FIRST 4CS

ACTCOMM

PRINCIPLES IN COMMUNICATION
● Principle: fundamental truth that serves
as the foundation for a system of belief
of behavior or for a chain of reasoning
● Definitive guidelines used to make a
communication process more effective
and result-driven
● Help in conveying messages in a more
clear, precise, authentic, and effective to
accomplish business or organizational
objectives
● Ensure a proper conveyance of
message to receiver or audience
● Not limited to the 8, but there are 8
principles
○ Clarity
○ Completeness
○ Conciseness
○ Concreteness
○ Consideration
○ Correctness
○ Courteous
○ Coherent
CLARITY
● Clear about goal, message or
expression
● Clearness of expression
● Implies emphasizing on a specific
message or goal at a time, rather than
trying to achieve too much at once
● “What is your purpose in communicating
with this person?”
● ✅ Minimize number of ideas
● ❌ Read between lines
○ Need facts, directness,
straightforward
● Receiving end of message
○ Ask questions
○ Double check
● Saves everyone’s time
FEATURES
● Makes understanding easier
● Complete clarity of thoughts and ideas →
enhances meaning of message
● Clear message → makes use of exact,
appropriate and concrete words
SAMPLE
TIPS
● Choose precise words
● Choose short, familiar, conversational
words
● Construct effective sentences and
paragraphs
● Achieve appropriate readability and
listening ability
● Include examples, illustrations and other
visual aids
CONSIDER YOUR AUDIENCE
● Tailor message to audience
● Consider the needs of each partner you
communicate with
● Do not communicate the same way
when you talk to an accountant to when
you talk to a marketer
○ Find common intersection
SAY EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN
● Be direct without being unpleasant
● Don’t beat around the bush
● Go straight to the point
People First Productivity Solution’s 3W
Feedback Model
● Objective and focuses on behaviors
● What
○ Describe situation and be specific
○ Own observations
○ Use “I”
● Why
○ Describe impact of what you’ve
observed
○ Reason why it matters
● Way
○ Describe the desired replacement
behavior

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ACTCOMM

USE SIMPLE AND EASY TO UNDERSTAND

WORDS
● ❌ compensate, ✅ pay
● ❌ facilitate, ✅ help
● ❌ utliize, ✅ use

SINGLE WORDS > LONG PHRASES

AVOID JARGON
● Jargon: special words or expressions
that are used by a particular profession
or group and are difficult for others to
understand
● Speak like you would in a non-business
setting
● Businesses and departments have own
terminology → don’t use it when talking to
cohorts or other-departments people
● ❌ at all times, ✅ always
● ❌ for the purpose of, ✅ for
● ❌ previous to, ✅ before
● ❌ on account of, ✅ because
USE VERBS FOR NOUN
● ❌come to a conclusion, ✅ conclude
● ❌ make a decision, ✅ decide
● ❌ submit a proposal, ✅ propose
● ❌ take into consideration, ✅ consider

AVOID REDUNDANCY
● ❌ actual fact, ✅ fact
● ❌ end result, ✅ result
● ❌ period of one week, ✅ one week
KEEP IT SHORT AND SIMPLE (K.I.S.S.)
● Give highlights and key points
● Not always necessary for lengthy COMPLETENESS
explanation ● Having all necessary or appropriate
● Don’t overwhelm people with parts or details
backstories unless asked ● Offering complete and relevant
● Less is more information makes communication
effective
ASK FOR A PLAYBACK ○ Rules out the need of another
● When expecting a person to do something as cycle of communication to clarify
a response → ask playback of what they’ll issues
do ● Should convey all facts required by the
● Check if they understood audience
● Mindset of receiver taken into
OVER-COMMUNICATE consideration
● Provide additional clarity ● Right details for the right message
● More important = more repetition
● Repetition → remember and internalize
FEATURES
● Stress importance of message
● Develops and enhances reputation of an
CHOOSE THE RIGHT MEDIUM organization
● Choose from: E-mail, voice mail, old ● Cost saving
school memo, video conference, ○ Do not need to go back and forth
webinar, a group, one-on-one ● Gives additional information wherever
● Message should determine medium required
● ❌easiest way for sender ○ Leaves no questions in mind of
○ Especially if seeking for the receiver
interaction and engagement ● Helps in better decision-making by the
● More impersonal the communication is → reader/audience/receiver
less likely that it is clear ● Persuades the audience

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ACTCOMM

● Is my message complete? (answers the IMPACT

questions)
○ Does your message include a
“call to action,” so that your
audience clearly knows what to
do?
○ Have you included all relevant
information?
Incomplete Letters
● Keep receiver guessing
● Making wrong choices
● Taking the wrong decisions
Complete Message
● Brings expected result/desired response

5WS AND 1H
Who?
● Who is the intended receiver?
● Is the content appropriate for the
intended receiver?
What?
● What is your objective?
● Will the reader know what to do?
When?
● When should the reader respond?
● Have you included complete, accurate
details?
Where?
● Where should the reader respond?
● Have you identified names, postal and
electronic addresses, and telephone
and fax numbers?
Why? SAMPLES
● Why should the reader respond?
● Have you stated a benefit for the
reader?
How?
● How have you encouraged a positive
response?
● Does your message promote goodwill?
How will they respond?

TIPS
● Should convey all facts required by the
audience
● Sender must take into consideration the
reader’s mindset

CONCISENESS
● Communicating what you want to
convey in least possible words without

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ACTCOMM

foregoing the other Cs of TIPS

communication
● Opposite of wordiness (no beating
around the bush)
● Giving information clearly but with a few
words
● Brief but comprehensive
● Interconnected with first 2Cs
FEATURES
● Time-saving and cost-saving
● Highlights the main message
● Avoids excessive and needless words
● Short and essential
● More appealing and comprehensible
● Non-repetitive
QUESTIONS TO ASK
● Are there any adjectives or filler words
that you can delete?
○ For instance, you see, definitely,
kind of, literally, basically, I mean
● Are there unnecessary sentences?
● Have you repeated the point several
times but in different ways?
● Think before you speak
● Main idea first
● Necessary supporting details only
● Use meaningful, descriptive verbs
● Focus on your audience
● Using fewer words without losing
meaning
○ Brief but comprehensive
● Avoid passive voice when possible
○ Active: more than 100 volunteers
fed the homeless in our
community.
○ Passive: The homeless in our
community were fed by more
than 100 volunteers.
● Use shorter paragraphs
○ Emails and Social Media Posts →
anything longer than 4 lines feels too
dense
● Keep your audience’s attention
○ Have a short time to get message
across → don’t let wordiness get in
the way
● Replace unnecessarily wordy phrases
with concise equivalents

SAMPLE

● Delete redundant words

○ Talk is cheap, writing is
expensive

● Revise jargon on bureaucratic

expressions
○ Favor short, plain words

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CONCRETENESS
● Specific, definite and vivid rather than
vague and general
● Pertaining to or concerned with realities
or actual instances rather than
abstractions
● Particular (opposed to general)
● Conveying a message with precise
terms
SAMPLE
FEATURES
● Calls for senders to make messages
concrete by providing specific details
○ Sources of information that
receivers may need or want
● Concrete message → easily understood by
receiver
● As a sender: build mental pictures for
your receivers through your use of
words
● Quality which needs to come to the fore
especially during presentations,
promotion self, or a product/service
● Has to be details to catch their attention
● Ensure your message has important
details and facts
○ Nothing that deters focus of your
message
● Arguments should be based on solid
facts and opinions from credible sources
(in the field)
● Share irrefutable data to support
argument
○ Lawyer: specific with all details
TIPS
Establish Contact With Receiver
● Written messages, exact as spoken
messages
● How do you recount your experience ina
concrete way?
● Write message → build on shared personal
or business backgrounds
○ Business Communication
involves mutual experiences such
as:
■ Sending and receiving
documents
■ Shipping and possibly
returning orders
■ Applying for credit and
being either accepted or
rejected
■ Asking for or writing
recommendations
● If di not have common experience with
receiver:
○ Mentally picture the person
○ Collect as much background
information as possible
○ Consider person’s culture and
occupation
○ Use concrete words that have
well-understood meanings
Use Precise Modifiers
● Dynamic Verbs: show action and
motion
● Static Nouns: name objects and ideas
● Modifiers (adjectives and adverbs) add
meanin and intensity to other words
○ Adds strength and color to other
words
● Readers remember precise (concrete
words) longer than they remember
general words
● Specific terms translate more easily
than do broad, general words?
● Business writing → standard English
● Academic and Literary Writing → formal
English
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ACTCOMM

○ Overuse of formal vocabulary →

sound arrogant
● Overusing modifiers → makes message
sound insincere and may create sense of
distrust
○ Replace vague terms with
Provide Specific Details
modifiers
● Effective messages → contain specific
○ Develop and maintain credibility
details that is clear to seder and receiver
by writing clearly and precisely
● Show concern for receivers: provide
specific details
○ Sources of information your
researchers may want

Avoid Opinions and Generalizations

Opnions
● When people ask for your opinion think
about what information they need before
response
● Negative opinion or do not agree with
position → exercise caution
● Not sure what information why really want
→ ask for clarification

Generalizations
● Generalizations, vague, sweeping statements
→ appear in written message when writer is
attempting to persuade
● Advettisers make it broad, inclusive
claims
○ Experienced advertisers exercise
caution with generalization
because many do comparison
shopping