COMMUNICATION SKILLS "We all use language to communicate, to express ourselves, to get our ideas across, and to connect

with the person to whom we are speaking. When a relationship is working, the act of communicating seems to flow relatively effortlessly. When a relationship is deteriorating, the act of communicating can be as frustrating as climbing a hill of sand." - Chip Rose, attorney and mediator THE THREE COMPONENTS OF COMMUNICATION On a daily basis we work with people who have different opinions, values, beliefs, and needs than our own. Our ability to exchange ideas with others, understand others' perspectives, solve problems and successfully utilize the steps and processes presented in this training will depend significantly on how effectively we are able to communicate with others. The act of communicating involves verbal, nonverbal, and paraverbal components. The verbal component refers to the content of our message the choice and arrangement of our words. The nonverbal component refers to the message we send through our body language. The paraverbal component refers to how we say what we say - the tone, pacing and volume of our voices. In order to communicate effectively, we must use all three components to do two things: 1. Send clear, concise messages. 2. Hear and correctly understand messages someone is sending to us. Communication Involves Three Components: 1. Verbal Messages - the words we choose 2. Paraverbal Messages - how we say the words 3. Nonverbal Messages - our body language These Three Components Are Used To: 1. Send Clear, Concise Messages 2. Receive and Correctly Understand Messages Sent to Us. SENDING MESSAGES

Verbal Messages Our use of language has tremendous power in the type of atmosphere that is created at the problem-solving table. Words that are critical, blaming, judgmental or accusatory tend to create a resistant and defensive mindset that is not conducive to productive problem solving. On the other hand, we can choose words that normalize the issues and problems and reduce resistance. Phrases such as "in some districts, people may . . .", "it is not uncommon for . . ." and "for some folks in similar situations" are examples of this.

Sending effective messages requires that we state our point of view as briefly and succinctly as possible. Listening to a rambling, unorganized speaker is tedious and discouraging - why continue to listen when there is no interchange? Lengthy dissertations and circuitous explanations are confusing to the listener and the message loses its concreteness, relevance, and impact. This is your opportunity to help the listener understand YOUR perspective and point of view. Choose your words with the intent of making your message as clear as possible, avoiding jargon and unnecessary, tangential information. Effective Verbal Messages: 1. Are brief, succinct, and organized 2. Are free of jargon 3. Do not create resistance in the listener Nonverbal Messages The power of nonverbal communication cannot be underestimated. In his book, Silent Messages, Professor Albert Mehrabian says the messages we send through our posture, gestures, facial expression, and spatial distance account for 55% of what is perceived and understood by others. In fact, through our body language we are always communicating, whether we want to or not! You cannot not communicate.

Nonverbal messages are the primary way that we communicate emotions: Facial Expression: The face is perhaps the most important conveyor of emotional information. A face can light up with enthusiasm, energy, and approval, express confusion or boredom, and scowl with displeasure. The eyes are particularly expressive in telegraphing joy, sadness, anger, or confusion.

Postures and Gestures: Our body postures can create a feeling of warm openness or cold rejection. For example, when someone faces us, sitting quietly with hands loosely folded in the lap, a feeling of anticipation and interest is created. A posture of arms crossed on the chest portrays a feeling of inflexibility. The action of gathering up one's materials and reaching for a purse signals a desire to end the conversation.

Nonverbal Messages: 1. Account for about 55% of what is perceived and understood by others. 2. Are conveyed through our facial expressions as well as our postures and gestures. Paraverbal Messages Paraverbal communication refers to the messages that we transmit through the tone, pitch, and pacing of our voices. It is how we say something, not what we say. Professor Mehrabian states that the paraverbal message accounts for approximately 38% of what is communicated to someone. A sentence can convey entirely different meanings depending

on the emphasis on words and the tone of voice. For example, the statement, "I didn't say you were stupid" has six different meanings, depending on which word is emphasized.

Some points to remember about our paraverbal communication: When we are angry or excited, our speech tends to become more rapid and higher pitched. When we are bored or feeling down, our speech tends to slow and take on a monotone quality. When we are feeling defensive, our speech is often abrupt. Paraverbal Messages: 1. Account for about 38% of what is perceived and understood by others. 2. Include the tone, pitch, and pacing of our voice The Importance of Consistency In all of our communications we want to strive to send consistent verbal, paraverbal and nonverbal messages. When our messages are inconsistent, the listener may become confused. Inconsistency can also create a lack of trust and undermine the chance to build a good working relationship. When a person sends a message with conflicting verbal, paraverbal and nonverbal information, the nonverbal information tends to be believed. Consider the example of someone, through a clenched jaw, hard eyes, and steely voice, telling you they're not mad. Which are you likely to believe? What you see or what you hear? RECEIVING MESSAGES Listening The key to receiving messages effectively is listening. Listening is a combination of hearing what another person says and psychological involvement with the person who is talking. Listening requires more than hearing words. It requires a desire to understand

another human being, an attitude of respect and acceptance, and a willingness to open one's mind to try and see things from another's point of view. Listening requires a high level of concentration and energy. It demands that we set aside our own thoughts and agendas, put ourselves in another's shoes and try to see the world through that person's eyes. True listening requires that we suspend judgment, evaluation, and approval in an attempt to understand another is frame of reference, emotions, and attitudes. Listening to understand is, indeed, a difficult task! Often, people worry that if they listen attentively and patiently to a person who is saying something they disagree with, they are inadvertently sending a message of agreement. When we listen effectively we gain information that is valuable to understanding the problem as the other person sees it. We gain a greater understanding of the other person's perception. After all, the truth is subjective and a matter of perception. When we have a deeper understanding of another's perception, whether we agree with it or not, we hold the key to understanding that person's motivation, attitude, and behavior. We have a deeper understanding of the problem and the potential paths for reaching agreement.

Listening 1. Requires concentration and energy 2. Involves a psychological connection with the speaker 3. Includes a desire and willingness to try and see things from another's perspective 4. Requires that we suspend judgment and evaluation "Listening in dialogue is listening more to meaning than to words . . .In true listening, we reach behind the words, see through them, to find the person who is being revealed.

Listening is a search to find the treasure of the true person as revealed verbally and nonverbally. There is the semantic problem, of course. The words bear a different connotation for you than they do for me. Consequently, I can never tell you what you said, but only what I heard. I will have to rephrase what you have said, and check it out with you to make sure that what left your mind and heart arrived in my mind and heart intact and without distortion." - John Powell, theologian Learning to be an effective listener is a difficult task for many people. However, the specific skills of effective listening behavior can be learned. It is our ultimate goal to integrate these skills into a sensitive and unified way of listening. Key Listening Skills: Nonverbal: Giving full physical attention to the speaker; Being aware of the speaker's nonverbal messages; Verbal: Paying attention to the words and feelings that are being expressed; Using reflective listening tools such as paraphrasing, reflecting, summarizing, and questioning to increase understanding of the message and help the speaker tell his story. Giving Full Physical Attention To The Speaker Attending is the art and skill of giving full, physical attention to another person. In his book, People Skills, Robert Bolton, Ph.D., refers to it as "listening with the whole body". Effective attending is a careful balance of alertness and relaxation that includes appropriate body movement, eye contact, and "posture of involvement". Fully attending says to the speaker, "What you are saying is very important. I am totally present and intent on understanding you". We create a posture of involvement by: Leaning gently towards the speaker; Facing the other person squarely; Maintaining an open posture with arms and legs uncrossed; Maintaining an appropriate distance between us and the speaker;

Moving our bodies in response to the speaker, i.e., appropriate head nodding, facial expressions.

As psychiatrist Franklin Ernst, Jr. writes in his book, Who's Listening?". "To listen is to move. To listen is to be moved by the talker - physically and psychologically . . . The non-moving, unblinking person can reliably be estimated to be a non-listener . . . When other visible moving has ceased and the eyeblink rate has fallen to less than once in six seconds, listening, for practical purposes, has stopped." Being Aware of the Speakers Nonverbal Messages When we pay attention to a speaker's body language we gain insight into how that person is feeling as well as the intensity of the feeling. Through careful attention to body language and paraverbal messages, we are able to develop hunches about what the speaker (or listener) is communicating. We can then, through our reflective listening skills, check the accuracy of those hunches by expressing in our own words, our impression of what is being communicated. Paying Attention to the Words and Feelings In order to understand the total meaning of a message, we must be able to gain understanding about both the feeling and the content of the message. We are often more comfortable dealing with the content rather than the feelings (i.e., the relationship), particularly when the feelings are intense. Our tendency is to try and ignore the emotional aspect of the message/conflict and move directly to the substance of the issues.

This can lead to an escalation of intense emotions. It may be necessary to deal directly with the relationship problem by openly acknowledging and naming the feelings and having an honest discussion about them prior to moving into the substantive issues. If we leave the emotional aspect unaddressed, we risk missing important information about the problem as well as derailing the communication process. Reflective Listening Skills Reflective listening or responding is the process of restating, in our words, the feeling and/or content that is being expressed and is part of the verbal component of sending and receiving messages. By reflecting back to the speaker what we believe we understand, we validate that person by giving them the experience of being heard and acknowledged. We also provide an opportunity for the speaker to give us feedback about the accuracy of our perceptions, thereby increasing the effectiveness of our overall communication. Paraphrasing - This is a concise statement of the content of the speaker's message. A paraphrase should be brief, succinct, and focus on the facts or ideas of the message rather than the feeling. The paraphrase should be in the listener's own words rather than "parroting back", using the speaker's words. "You believe that Jane needs an instructional assistant because she isn't capable of working independently." "You would like Bob to remain in first grade because you think the activities would be more developmentally appropriate." "You do not want Beth to receive special education services because you think it would be humiliating for her to leave the classroom at any time." "You want to evaluate my child because you think he may have an emotional disability. Reflecting Feeling - The listener concentrates on the feeling words and asks herself, "How would I be feeling if I was having that experience?" She then restates or paraphrases the feeling of what she has heard in a manner that conveys understanding.

"You are very worried about the impact that an evaluation might have on Lisa's self esteem". "You are frustrated because dealing with Ben has taken up so much of your time, you feel like you've ignored your other students." "You feel extremely angry about the lack of communication you have had in regards to Joe's failing grades." "You're upset because you haven't been able to get in touch with me when I'm at work." Summarizing - The listener pulls together the main ideas and feelings of the speaker to show understanding. This skill is used after a considerable amount of information sharing has gone on and shows that the listener grasps the total meaning of the message. It also helps the speaker gain an integrated picture of what she has been saying. "You're frustrated and angry that the assessment has taken so long and confused about why the referral wasn't made earlier since that is what you thought had happened. You are also willing to consider additional evaluation if you can choose the provider and the school district will pay for it". "You're worried that my son won't make adequate progress in reading if he doesn't receive special services. And you feel that he needs to be getting those services in the resource room for at least 30 minutes each day because the reading groups in the classroom are bigger and wouldn't provide the type of instruction you think he needs." Additional Verbal Communication Tools A number of other verbal tools encourage communication and facilitate the goal of gaining a more thorough understanding of another's perspective: Questioning - the listener asks open ended questions (questions which can't be answered with a "yes" or a "no") to get information and clarification. This helps focus the speaker on the topic, encourages the speaker to talk, and provides the speaker the opportunity to give feedback. "Can you tell us more about Johnny's experience when he's in the regular classroom?" "How was it for Susie when she rode the special ed. bus for those two weeks?" "Tell us more about the afterschool tutoring sessions." "What kinds of skills do you think are important for Jim to learn in a social skills class?" "Could you explain why you think its difficult for Ben to be on the playground for an hour?"

"I'm confused - are you worried that the testing may mean time out of the classroom for Jim or is there something else?" Verbal Communication Tools 1. Paraphrasing - a brief, succinct statement reflecting the content of the speakers message. 2. Reflecting Feeling - a statement, in a way that conveys understanding, of the feeling that the listener has heard. 3. Summarizing - a statement of the main ideas and feelings to show understanding. 4. Questioning - asking open questions to gain information, encourage the speaker to tell her story, and gain clarification. Barriers to Effective Communication "A barrier to communication is something that keeps meanings from meeting. Meaning barriers exist between all people, making communication much more difficult than most people seem to realize. It is false to assume that if one can talk he can communicate. Because so much of our education misleads people into thinking that communication is easier than it is, they become discouraged and give up when they run into difficulty. Because they do not understand the nature of the problem, they do not know what to do. The wonder is not that communicating is as difficult as it is, but that it occurs as much as it does." - Reuel Howe, theologian and educator When people are under stress, they are more apt to inject communication barriers into their conversation. These barriers can exist in any of the three components of communication (verbal, paraverbal, and nonverbal). According to Thomas Gordon, author of the Parent Effectiveness Training program, people use communication barriers 90% of the time in conflict situations. For this reason, it is worthwhile to describe some of the common responses that will, inevitably, have a negative effect on communications: Verbal Communication Barriers 1. Attacking (interrogating, criticizing, blaming, shaming) "If you were doing your job and supervising Susie in the lunch line we probably wouldn't be in this situation, would we?" "Have you followed through with the counseling we asked you to do? Have you gotten Ben to the doctor's for his medical checkup? Did you call and arrange for a Big Brother? Have you found out if you're eligible for food stamps?"

"From what I can see, you don't have the training to teach a child with ADHD. Obviously if you did you would be using different strategies that wouldn't make her feel like she's a bad person." 2. "You Messages" (moralizing, preaching, advising, diagnosing) "You don't seem to understand how important it is for your child to get this help. Don't you see that he's well on his way to becoming a sociopath?" "You obviously don't realize that if you were following the same steps we do at home you wouldn't be having this problem. You don't seem to care about whats going on in this child's life outside of school." 3. Showing Power (ordering, threatening, commanding, directing) "If you don't voluntarily agree to this evaluation we can take you to due process. Go ahead and file a complaint if you want to." "I'm going to write a letter of complaint to the superintendent and have this in your file if you don't stop humiliating my son in front of his classmates. I know my rights." 4. Other Verbal Barriers: shouting, name calling, refusing to speak. Nonverbal Communication Barriers 1. Flashing or rolling eyes 2. Quick or slow movements 3. Arms crossed, legs crossed 4. Gestures made with exasperation 5. Slouching, hunching over 6. Poor personal care 7. Doodling 8. Staring at people or avoiding eye contact 9. Excessive fidgeting with materials

All of these examples of barriers thwart communication, mutual understanding, respect, problem solving, and identifying solutions that will meet everyone's needs. They put a serious strain on relationships that ultimately need to be collaborative in order to most effectively meet the needs of our children. Use of these "communication errors" results in increased emotional distancing between the parties, escalation in the intensity of the conflict and a negative environment for everyone involved. Effective Communication . . . It is two way. It involves active listening. It reflects the accountability of speaker and listener. It utilizes feedback. It is free of stress. It is clear.

SIX WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR NONVERBAL COMMUNICATIONS It is not only what you say in the classroom that is important, but it's how you say it that can make the difference to students. Nonverbal messages are an essential component of communication in the teaching process. Teachers should be aware of nonverbal behavior in the classroom for three major reasons:

An awareness of nonverbal behavior will allow you to become better

receivers of students' messages. You will become a better sender of signals that reinforce learning. This mode of communication increases the degree of the perceived psychological closeness between teacher and student.

Some major areas of nonverbal behaviors to explore are:

Eye contact Facial expressions Gestures Posture and body orientation Proximity Paralinguistics Humor

Eye contact: Eye contact, an important channel of interpersonal communication, helps regulate the flow of communication. And it signals interest in others. Furthermore, eye contact with audiences increases the speaker's credibility. Teachers who make eye contact open the flow of communication and convey interest, concern, warmth and credibility. Facial expressions: Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits:

Happiness Friendliness Warmth Liking Affiliation

Thus, if you smile frequently you will be perceived as more likable, friendly, warm and approachable. Smiling is often contagious and students will react favorably and learn more. Gestures: If you fail to gesture while speaking, you may be perceived as boring, stiff and unanimated. A lively and animated teaching style captures students' attention, makes the material more interesting, facilitates learning and provides a bit of entertainment. Head nods, a form of gestures, communicate positive reinforcement to students and indicate that you are listening.

Posture and body orientation: You communicate numerous messages by the way you walk, talk, stand and sit. Standing erect, but not rigid, and leaning slightly forward communicates to students that you are approachable, receptive and friendly. Furthermore, interpersonal closeness results when you and your students face each other. Speaking with your back turned or looking at the floor or ceiling should be avoided; it communicates disinterest to your class. Proximity: Cultural norms dictate a comfortable distance for interaction with students. You should look for signals of discomfort caused by invading students' space. Some of these are:

Rocking Leg swinging Tapping Gaze aversion

Typically, in large college classes space invasion is not a problem. In fact, there is usually too much distance. To counteract this, move around the classroom to increase interaction with your students. Increasing proximity enables you to make better eye contact and increases the opportunities for students to speak. Paralinguistics: This facet of nonverbal communication includes such vocal elements as:

Tone Pitch Rhythm Timbre Loudness Inflection

For maximum teaching effectiveness, learn to vary these six elements of your voice. One of the major criticisms is of instructors who speak in a monotone. Listeners perceive these instructors as boring and dull. Students report that they learn less and lose interest more quickly when listening to teachers who have not learned to modulate their voices. Humor: Humor is often overlooked as a teaching tool, and it is too often not encouraged in

college classrooms. Laughter releases stress and tension for both instructor and student. You should develop the ability to laugh at yourself and encourage students to do the same. It fosters a friendly classroom environment that facilitates learning. (Lou Holtz wrote that when his players felt successful he always observed the presence of good humor in the locker room.) Obviously, adequate knowledge of the subject matter is crucial to your success; however, it's not the only crucial element. Creating a climate that facilitates learning and retention demands good nonverbal and verbal skills. To improve your nonverbal skills, record your speaking on video tape. Then ask a colleague in communications to suggest refinements. Business Communication Business Communication is any communication used to promote a product, service, or organization with the objective of making sale. In business communication, message is conveyed through various channels of communication including internet, print (publications), radio, television, outdoor, and word of mouth. In business, communication is considered core among business, interpersonal skills and etiquette. Historical Background Thousands years ago, people use to communicate orally. Greeks use a phonetic alphabet written from left to right. After that, many books appeared on written communication principles. In a result of this, Greek started her very first library. When communism was ruling China, communication had become the biggest challenge within the vast government as well as between government and people. 1st in China and then in Rome postal service was launched. After that paper and printing press was invented in china that made communication easier. Hence, todays principles of communications are founded on a mixture of ancient oral and written traditions. Organization The arrangements between individuals and groups in human society that structure relationships and activities (Business, Political, Religious or social). In other words, A group of people identified by shared interests or purpose, for example, a Bank. Lifeblood of an Organization Communication is the lifeblood of an organization. If we could somehow remove communication flows from an organization, we would not have an organization. It is needed for:

Exchanging information Exchanging options Making plans and proposals Reaching agreement

Executing decisions Sending and fulfilling orders Conducting sales

When communication stops, organized activity ceases to exist. Individual uncoordinated activity returns in an organization. So, Communication in an organization, is as vital as blood for life. Types of Business Communication There are two types of business communication in an organization: 1. Internal Communication 2. External Communication Internal Communication Communication within an organization is called Internal Communication. It includes all communication within an organization. It may be informal or a formal function or department providing communication in various forms to employees. Effective internal communication is a vital mean of addressing organizational concerns. Good communication may help to increase job satisfaction, safety, productivity, and profits and decrease grievances and turnover. Under Internal Business Communication types there come; a) Upward Communication b) Downward Communication c) Horizontal/Literal communication a) Upward Communication Upward communication is the flow of information from subordinates to superiors, or from employees to management. Without upward communication, management works in a vacuum, not knowing if messages have been received properly, or if other problems exist in the organization. By definition, communication is a two-way affair. Yet for effective two-way organizational communication to occur, it must begin from the bottom. Upward Communication is a mean for staff to:
o o o o o

Exchange information Offer ideas Express enthusiasm Achieve job satisfaction Provide feedback

b) Downward Communication Information flowing from the top of the organizational management hierarchy and telling people in the organization what is important (mission) and what is valued (policies). Downward communication generally provides enabling information which allows a subordinate to do something. e.g.: Instructions on how to do a task. Downward communication comes after upward communications have been successfully established. This type of communication is needed in an organization to:
o o o o o o o o o

Transmit vital information Give instructions Encourage 2-way discussion Announce decisions Seek cooperation Provide motivation Boost morale Increase efficiency Obtain feedback

Both Downward & Upward Communications are collectively called Vertical Communication

c) Horizontal/Literal communication Horizontal communication normally involves coordinating information, and allows people with the same or similar rank in an organization to cooperate or collaborate. Communication among employees at the same level is crucial for the accomplishment of work.Horizontal Communication is essential for:
o o o o o

Solving problems Accomplishing tasks Improving teamwork Building goodwill Boosting efficiency

External Communication Communication with people outside the company is called external communication. Supervisors communicate with sources outside the organization, such as vendors and customers. It leads to better;
o o o o

Sales volume Public credibility Operational efficiency Company profits

It should improve
o o o

Overall performancee Public goodwill Corporate image

Ultimately, it helps to achieve

Organizational goals Customer satisfaction

EFFECTIVE INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES Talking to people is often a lot more complex than it sounds. While most of us can talk to nearly anyone, talking to people effectively, using strategic interpersonal communications tools, takes study and preparation. It's surprising how often we fail to really communicate with other people. Acquiring interpersonal communication skills and knowledge with help improve communications with co-workers, constituencies, and members of your own family. Focused Listening Practice the habit of really focusing on an individual when they talk to you. Stop moving. Square your shoulders to the person. Look them in the eye. Give them all your attention and focus. Not only are you more likely to hear the words they are saying, but you will send signals to the speaker that you are in fact listening, engaged, and interested in what they have to say. Focused Hearing Listening and hearing are really two separate skills. You can listen to a lot of talk, but you may not actually hear what is being said to you. Focused hearing means turning off your silent mental comments and reactions while the speaker is speaking. You need to be in hearing mode, not "I'm-thinking-of what-I'm-feeling-while-you-are-talking" mode. You can't hear and talk to yourself at the same time.

Gentle Interruptions If you feel the need to remember something that has just been said to you, rather than making a mental note--and missing information---put your finger up, and ask the speaker to pause "for just a second while I write something down about what you just said that was very important to me." This will enforce a speaker's feeling that you really are listening. You can also use this tactic to cut off or slow down a compulsive talker. Information Checks When someone is telling you something of importance to them that requires your reaction or consent, it helps to be sure you really understand what they are feeling, perceiving, or asking you to do. Check what you heard with what they said. Say, "Now, let me be sure I understand you. You said..." If you've made a mistake, the speaker can correct you before you commit to an bad answer. Balancing the Conversation Once you've listened to the speaker, you can usually answer with your information or reactions. If the other person tries to interrupt you too hastily, raise your hand up, palm facing the other person, and say calmly, "I want to hear your reaction. But please let me finish my last thought first." Wrap up what you had to say in one or two more sentences, and invite the other person to interject. Cut them off gently, and provide more, new information, and then hand the "floor" back to them. Be as generous as you can with speaking time, even if you disagree with the speaker's position. Nonverbal Communications Learn the common nonverbal signals all humans employ to communicate emotions while speaking or listening. Researchers agree that when a person is not telling the truth, they tend to cast their eyes up and to the left. When a person is remembering an event easily and truthfully, they cast their eyes up and to the right or look straight ahead. When a person is having trouble recalling something or is unsure they are correct, they will cast their eyes down and to the right. When they are in total disagreement with you, they will listen and speak with their eyes cast down and to the left. These nonverbal "tells" are related to right and left brain functions. The Power Of Touch Reaching out and touching someone while they, or you, are speaking helps "sell" an idea or anchor a point. While it's not always appropriate to touch other people in conversation, when it is appropriate, it can be very powerful. Many people will be able to remember and connect with something you said at that moment just a few seconds after you reached out and touched them on the hand, arm, or shoulder.

The Seven Cs of Effective Business Communication The message is said to be effective when the receiver understands the same meaning that the sender was intended to convey. For any communication in business, in order to be effective, it must have seven qualities. These seven attributes are called seven Cs of effective business communication. (All these attribute starts with the alphabet C so are called 7 Cs) Seven Cs of Effective Business Communication 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 1. Correctness Clarity Conciseness Completeness Consideration Concreteness Courtesy Correctness

At the time of encoding, if the encoder has comprehensive knowledge about the decoder of message, it makes the communication an ease. The encoder should know the status, knowledge and educational background of the decoder. Correctness means:

Use the right level of language Correct use of grammar, spelling and punctuation Accuracy in stating facts and figures

Correctness in message helps in building confidence. 2. Clarity Clarity demands the use of simple language and easy sentence structure in composing the message. When there is clarity in presenting ideas, its easy for the receiver/decoder to grasp the meaning being conveyed by the sender/encoder.

Clarity makes comprehension easier. 3. Conciseness A concise message saves time of both the sender and the receiver. Conciseness, in a business message, can be achieved by avoiding wordy expressions and repetition. Using brief and to the point sentences, including relevant material makes the message concise. Achieving conciseness does not mean to loose completeness of message. Conciseness saves time. 4. Completeness By completeness means the message must bear all the necessary information to bring the response you desire. The sender should answer all the questions and with facts and figures. and when desirable, go for extra details. Completeness brings the desired response. 5. Consideration Consideration demands to put oneself in the place of receiver while composing a message. It refers to the use of You attitude, emphases positive pleasant facts, visualizing readers problems, desires, emotions and his response. Consideration means understanding of human nature. 6. Concreteness Being definite, vivid and specific rather than vague, obscure and general leads to concreteness of the message. Facts and figures being presented in the message should be specif. Concreteness reinforces confidence. 7. Courtesy

In business, almost everything starts and ends in courtesy. Courtesy means not only thinking about receiver but also valuing his feelings. Much can be achieved by using polite words and gestures, being appreciative, thoughtful, tactful, and showing respect to the receiver. Courtesy builds goodwill. Courtesy strengthen relations.