Listening

ASSIGNMENTS MB 0023 BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

1. Describe any situation that you experienced where the communication went wrong because the listening was faulty. Analyze the situation by explaining the type of listening barrier. . How could this barrier be overcome?

Barriers to listening

A pointed out earlier, listening is not easy and there are a number of obstacles that stand in the way of effective listening, both within outside the workplace. These barriers may be categorized as follows.

1. Physiological Barriers: - some people may have genuine hearing problems or deficiencies that prevent them from listening properly. Once detected, date and generally be treated. Some people may have difficulties in processing information, or memory related problem which make them poor listeners. Another physiological barrier is rapid though. Listeners have the ability to process information at the rate of approximately 500 words per minute, where as speaker talk at around 120 words per minute. Since listeners are left with a lot of spare time, there attention may not be focused on words the speaker is saying, but may under elsewhere. 2. Physical Barriers: - These referred to distraction in the averment such as the sound of an air conditioner, cigarette smoke, or an overheated room, which interfere with the listening process. They could also be in the form of

information overload. For example, if you are in meeting with your manager and the phone rings and your mobile beeps at the same time to let u know that you have the message. It is very hard to listen carefully to what is being said. 3. Attitudinal Barriers :- pre occupation which personal or work related problems can make it difficult to focus one’s attention completely on what speaker is saying, even what is being said is of crime importance. Another common attitudinal barrier is egocentrism, or the belief that you are more knowledgeable when the speaker and that you have nothing new to have to learn from his ideas. People with this kind of close minded attitude may very poor listeners. 4. Wrong Assumptions: - The success of communication depend on the both the sender and receiver, as we have seen in an earlier unit. It is wrong to assume that communication is the sole responsibility of the sender or the speaker and that listener have no role to play. Such an assumption can be big barrier to listening. For example, a brilliant speech or presentation, however well delivered, is wasted if the receiver is not listening at the other end. Listeners have as much responsibility as speakers to make the communication successful, by paying attention seeking clarifications and giving feedback. Another wrong assumption is to think that listening is a passive activity, in which a listener merely the thoughts of the speaker. On the contrary, real listening or active listening is hard work – it requires speaking sometimes to ask question, agree or disagree with the speaker, give feedback etc.

5. Cultural Barriers :- accents can be barriers to listening, since they interfere with the ability to understand the meaning of words that are pronounced differently. The problem of different accents arises not only between cultures, but also within a culture. For example, in a country like india where there is enormous cultural diversity, accents may differ even between regions states. Another type of cultural barrier is doddering cultural values. The importance attached to listening and speaking differs in western and oriental cultures. Generally, Orientals regeard listening and silence as almost a virtue, whereas Attach greater importance to speaking. Therefore this would interfere with the listening process, when two people from these two different cultures communicate.

6. Gender Barriers: - communication research has shown that gender can be barrier to listening. Studies have revealed that men and women listen very

differently and for different purposes. Women are more likely to listen for the emotion behind a speaker’s words, when men listen more for the facts and the content. Example: - salespersons giving a demonstration of a new type of office equipment may be asked by two colleagues if the equipment will work without ant problem and respond by saying “Sure.” A male user may take his at face value, where as the female user may detect some hesitation in his voice. This is because the male users listen for the content of the message, where as the female user listen for the tone of the message.

7. Lack of Training: - listening is not an inborn skill. People are not born good listeners. They have to develop the art of listening through practice and training. Lack of training in listing skills is an important barrier to listing, in the Indian Context. 8

Bad Listening Habits: - Most people are very average listeners who have developed poor listening habits that are hard to say and that act as barriers to listening. For example, some people have the habits of “faking” attention, or trying to look like a listeners, in order to impress the speaker and to assure him that they are paying attention. Others may tend to listen to each and every fact and, as a result, mis out on the main point.

2. Briefly describe the kind of job that you would like to take up after completion of your MBA. List out the main stakeholders that you would have to communicate with, along with the reasons for communicating with them and the appropriate channels of communication with each stakeholder.

Answer 2. Education is very importance for every individual. This sometimes you realize it only when it is little too late. When I was young my only aim was to do graduation. After completing my graduation I immediately started working so the need to arm myself with professional qualification never occurred to me. during the cause of my job tenure. I could handle my job pretty well but after few years I realized the importance of having a professional degree to enhance my management skills. Sometimes having an additional degree also helps in proration. Since last year I became carry keen to do an MBA cause as I saw pursuing a professional cause even after their marriage. So here I am, doing an MBA at this stage of my life. But I am happy to study again though it is a strangle to strike a balance between my job and my MBA study. The presence is there but I am enjoying it. After completing my MBA I am going to this knowledge and skill at my place of work. I am sure this professional degree will stand me in good stead. I am going to use it to improve my managerial skill and further improve my ability to work. I want to improve the working condition at my office and also improve the turn over by working on new project in a more professional way. It has been rightly said by Mahatma Gandhi that there is no age to receive education, the only thing to have is the seeking mind and the seeking heart that can make impossible- possible.

3. Select a business article from any business publication of approximately 500 words in length. Evaluate it in terms of : a) Appropriate level of readability b) Use of jargon, slang and metaphors c) Common errors in English. Is it well or poorly written, in your opinion?

4. Briefly distinguish between the different types of reading. Which are the types of reading that you would be required to do most often, as a student of management?

5. Evaluate email as a channel of internal communication, explaining its advantages and disadvantages. List out five ways in which email messages could be made more effective.

Business letters are much more formal than general letter and should be return keeping in mind the following principles :6. Courtesy and Consideration 7. Direct 8. ortant step in report preparation and why?

Question 6 How are business reports different from business letters? In your opinion, which is the most important step in report preparation and why? Ans .

BUSINESS REPORTS A business report may be defined as ‘an orderly and objective presentation of information that helps in decision making and problem solving.’ It may be oral or written form. A report presents information or authentic facts and data. Subjective judgments and recommendations should be based on data. Finally, a business report, unlike a scientific or academic report, should aid decision making and problem solving. For

example, a report on the market feasibility of a new product should help management to decide whether to launch the product or not. BUSINESS LETTERS Business letters can be used to communicate different messages to a variety of audiences. Business letters are also very different form personal letters, in terms of the degree of formality, tone, style and format used. There are principles of business letter writing. Business letters are sued primarily to communicate with external stakeholders such as consumers, intermediaries, government and bankers. The principles of business letter writing are somewhat different from the principles of writing general letters. Business letters ae much more formal then other letters. A business letter is a formal means of communication between two people, a person and a corporation, or two corporations. Business letters differ from personal letters because they follow very strictly set rules for composition. Many people are intimidated by the prospect of writing to strict guidelines, however business letters are nothing to be afraid of. They are too useful a tool to be stigmatized by the public

There is a difference in business reports and business letters. Business letter is considerate and courteous……..in business letter directness and conciseness is important and in business report…… …. Business letters should be clearly worded and precise, business reports vary from simple one page memo formats, to more complex reports such as manuscript reports running to several pages. Appearance of the business letter should be equally appealing to the reader where as there is no single format

for a business report business letter should be paid to the quality of paper uses

A business report has certain unique characteristics A REPORT VARIES IN PURPOSE, LENGTH, FORMAT AND COMPLEXITY. REPORT QUALITY IS AFFECTED ACCURACY OF THE DATA

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QUALITY

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There are a number of different generic types of business reports including: Periodic reports, policies and procedures, situational general business report, business plan, business proposal, marketing plan, strategic plan, business analysis, project report, project analysis, project proposal, project review, financial plan, financial analysis, and others. Reports may be classified based on several criteria including their use (progress reports and financial reports), purpose (informational, analytical and persuasive reports), frequency of preparation (annual, monthly, weekly daily and hourly reports), length ( short and long reports) and whether they are internal to the business, or are used outside the business. Although the technical content and terminology will vary from report to report, depending on the subject and industry context, the actual "report writing process" will be essentially the same. Whether it's a short 10-pager, or a major 100-plus pager, that "process" will involve the same fundamental steps. The following seven points are what I consider to be the essential steps for writing any business report. Follow these steps carefully and you won't go wrong.

Important steps for Writing Better Business Reports 1. Confirm Exactly What the Client Wants This is a very important initial step. Whether the client is you, or someone else, be sure that everyone is talking about the same thing in terms of final outcome and expectations. When determining this, always think specifically in terms of the final deliverable (usually the final report). What issues must it address? What direction/guidance is it expected to give? What exactly will it contain? What bottom line are they looking for?

2. Determine What Type of Report Is Required This is another very important initial matter to clarify. There are a number of different types of business reports. Although there is usually overlap between the different types, there are also important differences. For example, do they want: a business plan, a business proposal, a strategic plan, a corporate information management plan, a strategic business plan, a marketing plan, a financial plan, or what? Know exactly what type of final report is expected from the outset.

3. Conduct the Initial Research Once you know exactly what the client (or you) wants, and the specific type of report they are looking for, you are ready to conduct your initial pre-report research. This stage may be as simple as collecting and reading a few background documents supplied by the client, or it could involve developing questionnaires and conducting detailed interviews with the appropriate people. It will vary with each situation. The Internet of course, can really simplify and shorten the research process, but don't forget to double and triple check your sources.

4. Write the Table of Contents First In my experience, drafting the Table of Contents (TOC), before you start writing the actual report is the single most important key to developing a successful business report. This document can normally be done before, or in parallel with, the first phase of project information gathering. This should be more than just a rough draft TOC. It should be a carefully thought out breakdown of exactly what you imagine the TOC will look like in the final report. Although this takes a certain amount of time and brain power up-front, it really streamlines the rest of the process. What I do is to actually visualize the final report in my mind's eye and write the contents down. This really works! This TOC then becomes a step-by-step template for the rest of the process. Sidebar: If you're writing the report for an external client, it's a good idea to present the draft Table of Contents to them at this point in the process and get their approval. This will force them to think it through and confirm what they really want at this point. Once they have agreed to a TOC you will have their "buy-in" for the rest of the process, therefore significantly reducing chances of any major changes or reversals at the final report phase.

5. Do Any Additional Research After thinking through the TOC in detail, you will know if any additional research is required. If yes, do this extra information gathering before you sit down and start to actually write the report. That way, once you begin the writing process you will have all of the information needed at hand and you will not have to interrupt the writing process to conduct any further research.

6. Create the Skeleton Document A trick I always use when working with MS-Word is to create a skeleton document first. That is, before you actually write any of the text, enter the entire Table of Contents that you have already developed into MS-Word (see Point 4), heading by heading, including sub-headings. At this point, the document is essentially a sequential series of headings and sub-headings with blank space between them. Then, have MS-Word generate an automatic Table of Contents that exactly matches your planned TOC. You're then ready to start filling in the blank spaces after each heading and sub-heading in the body of the document, with text. Write the Report By Filling In The Blanks That's right, by filling in the blanks. Once the TOC skeleton framework is in-place as per the previous step, writing the actual report becomes almost like filling in the blanks. Just start at the beginning and work your way sequentially through the headings and sub-headings, one at a time, until you get to the end. Really. At that point, with all of the preparation

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Okay, this is not my personal listening problem, but it falls into your category! I was at a party with my husband who was sitting to my right and talking to some guy. I was talking to a girl to my left and she mentioned that she was from Canada. My husband only heard "Canada" and whipped around and burst into our conversation and said," I hate fukcing Canuks!" and then whipped back around to who he was talking to and left

me with my jaw on the floor and no way to make an excuse for him except that he is ADHD and mildly stupid!

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

A man asked his wife what she'd like for her 40th birthday. "I'd love to be six again," she replied. On the morning of her birthday, he got her up bright and early and off they went to a local theme park. What a day! He put her on every ride in the park: the Death Slide, the Screaming Loop, the Wall of Fear, everything there was! Wow! Five hours later she staggered out of the theme park, her head reeling and her stomach upside down. Right to a McDonald's they went, where her husband ordered her a Happy Meal along with extra fries and a refreshing chocolate shake. Then, it was off to a movie - the latest Disney and what a fabulous adventure! Finally, she wobbled home with her husband and collapsed into bed. He leaned over and lovingly asked, "Well, dear, what was it like being six again?" One eye opened. "You idiot, I meant my dress size." The moral of this story is: When a woman speaks and a man is actually listening, he will still get it wrong. •

6 months ago

Listening must be distinguished from audition. Audition is the function and exercise of the sense of hearing, whereas listening is much more global. Listening is simultaneously being sensitive to words, the voice that carries them, and the broader context of human communication. The relationship that links patient and psychoanalyst can be understood as listening, each listening to the other. The psychoanalyst's relation with the patient is different from that of ordinary life. The psychoanalyst listens in silence (silence is an opening into the unconscious), listens without according priority to the content of the words, listens to the voice and the body and the affects expressed through them. The analyst's sensitivity to the effects of the voice is amplified by being in a state of free-floating attention, unaffected by the requirements of dialog, the need to respond, the interplay of ideas, and considerations of politeness. Intonation is a subtle vocal posture and expression, and tone creates a music that influences the analyst's counter-transfer

and warns the analyst against repression. Analytical listening is accompanied by a benevolent, receptive attitude that abstains from all critical evaluation and judgment. Such listening affords patients a space in which, free from visual confrontation, they can deploy their imagination in free association. The psychoanalyst's listening is the patient's guarantee that the Other is present, referring the patient back to the primordial Other and all its successive representations. By listening to what the patient says, the analyst becomes sensitive to the former child, animated by the "instinct to listen" (Bernard This, Piera Aulagnier) to the sounds of the primal scene, among other things. For patients, the psychoanalyst's listening enables them first to hear a voice that refers them back to the benevolent voice of the first stages of life and that they can progressively introject while engaged in free-floating listening, and then to hear words enabling them to bring their histories to life by deploying their own unconscious forces. Patients have a special dialog with the analyst that requires reworking their energies in as complete and free a way as possible. Listening to the analyst's words shatters thought systems and promotes change, the analyst's reflections being brief, incomplete, and ambiguous interventions rather than explanatory interpretations. The two types of listening thus promote the elaboration of a powerful synergy.