Organization Name: Document No.

Lideta manufacturing College

Title: - Information sheet Issue No. 1 Page 1 of 1

BUILDING ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION

Level III

Unit of Competence: Lead Workplace

Communication
Module Title : Lead Workplace
Communication
TLM Code : CON BEI3 M08 0717

LEARNING GUIDES
LO1. Identify relationship with in the organization
internally and externally
LO2. Exercise effective communication techniques
within work environment and follow routine
instruction
LO3. Identify and provide effective response to staff
and stakeholders enquiries

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Lo1 Identify relationship with in the organization
internally and externally

Methods of communication

1.1 Non-verbal gesture

Nonverbal communication is critical to the success of any workplace. It starts

from the moment an employee applies for a job and continues through the
employment of that particular employee. Realizing the importance of nonverbal
communication can promote teamwork, respect and efficiency in any workplace.

To deliver the full impact of a message, use nonverbal behaviors to raise the
channel of interpersonal communication:

 Eye contact: This helps to regulate the flow of communication. It signals

interest in others and increases the speaker's credibility. People who
make eye contact open the flow of communication and convey interest,
concern, warmth, and credibility.
 Facial Expressions: Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits happiness,
friendliness, warmth, and liking. So, if you smile frequently you will be
perceived as more likable, friendly, warm and approachable. Smiling is
often contagious and people will react favorably. They will be more
comfortable around you and will want to listen more.
 Gestures: If you fail to gesture while speaking you may be perceived as
boring and stiff. A lively speaking style captures the listener's attention,
makes the conversation more interesting, and facilitates understanding.
 Posture and body orientation: You communicate numerous messages
by the way you talk and move. Standing erect and leaning forward
communicates to listeners that you are approachable, receptive and
friendly. Interpersonal closeness results when you and the listener face
each other. Speaking with your back turned or looking at the floor or
ceiling should be avoided as it communicates disinterest.
 Proximity: Cultural norms dictate a comfortable distance for interaction
with others. You should look for signals of discomfort caused by invading
the other person's space. Some of these are: rocking, leg swinging,
tapping, and gaze aversion.
 Vocal: Speaking can signal nonverbal communication when you include
such vocal elements as: tone, pitch, rhythm, timbre, loudness, and

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 inflection. For maximum teaching effectiveness, learn to vary these six
elements of your voice. One of the major criticisms of many speakers is
that they speak in a monotone voice. Listeners perceive this type of
speaker as boring and dull.

1.2 Verbal

Business professionals demonstrating effective verbal communication skills use

spoken words to convey a message clearly and concisely. To get a message
across, the sender needs to ensure the receiver correctly interprets the words. If
not, confusion and conflict typically results. By successfully delivering a
message, business professionals describe ideas, thoughts and directives that
allow colleagues to work better together. Effective verbal communication begins
by acknowledging what the audience needs. By planning what he wants to say,
how he wants to say it and seeking feedback on how the message was received,
a business professional ensures successful communication.

Meetings

Verbal communication occurs in meetings when participants share their ideas.

Effective meeting organizers clearly define their objective, such as whether the
intent of the meeting is to make a decision, brainstorm ideas, approve a plan,
communicate a change or get a status report. At the beginning of the meeting, an
organizer uses verbal communication to state the priorities of the meeting, the
desired outcomes and the amount of time allowed to discuss each topic. By
asking for additional input from participants, she ensures the meeting remains
relevant for everyone. The meeting organizer also ensures that every participant
gets a chance to speak without monopolizing the agenda.

Presentations and Lectures

Using effective verbal communication, business professionals give presentations

and lectures to convey their expertise on a particular topic. Whether a business
professional provides instruction, describes a product to make a sale or
communicates a vision or strategy, he needs to keep the message clear by
preparing adequately. Using vivid language, descriptive examples and
supplementary visuals, he ensures a successful presentation. By using short
words and sentences, speakers tend to avoid confusion. Effective presenters
allow time for the audience to ask questions and provide comments.

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Workshops

Workshop organizers use verbal communication to direct the activities of

participants. By providing clear instructions for group, the facilitator ensures a
positive development experience. For example, a leader describes the rules for
participating role-playing exercises, talks about the scenario and determines how
long the activity takes. Using effective verbal communication, leaders guide
participants in researching issues, solving problems, negotiating solutions and
making decisions.

Conversations

Conversations typically involve two people discussing a topic. Effective verbal

communication occurs during conversations when the speaker acknowledges the
sensitivity of the subject, time constraints and types of questions the receiver
might ask. If the conversation occurs face to face, successful communicators use
active listening skills such as repeating back what the other person has said.
They also resist the temptation to interrupt and allow the other person to speak
up as well to convey their thoughts. If the conversation occurs by telephone, the
participants need to pay even more attention.

1.3 Face to face

Face to Face Communication

Conventional wisdom tells us that face to face communication is more effective

than other types of communication such as telephone or email.

The argument in favor of face time is that telephone or email communication

lacks important nonverbal cues to help us understand the message.

Comparing Types of Communication

The chart below shows a comparison of face to face communication with other
types of communication. Each column depicts a category of message cues as
follows:
Words:- the words that are spoken or written to convey the message.
Visuals:- The visual aids (pictures, videos, and charts) that help understand the
message.
Voice:- The tone, inflection, and volume of the voice used to deliver the
message.

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Face:- The facial expressions such as smiles, frowns, raised eyebrows, pouts,
and all the gestures we make with our face while delivering a message.
Body Language:- The position and movement of the arms, shoulders, legs,
head and other body language.
Presence. This includes all the conditions of the room or shared space that may
affect the communication. Noise, likes and dislikes for a person in the
room, proximity to other people in the room, temperature, smells, what
others are doing while the communication is taking place.

1.4 Two-way

Two-way communication - uses communication to negotiate with the public,

resolve conflict, and promote mutual understanding and respect between the
organization and its public(s).

Two-Way Communication in Public Relations

There are different types of two-way communication in public relations;

symmetric and asymmetric.

Two-way asymmetric public relations...

 Can also be called "scientific persuasion ;"

 Employs social science methods to develop more:
 Generally focuses on achieving short-term attitude change;
 Incorporates lots of feedback from target audiences and publics;
 Is used by an organization primarily interested in having its publics come
around to its way of thinking rather changing the organization, its policies,
or its views.

Two-way symmetric public relations

 Relies on honest and open two-way communication and mutual give-and-

take rather than one-way persuasion;
 Focuses on mutual respect and efforts to achieve mutual understanding;
 Emphasizes negotiation and a willingness to adapt and make
compromises;
 Requires organizations engaging in public relations to be willing to make
significant adjustments in how they operate in order to accommodate their
publics;

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  Seems to be used more by non-profit organizations, government
agencies, and heavily regulated businesses such as public utilities than by
competitive, profit-driven companies.

Two-way communication is a form of transmission in which both parties

involved transmit information. Common forms of two-way communication are:

 Chat-rooms and Instant Messaging.

 Computer networks..
 In-person communication.
 Telephone conversations.

1.5 Speaking to groups

Group Communication Methods

Communication can be defined as a method by which people share information,

ideas and opinions. Communication can be done on a person-to-person level or
in a group. An ability to understand what others are saying and bring your
message across in a group of people constitutes effective group communication.
There are several methods you can use to communicate better in a group.

Dialogue

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 o Dialogue is an exchange of information between people. Dialogue
allows each person of the group to easily express his ideas and get
immediate feedback from others. To make dialogue effective, allow
other people to finish their thoughts and respect other people's
opinions. Listen carefully to what other people say in a supportive
way, encouraging all group members to tell what they think about a
particular comment.

1.6 Using telephone

Telephone communication:- lacks nonverbal cues. When we are having a

phone conversation, we don't have facial expressions or body language to help
us decode messages, so we must focus on every word being said, and the tone
of voice that is being used. We compensate for the absence of nonverbal cues
by adding more weigh to the words being said and the tone of voice being used.

The remaining types of communication on the chart are missing both, tone of
voice as well as nonverbal communication. They only use words and visuals.
Does that mean that the quality of the communication is minimal? Not
necessarily, it means that the words and visuals carry all the weight to ensure a
message is clearly understood.

1.7 Written
Written materials often bear the greatest burden for the communication of new
ideas and procedures.  Effective writing is the product of long hours of
preparation, revision and organization, short book which argues persuasively for
clarity, accuracy, and brevity in the use of English.  Its entire philosophy is
contained in one paragraph:

A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary

sentences, for the same reasons that a drawing should have no unnecessary
lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.  This requires not that the writer
make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his/her subjects
only in outline, but that EVERY WORD TELL.

Clear, vigorous writing is a product of clear, vigorous thinking.  Clarity is born of

discipline and imagination. Kirkpatrick gives the following guidelines for using
written communication:

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Use Written Communication When:

 The sender wants a record for future references.

 The receiver will be referring to it later.
 The message is complex and requires study by the receiver.
 The message includes a step by step procedure.
 Oral communication is not possible because people are not in the same
place at
 the same time.
 There are many receivers.  Caution:  the receivers must be interested in
the subject and will put forth the time and effort to read and understand.
 It is cheaper.  Caution:  the same as above.
 A copy of the message should go to another person.
 The receiver prefers written.

1.8 Using Internet

Types of Internet Communication

The Internet provides users with multiple means of communicating. Users may
communicate with friends, colleagues, news reporters, editors and even
strangers. Today there are more ways to reach out to people who were
traditionally difficult to contact. As technology advances, the means of Internet
communications becomes increasingly convenient and varied.

Social Networking

o Members of social networking sites are able to send messages,

comments, links, articles and pictures to other members of the site.
Communication is not just between the sender and receiver, it is
also available to other members who have access to browse your
site. These other members may also make comments. This type of
relationship is known as an Internet community.

Online Phone Calls

o Skype.com is a website dedicated to providing online phone calls to

other Skype members. This type of communication is known as
Skype-to-Skype calling. Users communicate once they have
downloaded the Skype software program from the Skype website.
Skype also allows users to make video calls, through which users

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 can see each other as they talk. Skype allows members to make
low, per-minute Skype calls to landlines and cell phones.
o Email, also known as electronic mail, not only allows you to
communicate with other email users, but it also is a way to receive,
for example, newsletters, coupons, daily inspirational quotes and
job postings. Registered users have the ability to save drafts and
past important emails for future reference.

LO 2: Exercise effective communication within

work environment and follow routine
instruction

2 PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION
Communication is a two-way process of giving and receiving information through
any number of channels.  Whether one is speaking informally to a colleague,
addressing a conference or meeting, writing a newsletter article or formal report,
the following basic principles apply:
 Know your audience.
 Know your purpose.
 Know your topic.
 Anticipate objections.
 Present a rounded picture.
 Achieve credibility with your audience.
 Follow through on what you say.
 Communicate a little at a time.
 Present information in several ways.
 Develop a practical, useful way to get feedback.
 Use multiple communication techniques.

Communication is complex.  When listening to or reading someone else's

message, we often filter what's being said through a screen of our own opinions. 
One of the major barriers to communication is our own ideas and opinions.

There's an old communications game, telegraph, that's played in a circle.  A

message is whispered around from person to person.  What the exercise usually
proves is how profoundly the message changes as it passes through the
distortion of each person's inner "filter."

2.1 Maximizing opportunity for staff

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How to Maximize Employee Communication
Staff should always know where they can find the latest employee
communications. An uninformed employee is often an unhappy employee. An
unhappy employee is often unproductive and won't benefit the company.
Maximizing employee communication through frequent staff meetings, direct
leadership communication, written and online communications and social media
will make employees feel knowledgeable and that they have a voice. Use all
tools to maximize employee communication, as it is better to provide too much
information than not enough.

Instructions

1. Hold staff meetings at least once a week. Each manager will lead a weekly
departmental meeting with all of his staff to discuss departmental updates,
issues and new policies and to recognize jobs well done. Engage employees
to open up and share their thoughts as it relates to the job, the department and
the company. Share this information with your company's senior management.

2. Conduct monthly town hall meetings at different locations each month and
invite all staff. Senior leadership should facilitate and lead each meeting. Have
staff not located on-site participate by conference call. Have an open
questions-and-answers forum and provide information on company updates,
organizational changes and major changes in the direction and mission of the
company. Provide recognition to teams and single out exemplary individuals.

3. Distribute an all-employee weekly newsletter. Send the newsletter via email

and post it online and in common areas in the workplace, such as break rooms
and kitchens. Include "hot topics" in the newsletter such as major company
news and company management and structural changes, HR reminders about
benefits and wellness programs, information on new hires and news about
new and existing clients.

4. Create an intranet site with all-staff access. Populate the site frequently and
include useful information such as your company policies and procedures,
training materials, press releases, benefits and payroll information, financial
information, forms and employee contact information. Keep the site current to
build credibility and make it user-friendly. Staff will not visit often if the
information is outdated and the site is hard to navigate.

5. Engage employees through social media websites such as Face-book and

LinkedIn. Most young people use these tools daily, and have your company

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 present on them to provide information about your company vision while
allowing employees to connect with one another.

2.2 Communicating in complex situation

Whether you are communicating face to face or on the telephone, it can be a lost
business opportunity or a successful one, even in difficult situations with angry or
irritated customers, clients, vendors and co-workers.  Making the best possible
impression is critical to establishing good interpersonal relations and to
developing a profitable business.

Creating this favorable impression not only translates into satisfied individuals
and increased business profitability but also less workplace stress and frustration
—for you and others.  As author Eric Maisel writes in his book, 20
Communication Tips at Work, “Never treat work communications cavalierly…
When you are at work, all communications are meaningful and important.” We
should not take our routine communications with others for granted.  Every single
communication situation can be a win-win opportunity if we know and apply
effective communication skills.

Three Stages of Anger

It is no small task to handle irritated and angry individuals.  But with some helpful
strategies to remember and utilize and a determination to remain professional,
calm and self-confident, employees can surmount this workplace obstacle.

There are there stages of anger often seen in individuals, characterized by the
acronym MAD:

 Miffed :- an individual is irritated.  For example, a customer complains

about a business overcharge on his account or a late product shipment.
 Aggravated :- an individual shows more than simple irritation but attacks
you or business, saying something like, “You can’t do anything right.”
 Destructive:- a person’s anger is very intense, and may even be
threatening.  The individual may say he will close his account, sue your
company, want you fired, or demand to talk with your supervisor.

Most individuals are at the “miffed” stage.  Remembering the Golden Rule, “Treat
others as you would like to be treated,” should never be forgotten in all
communication situations, particularly difficult ones.

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Eight Steps to Diffuse Anger

When you exhibit professionalism, it is helpful in alleviating anger in others. 

Throughout all situations, remember to stay calm and do not display heated
emotion.  Keep the tone of your voice caring, helpful and empathetic—not cold,
indifferent or hostile.  Speak slowly, while lowering your voice pitch slightly.   This
technique will encourage the angry individual to calm down more quickly.

These eight steps will also help you successfully in handling difficult individuals:

1. Don’t buy into the anger. Take the anger professionally, but not personally. 
Remember to separate the problem from the person, and focus on the
problem.

2. Listen to understand. Hear the individual out without interrupting, as this

makes people even angrier. 

3. Show empathy. Impress an individual that you genuinely care about his
problem or issue.  Acknowledge his feelings and restate the facts.  Often, it
helps to ask yourself, “How is this person feeling?”  Annoyed, disappointed or
frustrated?  Try to use the appropriate descriptive word when you restate the
problem.  For example, “I can imagine how frustrated you are that your
product shipment hasn’t arrived on time.  I will see what I can do to expedite
the shipment.”

4. Identify the other’s needs and wants.  Ask appropriate questions, both open-
ended ones to gather additional information, and closed-end ones to confirm
information with a one-word or “yes/no” answer.  Verify your understanding of
the person’s problem by restating the facts.

5. Offer options.  Aim to be positive, not negative.  Tell individuals what you can
do for them, without emphasizing what you can’t do.  It is helpful often to use
the “condition/benefit” formula, for instance:  “If you provide me with your
invoice number, then I can check on your order.”

6. Find a positive solution. Try to come up with suggestions to rectify the problem
and ask the individual for his input. Having the individual become involved in
the problem solution will make him feel better about you and your business.

7. Thank the person.  Express appreciation to the individual for bringing the
problem or issue to your attention.

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8. Follow up on any commitments.  This is vital for maintaining and building
better interpersonal relations.  Be sure to check back promptly with the
individual to confirm that the necessary action has actually been completed. 
Your professionalism will assuredly stand out if you do this last step.

Complex or difficult situations may include:

 Situations involving people under stress, such as:

o post suicide clients
o drug and alcohol affected people
o disabled people
o hearing impaired
o personal threat
o aggression
o anger
o grief and loss

2.3 Documentation

• Communication and documentation is key for a successful project

– “If it is not written down, it did not happen!” (ancient wise saying)

– “If you wrote it down, you agreed to do it!” (not as ancient wise
saying)

• Communication assures coordination of effort across stakeholders

– Agreement on how to proceed

– Tracking of progress

– Assure functioning interface between units

• Written documentation provides the “glue” that stabilizes components and

unifies the project

– Helps assure “end-to-end” thinking

– Show agreement on roles, tasks, schedule

– Provides proof of performance

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 • Reports & presentations set precedent for acknowledgement of effort
and / or discoveries

• There are a multitude of written documents during a project

– Proposal of concept to funding agency

– Requirements Document to specify “ground rules”

– System Design Document to specify high level design

– Interface Control Documents to define subunit interfaces

– Risk Management Plan shows how project risks are controlled

– Preliminary Design Review (PDR) gives initial definition of project

– Critical Design Review (CDR) provides complete definition of

project

– Flight Readiness Review (FRR) certifies payload for flight

– Mission Operations and Data Analysis for post-launch

procedures

– Technical reports to track progress of project

– Science reports to present results publicly

LO 3: Identify and provide effective response to

staff and stakeholders enquiries
3. Effective communication principles

Anything that prevents understanding of the message is a barrier to

communication. Many physical and psychological barriers exist:

 Culture, background, and bias — it has serious problem for

communication problem.

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  Noise — Equipment or environmental noise impedes clear
communication. The sender and the receiver must both be able to
concentrate on the messages being sent to each other.
 Ourselves — Focusing on ourselves, rather than the other person can
lead to confusion and conflict. The “Me Generation” is out when it comes
to effective communication. Some of the factors that cause this are
defensiveness (we feel someone is attacking us), superiority (we feel we
know more that the other), and ego (we feel we are the center of the
activity).
 Perception — If we feel the person is talking too fast, not fluently, does
not articulate clearly, etc., we may dismiss the person. Also our
preconceived attitudes affect our ability to listen. We listen uncritically to
persons of high status and dismiss those of low status.
 Message — Distractions happen when we focus on the facts rather than
the idea. Our educational institutions reinforce this with tests and
questions. Semantic distractions occur when a word is used differently
than you prefer. For example, the word chairman instead of chairperson,
may cause you to focus on the word and not the message.
 Environmental — Bright lights, an attractive person, unusual sights, or
any other stimulus provides a potential distraction.
 Smothering — We take it for granted that the impulse to send useful
information is automatic. Not true! Too often we believe that certain
information has no value to others or they are already aware of the facts.
 Stress — People do not see things the same way when under stress.
What we see and believe at a given moment is influenced by our
psychological frames of references — our beliefs, values, knowledge,
experiences, and goals.

3.2 Strategies and Roles to Constraints

Active Listening

Hearing and listening is not the same thing. Hearing is the act of perceiving
sound. It is involuntary and simply refers to the reception of aural stimuli.
Listening is a selective activity which involves the reception and the interpretation
of aural stimuli. It involves decoding the sound into meaning.

Listening is divided into two main categories: passive and active. Passive
listening is little more that hearing. It occurs when the receiver of the message
has little motivation to listen carefully, such as when listening to music, story
telling, television, or when being polite.

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People speak at 100 to 175 words per minute (WPM), but they can listen
intelligently at 600 to 800 WPM. Since only a part of our mind is paying attention,
it is easy to go into mind drift — thinking about other things while listening to
someone. The cure for this is active listening — which involves listening with a
purpose. It may be to gain information, obtain directions, understand others,
solve problems, share interest, see how another person feels, show support, etc.
It requires that the listener attends to the words and the feelings of the sender for
understanding. It takes the same amount or more energy than speaking. It
requires the receiver to hear the various messages, understand the meaning,
and then verify the meaning by offering feedback.

The following are a few traits of active listeners:

 Spend more time listening than talking.

 Do not finish the sentences of others.
 Do not answer questions with questions.
 Are aware of biases. We all have them. We need to control them.
 Never daydreams or become preoccupied with their own thoughts when
others talk.
 Let the other speakers talk. Do not dominate the conversations.
 Plan responses after the others have finished speaking, NOT while they
are speaking.
 Provide feedback, but do not interrupt incessantly.
 Analyze by looking at all the relevant factors and asking open-ended
questions. Walk others through by summarizing.
 Keep conversations on what others say, NOT on what interests them.
 Take brief notes. This forces them to concentrate on what is being said.

Feedback

“When you know something, say what you know. When you don't know
something, say that you don't know.” That is knowledge. — Kung Fu Tzu
(Confucius)

The purpose of feedback is to alter messages so the intention of the original

communicator is understood by the second communicator. It includes verbal and
nonverbal responses to another person's message.

Providing feedback is accomplished by paraphrasing the words of the sender.

Restate the sender's feelings or ideas in your own words, rather than repeating
their words. Your words should be saying, “This is what I understand your

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feelings to be, am I correct?” It not only includes verbal responses, but also
nonverbal ones. Nodding your head or squeezing their hand to show agreement,
dipping your eyebrows shows you don't quite understand the meaning of their
last phrase, or sucking air in deeply and blowing it hard shows that you are also
exasperated with the situation.

Carl Rogers listed five main categories of feedback. They are listed in the order
in which they occur most frequently in daily conversations. Notice that we make
judgments more often than we try to understand:

 Evaluative: Making a judgment about the worth, goodness, or

appropriateness of the other person's statement.
 Interpretive: Paraphrasing — attempting to explain what the other
person's statement means.
 Supportive: Attempting to assist or bolster the other communicator.
 Probing: Attempting to gain additional information, continue the
discussion, or clarify a point.
 Understanding: Attempting to discover completely what the other
communicator means by her statements.

Imagine how much better daily communications would be if listeners tried to

understand first, before they tried to evaluate what someone is saying.

Address actual and potential constraints

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18
Self-Check 1 Written

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. Write effective communication Principles ? (4 points)

2. What are the eight steps used to handle difficult individuals? (3 points)

3. What is documentation? (3 points)

4. What is complex situation? (5 points)

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Note: Satisfactory rating – 8 points above / Unsatisfactory - below 7 points
You can ask you teacher for the copy of the correct answers

ENTOTO TVET COLLEGE

Under

Ethiopian TVET-System

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
SUPPORT SERVICE
Level III

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LEARNING GUIDE # 1

Unit of Competence: Lead Workplace

Communication
Module Title : Lead Workplace
Communication

LO 4: Lead workplace
4. Lead workplace

4.1 Listening for facts and feeling issues

Listening is the absorption of the meanings of words and sentences by the brain.
Listening leads to the understanding of facts and ideas. But listening takes
attention, or sticking to the task at hand in spite of distractions. It requires
concentration, which is the focusing of your thoughts upon one particular
problem. A person who incorporates listening with concentration is actively
listening. Active listening is a method of responding to another that encourages
communication.

The process of informational listening focuses on the ability of an individual to

understand a speaker’s message. It is a huge part of everyday life, and failing to
understand the concept of informational listening can be very detrimental to one's
contribution to society, and indeed, detrimental to quality of life in general. Much
of the listening people engage in on a regular basis falls under the blanket of
listening for information. In the office, people listen to their superiors for
instructions about what they are to do. At school, students listen to teachers for

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information that they are expected to understand for quizzes and tests. In all
areas of life, informational listening plays a huge role in human communication.

4.2 Short talk and presentation

How to Give an Effective and Powerful Short Presentation

You've been asked to speak for five to ten minutes on your

specialty and/or passion. You may be part of a panel with
each panel member given a specified time limit. Or, you may
be one of several presenters at a specialized conference and
each of you will share part of a keynote address. Or, you may
have been asked to open a conference session with a few
words on the major topic. Or, you have taken my advice and
have joined a Toastmasters Club to perfect your presentation
skills.

Your first speech will be a four to six minute presentation with a timer
keeping track of every second. And, following that first speech, every other
presentation - mostly short in length - will be timed. Personally, I feel that giving a
short, five to ten minute, presentation is one of the most demanding and difficult
assignments. In this article, I will share tips of how to deal with and ways I have
dealt with this challenge.

Start by accepting the time limit and making sure that you prepare for it. If
we want to be known as professionals, we must realize that when a meeting
planner gives us five minutes, he or she means five minutes. Yes, I know that
there are always speakers who don't pay any attention and take up much more of
the time allotted. These are speakers who are often not asked back, even if they
are super on the platform. And, even when they are terrific, audience members
who are aware of the time limit start focusing on the fact that the speaker is going
way over his or her time and that is the part of the presentation they remember.

Recently, I set up a panel of six community leaders. Each was told they had
eight minutes maximum. Five of them stayed under or right at that limit, while one
- who was passionate about his topic and a good speaker - went way over. After
the event, someone who wasn't there told me that he had heard that the
speakers were all wonderful except the one who went way over, "I heard that ___

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spoke much too long." The same person in question has asked me for five
minutes at an upcoming meeting and I have put him off, because I feel that I can't
trust him to stay within five minutes. Our performances - both good and bad -
stay with us.

Realize that a short speech can be more compelling than a longer one, but
takes even more preparation. When we've been asked to speak about a topic
we're passionate about, how in the world can we say what we want and need to
in five minutes? I feel that it takes a lot more work, because we have to compress
a topic down to its essence. There are many questions to ask ourselves while
preparing - and, by now, you know how important preparation is.

Questions to consider include:

 What is my goal for this presentation?

 What is the most important message I want listeners to leave with?
 If I wrote a one sentence description of my presentation, what would it
say?
 If I were to write a list of the keywords for the presentation, what words
would be on the list?
 What is the theme? And what are the three major points?
 What action do I want audience members to take upon hearing my
presentation?

Even though I never suggest memorizing a presentation, I suggest for a

short presentation with a time limit to write out a draft or outline. Take the
draft or the outline, and either read or speak a sample into a tape recorder. Then
listen and time your presentation. You will get a good idea of how long it will take.
By listening to yourself, you will pick up the stronger and weaker parts. You will
discover what to delete and what to elaborate upon. A way to plan a five minute
talk is to allow a minute for the opening, one minute for each of the three points
you want to make and one minute for the close. If you think of it in five parts, it
will be a lot easier to plan. Even if you have been given eight minutes, I still
suggest planning for five or six. It never hurts to come in a little under the time
limit. Everyone will appreciate it. If there are other presenters involved, you will
stand out as the pro, because most of them will go over their time limit.

Get used to being timed and enlist the aid of a timer. The first time I spoke at
my Toastmasters Club, the timing made me terribly nervous. The way our club -
and many of the clubs - worked the timing was with colored lights. For a five
minute speech, the green light would come on at three minutes, the yellow light

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at four minutes, and the red light at five minutes. It took me awhile to get used to
the lights, but I feel that using them improved my speaking and my awareness of
timing. I planned my talks, so that when the green light came on, I knew exactly
how to use the final two minutes and, with work, achieved ending right on time
with a punch. For strictly timed presentations, I would ask a friend in the front row
to inconspicuously hold up a sign that says "3 minutes" then "2 minutes", then "1
minute." You will be amazed by how quickly you can gauge your own time
accurately. And, one of the quickest ways to get used to preparing and giving
short presentations that are powerful and punchy is to join a Toastmasters
International Club and work through the manuals.

You will also discover that working under time constraints will help you
clarify the messages in your presentations. What will seem a huge challenge
in the beginning will become one of your favorite ways of presenting. So, if you
have an important point to make, you will be able to honestly ask for five minutes
at a meeting and only use five or fewer. You will also find that when a group is
looking for a succinct spokesperson, your name will come to mind. Go for it! Let
me hear how you fare. I love getting your FEEDBACK!

4.3 Long presentations

Two types of long presentations are group presentations and long

individual sessions. With both, involving the audience is very important. Often
you will be introducing new content or helping to develop a knowledge area; in
other words, you will be engaged in a type of teaching.

You will therefore have to consider the needs and interest levels of your
audience, and include activities which help them absorb information better.
Select from the links below to see suggestions for improving audience
participation.

4.4 Conducting interviews and meetings

CONDUCTING A MEETING

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  START ON TIME!!
 Delegate the task of taking minutes if you haven’t a subcommittee
secretary

 Review the agenda/obtain agreement on the meetings objectives and

goals

 Revise agenda if necessary

Conducting Interviews

You can collect data by going to published material, by conducting empirical

research, or by careful observation. However, you can also get information by
talking with people who have knowledge you want. Sometimes you simply want
to know what their experience has been; in other words, you want to collect their
testimony as witnesses. Sometimes you want their expert opinion, sometimes
their knowledge of the facts. One of the first steps in conducting an interview,
after deciding who you want to interview, is to figure out which of these kinds of
information you are after. Let's go through some of the steps involved in planning
and carrying out an interview.
1. After determining who you want to talk with, consider what information you
want to get. It may even be a good idea to jot down a list starting with, "I
want to find out . . . ."
2. Make an appointment. Contact the person you wish to talk with far enough
in advance that he or she has time to get ready, but not so far in advance
that their schedules are not yet developed. When you make an
appointment, you need to introduce yourself and tell what capacity
you are calling in, explain the purpose of your call, explain why you
would like to talk with the person, and request permission to set a
time and place. If you will be recording the interview, ask permission to
do so ahead of time.
3. Prepare for the interview by finding out about the person you will be
interviewing and by preparing questions to ask.
4. If you want witness-type information, a few open-ended questions which
invite the person to tell her story. Be ready with follow up questions like,
"Could you tell me more about that?"
5. If you want expert opinion, create more pointed questions, questions that
suggest particular issues you would to explore. Questions still need to be
open ended, something like, "I would very much like to know what your

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 analysis is of so and so." Be willing to let the person drift off to a
neighboring topic, because she may know more about the lay of the
argument than you do, and she may be giving you information you really
wanted and didn't know how to ask for. Reserve a very general question
for the end, something like, "Have other things occurred to you during the
interview that you would like to say at this time?"
6. If you want facts, make your questions as precise as possible, making it
clear that you're after data. It is important that the person you are
interviewing know ahead of time that he or she will be asked such
questions, because people seldom carry that kind of data around in their
heads. Reserve a general question for the end.
7. When it is time for the interview, be punctual--not early, and certainly not
late.
8. Be forthcoming when you meet, introducing yourself and briefly reminding
the person why you wanted to talk. If you are unsure about how to spell
the person's name, ask about that and about their official title.
9. If you will be taping the interview, ask permission to do so.
10. As you ask the questions and listen to the responses, look at the person's
face and eyes to show that you are interested and that you value what
you're getting. From time to time make brief notes, but don't bury yourself
in notetaking.
11. Try to get some direct quotes, saying something like, "I like the way you
said that. Can I quote you?" And then get the words down in quotation
marks.
12. Reserve a general question for the end.
13. Briefly summarize what you have covered and how you understand the
information you have been given.
14. Thank the person for his or her time and willingness to share.
15. Don't linger. If you promised to take only 30 minutes, then stick to your
schedule, but don't be rude. Say something like, "I promised to take only
30 minutes of your time, and I see I have. Is there any last thing you want
to add before I go?" You might also say something like, "This has been
very informative. If some other question occurs to me, may I get back in
touch with you?"
16. When you leave, spend time immediately writing down notes. Make sure
you have the date and place of the interview.

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Self-Check 1 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. Explain the difference between short and long presentation? (5 points)

2. What are the steps to conduct meeting? (2 points)
3. What is interview? (3 point)
4. ____________ is the absorption of the meanings of words and sentences by the
brain. (3 point)
3. Write at least six steps in planning and carrying out an interview. (2 points

Self-Check LO 1 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. What are the different between non-verbal and verbal communication?

(3 points)

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 2. Explain types of internet communication. (5 points)

3. The processor’s speed has been measured in what? (2 point)

4. What is two way communication. (3 point)

5. What is the difference between telephone and written communication? (2

point)

6. _____________ is the type of communication method to negotiate with

the public and to resolve conflict. (3 point)
7. The _________ provides users with multiple means of communicating. (2
point)

8. Mention at least three methods of communication. (3 point)

9. List five types of non-verbal communication. (2 point)

Self-Check LO2 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. What is communication constraints ? (3 points)

2. What mean by active listening? (5 points)

3. Explain the difference between poor retention and misunderstanding. (2

points)

4. What mean by lengthy message? (3 points)

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5. list at least five communication barriers. (2 points)

Note: Satisfactory rating – 11 points above / Unsatisfactory - below 10

Note: Satisfactory rating – 8 points above / Unsatisfactory - below 7 points

You can ask you teacher for the copy of the correct answers

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