Lesson 1: Communication Processes, Principles, and  Distraction/Noise

Ethics  Complexity in Organizational Structure

 Poor Retention
“Effective communication is when the information was
 Inaccurate Interpretation
transmitted without changing its content and context.”
 Perceptual Differences
COMMUNICATION  Linguistic Impact on Language
 Semantics
The art of creating and sharing ideas for a specific
 Physical
purpose. It comes in many forms:
 Emotional & Psychological
 verbal (language, sounds, tone of voice)  Gender
 aural (hearing and listening)  Culture
 non-verbal (body language, facial expression)
COMMON BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
 written (journal, email, blog, text message)
 visual (signs, symbols, pictures, graphics, emoji) • Emotional barriers and taboos.
• Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or
Effective communication is dependent on how rich
irrelevance to the receiver.
those ideas are, and how much of those ideas are
 Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or
retained in the cyclical process.
speech difficulties.
• Physical barriers to non-verbal communication.
• Language differences and the difficulty in
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS
understanding unfamiliar accents, use of jargon.
"When you talk, you are only repeating what you • Expectations and prejudices which may lead to
already know; But when you listen, you may learn false assumptions or stereotyping.
something new." - Dalai Lama • Differences in perception and viewpoint,
cultural differences.

IMPORTANCE OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

THE 7C'S OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
 Effective communication helps to understand a
person or situation in a better way. 1. Completeness
 It enables us to solve the differences, build trust • Message is complete when it contains all facts
and respect in the organization. the reader or listener needs for the reaction you
 Sometimes our message is misunderstood or desire.
we misunderstand the received message. • Communication senders need to assess their
Effective communication helps us to resolve message through the eyes of the receivers to be
problems from both points of view. sure they have included all relevant
 Effective communication helps us to connect information.
well with colleagues, teachers, parents, etc. • Provide all necessary information.
• Answer all questions asked.
• Give something extra when desirable.
WHAT MAKES COMMUNICATION INEFFECTIVE?
2. Conciseness
Before learning to communicate effectively, we should • Eliminate wordy expressions.
learn which are the barriers of communication that • Include only relevant statements
make communication ineffective: • Be focused.
• Shorten & avoid long explanations.
 Language Differences
• Avoid gushing politeness.
 Information Overload
• Avoid unnecessary repetitions:
 Inattention
- Use short forms for the second time.
 Time Pressures
 - Use pronouns. Lesson 2: Ethics in Communication

“Be careful with your words. Once they are said, they
3. Consideration
can be only forgiven, not forgotten.”
• Consideration implies "stepping into the shoes
of others": know the audience's viewpoints, "You can change your world by changing your words...
background, mind-set, education level, etc. Remember, death and life are in the power of the
• Make an attempt to envisage your audience, tongue.” - Joel Osteen
their requirements, emotions as well as
problems.
• Ensure that the self-respect of the audience is WHAT IS ETHICAL COMMUNICATION?
maintained and their emotions are not at harm.
 is a type of communication that is predicated
4. Clarity upon certain business values, such as being
• Emphasize one specific message, goal or idea at truthful, concise, and responsible with one's
a time. words and the resulting actions.
• Avoid vagueness.  As a set of principles, ethical communication
• Avoid technical terms which may be hard to understands that one's thoughts must be
understand. conveyed and expressed effectively and
• Avoid the possibility of misinterpretation. As concisely, and that the resulting actions or
much as possible, your audience shouldn't have consequences will potentially be based solely
to "read between the lines". on how the message was communicated.

5. Concreteness  Ethical and Legal

• Be precise in presenting facts and figures. • When it comes to ethical and legal
• Use active voice more than the passive. norms, anything that is legal is not always
• Use action verbs to make idea clear. ethical.
• Use of image building words where necessary.
 Ethical communication also assumes that
6. Courtesy communicated information is always presented
• Courtesy in a message implies that the message (and received by the listener)
should show the sender's expression as well as  the main principle of ethical communication is
respect the receiver. honesty, as other factors stem from this core
• The sender's message should be sincerely value of presenting information in the most
polite, judicious, reflective and enthusiastic. reliable and factual way possible.

7. Correctness
• At the core of correctness is proper grammar, FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
punctuation and spelling.
1. Openness and Transparency
• The term correctness, as applied to effective
communications also mean three 2. Consideration for Any Potential Roadblocks
characteristics:
3. Accessibility to Technology
- Use the right level of language.
- Check the accuracy of figures, facts and 4. Development of Relationship
words
- Maintain acceptable writing mechanics.
PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
“One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually Be Truthful and Honest
listening to what another has to say.” - Bryant H. McGill
Being honest means communicating what is known to
be true (only 100 percent the facts) to a listener, with
Avoid a Negative Tone
no intent to deceive or present only parts of the truth.
Ethically communicating assumes the speaker will avoid
rudeness, be polite and professional, and have tact.
Active Listening Tone is one of the most critical facets of
communication.
Hearing someone and listening to them are two
different things. In order for ethical communication to
be effective, it is necessary for the recipient to pro-
Do Not Interrupt Others
actively listen to the speaker, and to not just hear what
they want to hear, or to hear only parts of the Allowing others to speak is important for the creation of
conversation. a civil, effective working environment. Interrupting
others results in misunderstandings and unnecessary
conflicts and a breakdown in workplace
Speak Non-Judgmentally communications, which only hinders corporate progress
and creates problems.
Ethically and concisely communicating means speaking
in a non-judgmental manner with every recipient,
negating unnecessary conflict, which typically creates a
Respect Privacy and Confidentiality
breakdown in communication and causes
misunderstandings. Most businesses should include a clause in their code of
ethics defining what is appropriate when it comes to
honoring client and employee confidentiality and
Speak from Your Own Experience privacy.

Bringing your personal experience into a dialogue with

business listeners is important, providing backup for
Accept Responsibility
your arguments with something more tangible.
A core tenant within any ethical communication
framework is taking responsibility for the actions that
Consider the Receiver's Preferred Communication result from ones words, whether it be good or bad.
Channel Owning one's words reinforces the importance of being
conscientious about ethical communication.
You risk losing an audience if you use a communication
channel that is not preferred by your intended receiver.
To effectively communicate with your listeners, use the
THE COMMUNICATION STYLES MATRIX
most preferred communication channel, whether that
be face-to- face, email, conference call, phone call, Spirited (High Expressiveness + High Assertiveness)
messenger app,
Considerate (High Expressiveness + Low Assertiveness)

Direct (Low Expressiveness + High Assertiveness)

Strive to Understand
Systematic (Low Expressiveness + Low Assertiveness)
While it is important to be proactive in listening, it is
important for listeners to also strive to fully understand
what is being said before responding. While asking for 1. Assertiveness refers to the degree to which a person
clarification or confirmation of a point is fine, many expresses their own needs, desires, and opinions in
times questions that listeners pose have already been communication.
answered.
High Assertiveness: People with a high level of responsive to the feelings and opinions of others. They
assertiveness tend to be direct, confident, and value structure and organization in communication and
outspoken about their thoughts and feelings. may prefer to focus on facts and data rather than
emotions.
Low Assertiveness: People with low assertiveness are
more likely to be indirect, cautious, and reserved in
expressing themselves.

2. Responsiveness refers to the degree to which a

person acknowledges and responds to the needs,
desires, and opinions of others in communication.

High Responsiveness: People with high responsiveness

are attentive, empathetic, and considerate of others'
feelings and viewpoints.

Low Responsiveness: People with low responsiveness

may be less attentive to others' feelings and may
prioritize their own needs and opinions over those of
others.

Combining these two dimensions creates four

quadrants, each representing a different
communication style:

1. Direct Style (High Assertiveness, Low

Responsiveness): People with a direct communication
style are assertive in expressing their own thoughts and
feelings but may not be highly attuned to the feelings or
opinions of others. They value honesty and clarity in
communication and may prioritize efficiency over
interpersonal harmony.

2. Spirited Style (High Assertiveness, High

Responsiveness): People with a spirited communication
style are assertive in expressing their own thoughts and
feelings while also being attentive and responsive to the
feelings and opinions of others. They value open
communication and enjoy lively discussions and
debates.

3. Considerate Style (Low Assertiveness, High

Responsiveness): People with a considerate
communication style are less assertive in expressing
their own thoughts and feelings but are highly
responsive to the feelings and opinions of others . They
prioritize harmony and empathy in communication and
may avoid conflict or confrontation.

4. Systematic Style (Low Assertiveness, Low

Responsiveness): People with a systematic
communication style are less assertive in expressing
their own thoughts and feelings and may also be less