POWER POINT PRESENTATION SKILLS

POWER POINT PRESENTATION SKILLS

„Power-point‟ software, created by Microsoft, is a very useful tool and is being used extensively as an essential aid to oral presentation. „Power-point‟ can be used in conjunction with Over Head Projector (OHP) or Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) or as a vehicle for multi-media presentation.
Multi-media presentation is becoming popular very fast. It uses a compact disc that contains the entire subject in suitably prepared MS „Power-point‟ slides.

A few important guiding principles are:

(1) Know the subject material
Speakers must have authentic material on the subject of their presentation. Ideally, it should be audience-tested and modified taking in to account the feedback. To the audience, they are the experts.

(2) Know the audience
To customize the presentation for the audience, speakers must know them and their learning objectives. Speakers need to check out if the material available is adequate for meeting the learning objectives.

(3) Understand time constraints of presentation
Presentations are made in the limited time frame available. The challenge before the speakers is to complete the presentation within the time slot available and still make it very effective.

(4) Keep presentation simple
Three important rules are:
 Use as few words as possible
 Assume your audience can read
 Don‟t let words run-off the page
Many a times, speakers read all the words and lines in the presentation – it is almost „insulting‟ to the audience! This can be achieved better when speakers use „speaker notes‟ and audience does not have to go through the entire matter on the screen.

(5) Use speaker notes
For each power-point slide, speakers must create own dialogue. It is a detailed script of what they are going to say when the slide is projected on the screen. The entire presentation is prepared and printed before making the presentation. Once it is ready, it becomes easier for the speakers as they can make the presentation by working from the speaker notes.

COMMUNICATION BEHAVIOUR

COMMUNICATION BEHAVIOUR

A sensitive observer should be able to spot the communication style of individuals‟ from the verbal cues or signals exhibited:

(1) Non-assertive (submissive) communication style

The verbal cues and clues are:

(1) Use of apologetic words
(2) Devaluation of self
(3) Failure to say what one means really
(4) Use of phrases implying diffidence
(5) Beating about the bush - hedging
(6) Loss of words
(7) Self-defeating
(8) Shifting responsibility to others
(9) Rambling and disjointed expressions
(10) Veiled meanings

(2) Aggressive communication style

The verbal symbols are:

(1) Accusations of others
(2) Behaving like a dictator
(3) Use of very subjective descriptions
(4) Not recognizing roles of others
(5) Use of loaded words
(6) Putting others down
(7) Frequent use of „you‟ messages blaming or labeling others
(8) Use of superior wordings in expressions

(3) Assertive communication style

The verbal signs and signals are:

(1) Accept responsibility
(2) Make direct statements that say what they mean
(3) Express own feelings honestly
(4) Negotiate on the basis of win-win situation for both parties
(5) Use „I‟ messages frequently
(6) Use object sentences
(7) Recognize others‟ contribution
(8) State their „wants‟ clearly

STYLES IN COMMUNICATION

STYLES IN COMMUNICATION

Assertive style

It is the best and most positive stance of behaviour. It is a positive code of conduct when one hears other participants‟ point of view while expressing one‟s own. The person is open to ideas and willing to accept a change in the stand if the need arise. At the least, the two viewpoints are synthesized and a third viewpoint emerges which is based on combining the better features of the suggestions available.
When individuals communicating are in assertive frame of communication, both are listening to each other, Since two heads working together are better than one, invariably a fourth solution that was thought of by neither of the parties, emerges. This fourth solution has often been found to be the most rewarding.

In a simple formulation, the different styles are adopted in a problematic situation. In general, responses can be:
 Facilitating (assertive)
 Surrendering (submissive)
 Argumentative (Aggressive)
 Undermining (Manipulative)
In nutshell, it is agreed that the assertive style of communication is the most desirable as it takes a good, positive view of not only self but also of other participants in the interaction.

Aggressive & Assertive Communication Style

  Aggressive & Assertive  Communication Style

Aggressive style of communication

This style or behaviour happens when persons:
 Stand up for their rights in a way that violates the right of others to have their say
 Express own thoughts, feelings etc in inappropriate way even when they believe that their views are incorrect
Aggressive style of communication enhances speakers at the cost of others. It puts the other person down and is based on the opinion that their opinions are more important than others. It is characterized by:
 Blaming others or factors external and outside own control
 Showing contempt for others
 Being hostile to others
 Attacking others orally
 Patronizing others
Aggressive behaviour usually succeeds in getting what he wants; it also conveys a sense of power over others. It helps the communicator to release his steam and provides an outlet for his anger and bad feelings.

Assertive  communication style

There is a third style of communication – assertive communication. It is neither submissive nor aggressive – it is emphatic behaviour while communicating with others. It happens when persons:
 Stand up for their rights in a way that does not violate others‟ rights
 Express own point of view honestly, openly and directly while conveying that they understand the others‟ position

ASSERTIVE RIGHTS OF INDIVIDUALS

ASSERTIVE RIGHTS OF INDIVIDUALS

Every citizen of the world has two types of rights:
(1) Fundamental rights
These are guaranteed by the constitutions of the respective countries. They have the legal back up of the country to which the persons belong.
(2) Assertive rights
These are not guaranteed by legal framework but in the emerging world, these are being recognized as „Everyone‟s Bill of Rights‟. These rights stand for freedom from bondage and represent the spirit of individuals as they wish to be treated by society. These are:

(i) Right of self respect and respect for others
It signifies confidence in self‟s abilities and also respecting others as a reciprocal behaviour.

(ii) Right to have and express own feelings and opinions
It represents the innate desire in each one of us for being recognized as a useful member of the society.

(iii) Right to be listened to and taken seriously
It implies the innate urge to have self-esteem as it promotes positive attitude.

(iv) Right to set own priorities
It represents individualistic approach and highlights the freedom to change own ideas and opinions without having to explain to anyone.

(v) Right to say „no‟ without feeling guilty
It means unwillingness to accept ideas of others if they do not match with own understanding or perception.

(vi) Right to ask for what one wants
It again talks of the individualistic needs, wants and desires.

(vii) Right to get what one pays for
It upholds the right of consumers that has now become well-established norm in society.

(viii) Right to ask for information from professionals
With the right to information from Government and other agencies becoming a law in India, this right to be informed by professionals is not far away.

(ix) Right to make mistakes
It stands for accepting responsibility for errors and omissions by individuals. It reinforces the age-old concept that „To err is human‟. At the same time, it implies that making mistakes is an essential part of learning and growing.

(x) Right to choose not to assert oneself
It recognizes individuals‟ need to renounce, resign and abdicate.
4.11

ONE IS AS GOOD AS ONE THINKS

ONE IS AS GOOD AS ONE THINKS

Shakespeare had said, „Nothing is good or bad; only thinking makes it so‟. Ones‟ thoughts mould ones‟ personality. In general, two types of thought processes are:

(1) Positive thought
These are:
 Positive self-recognition
 Identifying relationships with self and others
 Self-confidence

(2) Negative thoughts
These include:
 Negative self-recognition
 Crisis of relationship with self and others
 Non-assertive (submissive or aggressive) behaviour

Communication skills when measured along the dimension of negative thought, can become non-assertive in nature. Negative behaviours lead to low morale and lower inputs of employees on the one hand and low work output and low efficiency on the other.
It is thus of critical value to budding individuals to ascertain their style of communication behaviour and to adapt more positive style.

POWER OF SPEECH

POWER OF SPEECH

Spoken words form a powerful medium for influencing people to accomplish tasks. Salespersons make a sort of speech to persuade their customers to buy products they are selling. Travelling salespersons visit dealers and retailers and influence them to place order for the product offerings of the company. Insurance agents persuade their clients to buy life / general insurance of their firm for protection against various kinds of losses to life or possessions like household, car, health etc.
Similarly business managers, industrialists and leaders have to deliver speeches at events relating to product launches, sales conferences and training programmes. Besides, they speak ot inaugural events, seminars, meetings of trade associations etc. An organization is an association of people who often organize social, sports and cultural gatherings where managers / leaders are expected to deliver speeches suited to the occasion.

Outside the organization, community and political leaders are called upon to speak on several occasions / functions. Master speakers and orators have been sought to speak on diverse subjects.

Powerful speeches can:
 Inspire listeners or make them dispirited
 Build tension on issues or relax tension among the audience
 Incite people to quarrel / fight or induce them to be friendly
 Turn hostile audience in to supportive one and vice versa
 Stir people to rebel / revolt or become docile
 Make people undertake long march or stay at home
It is difficult to visualize what Alexander the Great must have told his soldiers when he stirred them to undertake a long journey from Greece to India in olden days, conquering countries after countries and marching in to India when there were hardly any worthwhile means of transportation and transshipment.
In modern India, people recall nostalgically Jawaharlal Nehru‟s speech at the midnight of 15th August, 1947 of „tryst with destiny‟ or later on the death of Mahatma Gandhi, „the light has gone out‟.

ORAL COMMUNICATION

ORAL COMMUNICATION

Oral communication connotes words uttered through the mouth i.e., spoken words. It is any utterance of, at or near the mouth, involving resonance of the mouth. It must be distinguished from the nasal resonance – resonance through the nose. Oral communication always conveys an idea or a feeling.
There are two forms of oral communication:
 Speaking
 Listening

Oral communication covers both the forms. Remember the famous saying, „It takes two to tango‟. Like the famous chicken and egg story, it is difficult to decide which one came first. At any rate, it is pointless talking unless someone is listening. One cannot be listening unless someone is speaking or talking. It is said that „the art of conversation is the art of hearing as well as of being heard‟.

(1) Speaking

An average person speaks for about 30 % of his time. The proportion goes up as one goes up the hierarchical levels. Speaking implies:

 Talking
 Conversing
 Chatting
 Addressing
 Discoursing

(2) Listening

A close synonym of listening is hearing; hearing is any sound that goes through the auditory nerves or sound waves as they enter the ears. An average person spends about 45 % of the time listening. It should advisably go up as one goes upwards in the hierarchy. Listening is a very powerful trait of leaders.

BECOMING A POWERFUL COMMUNICATOR

BECOMING A POWERFUL COMMUNICATOR

Acquiring effective communication skills is a lot of hard work. It requires a complete change in individuals‟ attitude towards their environments. This change in attitude should be so strong as to impel them to bring about a sea change in their personality. It is now recognized that once persons have acquired good command over their speaking and writing abilities, they feel self-confident, assured and poised. Among others, following five qualities stand out in them:

(1) Perception
Good communicators are able to predict fairly accurately how their message will be received and whether it would have the requisite impact. They are really good at reading their audience correctly. They constantly modify and adjust their messages to tailor them to audiences‟ requirements and prevent any misinterpretation and misunderstanding.

(2) Precision
They create a meeting of minds of the senders and the receivers. When they finish delivering the message, audience shares the same mental picture as they have of the topic being discussed.

(3) Credibility
Good communicators come out as believable persons. Audience has faith in the substance of their message. They trust the senders‟ information and intention. The message is received rather well.

(4) Control
Good communicators shape response of their audience. In line with the original intent of the message, they can make their audience laugh / cry, calm them down, change their mind and prompt them to act in certain ways as would achieve the purpose of the communicators.

(5) Congeniality
They always maintain friendly and pleasant relations with their audience. They command respect and goodwill. As a result, despite differences, people like to work for them. goodwill.  

Price, Quality, Reliability, Service and Time parameters in communication

Price, Quality, Reliability, Service and Time parameters in communication

If a job cannot be measured, it cannot be managed. In all jobs, we can organize a detailed system of measurement for at least five of its critical success factors viz., price (P), quality (Q), reliability (R), service (S) and time (T). These five variables account for the most foundational aspects that need to be continually measured and monitored to ensure that the execution is happening as originally planned.

Thus, communication about these five constituents of management (P, Q, R, S & T) at all levels of the organization would form the bread and butter of the management of information flow, highlighting its critical importance in the very functioning of the enterprise. Conversely, if communication is absent among different functionaries of an enterprise, they can neither fix the targets nor measure the actual performance nor even the variance between the target and actual. Such organizations will become babes in the wilderness!

Communication skills „impress‟

Communication skills „impress‟

It is a set of personal skills that transform ones‟ personality. Effective communication skills enable a person to „impress‟ as the acronym elaborates:

I Idea
M Message
P Pause
R Receiver
E Empathy
S Sender
S Security concerns

Thus to impress others especially ones‟ subordinates, peers and seniors, managers / leaders have a duty to themselves – to improve their intra-personal communication skills. Only they can help and no one else can undertake this self-improvement regime on their behalf. Experience has confirmed that these skills are largely acquired and are not inborn.

Communication is key to „success

Communication is key to „success

Communication skills spell S-U-C-C-E-S-S for everyone including the firm that acquires these skills:

S Self-awareness
U Understanding others
C Caring for others
C Choosing right words, phrases and idioms
E Esteem of self
S Self-confidence
S Sharing with others

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION OVERVIEW

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION OVERVIEW

Communication is a vast subject; it stands for connectivity and networking in its broadest sense. In the context of an enterprise, business communication is the process of influencing others to achieve common, shared objectives. Communication is a two way process and is completed only when the feedback is received by the sender. Information flow is a one way process.

Communication can be verbal covering oral and written form and non-verbal that uses a large number of signs, signals, gestures, expressions and sounds. As learning about the non-verbal communication increases, it is changing the way people look at both the oral and written communications. Everyone seems to be communicating all the time especially during waking hours. By mastering the art of observing and interpreting body language and related aspects of communication, every one can become a better communicator!

Business communication is not only the life blood an organization but also the heart of its internal and external communications. Effective communication skills form vital part of a job requirement, are prerequisite for promotion to higher positions and are essential to all problem solving. They ignite enthusiasm, enhance motivation and hone traits of leadership. Communication skills are also advantageous in personal life and community work. They enhance will to work, skill to work and thrill to work. They promote joy at work, impart satisfaction and happiness.

A deeper understanding of the process of the inward and outward journey at the senders‟ and receivers‟ ends goes a long way in students‟ ability to draft and deliver effective messages. The six-stage model of business communication would enable them to gain deeper knowledge of the subject and acquire more effectiveness in communication skills – the strategic asset they must possess before they can move in to senior corporate positions.

COMMUNICATION MODEL -Decoding,Interpretation&Feedback

COMMUNICATION MODEL -Decoding,Interpretation&Feedback

Decoding
The receiver has to read or hear the message before he can understand it. One of the most common barriers to communication is the lack of attention by the receiver. Human mind tends to drift when it is forced to hear something. It is said that mind is like a horse; it is very difficult to control it. Usually, a person‟s mind has around 6,000 ideas flashing across in one day!
There are many words in all the languages with multiple meanings. To be able to understand the correct meaning in the context of the message or the way sender has used it to convey his intent is quite a challenge.

 Interpretation
If the background and the experience of sender and receiver vary considerably, understanding of the message can be very different.

 Feedback
Communication is a two way process. The communication loop is not complete until the sender of the communication receives a feedback from the receiver. The feedback may be verbal or non-verbal through the body language. Many a times, audience conveys through expressions, gestures or sounds. A sensitive speaker can always understand the feedback from the way the receivers stoop forward or backward, the way they yawn and the way they twitters their fingers. There are a large numbers of cues, signs and signals to pick up and interpret!