Communicating Effectively
Proverbs 15:1
l A Soft answer turns away wrath, but
flagrant words stir up anger.
Communication
l Means to share or to make common
l Transmitting – giving and receiving
– of information
l Take an idea and explain it to
others in words, gestures, body language, in a way that they understand.
Communication
l Three Parts:
l Information to be transmitted
l A messenger sending the message
l A receiver who receives it
l Upward Communication – from a
person to his/her superiors
l Downward – from a leader to the
subordinates
l Sideways (teamwork) between peers
Who
needs communication skills?
l Activity leaders need to
communicate clearly and completely so that others do not undertake action before
they receive the full instruction
l Many people in the physical
education, fitness, and athletics area were former star athletes with big
egos. Self-confidence which erodes to
cockiness and pomposity will stifle communication
Purpose
of Communication
l Is the means by which an
organization strives to accomplish certain goals
l It brings about change
l Uses written and oral interaction;
memos, phone calls, email, etc.
l Example: Putting a person on an exercise prescription requires information
about the person before a prescription can be developed.
Types
of Communication
l One-way or unidirectional is useful
when communicating to a large number of people, as in newsletters, memos,
bulletins, pamphlets, public addresses.
l Speak or write at the lowest level
of understanding in the group.
Newspapers write to the 6th grade level.
l Brevity is important and the
message easily interpreted
l Difficulties with one-way
communication:
l Too brief may be watered down and
weak
l Cannot tell whether the message is
getting through or being understood
Two-Way
Communication (bidirectional)
l Preferred method by leaders because
it allows for immediate feedback
l Spiral-like communication:
l The sender of the message receives
feedback from the receiver and then the sender expounds upon, or modifies the
original message.
l This process continues until there
is mutual understanding.
l The message can be tailored to the
receiver
Active
Listening
l Consider the words and feelings of
the speaker
l Paraphrase what the person has said
l Listen with an open mind to new
ideas and opinions
l Keep eye contact and don’t try to
interject your opinion
l Concentrate on what is being said
so that you understand
Why
communications go wrong
l Failure to consider the receiver
l Social styles
l Analytical – wants to be an expert on the subject
l Driver – wants to be in control
l Amiable – wants a calm environment and cohesive team
l Expressive – are people oriented and strives for approval and status
within the group
l Sexual differences in Communication
l Women talk to establish connection
and intimacy with others
l Men talk to gain independence or
status
l In arguing and persuasion women
will use more personal anecdotes
l Men will make more categorical
statements of right or wrong
l Men and women focus on different
aspects of the same subject
l Words are interpreted differently,
so an understanding of the receiver’s interpretation of the words is important
l Women may tend to be agreeable,
while men may challenge
l Poor Planning
l Planning provides a rational and
efficient approach to the goal of effective communication
l Awareness of problems and
opportunities
l Define the problem
l Due to the advancement of
telecommunication travel times are reduced but planning is essential
l Know the opportunities and
limitations of various methods of communication and devise several alternatives
to improve communication
l Implement the plan and evaluate its
effectiveness
l Poor Message Retention
l People remember only 10% of what
they hear, 30% of what they see, and 50% of what they do
l Repetition is necessary
l Echoing, restating the message
l Reinforcement
l Other obstacles
l Environment prone to distractions
l Hostility, displays status and
power, anxiety, fear, condescension, or false deference (show or respect by
yielding in opinion, judgment or wishes) are detrimental to communication
l Language barriers
l Ambiguous words or phrases
l Technical terms
Improving Communication
l Most organizations foster downward
communication, but less than half facilitate upward communication
l Upward communication is facilitated
by questionnaires, face-to-face or group meetings, or open-door policy.
l Informal “walking around” allows
management to make unannounced visits to all areas of an organization along
with informal discussions with workers at all levels of the organization
l One’s self-concept leads to one’s
style of communication; dependent on one’s beliefs, perceptions, and emotions
l Even though one has a “style” the
person can become sensitive to those he/she manages, by focusing on what he/she
can contribute to the organization or other individuals
l Words are only part of
communication, while body language, facial expressions, etc. can yield the true
meaning
Importance of Words in Verbal
Communication
Face-to-Face On
Telephone
l Body Language 55% -----
l Tone of Voice 38% 85%
l Words 7% 15%
l One needs to be perceptive of what
a person really means by what they say.
l Giving and receiving feedback, both
positive and negative, is essential
l Supportive, non-threatening
attitude will facilitate honest feedback
Delivering an Oral Message:
Holding a private meeting
l Preparation includes determining
the key points, gathering information necessary to support the message
l Arrange time and location; for
formal meetings it is best to meet in the office of the superior, but for
informal meetings a neutral ground is best
l Begin meeting with small talk
unrelated to business to relax the listeners
l Have an agenda for the meeting
l Relate the topic back to the
listener
l After the basic topics are
discussed and the listener knows what is expected, then the particulars are
discussed
l The main topic, purpose, and
specifics are reviewed in the summation
l The receiver should be asked for
feedback
l Avoid judgmental phrases; rather
than “you” statements focus on who’s affected
l Follow-through is where words
become actions and reinforcement is required
Leading a group
meeting
l Preparation and agenda are
necessary as in private meeting
l Objectives, purpose, background of
problem, general information, and proposed questions to be covered
l Meeting should be structured by
sticking to the agenda
l Seating somewhat circular for better
discussion; but may also need a power chair
l Avoid one person domination of the
discussion by using direct questions to the less assertive participants
l Some people ramble on about an
issue, the leader should summarize and
clarify their position
l The fear of being embarrassed
may make people reluctant to express
themselves
l Thinking outside the box –
creativity, new paradigm
l Record all ideas and decisions
l A call to action is needed to
determine what happens with the information and decisions developed from the
meeting
l Assignments
l Volunteers
l Participants make write an action plan
l Summary of the decisions should be
written and given to the participants
Making
a personal presentation
l Similar preparation
l Know your goal for the presentation
l Build agenda to accomplish the goal
l What are the interests of the
listeners
l Audio and Visual aids, environment,
time limitations
l Practice the presentation to
determine the time of presentation
l Don’t memorize the presentation
l Note cards with the key subtopics
provides structure
l Body language and gestures
l Humor
l Strong and definite conclusion; maybe a call for
action; repeating questions posed in the beginning
l Summarize key points
Using
Audio and Visual Aids
l Slides, overheads transparencies,
Powerpoint, videos, fliers, charts, graphics, using internet to get graphical
images
l May distribute handouts usually at
the end
l Don’t squeeze too much information
on a slide
l Face the audience not at the screen
l Can all of the audience see the
visuals
l Use dramatic pauses or blank slides
to draw attention; walk around
l Use of pointer or laser pointer
l Make sure writing is legible
otherwise prepare transparencies
Making
a Televised Presentation
l Not like a personal presentation
l Color and texture of the clothing
l Professional appearance
l Avoid the glare off of glasses
l Avoid wide gestures, and touching
the hair or face
l Facial expressions may be helpful
for emphasis
Sending
a Written Message
l Similar to an oral presentation
without immediate feedback
l Draw the attention of the reader
into the document, lead the reader through the information and state a
conclusion, and or call for action
l Be aware of the reader’s level of
understanding
l Proofread for punctuation,
spelling, and neat and appealing
l Don’t bury the key points in
lengthy descriptions. Use paragraphs
and spaces to break up information, or divide into sections with small headings
l May include visual aids like
pictures, graphics, diagrams, cartoons