Week 3 - Communication and Listener anxiety
Since I personally also have both a communication and listener anxiety, I think taking notes as the other person is talking helps a lot. Once the person is done talking, you summarize what was said in your own words, to make sure you understood the person correctly. This kind of situations are very common nowadays, especially if you working for a large organization. Another technique to use to continue engagement in the conversation is to ask questions which will help maintain the mental stimulation.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Self-improvement
Self-improvement: Week 1 entry: "The communication channels that carry organizational messages include face-to-face conversation, telephones, email, public speeches, memos, ..."
Week 2 - Diversity
I have worked in diverse groups for pretty much all the positions I have worked so far. So, I value diversity very much as it allows us to provide more solutions to a problem. People's culture, age, and gender make them see the world in different ways. These perspectives are a key to creative thinking.
In one of the special projects I worked at my current company, I was working with a very diverse group consisting of a representative from lean manufacturing, certification, quality, and also a person from human resources. The purpose of the project was to streamline the certification process. The main goal was to reduce the overtime and prevent firefighting that people were doing to get things done at the last minute. The VP of Engineering sponsored this project.
My role was to provide the engineering approach to the certification process and management. I have always enjoyed working with people from different cultural backgrounds and disciplines. I was able to provide fresh and new ideas to the problems as I was the youngest in the group at the time and also a relatively new employee in the company compared to other people there. It is always a very rewarding experience to educate other groups how my function works and fits the overall picture.
The benefit of working with different groups is that you get different perspectives on an issue and you also learn how different organizations function and come together. Sometimes, the most challenging part is to communicate the value and intent of your organization to the cross-functional groups you are working with.
Week 2 - Diversity
I have worked in diverse groups for pretty much all the positions I have worked so far. So, I value diversity very much as it allows us to provide more solutions to a problem. People's culture, age, and gender make them see the world in different ways. These perspectives are a key to creative thinking.
In one of the special projects I worked at my current company, I was working with a very diverse group consisting of a representative from lean manufacturing, certification, quality, and also a person from human resources. The purpose of the project was to streamline the certification process. The main goal was to reduce the overtime and prevent firefighting that people were doing to get things done at the last minute. The VP of Engineering sponsored this project.
My role was to provide the engineering approach to the certification process and management. I have always enjoyed working with people from different cultural backgrounds and disciplines. I was able to provide fresh and new ideas to the problems as I was the youngest in the group at the time and also a relatively new employee in the company compared to other people there. It is always a very rewarding experience to educate other groups how my function works and fits the overall picture.
The benefit of working with different groups is that you get different perspectives on an issue and you also learn how different organizations function and come together. Sometimes, the most challenging part is to communicate the value and intent of your organization to the cross-functional groups you are working with.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Week 2 - Diversity
I have worked in diverse groups for pretty much all the positions I have worked so far. So, I value diversity very much as it allows us to provide more solutions to a problem. People's culture, age, and gender make them see the world in different ways. These perspectives are a key to creative thinking.
In one of the special projects I worked at my current company, I was working with a very diverse group consisting of a representative from lean manufacturing, certification, quality, and also a person from human resources. The purpose of the project was to streamline the certification process. The main goal was to reduce the overtime and prevent firefighting that people were doing to get things done at the last minute. The VP of Engineering sponsored this project.
My role was to provide the engineering approach to the certification process and management. I have always enjoyed working with people from different cultural backgrounds and disciplines. I was able to provide fresh and new ideas to the problems as I was the youngest in the group at the time and also a relatively new employee in the company compared to other people there. It is always a very rewarding experience to educate other groups how my function works and fits the overall picture.
The benefit of working with different groups is that you get different perspectives on an issue and you also learn how different organizations function and come together. Sometimes, the most challenging part is to communicate the value and intent of your organization to the cross-functional groups you are working with.
Week 1 entry
The communication channels that carry organizational messages include face-to-face conversation, telephones, email, public speeches, memos, real-time videoconferencing and letters. In general, I feel that there is always a room for improvement for everyone as far as your communications skills is concerned. I do not think anyone is a perfect communicator. Personally, I feel I am reasonably good at face-to-face conversation. The area I need to improve on is the phone conversation. It is often difficult to judge the mood and availability of the person on the other line before you call. Also, you cannot accurately read the person's feelings on the phone as opposed to in person. I believe you can get a sense of what the other person is thinking sometimes by their tone, however, it is not as reliable as their facial expressions.
I generally tend to communicate more through face-to-face as I prefer that style of communication better. However, in-person communication can sometimes lead to conflicts and disagreements. It also depends on a particular issue you are trying to communicate when you decide what mode of communication you want to use. I feel that I need to communicate more through email so that you can have the documentation as a proof in case something goes wrong. It is also a good idea to summarize what you have talked in person or on the phone in writing to clarify and confirm everyone is on the same page.
I generally tend to communicate more through face-to-face as I prefer that style of communication better. However, in-person communication can sometimes lead to conflicts and disagreements. It also depends on a particular issue you are trying to communicate when you decide what mode of communication you want to use. I feel that I need to communicate more through email so that you can have the documentation as a proof in case something goes wrong. It is also a good idea to summarize what you have talked in person or on the phone in writing to clarify and confirm everyone is on the same page.
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