IMPROVING LISTENING SKILLS

IMPROVING LISTENING SKILLS

Human ears are, in the modern world, continually bombarded with sounds. People hear these sounds but do not listen to all of them. They should be thankful to God that they cannot because if they do, they shall go mad! As a self-defense mechanism, listeners block off many sounds from their consciousness by tuning them out.

Blocking off sounds is a good device as it helps in concentrating on what people want to hear. Unfortunately, they also run the risk of blocking off what they should be listening. They develop such habits so that many a times, they block off even when they are in the company of their best friends.
Fortunately such habits can be un learnt and replaced with good listening habits. Being aware of this deficiency is giving the process of unlearning a good start! Following steps are suggested:

 Preparing for listening
This involves the followings:

(i) Determining your purpose

Listening is three types – content listening, critical listening and active / empathetic listening. Listening to a lecture in a classroom is content listening; listening to a political debate on TV is critical listening and listening to a speaker in office or small groups, is active / empathetic listening.
Each one of these requires different skills and degree of attentiveness as good listeners. At any rate, in order to become good listeners, individuals must understand why they are listening!

(ii) Getting ready to listen

Good listening implies a readiness to listen. Individuals have to prepare themselves for listening physically, mentally and emotionally. It means shutting out all distracting sounds and signals, trying to sit nearest to the speaker so that speaker can be seen and heard clearly. Mental preparations give a purpose to listening, leading to emotional involvement in listening.

(iii) Accepting your share of responsibility

Listeners should share with the speaker the responsibility of communicating rather than behave as if they are daring him to make audience take interest in the subject. In fact, quality of listening improves the quality of speakers‟ delivery! Everyone has an innate desire to be listened to. Quality of listening by the audience influences not only the quality of delivery but also the length of speech.

BARRIERS TO GOOD LISTENING

BARRIERS TO GOOD LISTENING

Listening is rather very difficult. It is taken for granted by parents, schools, colleges and management institutes. Although the receivers are personally present throughout, most of them are poor listeners. What are the inherent problems in the process of listening and how to overcome these barriers? A few common barriers have been listed below:

(1) Environmental barriers

These are:

(i) Physical distractions
Environmental disturbances come in the way:
 Noisy surroundings
 Loud music
 Noise of machines, office equipment etc
 Noise of road traffic including horns of vehicles

(ii) Loud talking
In some cultures people talk rather loudly. Talking loudly by persons nearby can distract a person from hearing others.

(iii) Visual distractions
A hoarding or poster on the wall may distract attention and may come in the way of catching an important point of the conversation. Similarly, speakers‟ clothes, accessories, make-up like eye shadows etc may distract listeners‟ attention.

(2) Physiological distractions

These may be:
(i) Hearing impairment – It is the case with many old persons
(ii) Hunger – It may make one inattentive
(iii) Tiredness / exhaustion from overwork – It may come in the way of listening
(iv) Pain or injury – It may divert ones‟ attention

(3) Psychological barriers

These are:

(i) Beliefs
Audiences‟ strong views on religion, politics, business area or even sex may come in the way of their paying attention to the speaker. Individuals‟ views impact on their attitude and behaviour.

(ii) Fear
If the subject being talked about is sensitive in nature as it pertains to audiences‟ fears, they may cut it off from their hearing.

(iii) Anger
If a remark by the speaker has made audience angry and upset, it will reduce their ability to absorb the message or they may miss it altogether.

(iv) Anxiety
State of health of a near or dear one may make one anxious about it while at work and the person may miss some parts of the conversation.

(v) Sad memories
While listening to a speech, if someone refers to an incident that has a lot of memories treasured by listeners, it may send them in to a reflective mood and they may miss some parts of conversation.

(4) Linguistic barriers

Also called semantic barriers, these can block ones‟ ability to listen. These are:

(i) Use of difficult words and jargons
Some speakers have an affected style of talking – they use difficult words and slang to impress rather than convey the message. Speakers must gift parcel their speech to the level of understanding of the listeners.

(ii) Speakers‟ manners and style
Much of the time, speakers‟ manners, appearance and body language are important. Politicians can, sometimes, stoop low and talk narrow, petty issues for winning local sympathy and perhaps votes but a rational listener may block his speech as hallow and worthless. He may block the message completely.

(iii) Use of words with double meaning and mispronounced words
Some speakers have a poor way of pronouncing with heavy bias of the regional spoken language. This may come in the way of catching the words and phrases correctly.

(iv) Lag time in speech
Some speakers speak very slowly. They take so much time to complete a sentence that listeners find it very difficult to slow down their thought process. They get too much of spare time when their mind flies away to other issues. Keeping focus is a lot more difficult in such cases.

(v) Different frame of mind
If speaker‟s background and area of specialization is widely different, it may come in the way of understanding the terms and phrases used in the speech. The same words may have different meaning in listeners‟ framework; consequently, there may be a gap in the understanding the message received.

(5) Socio-cultural barriers

A few important ones are:

(i) Cultural background is different
Different cultural background leading to different pronunciations and accents for speaking the same words can spoil the delivery of a message. It the recent cricket match series in Australia between the host country and Indian team, there was a piquant situation because „bastard‟ is an accepted form of communication in Australia and „monkey‟ is an accepted admonition in any heated personal discussion in India.

(ii) Personal space and public space
Some cultures permit greater personal space than others. If the same is not available even in a not-so-formal interaction, it may upset some. Even the way of addressing in different regions of the same country can create misunderstanding.

(iii) Sense of time
Experience confirms that a western visitor from USA or Europe would like to get straight in to business without significant preliminaries beyond wishing one another and getting introduced. However, a typical Asian may start with preliminaries as a warm up and may even prefer to have a cup of tea before coming to the formal part of the agenda. It is said that Japanese like to have a game of golf before sitting for any serious meeting! 

TYPES OF LISTENING

TYPES OF LISTENING

Listening can be varied depending upon:
 Purpose
 Interaction
 Feedback

It can be classified in to the following three distinct types:

(1) Content listening

The purpose of content listening is to retain the information for future use or for further transmission rather faithfully. Here, we try to identify the key points and concentrate on the structure of the message. Receivers take a preview – an overall view of the entire message. It is not important whether they agree or not with the contents. They try to assimilate the contents of the message as received. For example, a department of the government giving the details of the procedure would expect the public to follow in dealing with them!

(2) Critical listening

The message received undergoes evaluation at several levels to understand:
 Logic of argument
 Strength of evidence
 Validity of conclusions
 Implications of message for individuals
 Implications of message for the organization
 Speakers‟ intention and motive
 Omission of any relevant point etc
Evaluating and absorbing information simultaneously is rather difficult. Listeners‟ should reserve their judgement right up to the end. Effort should be made to uncover speakers‟ viewpoint.

(3) Active / empathetic listening

The purpose here is to understand the speakers‟ feelings, needs and wants. Listeners have to understand speakers‟ viewpoint irrespective of whether they share those perceptions or not. By listening actively, receivers‟ let speakers vent their emotions. Listeners should resist the temptation of advising them and they should let the persons do the talking with cues and clues of encouragement. Typical features of active and empathetic listening are:
 Make eye contact
 Exhibit affirmative head nods and appropriate facial expressions
 Avoid distracting actions and gestures
 Ask questions
 Paraphrasing what is said
 Avoid interrupting the speaker
 Do not over-talk
 Make smooth transition from the role of a speaker to that of a listener
All the three types of listening have practical use in the life of managers and leaders. They must learn how to apply these methods in different situations.

PROCESS OF LISTENING

PROCESS OF LISTENING

It entails following five steps:

(1) Sensing
It is physical hearing and assimilating through all the five senses – hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting and touching. It should also include taking down notes. However, reception of message can get blocked because of:
 Interfering noises and distractions
 Inattention by audience
 Impaired hearing etc
Listeners have to work hard to avoid distraction and focus on the message.

(2) Interpreting
It is decoding in our mind and absorbing the message being delivered. As people listen, they assign meanings to words through their own mental filters comprising of their:
 Beliefs
 Assumptions
 Values
 Ideas
 Expectations
 Roles
 Needs
 Personal history
Thus role of the persons listening to a speech is very vital. They should pay attention to non-verbal cues because body language of gestures, sounds, postures and expressions do not tell lies. If they have learnt the art and science of understanding speeches well, it increases accuracy of their listening.

(3) Evaluating
It is forming opinion about the message heard. If the subject matter is complex or it is a topic that has emotional overtones, effort is required to:
 Sort out the remarks made by the speaker
 Separate facts from opinions
 Evaluate quality of evidence
As a rule, listeners dismiss ideas from an unattractive and abrasive speaker. Also, they easily embrace ideas of „charismatic‟ speakers.

(4) Remembering
It is storing message after receiving in the memory for future use. Good speakers facilitate storage by doing the followings:
 Comparing the message with the previous similar messages
 Highlighting the components of transition in the new message
 Summarizing and paraphrasing the message

(5) Responding
It is reacting to the content of the message in some fashion. When audience is large, it may take the form of:
 Silence
 Applause
 Laughter etc

HEARING, LISTENING AND UNDERSTANDING

HEARING, LISTENING AND UNDERSTANDING

Hearing is becoming aware of sounds especially through stimulation of auditory nerves in the ear by the sound waves. It is a sense by which sounds are perceived.

Listening is much more – it is making conscious efforts to hear the speaker. It is matching of the mental faculties of the sender and the receiver. It is the understanding of the intent of total message as sent by the sender. When the speaker asks if the audience understood the message, listeners‟ nod is for the complete message including unspoken words, gestures and expressions of the speaker.

Listening is an accurate perception of all that is being presented. Listening is a vital part of the entire process of communication. The effectiveness of communication is, in fact, determined by the extent to which listening and understanding takes place after an interaction. It consists of two stages:
 Encoding and transmission of the message by the sender
 Decoding and providing the required feedback by the receiver

Listening is said to have taken place if there is satisfactory execution of both the stages. If the message has been understood in exactly the same way as was intended by the sender, it can be said that listening has taken place accurately. However, if there are discrepancies between the intent of message sent and the way it has been perceived, listening is deficient and the communication has not been effective.

ORAL COMMUNICATION

ORAL COMMUNICATION

Oral communication stands for words uttered through the mouth and excludes nasal resonance. It encompasses both speaking and listening. Spoken words are powerful weapons for influencing others to accomplish objectives. Powerful speakers can inspire or dispirit, build or relax tensions, incite quarrels or make friends, turn hostile group in to a supportive one and vice versa, stir people to revolt or become docile, persuade people to take long march or stay at home etc.

A good speech should have clarity, be informal, personal and conversational. It should be concrete, vivid, brief, interesting, jovial and humorous. A good speaker is honest, committed to his subject, has sense of responsibility to audience and commitment to fellow speakers. He is balanced, keeps his cool and has a sense of humour and leadership. He is focused, intense, enthusiastic and spirited.

Oral communications result in immediate interchange of opinions, instant feedback and participation by all present. Of the three basic styles of oral communications – submissive, aggressive and assertive, assertive style is considered to be the best as it is the most positive. Such persons are open to new ideas and willing to accept changes if needed.

It is said that one is as good as his thought – positive thoughts bring in positive self-recognition and self-confidence and negative thoughts result in negative self-confidence, submissive or aggressive behaviour. Everyone must learn to determine his style of communication and make all out efforts to change over to assertive style of communication.

A few time-tested strategies for assertive style of communication are making first good impression, clarifying / building image of the goal, making purposive statements and using language that is straight, direct from heart to heart. Other tried strategies are speaking with empathy, paraphrasing from time to time, collecting feedback while speaking and sustaining listeners‟ interest.

Individuals with assertive style of communication have high level of listening skills, are good at making new contacts, are quick in their responses and are persistent with issues while remaining flexible all the time.

DETERMINING / CHANGING STYLE OF COMMUNICATION

DETERMINING / CHANGING STYLE OF COMMUNICATION

It has,  become an issue of critical value for all budding students to identify their style of communication and take conscious steps to change it to the assertive style of communication.

It is a journey starting with change in the mindset of the individual – changing it from negative thinking to a positive one. It signifies changing from „I should‟ to „I want to‟ and finally to „I will‟. The subtle differences in these stages of transition are:

(1) „I should‟
Such statements demonstrate powerlessness that places the ability to act quite outside the control of the speaker. These are passive statements and rarely, result in getting people to act.

(2) „I want to‟
These statements include expression of the intent to a desired level in a speaker. The listener taking action, as a result, is likely.

(3) „I will‟
Such statements are assertive as they claim ownership of the idea and present the concept to the listener in the present tense of „here and now‟. The speaker takes control of the idea and listeners‟ acting on it becomes imminent.

It is said that one is as good as his thought – positive thoughts bring in positive self-recognition and self-confidence and negative thoughts result in negative self-confidence, submissive or aggressive behavior. Everyone must learn to determine his style of communication and make all out efforts to change over to assertive style of communication.

A few time-tested strategies for assertive style of communication are making first good impression, clarifying / building image of the goal, making purposive statements and using language that is straight, direct from heart to heart. Other tried strategies are speaking with empathy, paraphrasing from time to time, collecting feedback while speaking and sustaining listeners‟ interest.
Individuals with assertive style of communication have high level of listening skills, are good at making new contacts, are quick in their responses and are persistent with issues while remaining flexible all the time.

LEVELS OF LEARNING WRITING SKILLS

LEVELS OF LEARNING WRITING SKILLS

Learning how to write effective communication, can be described at three levels:

 Choosing the right words
 Constructing sentences
 Designing paragraphs

(1) Choosing the right words

A skilled writer should choose words such that the receiver gets the meaning in a precise manner, without different interpretations. Following guidelines are useful:

(i) Searching words that the receiver understands
Adaptation is a process of simplifying; it is not as easy as it sounds because:
 Many individuals write at a more difficult level
 Writers know the subject better than the receiver
Extensive experience supports simplification.

(ii) Using familiar words
Familiar words enhance communication because they are easy to understand and absorb. Human memory favours familiar words as it speeds up filing and storage! For example, use:
 „Show‟ in place of „demonstrate‟
 „Use‟ instead of „utilise‟
 „Try‟ for „endeavour‟

(iii) Choosing short words
Short words communicate better; use:
 „Quit‟ in place of „terminate‟
 „Agreed‟ in lieu of „accorded‟
 „Last year‟ instead of „previous year‟

(iv) Using technical words with caution
Every field of specialization has words that have specific meaning in that field and should be used when communicating with persons from the same area of specialization. They do not communicate well with others and hence should be used with caution, if at all.

(v) Adding vigour to words
Our senses and mind do not respond equally to all words – words with vitality attract better attention. Thus one must add zing to one‟s writings by using strong words. As a rule, a word is strongest when used as a verb, followed by when it is used as a noun. Adjectives and adverbs are comparatively weak and should be used sparingly. A few useful tips are:

(a) Selecting strong and vigorous words
The main purpose of any writing is to attract the attention and time of the reader. We know that strong and vigorous words attract attention from senses and mind. Use:
 „Tycoon‟ in place of „eminently successful businessmabusinessman‟
 „Boom‟ instead of „period of business prosperity‟

(b) Using concrete words
Using concrete words makes writing more interesting instead of abstract words. Use of specific words adds exactness in ones‟ expressions.

(c) Preferring active to passive verbs
Active form of expression is better than the passive form - it is stronger and shorter. Passive form has a place only when „doer‟ is not important.

(d) Avoiding camouflaged verbs
Do not camouflage verbs in to nouns; they dilute expressions. For example, use:
 Cancel and not cancellation
 Acquire and not acquisition

(vi) Selecting words for precise communication
One should have good command over the vocabulary. It helps in searching for the correct words and phrases that convey precise meanings in a given situation. Writer must try to have a very good collection of idioms, maxims and proverbs. They are very powerful in conveying ones‟ thoughts in a precise manner.

(vii) Avoiding sexist words
These are words that show male dominance e.g., manly figure or manly habits.

(viii) Avoiding pronouns indicating sex
Do not use pronouns like he, she, him or her. This can be done by:
 Making them plural
 Rewording the sentence
 Going in for neutral expression like one, someone etc

(ix) Avoiding words derived from masculine words
\Do not use words like manpower, chairman, postman, watchman etc

(x) Avoiding words that are demeaning to women
Words like womanizing, prostituting etc should be left out of writing as they offend some readers.

(2) Constructing sentences

Length of the sentence is the most important feature of constructing sentences. In general, sentences should be adapted to readers. Long sentences are hard to read and harder to absorb. Short sentences enhance readability. A sentence should have 16 to 18 words, on the average. Sometimes longer or shorter sentences may be justified. A few good suggestions are:

(i) Limiting content of a sentence
Limiting content of a sentence would reduce its length. However, it should not be overdone. Too many short sentences make the reading choppy!

(ii) Economizing on words
Always look for shorter ways of saying things. A few suggestions are:

(a) Avoiding cluttering phrases
Go in for shorter expressions like:
 „If‟ for „In the event that‟
 „Like‟ for „Along the lines of‟
 „To‟ for „With a view to‟

(b) Eliminating superfluous words
Some words do not add any meaning and a quick scrutiny can go a long way.

(c) Avoiding round about ways of saying things
Round about ways of saying add words and verbosity to the sentences. Being direct makes it simple, short and impressive.

(d) Avoiding repetition of words and phrases
Repeating words and phrases is very boring and should be excluded from ones‟ writing. Only exception is when the writers want to emphasize something.

(iii) Determining emphasis in the construction of sentence
Short sentences emphasize content and long sentences dilute it although determining emphasis in a sentence is largely a matter of judgement.

(iv) Imparting unity to a sentence
All parts of a sentence should relate to one „single thought‟. This unity is often violated in the following three ways:

(a) Including unrelated thoughts
Unrelated thoughts vitiate unity of a sentence and can be taken care of by:
 Using separate sentences for unrelated thought
 Making one thought subordinate to the other
 Adding words to show that the thoughts are related

(b) Giving excessive details
Giving too many details dilutes the unity of a sentence. Avoid details or put them in a separate sentence within parenthesis.

(c) Constructing illogical sentences
Constructing illogical sentences can spoil the unity of a sentence. It results from:
 Mixing active and passive forms of expressions
 Going in for mixed construction of sentences.

(v) Using correct rules of grammar for sentence clarity
Rules of grammar have emerged as a result of some customs but mostly because they help write logically and clearly. Students must know these rules of grammar to acquire effective writing skills.

(vi) Learning power of punctuation
This is a group of distinctive signs that are used in writing and every writer must learn them properly. Some of the uses change like fashion over time and writers must remain updated on them. They add power to ones‟ expressions.

(3) Designing paragraphs

Paragraphs form the third link that is critical to acquiring effective writing skills. Besides words and sentences, they play a major role. Paragraph designing requires a clear thinking and a systematic mind. Design of paragraphs has a direct impact on the layout and presentation of the writing and contributes significantly in attracting and retaining readers‟ attention. A few guidelines are:

(i) Paragraphs should exhibit unity of idea or topic
Contents of a paragraph should relate to one idea (group of thoughts) or topic. However, unity can vary and so can the size of a paragraph. Ideally, a good test for a paragraph is that it should be possible to reduce the contents of a paragraph to one sentence or one statement. If it is not possible, unity of the paragraph is likely to suffer.

(ii) Paragraphs should be kept short
A paragraph should consist of 8 to 9 lines only. Paragraphs larger than 10 lines should be critically examined and „fat‟ cut off
 Large paragraphs are heavy and make reading dull and difficult
 Short paragraphs appear well-organized and invite readers to read on with attention
Paragraph positioning enhances layout design. Suitable system of headings and subheadings can further improve the attractiveness of the prose. These days printers use colour schemes for titles etc to give „come hither‟ look to the readers.

(iii) Positioning topic sentence to advantage
Writers must become aware of the importance of positioning topic sentence in the design of a paragraph. It can help in designing good paragraphs. However, where it should be placed in a paragraph depends upon the writers‟ plan:

(a) Placing topic sentence first
It is the best option and many firms have adopted it as a policy guideline.

(b) Placing topic sentence last
Here the beginning sentence in the paragraph serves as an introduction. The paragraph ends with the topic statement that is the real content.

(c) Placing topic sentence in the middle
If topic sentence is placed in the middle of a paragraph, it dilutes the content. It is rarely used but, in specific situations, it can impart the requisite impact.

(iv) Leaving unnecessary details out of the paragraph
This requires good visualization of the receiver. One can make the paragraph smarter by omitting extraneous details. Much depends upon the writers‟ judgement.

(v) Paragraphs should move the text forward
Each new paragraph is the next additional step in moving towards the goal of the message. If each paragraph represents the orderly development of the ideas, it facilitates move forward. Smoothness in writing style and good proficiency in choice of words and sentences can move the idea forward through each paragraph. Once a while, short paragraph is incorporated to organize the transition from previous paragraph to the next.

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

The core principle of any communication is that of „adaptation‟. The sender must use words, phrases, signs and signals that the receiver is familiar with. Sender must be very sensitive and good at visualizing the level of audience. If it is not done, he maybe talking Greek to some one – it is like using a foreign language quite unknown to the receiver. Following two aspects must be borne in mind:

 Process of adaptation
 Governing rule of adaptation

(1) Process of adaptation
One has to work hard to be able to express one‟s thoughts accurately. It is so difficult that most people seem to be happy in using the first word that flashes in their mind. The process should begin with visualizing the receivers – what they know, feel or think. It often means communicating with readers (who are customers) at levels lower than yours.
Adaptation is easier if one is communicating to a single person or a homogenous group. If addressing a mixed or diverse group, one has to adapt at the lowest level.

(2) Governing rule of adaptation
An overriding rule that should govern the adaptation process is that of simplicity. Choice of simple words and phrases, woven in to simple sentences and use of simple rules of grammar can propel a person forward and fast in his learning curve for developing effective writing skills. The „KISS‟ principle is easy to learn and remember; it is a reminder to „keep it simple and short‟.

WORDS IN BODY LANGUAGE

WORDS IN BODY LANGUAGE

UP & DOWN GRADERS

Up graders and down graders are words that show how much we believe in ourselves and the things we are talking about. Therefore, they are important for us and for the power of our message.
“I’m in such a hurry, so I’ll take off now”.
“I’m running a little late, so I think I’ll leave soon”.
The meaning of the two sentences is the same: “I must be off now”. In the first sentence it is said by using up graders that increase the message. In the second sentence it is said by using down graders that makes the message weaker. Some word can be both up graders and down graders e.g. “Naturally”, “Just” and some swearwords.

MARKERS OF ATTITUDE

These words show your attitude towards the subject. Markers of attitude can be changed to other words that give the sentence another meaning:
“There’s a chance that my mother in law will stop by”
“There’s a risk that my mother in law will stop by”

WORDING OF THE SENTENCES

There are also some sentence structures that one should be aware of:
Yes but and no but sentences
Yes but… sentences are treacherous. First you agree with your opposite party, but in the next second you say the reverse:
“You can’t mean that”
“No, but I don’t think…”
“Would you help me to book the meeting room?”
“Yes, but I really have no time so…”

Can vs. can’t in phonetic pronunciation

Can vs. can’t  in  phonetic pronunciation

Because the “t” in can’t is not clearly pronounced in American English, it sounds similar to can.
How can we determine the difference? When we use the positive form of can, we quickly glide
over can and it is hardly pronounced. Since can is unstressed, it is pronounced \kən\.
• They can come on Friday.
On the other hand, when we use the negative form can't, we tend to stress the fact that it is the
negative form by stressing can't. Since can’t is stressed, it is pronounced \kæn(t)\. Note that the t
may be silent in the nt combination.
• They can't come on Friday .
As you can see from the above example the sentence, "They can't come on Friday" is longer than
"They can come on Friday" because both the modal can't and the verb come are stressed.

Learning Phonetic Alphabets for English

Learning Phonetic Alphabets for English

Learning phonetic alphabets is not as difficult a task as it seems. The most difficult thing about learning to transcribe English is breaking your habits of association of English sounds with English spellings, and learning to hear the sounds in a word/sentence accurately. This comes with practice, practice, and more practice. You need to make a conscious effort to hear the sounds in a word and suppress any visual images or memory of the spelling of the word.

Most of the phonetic symbols are familiar to you from English spelling; there are some new symbols to learn: seven new consonant symbols, and seven new vowel symbols. Learning the new symbols is not the most difficult aspect of the task: the most difficult thing is learning to change which sounds you associate with certain letters, especially for the vowels. The pronunciation of the letters i, e, a, o, u as phonetic symbols is very close to their pronunciation in Spanish, Italian, or German.
It is also important to keep in mind that a phonetic symbol always has the same pronunciation. This is different from English spelling. For example, the letter ‘s’ has various sound values in English spelling, for instance the /s/ of words like 'so', 'bus' and the /z/ of words like 'easy', 'busy'. In the phonetic alphabets presented here, the symbol /s/ always represents the sound of the ‘s’ in 'see', 'bus'. The sounds spelled with ‘s’ in 'easy', 'busy', are transcribed phonetically with /z/.

Here are the speech sounds of Standard American English, given in 2 phonetic alphabets, with an example word for each sound. The list is not in the familiar order of the English alphabet (A, B, C, D, E). For the consonants, the sounds are listed in order of kind (stop, fricative, etc.). The vowels are listed beginning with the high front vowels and going along to the low back vowels, then the diphthongs.

GOOD BUSINESS REPORT

GOOD BUSINESS REPORT

(1) Accuracy of facts
Since reports are used for decision-making, inaccurate and unverified facts can lead to disastrous results. It is said, „What is worse than no information is wrong information‟.

(2) Brevity
Difficult to define, it is also not possible to state it as a rule to be followed for writing reports. Good reports are brief but brevity should not be achieved at the cost of clarity nor should it be at the expense of completeness. Thus the reports should include everything that is relevant yet be brief!

(3) Clarity
Clarity comes from orderly, systematic and clear thinking. Reports should be skillfully divided in to short paragraphs, giving headings and inserting signposts to attract attention and securing sustained interest of the readers who are indeed customers.

(4) Free from grammatical errors
Good reports are a good piece of composition presented attractively and free of any grammatical error. If choice of words is faulty, construction of sentences is confusing and design of paragraphs is dull, reports would find few readers. If reports require too much of sorting out of data and sifting out the meanings before taking decisions, it would always leave a lurking doubt in the decision makers‟ mind. And if decisions do not reflect the conviction of management, they are unlikely to be implemented properly.

(5) Objectivity of recommendations
Recommendations should be objective and impartial. These must be based on logical conclusions of the investigation, analysis and findings. Self-interest of the individuals should not creep in directly or indirectly.

(6) Unity and Cohesion
If the writers are clear about the main purpose of the report, it gives unity and cohesion to the report

(7) Precision
Reports avoid extraneous issues and are precise and incisive. Precision adds value to the report.

(8) Reader-orientation
Reader orientation is customer orientation. Writers must always keep the person(s) going to read the report in mind. Contents of reports to laypersons will be different from the reports prepared and submitted to experts and specialists.

(9) Relevance
The facts and data should have a direct bearing on the main purpose of the message intended. Nothing relevant should be skipped nor any irrelevant data be added to
make the report confusing. Exclusion of facts may make the report incomplete and is likely to mislead.

(10) Simple language
Reports using simple, familiar words and direct construction of sentences call for a greater understanding of the subject. Only a deep knowledge enables persons to throw up and use simple words and phrases for expressions. Reports should be free of trite expressions, clichés and figures of speech.

Communication as a two-way process

Communication as a two-way process

Communication is a complete process - it starts with communicators sending messages to receivers, the „communicatees‟. An experienced sender of message, whether oral or written, would think of the audience as his customer. He would try to gauge or guess the kind of level of communication the receiver is comfortable with. Thereafter, he would craft his message in a manner and in the language, words, phrases and idioms that the receiver is familiar with. Each receiver of message is really a customer whose needs and wants should be as well known to the sender as it happens in a market place. Obviously, like the sender who chooses words, phrases and idioms from his vocabulary depending on own learning, experience and exposure, receiver also has his own mental filter that is the product of his learning, experience and exposure. To absorb the message in his mind, he does the abstraction of the message in to words, phrases and idioms that he is familiar with or has command over. This leads to his formulating his response to the message received. Once again, it goes through the mind filter and ultimately comes out of the communicatee and starts its return journey to the sender of the message. It conveys back what is understood by the receiver.

A sensitive speaker is able to judge the reaction of his audience from the gestures, sounds and expressions of the audience – the way they sit, the way they yawn or the way they twitter their fingers etc. It is thus a complete cycle because it is a two way process. Until the full process has been gone through the process of communication is considered to be incomplete.

NON – VERBAL COMMUNICATION-Body Language

NON – VERBAL COMMUNICATION-Body Language

As the name suggests the study of movements of our body parts like eyes, head, hands, legs, sitting style, walking style etc. is called body language. It is also called Gestural communication or Kinesics. It truly depicts the inner feeling going in our mind. We can fake our words to conceal our true inner feeling but our body movements convey it. For example, if your mother is angry with you on something then without uttering a single word she can convey this feeling to you.

As a rule, it does not lie or mislead unless someone has mastered the art of deceit or camouflaging. And also it is not man made language. We can just study it, interpret it and that too one can do after studying this language for many years.

Following are the different types of Body Language:

i.) Personal Appearance: Personal appearance means the way we dress, groom ourselves and use accessories .It helps us to project an image of us on other. Our first impression creates an image thus it is important to manage our personal appearance crucially. The estimates about ones status, personality, credibility and capability are made according to our personal appearance. Thus it is important to pay attention to our personal appearance and one should be well dressed and well groomed to convey a good impression on other.

ii.) Posture: Posture signifies the way we sit, stand, and carry ourselves. A student has to cultivate and maintain elegance in his or her sitting standing and walking postures as it conveys message about your personality .For example if you are slouching in the chair it suggests you are not interested.

iii.) Gestures with hands and arms: A gesture can communicate all that the speaker feels, consciously or unconsciously. Shaking hands, touching, holding, embracing or patting on the back, all convey messages.

iv.)Eye Contact: Eye never lies. Eye contact is significant for effective communication. The frequency of contact may suggest either interest or boredom. For example, a travel counselors should look straight into the eyes of the person, although pleasantly and affably to show confidence and interest.

v.) Facial Expression: It is truly said that face is index to mind. Facial expressions like a smile, frown, raised eyebrow, yawn, and sneer all convey information. Facial expressions are most natural and unconscious. Facial expressions continually change during interaction and are observed constantly by the recipient. Smiling is considered to be pleasant and helpful. A frown conveys confusion and at times anger.

TYPES OF NON – VERBAL COMMUNICATION : Language of Distance

TYPES OF NON – VERBAL COMMUNICATION : Language of Distance

The study of how people recognize and value the physical spaces around them is known as
language of distance or proxemics. Language of distance takes into account body spacing
between two individual .The physical distance between two people can be correlated to the
relationship they share be it personal or social. These are of four types:

1. Intimate Zone: Distance shared by Spouses, children, parents, very close
relatives and friends.

2. Personal Zone: Distance between individuals during business gatherings,
social functions and get-together.

3. Social Zone: Distance shared by strangers or occasional visitors.

4. Public Zone: Distance shared between speaker and Audience.
Language of distance teaches us to first determine what the relationship between us and other person is and accordingly we should manage the distance. For example when talking to your customer you should know that you are in public zone and should not enter in intimate zone.

PRINCIPLES OF A WRITING A BUSINESS LETTER

PRINCIPLES OF A WRITING A BUSINESS LETTER

You will have to develop the art of writing good business letters to communicate effectively at the written level. Almost every one of us has written a letter at some point of our life. A business letter is slightly different from other letters. In today's age of technology, e-mail, a kind of letter sent via the electronic machine also comes under the purview of letter writing. However, we will not discuss letter writing in general but business letters only in this section. We will discuss some principles that are essential for writing a good business letter. Let us start with a quick look at the layout of a business letter.

Layout

There is no fixed layout for writing a business letter as different organizations may have their own
prescribed layouts to be used in business letters sent from their organization. However, we can discuss a common layout that is generally followed while writing a business letter.


The following things are to be included in a business letter:

􀁺 Letterhead
The company's name and full address should be included in this section.
􀁺 Date
The date is written before the inside address of the recipient.
􀁺 Inside Address
This includes the address of the recipient. The address should include the name and the full
address of the recipient.
􀁺 Salutation or Greeting
The way you write the salutation depends on the relationship you share with the recipient. If you
do not know the gender and name of the recipient it is best to use a neutral, "Dear Sir/ Madame."

􀁺 Letter Body
The body of your letter should be clearly written with not more than three paragraphs. The
purpose of every paragraph should be clear.
􀁺 Closing
The closing comes after the last paragraph of the letter. The closing again depends on the
relationship you share with the recipient and hence the degree of formality.
􀁺 Signature
This comes after the closing. You will have to include your signature, printed name and position
(strictly in that order) here.

Reasons for writing business letters

You may need to write a business letter for many reasons. It may be
􀁺 to persuade
􀁺 to recommend
􀁺 to accept/reject offers
􀁺 to apologize
􀁺 to inform
􀁺 to request
􀁺 to remind

The language cannot be different just because we are writing a business letter. But there are certain
things you should remember while writing a business letter. The language should be very simple and
precise. You cannot waste your time by writing things that do not serve the real purpose but makes your letter long and complicated.

Here are some principles you should remember while writing a business letter:

􀁺 Start from the end. Figure out the purpose. Try to find out the goal you want to achieve
through the letter.

􀁺 Make a list of the things you have to say and allot a paragraph each to the main points. Add
an introductory paragraph and a concluding paragraph.

􀁺 Get to the point early. Do not beat around the bush! The reader is not interested in reading
the plot of a story but the purpose of the letter.

􀁺 Be logical and coherent in your approach. This will reflect in the way you write the letter.
􀁺 Identify the reader and your relationship with him or her. You may address the reader with a
simple Dear Mr./ Ms/ Miss X (the First and last name) if you are familiar with the person.
However, if you are not familiar with him or her, Dear Sir/ Madam will be all right. You are also
supposed to write Dear Sir/Madam if you do not know the gender or name of the reader.

􀁺 Avoid repetitions.
􀁺 Avoid camouflaged verbs. For example, "Announcement of the decision made him relieved"
is using the noun form of the verb and lacks power. Instead, use "He was relieved to announce
his decision."

􀁺 Use familiar words.

􀁺 Avoid using vague and abstract words. Always be precise and concrete. Instead of 'immense
benefit in all respects' or 'significant gain', it would help if you use '25% gain' or 'benefit in
terms of cost, production, performance'.

􀁺 Use adverbs and adjectives sparingly. Do not be too judgmental or passionate in your use of
words. Words like 'breathtaking', 'absolutely', and 'fantastic' are best avoided.

􀁺 Avoid jargon's and cliched sentences. That will make your letter natural.

􀁺 Use adjectives appropriately. Do not use them too much neither should you be too stingy in
using them. Strike a balance.

􀁺 Use active voice as much as possible.

􀁺 Use simple and short sentences. You cannot waste your time by writing things that do not
serve the real purpose but makes your letter long and complicated.

􀁺 End it with what should be the action taken by the reader or you.

􀁺 Try to be friendly. You should not appear rude in an attempt to be too straightforward. You can be
straightforward and friendly at the same time.

􀁺 Close with a simple and plain closing phrase. "Yours sincerely" or "Sincerely" and your signature
can be a good closing phrase.

􀁺 Take care of the layout and format of the letter.

􀁺 Never write a business letter in anger. You may regret it later.

􀁺 Always end it with an action step if required. Do not leave it vague or leave the reader wondering
what you expect from him or her.

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Here it is pertinent to mention the concept of jargon to you. Jargons are special words and phrases
which are used by particular groups of people, especially in their work For example, sue motto, ipso
facto, etc. are legal jargons. Jargons when used in a business report cannot be avoided as they form an
integral part of the report. So in order to understand such a report you are required to know a few
commonly used jargons. However, while writing a business letter the use of jargons and clichés excessively should be avoided, as these will make your letter very technical and dull.
The vocabulary used should be simple, concise and easily comprehensible. Use the word that is most
effective to get the desired result. Instead of saying, "The project may not be completed on due date."
"The project may be delayed." is a more concise expression.

Grammar

At the level of grammar one of the most important things to remember is the voice of the sentences. Do not use passive voice. You will not be projected as a strong human being if you avoid active voice and use passive voice all the time. For example, instead of saying, "The meeting has been cancelled" say, " We have cancelled the meeting." Another aspect of grammar to be remembered is the use of complex sentences. A better idea will be to use simple and short sentences.
The next point is the use of verbs that indicate actions you want to take and the actions you expect the
receiver (of your message) to take instead of rehashing the same with long sentences. For example,
instead of saying, "As your last date for bill payment is approaching, you are requested to pay your bill by 28-3-06" you can say, "We request you to pay your bill by 28-3-06. Your last date for bill payment is 28.3.06."

Style

The style followed in writing a business letter or report may vary from country to country. The style may also vary according to the rapport you have with the recipient of your message. However, adopting a formal style without being impersonal is a good idea in business communication.

BUSINESS ENGLISH AND ITS IMPORTANCE

BUSINESS ENGLISH AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Different situations demand of us to perform differently (in terms of language). So it is quite obvious that when we talk about the world of business we will find a kind of English that is used for business purposes. Though it is to be mentioned that English as a language is not different from Business English. The difference is only at the rate at which some language features of English in terms of sentence structure, grammar and style that suit the purpose in a business situation are used. This kind of English is known as Business English.

For instance, in a business situation some English words, sentence structures and styles of English
language are more common as they help in getting the desired result. It is to be, however, noted that
Business English as such is not as much distinguishable in oral communication as in written
communication. In oral communication it may be used to build interpersonal relations, to give
presentations, for negotiations, in meetings, etc. In this chapter we will be discussing Business English for effective writing. Good business English is required for writing letters, reports, memos, minutes, etc.

With India emerging as a global player in the world of business and trade and multinational companies investing heavily in India, we find corporate houses emerging in great numbers. Thus, we cannot ignore the skills one requires to be successful in the corporate world, as many of you may find yourself with jobs in corporate houses. Apart from the other skills -soft skills, interpersonal skills, academic qualification, technical skills-from the language point of view, you should definitely be aware of the kind of English used in this sector. Awareness of Business English will make you a better communicator in the sense that you can use the kind of English that the (business) situation demands.

A skillful communicator should be will aware of how to use language for different purposes and achieve the desired goal. For instance, you may know how to write a letter but may not be aware of the principles of a good business letter, as you may not know the kind of vocabulary and sentence structures used in such letters. As a result you may not be able to perform at your peak, with misunderstandings and ambiguity hindering your communication process.