
effectively with others around me and also use my new profound skills to achieve powerful
outcomes in life.
References
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