Jian Xiong is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about virtual communication.
As technology becomes more prevalent in our everyday lives, it is inevitable we rely more on it as a medium of communication. Smart phones, computers, and social media web applications are all part of a burgeoning world of information technology that is just waiting to flood us with a torrent of information and content. With new means of communications, there arise certain issues that we should be aware of to ensure effective communication in the virtual realm. Not only do we become more connected with one another, it is a lot easier to communicate with each other as well. I personally feel that this is a good thing as it promotes better communication for society as a whole.
With the advent of computers, virtual communication has never been easier and cooler. We had telephones in the past, and science fiction films depicted video phone calls. Now, this technology is right in your very hands. If you have an in-built camera on your computer or laptop, you can make such video calls to anyone over the internet. Video call services such as Skype and Google Voice now make it especially convenient for one to video-call their loved ones. Other telephony services such as Jajah are taking advantage of the vast network that is the internet and the fact that the internet is an extremely low cost commodity to disrupt the telecommunications industry. One can now make international phone calls at a very low cost with Jajah and this greatly benefits everyone especially in a world where many people constantly leave their homes and travel for work.
In addition, hardware such as smart phones allows for communication in your pocket. 3G services are now a part of many people’s smart phone plans and this allows for communication right at one’s fingertips. In the past, email was sent via computers, but now smart phones allow us to do this right in our palms. Some people are now so attached to their smart phones that they simply cannot live without them. Heavy Blackberry users who are seemingly attached to their Blackberries affectionately call them “Crackberries” due to their addictive nature. Even traditional mobile phone services such as SMS are now giving way to instant messaging on the smart phone. It just goes to show differently communication has changed as we move from one new technology to another. We transition to a traditional analog form of communication to a sleeker, more powerful form of virtual communication.
On top of the hardware discussed above, web applications such as the various social networks and blogs have also changed how we communicate and express ourselves in the virtual world to a captive audience. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter provide us with the platform to voice our opinion to the world. The internet knows no boundaries and whatever we say on these networks is broadcast to everyone with an internet connection and an internet browser. In this day and age, freedom of speech is now digital and online. This new development in virtual communication is a great way to convey ideas and encourage creative discussion online, just like how online forums were conducive to such discussions in the past.
All in all, virtual communication is something of a new development over the past decade. It is something that still requires more thought and development in terms of policy. We managed to enable effective communication in the past century and now with the new digital medium, we are bound to experience teething problems in handling virtual communication. What is ethical in this boundless virtual world is still a tricky situation. Privacy issues constantly arise in the virtual world and we have to ensure that they are fixed. But it is hard to deny that virtual communication is here to stay and we should continue to make it a great experience beneficial to mankind.
References:
Marshall, Matt. “Jajah promises simple Internet phone, but has hitches” SiliconBeat . Ed. Matt Marshall, 2006. The Mercury News. 4 Oct. 2011
Thompson, Nicholas. “Sir, to Whom May I Direct Your Free Call?” The New York Times. 2003. The New York Times. 4 Oct. 2011.
McIntyre, Sinead. “Blackberry addiction ‘similar to drugs’” Mail Online. 2006. Mail Online. 4 Oct. 2011.
Keen, Andrew. “Social media’s success formula” The Telegraph. 2009. The Telegraph. 4 Oct. 2011.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Guest Post: Hanae Timoulali
Hanae is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about virtual communication.
Context and Virtual Teams
Communication is a central aspect of our daily lives both on the personal and professional level. In fact, we all live to communicate by interacting with each other on a continuous basis and exchanging pieces of information. Today thanks to new technologies and innovations, communication became delocalized. We can now communicate with people in other cities, countries and continents instantaneously. Tools like email clients, instant messaging application and internet telephony clients have revolutionized the way we study, work and live. Organizations, in particular, have been transformed from being centralized to decentralized. Before the proliferation of communication technologies, companies were designed to have nine to five job positions and a workforce located in one central location. Nowadays, the emergence of new communication patterns allowed organizations to be dispersed in different location with flexible working hours and a diversified workforce. The work paradigm became more oriented towards group projects with people situated in different places. The ability to understand and use virtual communication became very crucial and has a great impact on the productivity of the employees.
As a result of this, a new type of teams emerged: virtual teams. They are a great way to enable teamwork while having people in different physical locations. Today, companies are able to cut travel and relocations costs by using virtual communication technologies. Teams use emails, teleconferences, virtual meetings and IP telephony to conduct their meetings. However, the success and effectiveness of virtual teams both depend on the nature of the work to be done, the people and the management style of the team.
Not all projects and assignments are suitable for virtual communication. Sequential or integrated tasks can be challenging due to their heavy reliance on real time exchange of tangible goods, for instance. In the case of manufacturing projects, people will often feel the need to gather around particular objects and products and analyze their tangible properties: shape, dimensions, weight… Thus, organizations have to evaluate the projects and decide whether or not they are suited to be run by virtual teams.
People have different performance levels when it comes to teamwork. Not everyone performs well in virtual team environments. Such types of teams require a lot of self motivation and ability to work independently. Because of the delocalization aspect, virtual team members need to be able to work effectively with little to no external control. In addition to this, people need to be able to present their outcomes clearly through the virtual communication channels. This is where communication skills come into play: everyone on the team should be able to communicate his/her ideas clearly and concisely especially when using channels restricting non-verbal cues such as phone calls and instant messaging.
The management style of the virtual teams is also very critical. Virtual teams, if not managed properly tend to lose focus or build up misunderstandings. Clear and simple communication rules could help alleviate these problems: little to no interruption during interactions and also complete focus on the meeting by minimizing the amount of distractions such as doing other tasks during the meeting. Clear rules and protocols need to be put in place to manage virtual teams. Also, building trust between team members is very critical. Because they are in different location and relying on virtual channels, team members might be skeptical to trusting others they might not have met physically. Thus, virtual teams should be prompted to use ice breakers and socializing techniques designed to be used in virtual communication such as sharing pictures, briefings, general socializing questions unrelated to the work being done… Putting more effort to building a healthy team and team dynamic will eventually payoff in terms of productivity.
Virtual teams are only one aspect of virtual communication. However, they are becoming more and more prevalent in many areas of our lives, which might prompt us to question whether relying on virtual communication is negatively affecting our communication styles and habits. We are continuously replacing physical and face to face communications with virtual ones out of practicality while hiding behind our modern busy lifestyles. Virtual communication has indeed revolutionized our lives, yet it has impeded its human side. As a social species, we should step back and decide on the extent to which we want our lives altered by virtual communication and the areas that we think should be kept intact from it.
Context and Virtual Teams
Communication is a central aspect of our daily lives both on the personal and professional level. In fact, we all live to communicate by interacting with each other on a continuous basis and exchanging pieces of information. Today thanks to new technologies and innovations, communication became delocalized. We can now communicate with people in other cities, countries and continents instantaneously. Tools like email clients, instant messaging application and internet telephony clients have revolutionized the way we study, work and live. Organizations, in particular, have been transformed from being centralized to decentralized. Before the proliferation of communication technologies, companies were designed to have nine to five job positions and a workforce located in one central location. Nowadays, the emergence of new communication patterns allowed organizations to be dispersed in different location with flexible working hours and a diversified workforce. The work paradigm became more oriented towards group projects with people situated in different places. The ability to understand and use virtual communication became very crucial and has a great impact on the productivity of the employees.
As a result of this, a new type of teams emerged: virtual teams. They are a great way to enable teamwork while having people in different physical locations. Today, companies are able to cut travel and relocations costs by using virtual communication technologies. Teams use emails, teleconferences, virtual meetings and IP telephony to conduct their meetings. However, the success and effectiveness of virtual teams both depend on the nature of the work to be done, the people and the management style of the team.
Not all projects and assignments are suitable for virtual communication. Sequential or integrated tasks can be challenging due to their heavy reliance on real time exchange of tangible goods, for instance. In the case of manufacturing projects, people will often feel the need to gather around particular objects and products and analyze their tangible properties: shape, dimensions, weight… Thus, organizations have to evaluate the projects and decide whether or not they are suited to be run by virtual teams.
People have different performance levels when it comes to teamwork. Not everyone performs well in virtual team environments. Such types of teams require a lot of self motivation and ability to work independently. Because of the delocalization aspect, virtual team members need to be able to work effectively with little to no external control. In addition to this, people need to be able to present their outcomes clearly through the virtual communication channels. This is where communication skills come into play: everyone on the team should be able to communicate his/her ideas clearly and concisely especially when using channels restricting non-verbal cues such as phone calls and instant messaging.
The management style of the virtual teams is also very critical. Virtual teams, if not managed properly tend to lose focus or build up misunderstandings. Clear and simple communication rules could help alleviate these problems: little to no interruption during interactions and also complete focus on the meeting by minimizing the amount of distractions such as doing other tasks during the meeting. Clear rules and protocols need to be put in place to manage virtual teams. Also, building trust between team members is very critical. Because they are in different location and relying on virtual channels, team members might be skeptical to trusting others they might not have met physically. Thus, virtual teams should be prompted to use ice breakers and socializing techniques designed to be used in virtual communication such as sharing pictures, briefings, general socializing questions unrelated to the work being done… Putting more effort to building a healthy team and team dynamic will eventually payoff in terms of productivity.
Virtual teams are only one aspect of virtual communication. However, they are becoming more and more prevalent in many areas of our lives, which might prompt us to question whether relying on virtual communication is negatively affecting our communication styles and habits. We are continuously replacing physical and face to face communications with virtual ones out of practicality while hiding behind our modern busy lifestyles. Virtual communication has indeed revolutionized our lives, yet it has impeded its human side. As a social species, we should step back and decide on the extent to which we want our lives altered by virtual communication and the areas that we think should be kept intact from it.
Guest Post: Yiwen Sun
Yiwen is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about virtual communication.
Involve the virtual communication in customer relationship management
Do you enjoy shopping online without wandering around, checking packages feeling like you are always cared and then review for your own shopping experience on the website? It is really interesting to read others stories and share your own feelings with others. The comments on the website really matters our choice of purchase, because we are supposed to make smarter choice after preparation. To a certain extent, the influence of “people seem to like me” is really greater than the so called expertise. The social network seems to help the virtual conversation between customers. It is also a way for company to provide customer with better products and services. The company can view the feedback from their customer and give promotion and the conversation between customers will positively help others to better understand their products. The previous customer relationship management is changing to social customer relationship management based on the birth of a new technology “social network”.
Social customer relationship management (SCRM) is an addition to customer relationship management (CRM). The CRM is constructed on the technology of WEB 1.0, which only deal with the problem of read. It is a one-side communication – the company will post their information on the website and customer can read the information. The feature of this kind of technology is “present”. The SCRM is constructed on the technology of WEB 2.0, which resolve the problem of read and write. It is a two-way communication which really conducts a conversation. The customer makes use of the social network to engage in a virtual dialogue. The customer can interact with the company.
The development of virtual communication also changes the role of customer. In the past, the customers are regards as individuals or passive group. However, they serve as a partner in operation and even competitor currently. They comments on website of company, develop a virtual communication with other customer or the customer service. This significantly affect others decision. Under such background, the traditional way of purchase experience and operation approach revolute a lot (the previous way of exchange transit to the way of transaction). Now we are in the stage of interaction. People interact with each other and produce profit.
In my home country, I would like to view the comment and ranking of restaurant before I have dinner with others. The website of “www.dazhongdianping.com” also provides me with enough information. Some information is put into categories regarding different styles of cooking. I can make a good choice and know more about the specialty in the restaurant and enjoy a better experience. But sometimes I find difficulties in finding the question I really want. The information put onto the internet seems to lack integration. Maybe the next step for virtual communication is to not only conduct such kind of conversation to help customer better understanding the product and company better operate the customer management, but also try to integrate the information to make them more reasonable and effective.
Involve the virtual communication in customer relationship management
Do you enjoy shopping online without wandering around, checking packages feeling like you are always cared and then review for your own shopping experience on the website? It is really interesting to read others stories and share your own feelings with others. The comments on the website really matters our choice of purchase, because we are supposed to make smarter choice after preparation. To a certain extent, the influence of “people seem to like me” is really greater than the so called expertise. The social network seems to help the virtual conversation between customers. It is also a way for company to provide customer with better products and services. The company can view the feedback from their customer and give promotion and the conversation between customers will positively help others to better understand their products. The previous customer relationship management is changing to social customer relationship management based on the birth of a new technology “social network”.
Social customer relationship management (SCRM) is an addition to customer relationship management (CRM). The CRM is constructed on the technology of WEB 1.0, which only deal with the problem of read. It is a one-side communication – the company will post their information on the website and customer can read the information. The feature of this kind of technology is “present”. The SCRM is constructed on the technology of WEB 2.0, which resolve the problem of read and write. It is a two-way communication which really conducts a conversation. The customer makes use of the social network to engage in a virtual dialogue. The customer can interact with the company.
The development of virtual communication also changes the role of customer. In the past, the customers are regards as individuals or passive group. However, they serve as a partner in operation and even competitor currently. They comments on website of company, develop a virtual communication with other customer or the customer service. This significantly affect others decision. Under such background, the traditional way of purchase experience and operation approach revolute a lot (the previous way of exchange transit to the way of transaction). Now we are in the stage of interaction. People interact with each other and produce profit.
In my home country, I would like to view the comment and ranking of restaurant before I have dinner with others. The website of “www.dazhongdianping.com” also provides me with enough information. Some information is put into categories regarding different styles of cooking. I can make a good choice and know more about the specialty in the restaurant and enjoy a better experience. But sometimes I find difficulties in finding the question I really want. The information put onto the internet seems to lack integration. Maybe the next step for virtual communication is to not only conduct such kind of conversation to help customer better understanding the product and company better operate the customer management, but also try to integrate the information to make them more reasonable and effective.
Guest Post: Si Tri Pham
Si is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about real-world presentations.
All of us have to give a presentation at some point in our life and career, be it for a company meeting, a group project, or simply to convince other people about something. Presentations can take many forms, thus many times we don’t formally realize we are doing it. Nonetheless, there are certain key elements that make the success of any presentations. Knowing and mastering those elements would serve you very well in the long run in your life and career.
A successful and effective presentation relies on good content, design, and delivery. Content is what your message is; design is the form in which you present your message; and delivery is how you address it.
A good presentation should have a solid structure that can be easily identified by the audience. You, the presenter, must know the structure in and out to be able to fluidly convey it. If you can’t pinpoint the organization of your presentation, neither can the listeners. Know what you are talking about, and know it well. Doing so clearly states that you have the knowledge and authority to be talking. The opposite holds true as well because if you can’t prove you are knowledgeable of the topic, it really hurts your credibility. Therefore, doing your research and creating a strong structure is crucial to any presentations you might give in the future.
While a good content shows that you are passionate about the topic, a good design communicates that you care and understand your audience. It means you have put time and effort into creating something worth your audience’s time and, sometimes, money. When you show you respect your audience, you are effectively steering their perception about you in the good direction. 99% of the presentations are bad: they are full of text, with no images, no visual aids, etc. Don’t fall in those 99%, even a few hours of designing your presentation can make a significant difference.
Last, but certainly not least, is how you deliver your well-structured content and awesome design. After all, your “listeners” are there to listen to what you have to say. Therefore, how you say it makes the success or failure of your presentation. Pay extra attention on who you deliver to and why are you doing it. It never works completely the very first time, so rehearse, edit, and rehearse more. Getting feedback can be constructive as well. The more you rehearse, the more naturally you will present it.
Follow those simple rules and you will find yourself among the 1% good presentations nowadays.
All of us have to give a presentation at some point in our life and career, be it for a company meeting, a group project, or simply to convince other people about something. Presentations can take many forms, thus many times we don’t formally realize we are doing it. Nonetheless, there are certain key elements that make the success of any presentations. Knowing and mastering those elements would serve you very well in the long run in your life and career.
A successful and effective presentation relies on good content, design, and delivery. Content is what your message is; design is the form in which you present your message; and delivery is how you address it.
A good presentation should have a solid structure that can be easily identified by the audience. You, the presenter, must know the structure in and out to be able to fluidly convey it. If you can’t pinpoint the organization of your presentation, neither can the listeners. Know what you are talking about, and know it well. Doing so clearly states that you have the knowledge and authority to be talking. The opposite holds true as well because if you can’t prove you are knowledgeable of the topic, it really hurts your credibility. Therefore, doing your research and creating a strong structure is crucial to any presentations you might give in the future.
While a good content shows that you are passionate about the topic, a good design communicates that you care and understand your audience. It means you have put time and effort into creating something worth your audience’s time and, sometimes, money. When you show you respect your audience, you are effectively steering their perception about you in the good direction. 99% of the presentations are bad: they are full of text, with no images, no visual aids, etc. Don’t fall in those 99%, even a few hours of designing your presentation can make a significant difference.
Last, but certainly not least, is how you deliver your well-structured content and awesome design. After all, your “listeners” are there to listen to what you have to say. Therefore, how you say it makes the success or failure of your presentation. Pay extra attention on who you deliver to and why are you doing it. It never works completely the very first time, so rehearse, edit, and rehearse more. Getting feedback can be constructive as well. The more you rehearse, the more naturally you will present it.
Follow those simple rules and you will find yourself among the 1% good presentations nowadays.
Guest Post: Miguel Ortega Hesles
Miguel is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about real-world presentations.
Despite the fact that the word presentation could be somewhat scary and closely related to stage fright; presentations are in fact common and not worth damaging your psyche.
Think about it: Life is a real-world presentation. Every day we as human beings (or social animals) are required to communicate, to somehow express our ideas. This idea might feel a bit contradictory because for many (including myself) the word “presentation” comes with the preconception of being in front of a group of people, regurgitating a set of words or ideas predefined in a piece of paper left somewhere.
However, presentations are (according to the etymology) the act of bringing into the presence of (see references). What this means is that every conversation or communication you have are potential presentations. For example, imagine I want to recommend you a restaurant. I could invite you to a room, hook up a laptop to a projector, and show a slideshow full of facts, opinions and images; or, I could just bump into you in the street and recommend you with the same facts and opinions. I could also extend this presentation to a number of people in each of the settings with similar results.
Following the above premise, we should be used to presentations and in fact they should come as easy as speaking (well maybe not that much, but at least easier than they do). Presentations are just like chats: the speaker presents the material and normally answers questions either in real-time or at the end of the presentation. Therefore, we should make presentations just as we do casual conversations.
The first aspect of an efficient real-world presentation is to be prepared, know the subject and the audience. How could I talk about the next IPhone without knowing it? Or how different would the presentation be if I was giving it to CS students rather than third age people? Also, I consider confidence an essential part of the preparation. If you are presenting it is likely that you are one of the people with the most knowledge on the subject (if not the one with the most); others are there to hear you and your point of view on the subject whether it is similar to theirs or not, so be prepared and confident on what you say, I mean you did your research and you aren’t just babbling about something random but something you should feel confident that you know the subject, be passionate.
I believe that visual aid is another aspect of an efficient presentation. We are visual, we like to see things and we tend to understand them better when we see them. It is said than a picture is worth more than a thousand words so use them, but don’t abuse. How many times have you seen presentations that use visual aids like PowerPoint and are just an endless set of slides with text, text, and more text? If that is the case you would probably be better writing a book than giving a presentation. Use slides but use them wisely, a few bullet points with short phrases or key ideas from which you will build more complex ideas, examples or concepts; and, if suitable, sneak a picture that can be related to the concepts. Don’t make images too big; remember they are just aid, not your whole presentation.
References: Online Etymology Dictionary
Despite the fact that the word presentation could be somewhat scary and closely related to stage fright; presentations are in fact common and not worth damaging your psyche.
Think about it: Life is a real-world presentation. Every day we as human beings (or social animals) are required to communicate, to somehow express our ideas. This idea might feel a bit contradictory because for many (including myself) the word “presentation” comes with the preconception of being in front of a group of people, regurgitating a set of words or ideas predefined in a piece of paper left somewhere.
However, presentations are (according to the etymology) the act of bringing into the presence of (see references). What this means is that every conversation or communication you have are potential presentations. For example, imagine I want to recommend you a restaurant. I could invite you to a room, hook up a laptop to a projector, and show a slideshow full of facts, opinions and images; or, I could just bump into you in the street and recommend you with the same facts and opinions. I could also extend this presentation to a number of people in each of the settings with similar results.
Following the above premise, we should be used to presentations and in fact they should come as easy as speaking (well maybe not that much, but at least easier than they do). Presentations are just like chats: the speaker presents the material and normally answers questions either in real-time or at the end of the presentation. Therefore, we should make presentations just as we do casual conversations.
The first aspect of an efficient real-world presentation is to be prepared, know the subject and the audience. How could I talk about the next IPhone without knowing it? Or how different would the presentation be if I was giving it to CS students rather than third age people? Also, I consider confidence an essential part of the preparation. If you are presenting it is likely that you are one of the people with the most knowledge on the subject (if not the one with the most); others are there to hear you and your point of view on the subject whether it is similar to theirs or not, so be prepared and confident on what you say, I mean you did your research and you aren’t just babbling about something random but something you should feel confident that you know the subject, be passionate.
I believe that visual aid is another aspect of an efficient presentation. We are visual, we like to see things and we tend to understand them better when we see them. It is said than a picture is worth more than a thousand words so use them, but don’t abuse. How many times have you seen presentations that use visual aids like PowerPoint and are just an endless set of slides with text, text, and more text? If that is the case you would probably be better writing a book than giving a presentation. Use slides but use them wisely, a few bullet points with short phrases or key ideas from which you will build more complex ideas, examples or concepts; and, if suitable, sneak a picture that can be related to the concepts. Don’t make images too big; remember they are just aid, not your whole presentation.
References: Online Etymology Dictionary
Guest Post: Miao Liu
Miao is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about real-world presentations.
In my opinion, real-world presentations are those presentations given outside the classroom. For examples, president Obama's national speech, Steve Jobs’ s presentation on new product release, Jay Leno's television show, etc. In our daily life, we deliver presentations at work, usually for team/boss or clients; we are also exposed to all kinds of presentations such as sales reps' persuasive pitch.
Human are social species, we need communication. Presentation is a effective way to exchange information, deliver ideas, inform public and inspire/motivate people.
I had an internship with OCLC before, and I was asked to give a presentation on my project before I left. This was a real-world presentation. I presented in front of our department director, managers and whole sales and marketing team. My project was developing a central billing database for sales reps. Other than how I designed and implemented the database, I also gave instruments on how to use the database to perform data analysis and pull reports. After the presentation, the primary users of the database had a good knowledge of handling the new tool for their business.
How to achieve a good presentation? The most important element is knowing your audience. If you know well what your audience want, it is possible to give an effective and meaningful presentation. Second, the purpose of presentation must be clear. If your audience don't take an action after listening to you, your presentation fails. Third, you need to well-prepared and structure your presentation creatively. Lead people into your presentation by allowing interaction and participation. In a word, making the presentation useful for others is the ultimate goal.
In my opinion, real-world presentations are those presentations given outside the classroom. For examples, president Obama's national speech, Steve Jobs’ s presentation on new product release, Jay Leno's television show, etc. In our daily life, we deliver presentations at work, usually for team/boss or clients; we are also exposed to all kinds of presentations such as sales reps' persuasive pitch.
Human are social species, we need communication. Presentation is a effective way to exchange information, deliver ideas, inform public and inspire/motivate people.
I had an internship with OCLC before, and I was asked to give a presentation on my project before I left. This was a real-world presentation. I presented in front of our department director, managers and whole sales and marketing team. My project was developing a central billing database for sales reps. Other than how I designed and implemented the database, I also gave instruments on how to use the database to perform data analysis and pull reports. After the presentation, the primary users of the database had a good knowledge of handling the new tool for their business.
How to achieve a good presentation? The most important element is knowing your audience. If you know well what your audience want, it is possible to give an effective and meaningful presentation. Second, the purpose of presentation must be clear. If your audience don't take an action after listening to you, your presentation fails. Third, you need to well-prepared and structure your presentation creatively. Lead people into your presentation by allowing interaction and participation. In a word, making the presentation useful for others is the ultimate goal.
Guest Post: Jose Leon Liu
Jose is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about real-world meetings.
Another meeting? Really?
Jason Fried and David Hansson, founders of 37Signals, created the web application framework Ruby on Rails, which literally changed the web. The two young entrepreneurs shared many tips on how to be productive in the work environment in their book Reworki. “There's nothing more toxic to productivity than a meeting” and “Every minute you avoid spending in a meeting is a minute you can get real work done instead” are some of the thoughts that they have for meetings. Meetings can easily become a waste of time by going off focus. Not to mention meetings convened without a focus, or at least an important one for all attendees. Not only do meetings consume time, but also “break your work day into smaller pieces that disrupt your natural workflow” as stated in Rework. Without proper follow up, meetings can be merely a conversation without any future action or follow up. Interestingly, some of the best tips on how to have productive meetings take place before and after the meeting.
First of all, have a clear agenda of the meeting. Agendas help the members of the meeting to be informed and prepared for the topics that will be discussed. The agenda should contain a list of topics that will be discussed. For each topic, a maximum amount of time should be set. Also, each topic should have a moderator in charge of managing the conversation or presenting some sort of information. The moderator has to carefully avoid the conversation going off topic. Even if new issues emerge, they should be briefly discussed or postponed. Invite as few people as possible. Someone not involved in the topics to be discussed will not only lose his time, but also make everyone else lose their time by asking irrelevant questions or talking nonsense. All members of the meeting should receive the agenda in advance.
The meeting should not end without a plan of action or a matrix of responsibilities. If no one takes action of what was discussed in a meeting, then all the members just lost their time chatting. It is always good to have a memorandum of the meeting. Unresolved topics that still need another meeting should be scheduled before the meeting is over.
A good example of efficient meeting management is Scrum, a project management framework. Scrum holds daily scrum meetingsii. The meetings are so brief (usually less than 5 minutes and, by rule, no more than 15 minutes) that everyone should be standing. In the scrum meeting, each member mentions his latest achievements, his work plan for the day and finally any problems that prevent him from reaching his goal.
Meetings can really be unproductive and before convening one, think twice about wasting the valuable time of the attendees. Distributing an agenda will help ensure all attendees come prepared for the meeting. Following the agenda will aid in keeping the focus of the current topic, thus maximizing the productivity of all attendees. At the meetings end, the moderator should summarize the plan of action and all attendees should receive a memorandum.
References: Fried, J and Hansson, D. Rework. 2010., Mountain Goat Software. The Daily Scrum Meeting.
Jason Fried and David Hansson, founders of 37Signals, created the web application framework Ruby on Rails, which literally changed the web. The two young entrepreneurs shared many tips on how to be productive in the work environment in their book Reworki. “There's nothing more toxic to productivity than a meeting” and “Every minute you avoid spending in a meeting is a minute you can get real work done instead” are some of the thoughts that they have for meetings. Meetings can easily become a waste of time by going off focus. Not to mention meetings convened without a focus, or at least an important one for all attendees. Not only do meetings consume time, but also “break your work day into smaller pieces that disrupt your natural workflow” as stated in Rework. Without proper follow up, meetings can be merely a conversation without any future action or follow up. Interestingly, some of the best tips on how to have productive meetings take place before and after the meeting.
First of all, have a clear agenda of the meeting. Agendas help the members of the meeting to be informed and prepared for the topics that will be discussed. The agenda should contain a list of topics that will be discussed. For each topic, a maximum amount of time should be set. Also, each topic should have a moderator in charge of managing the conversation or presenting some sort of information. The moderator has to carefully avoid the conversation going off topic. Even if new issues emerge, they should be briefly discussed or postponed. Invite as few people as possible. Someone not involved in the topics to be discussed will not only lose his time, but also make everyone else lose their time by asking irrelevant questions or talking nonsense. All members of the meeting should receive the agenda in advance.
The meeting should not end without a plan of action or a matrix of responsibilities. If no one takes action of what was discussed in a meeting, then all the members just lost their time chatting. It is always good to have a memorandum of the meeting. Unresolved topics that still need another meeting should be scheduled before the meeting is over.
A good example of efficient meeting management is Scrum, a project management framework. Scrum holds daily scrum meetingsii. The meetings are so brief (usually less than 5 minutes and, by rule, no more than 15 minutes) that everyone should be standing. In the scrum meeting, each member mentions his latest achievements, his work plan for the day and finally any problems that prevent him from reaching his goal.
Meetings can really be unproductive and before convening one, think twice about wasting the valuable time of the attendees. Distributing an agenda will help ensure all attendees come prepared for the meeting. Following the agenda will aid in keeping the focus of the current topic, thus maximizing the productivity of all attendees. At the meetings end, the moderator should summarize the plan of action and all attendees should receive a memorandum.
References: Fried, J and Hansson, D. Rework. 2010., Mountain Goat Software. The Daily Scrum Meeting.
Guest Post: Kyle Johnson
Kyle is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about real-world meetings.
The other day I was standing at the bus stop and reading a Harvard Business Review article called “How to Run a Meeting” by Antony Jay. I was struggling with how to write a blog post for an upcoming assignment I have for a Professional Speaking class I am taking in graduate school. My hope was that the article could give me some direction towards what to discuss in my post and or perhaps stir up some forgotten horror story I could tell about a meeting from my past, but the article wasn’t helping. I just could not come up with a decent topic.
Meanwhile, a frazzled looking man who looked to be in his late 30’s to early 40’s jogged up and asked “Will the next bus take me to Green Tree?” I said that I wasn’t quite sure about that geography of Pittsburgh and that all I knew was that the 61B goes North on Braddock to West on Forbes. I promptly looked down at my article and began to read, feeling the pressure of my upcoming assignment on top of all the other class assignments I also had due.
He then said, “Oh good. That will take me close enough to walk.” I didn’t respond. I was trying to show that I was busy and didn’t have time to help a stranger find his way home.
He then asked, “What are you reading?” I waited a second to reply, really trying to hint to him that I was not interested in him or any of his questions. Then I said, “It’s an article about how to run a meeting. I am reading it for a class I have on professional speaking at CMU.”
He then went on to describe in quite a lengthy fashion about how his nephew studied material sciences and structural engineering at CMU and some other links he had to the school that I didn’t care about. As soon as he finished those stories, he went into how he had also gone to graduate school. He studied Marriage and Family Therapy at a PhD program in California. I began to worry that he might collapse from talking too much in between breaths.
At this point I was getting frustrated. I was trying to show him in every way that I could (Aside from being overtly rude and just telling him to not talk to me) that I was not interested in his stories. I was busy. I was stressed about how much work I had to do. And I was frustrated at the constant pull of distractions that seemed to be attacking me from every angle.
At this point I was getting frustrated. I was trying to show him in every way that I could (Aside from being overtly rude and just telling him to not talk to me) that I was not interested in his stories. I was busy. I was stressed about how much work I had to do. And I was frustrated at the constant pull of distractions that seemed to be attacking me from every angle.
We talked about how I took a few psychology classes on families in my undergraduate studies, and about all the interesting people he has met through his counseling work. We talked about how one of the tips that has most stuck with me from all of those classes was a technique that encourages quality communication when family members are working through a really contentious issue. The idea came from a book called “Fighting for your Marriage” by Scott Stanley, Susan Blumberg and Howard Markman.
The technique basically comes down to two key actions. The first is that when a couple talks about an issue that often leads to arguments, the speaker should hold some sort of item that signifies he/she is on the “Pedestal”. It can be a rock, a spoon, whatever. The point is that when the speaker has that item, he/she is the only one allowed to talk. Before the other spouse wants to take that item and say some of their own thoughts, they must repeat in their own words what the previous speaker said. The strength of this technique is that it forces the listener to actually comprehend what the speaker is saying. It also validates the listener because they now know that they are being understood and given a voice in the matter.
We talked about this technique’s worth in all sorts of settings in which contentious discussions occur. So often in business meetings, the speaker is not being heard because the other members of the committee are too busy trying to formulate their own come-backs and counter arguments. People are speaking but true communication is not happening. The meeting gets too focused on whose side is going to win, not on trying to understand why the other group thinks the way that they do.
That was about all we had time for because my new friend (Dan) was getting off the bus in Squirrel Hill. We ended our conversation with a handshake and a “It was good meeting you this morning.” Suddenly remembering all the work I hadn’t been doing, I gave a little gasp and reached for my back pack.
Then I suddenly caught myself, laughed and sat back in my chair. I did not need to finish the article to try and find blog post inspiration. I already knew what I wanted to say.
The other day I was standing at the bus stop and reading a Harvard Business Review article called “How to Run a Meeting” by Antony Jay. I was struggling with how to write a blog post for an upcoming assignment I have for a Professional Speaking class I am taking in graduate school. My hope was that the article could give me some direction towards what to discuss in my post and or perhaps stir up some forgotten horror story I could tell about a meeting from my past, but the article wasn’t helping. I just could not come up with a decent topic.
Meanwhile, a frazzled looking man who looked to be in his late 30’s to early 40’s jogged up and asked “Will the next bus take me to Green Tree?” I said that I wasn’t quite sure about that geography of Pittsburgh and that all I knew was that the 61B goes North on Braddock to West on Forbes. I promptly looked down at my article and began to read, feeling the pressure of my upcoming assignment on top of all the other class assignments I also had due.
He then said, “Oh good. That will take me close enough to walk.” I didn’t respond. I was trying to show that I was busy and didn’t have time to help a stranger find his way home.
He then asked, “What are you reading?” I waited a second to reply, really trying to hint to him that I was not interested in him or any of his questions. Then I said, “It’s an article about how to run a meeting. I am reading it for a class I have on professional speaking at CMU.”
He then went on to describe in quite a lengthy fashion about how his nephew studied material sciences and structural engineering at CMU and some other links he had to the school that I didn’t care about. As soon as he finished those stories, he went into how he had also gone to graduate school. He studied Marriage and Family Therapy at a PhD program in California. I began to worry that he might collapse from talking too much in between breaths.
At this point I was getting frustrated. I was trying to show him in every way that I could (Aside from being overtly rude and just telling him to not talk to me) that I was not interested in his stories. I was busy. I was stressed about how much work I had to do. And I was frustrated at the constant pull of distractions that seemed to be attacking me from every angle.
At this point I was getting frustrated. I was trying to show him in every way that I could (Aside from being overtly rude and just telling him to not talk to me) that I was not interested in his stories. I was busy. I was stressed about how much work I had to do. And I was frustrated at the constant pull of distractions that seemed to be attacking me from every angle.
We talked about how I took a few psychology classes on families in my undergraduate studies, and about all the interesting people he has met through his counseling work. We talked about how one of the tips that has most stuck with me from all of those classes was a technique that encourages quality communication when family members are working through a really contentious issue. The idea came from a book called “Fighting for your Marriage” by Scott Stanley, Susan Blumberg and Howard Markman.
The technique basically comes down to two key actions. The first is that when a couple talks about an issue that often leads to arguments, the speaker should hold some sort of item that signifies he/she is on the “Pedestal”. It can be a rock, a spoon, whatever. The point is that when the speaker has that item, he/she is the only one allowed to talk. Before the other spouse wants to take that item and say some of their own thoughts, they must repeat in their own words what the previous speaker said. The strength of this technique is that it forces the listener to actually comprehend what the speaker is saying. It also validates the listener because they now know that they are being understood and given a voice in the matter.
We talked about this technique’s worth in all sorts of settings in which contentious discussions occur. So often in business meetings, the speaker is not being heard because the other members of the committee are too busy trying to formulate their own come-backs and counter arguments. People are speaking but true communication is not happening. The meeting gets too focused on whose side is going to win, not on trying to understand why the other group thinks the way that they do.
That was about all we had time for because my new friend (Dan) was getting off the bus in Squirrel Hill. We ended our conversation with a handshake and a “It was good meeting you this morning.” Suddenly remembering all the work I hadn’t been doing, I gave a little gasp and reached for my back pack.
Then I suddenly caught myself, laughed and sat back in my chair. I did not need to finish the article to try and find blog post inspiration. I already knew what I wanted to say.
Guest Post: Le Guan
Le is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about real-world meetings.
Before I talk about how to run an effective meeting, it is better to start with discussing what the purpose of a meeting is. I think the main purpose of a meeting, especially in business, is to take actions. It is not to share experience with each other or to feel warm, although these might be important. As a result, the standard of a successful meeting is mainly about what objective you set and how you stick to it.
Before starting a meeting, you should be very clear of what goal to achieve in this meeting. Is it to make a decision, to find possible solutions or to make plans? Anything you talk in a meeting should focus on the objective so that the meeting can process efficiently and everyone in the meeting will have their own accomplishment.
Then the issue comes to the details about how to do actually in a meeting. As a leader or an organizer, you have to use time wisely. So start a meeting on time even if someone has not arrived because he or she will feel shame to do it again. Also, it is always a good idea to set agenda so that you can easily figure out what and when to do next. Rather than free talking, sticking to schedule will save you a lot of time, especially in a large meeting.
In addition, meeting is not a presentation or a dictatorial speaking. What is important is that everyone in the meeting can involve and participate in the topic. As a leader, your job is not to dominate the conversation, but to make sure every participant can get into the discussion and to come up with ideas in a creative way, which beyond individual thought before attending the meeting.
There are also some trivial details that are easy to neglect in the meeting. For example, you need to be well prepared for both the content talking in the meeting and the environment where the meeting is held. A well decorated room will make participants feel comfortable so that they might contribute more in discussion. After the meeting is over, take some time to debrief, and determine what went well and what could have been done better. Evaluate the meeting's effectiveness based on how well you met the objective. This will help you continue to improve your process of running effective meetings.
References: Running Effective Meetings
Before I talk about how to run an effective meeting, it is better to start with discussing what the purpose of a meeting is. I think the main purpose of a meeting, especially in business, is to take actions. It is not to share experience with each other or to feel warm, although these might be important. As a result, the standard of a successful meeting is mainly about what objective you set and how you stick to it.
Before starting a meeting, you should be very clear of what goal to achieve in this meeting. Is it to make a decision, to find possible solutions or to make plans? Anything you talk in a meeting should focus on the objective so that the meeting can process efficiently and everyone in the meeting will have their own accomplishment.
Then the issue comes to the details about how to do actually in a meeting. As a leader or an organizer, you have to use time wisely. So start a meeting on time even if someone has not arrived because he or she will feel shame to do it again. Also, it is always a good idea to set agenda so that you can easily figure out what and when to do next. Rather than free talking, sticking to schedule will save you a lot of time, especially in a large meeting.
In addition, meeting is not a presentation or a dictatorial speaking. What is important is that everyone in the meeting can involve and participate in the topic. As a leader, your job is not to dominate the conversation, but to make sure every participant can get into the discussion and to come up with ideas in a creative way, which beyond individual thought before attending the meeting.
There are also some trivial details that are easy to neglect in the meeting. For example, you need to be well prepared for both the content talking in the meeting and the environment where the meeting is held. A well decorated room will make participants feel comfortable so that they might contribute more in discussion. After the meeting is over, take some time to debrief, and determine what went well and what could have been done better. Evaluate the meeting's effectiveness based on how well you met the objective. This will help you continue to improve your process of running effective meetings.
References: Running Effective Meetings
Guest Post: Chengyao Gu
Chengyao is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about getting the job you want.
Lucky or Smart?
How to get the job you want? In most cases, we obtain the job opportunities as we expect and get fully ready; in other situations, however, jobs just come to us ‘by accident’. Today, I’d like to share some stories of my friend and myself, focusing on how to seize the job opportunity by consistent efforts or by coincidence, or maybe both.
One of my buddies Jason, a 22-year-old fresh undergrad, told me recently that he hopped from a local vehicle outlet to an international automobile corporation. Acquainted with Jason and his sales talent, I was not stunned by the promotion itself. Actually, what interested me most, was how he met with his new boss! He was playing online racing game at some weekend, and he hopped the job! That’s it? Yes, that’s all. Because the one who was playing on the other side of the online game with Jason was that ‘boss’. While chatting causally after the game, the boss found Jason knew a lot about the automobile market, including the models, trend, customer segmentation. And most importantly, boss found Jason a good person to work with. He liked Jason! So he offered the position of assistant sales manager.
The magical story provides several insights:
- Your specialties as well as extensive knowledge are the key to getting offers;
- In some unofficial context, there also exist job openings. Go and grab it;
- When someone likes you, especially when ‘someone’ refers to your boss-to-be, there is a good chance he will be your boss in the end.
You may say ‘oh, it’s quite lucky of your buddy Jason. Little chance of us to run into our boss of same hobby.’ That’s true. Actually, the common case is that we have already had a clear vision of what company to go or what position to hold. And what we need to do is just get prepared, prepared and prepared! Make ourselves a perfect fit to the certain position of the certain company. This reminds me of my interview experience with BI team in eBay. To be frank, I’ve got three chances of interview before finally getting into BI team. After each of the first two unsuccessful interview, I reflected on my performance while collecting the feedback from my interviewers. Then I upgraded my technical and soft skills, especially those needed for BI position. After almost one year, I felt ready. And by writing emails to those interviewers and managed to get another chance of interview. This time, I made it!
Thus, in either story I mentioned above, if you are the person the companies want and if you let them know that you are the right one, then the jobs are not that far from you.
Lucky or Smart?
How to get the job you want? In most cases, we obtain the job opportunities as we expect and get fully ready; in other situations, however, jobs just come to us ‘by accident’. Today, I’d like to share some stories of my friend and myself, focusing on how to seize the job opportunity by consistent efforts or by coincidence, or maybe both.
One of my buddies Jason, a 22-year-old fresh undergrad, told me recently that he hopped from a local vehicle outlet to an international automobile corporation. Acquainted with Jason and his sales talent, I was not stunned by the promotion itself. Actually, what interested me most, was how he met with his new boss! He was playing online racing game at some weekend, and he hopped the job! That’s it? Yes, that’s all. Because the one who was playing on the other side of the online game with Jason was that ‘boss’. While chatting causally after the game, the boss found Jason knew a lot about the automobile market, including the models, trend, customer segmentation. And most importantly, boss found Jason a good person to work with. He liked Jason! So he offered the position of assistant sales manager.
The magical story provides several insights:
- Your specialties as well as extensive knowledge are the key to getting offers;
- In some unofficial context, there also exist job openings. Go and grab it;
- When someone likes you, especially when ‘someone’ refers to your boss-to-be, there is a good chance he will be your boss in the end.
You may say ‘oh, it’s quite lucky of your buddy Jason. Little chance of us to run into our boss of same hobby.’ That’s true. Actually, the common case is that we have already had a clear vision of what company to go or what position to hold. And what we need to do is just get prepared, prepared and prepared! Make ourselves a perfect fit to the certain position of the certain company. This reminds me of my interview experience with BI team in eBay. To be frank, I’ve got three chances of interview before finally getting into BI team. After each of the first two unsuccessful interview, I reflected on my performance while collecting the feedback from my interviewers. Then I upgraded my technical and soft skills, especially those needed for BI position. After almost one year, I felt ready. And by writing emails to those interviewers and managed to get another chance of interview. This time, I made it!
Thus, in either story I mentioned above, if you are the person the companies want and if you let them know that you are the right one, then the jobs are not that far from you.
Guest Post: Jawad Diab Damir
Jawad is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about getting the job you want.
One of the issues that greatly disturb the student, especially in the graduation year, is securing a job. A recent research in Britain has revealed that three out of four students worry they will be out of work when they graduate. In this blog post, getting the job you want, we present a reasonable approach for getting the job that the student is looking for.
The first step in the proposed approach is to specify a job preference. In this step, the student should determine which kind of job he or she is looking for. To know more about the market needs, the student can consult the career services at his school or the people who work in the same industry. Moreover, the student should consider the other criteria that limit his or her options. Criteria might include the business type, the company location, size, and reputation, as well as any other criteria that the student feel is important to his or her decision. Each student is expected to assign different weights to the criteria.
Once the preference is determined and the other criteria are specified, the student should prepare a list of all companies that have an available position that satisfies his or her preferences. The list might be prepared from different sources; such as the university career services website, public job websites, newspapers, business social networks, companies’ information sessions, as well as any other sources that the student might use to find jobs. The list should include information about the company name, location and contact info, the position title, and the required skills for this position. After preparing the first draft of the list, the student can search more sources to expand the list, or to filter the list.
At this time, the student should have prepared the resume. The resume is a document used by employers to explore the job seeker’s abilities, skills, education, experience, and any other information that might be helpful for the recruiter to make the employment decision. The resume should be typed in a way that is clear and easy to read. For students with 2 or less years of professional experience, a one page resume is preferred. Despite that there is no specific format for resumes, a common sense for formatting resumes exist. For example, the first section in the resume is usually the objective section; which explains why the student is applying for the job. Furthermore, the education section usually comes before the work experience section, and the items in both sections are ordered chronologically. There are many websites that provide detailed information about the resume format, style, and guidelines.
Then the student should send the resume to the companies on the list. The student might send a customized resume for each company or a general resume for all companies. If the student is found eligible for the position, he or she should expect a call or email from the company to schedule an interview. Simple questions about the job preference and future plans may be asked during this call. During the interview, the student is encouraged to have a copy of the resume. The rational for this recommendation is that many of the questions asked in the interview are derived from the resume; and so, the student can expect the next question before he or she is asked about it. If called for a second interview, the student should use the questions raised in the first interview as a roadmap to prepare for the second interview.
Finally, the student should keep in touch with the employer; even that he or she didn't get the job.
One of the issues that greatly disturb the student, especially in the graduation year, is securing a job. A recent research in Britain has revealed that three out of four students worry they will be out of work when they graduate. In this blog post, getting the job you want, we present a reasonable approach for getting the job that the student is looking for.
The first step in the proposed approach is to specify a job preference. In this step, the student should determine which kind of job he or she is looking for. To know more about the market needs, the student can consult the career services at his school or the people who work in the same industry. Moreover, the student should consider the other criteria that limit his or her options. Criteria might include the business type, the company location, size, and reputation, as well as any other criteria that the student feel is important to his or her decision. Each student is expected to assign different weights to the criteria.
Once the preference is determined and the other criteria are specified, the student should prepare a list of all companies that have an available position that satisfies his or her preferences. The list might be prepared from different sources; such as the university career services website, public job websites, newspapers, business social networks, companies’ information sessions, as well as any other sources that the student might use to find jobs. The list should include information about the company name, location and contact info, the position title, and the required skills for this position. After preparing the first draft of the list, the student can search more sources to expand the list, or to filter the list.
At this time, the student should have prepared the resume. The resume is a document used by employers to explore the job seeker’s abilities, skills, education, experience, and any other information that might be helpful for the recruiter to make the employment decision. The resume should be typed in a way that is clear and easy to read. For students with 2 or less years of professional experience, a one page resume is preferred. Despite that there is no specific format for resumes, a common sense for formatting resumes exist. For example, the first section in the resume is usually the objective section; which explains why the student is applying for the job. Furthermore, the education section usually comes before the work experience section, and the items in both sections are ordered chronologically. There are many websites that provide detailed information about the resume format, style, and guidelines.
Then the student should send the resume to the companies on the list. The student might send a customized resume for each company or a general resume for all companies. If the student is found eligible for the position, he or she should expect a call or email from the company to schedule an interview. Simple questions about the job preference and future plans may be asked during this call. During the interview, the student is encouraged to have a copy of the resume. The rational for this recommendation is that many of the questions asked in the interview are derived from the resume; and so, the student can expect the next question before he or she is asked about it. If called for a second interview, the student should use the questions raised in the first interview as a roadmap to prepare for the second interview.
Finally, the student should keep in touch with the employer; even that he or she didn't get the job.
Guest Post: Daniel Decapria
Daniel is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here he writes about getting the job you want.
“So tell me a little bit about yourself”….the introductory, catch-all question by anyone going through a first interview. We’ve all sat at that conference table well dressed in a suit, freshly printed resume on the table, unsure of the conversation ahead. Your mind is racing – will my years of education be challenged through tests and problems? Or, will they be interested in my experience? Regardless, my future lays in the outcome of “tell me a little about yourself?” and subsequent problems. So how do I prove that I deserve this job? It’s ok. Remember, you’re prepared for this.
First, keep it clear. Be concise, be thorough, and be strategic when you answer each and every question. Don’t ramble, and stick to things that you know well because you’ll probably begin to say detrimental things. If you need, take a moment after the question to collect your thoughts then proceed. When you respond, word your answer from beginning to end of thought. Provide complete ideas or solutions to a problem.
Next, show off a bit. Don’t be modest with your education or experience background. Trust that you’ve got the skills and background needed to get the job down. Show it off by providing visuals, physical examples. If asked, provide a mathematical proof, I don’t know, of Cauchy’s Mean Value Theorem on a white board - that’ll do. Provide a visual and you are less likely to be forgotten.
Finally, be interesting and interested. The former means – don’t provide answers you think they want to hear. Give honest thoughts or solutions. Reference your experience, provide examples, and name-drop if you have to. The more you can provide identifiers to your background, the more likely the interviewer(s) will trust your skills and in you. The latter, be interested in the interviewer(s). If you’re able to turn the interview into a conversation, you’ve advanced your chances of landing that job. Positively reinforce your personal branding and be confident to ask questions about your interviewer’s background with the company and see if you have any common ground professionally.
To conclude, reinforce that you’re the right fit for the position – it’s your job to get the job. Wrap up the conversation well; obtain contact information and thank them for their time, but don’t think your work is over when you leave the room. Perform a self post-mortem of your experience to learn from in the future. Then you can send a follow-up response to not only express your thanks but as an opportunity to revisit the conversation and confirm your passion and enthusiasm for the position. “Tell me a little about yourself” is now a great segue into “so, when can you start.”
Guest Post: Xuling Chen
Xuling is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about real-world oral communication.
Avoid Awkwardness in Conversations
What contributes to a comfortable conversation? I think no awkwardness is an important aspect. Here I will share with you some of my thoughts on how to avoid awkwardness in conversations. Let's start with a little story.
In the first date with Susan, John saw a boy wearing a T-shirt marked with Manchester United. As a fan of Man Utd, John started to talk about how he loved Man Utd. However, Susan knew nothing about soccer and she didn't want to listen to John's long speech about soccer. So she said, "Hmm, I am sorry but I am not interested in soccer. Could we change to another topic?" Then John, who was in high spirits, suddenly had no words. There came the awkward silence.
How the embarrassing situation came up? It is because John chose a less common topic and Susan interrupted his talking abruptly without thinking about John's feelings. For John, he should more carefully choose a topic to make sure both can enjoy the conversation. And for Susan, what should she do when others already talk about a topic she doesn't like? Pretended to be interested and kept listening? That is a viable way but if John found out that she pretended to do so, John might not be happy because he would feel like being cheated. A better way is to think up a topic that they both have some words to say about and then switch to that topic smoothly. For example, Susan could say, "So do you want to watch the games in England? Do you have any travel plans?" Then the topic would switch to travel. Or she could also say, "My brother loves soccer as well. And he also loves music. Do you love music too? What else do you like?" Then the topic might switch to hobbies. Thus Susan doesn't need to pretend to be interested in soccer and there is no embarrassing interruption in the conversation either.
Therefore, to avoid the awkwardness in conversation, the first thing you need do is to choose a common topic. And if you are already talking an embarrassing topic, such as a topic you have little knowledge about or you have no interest in, don't interrupt others' talking abruptly. Instead, you should think up a more common topic and change to that topic gently and cleverly. When changing the topic, don't show weariness in your voice or face or other body language.
There are many other important points on having good conversations, such as putting yourself in others' places, keeping eye contact, listening carefully when others are talking, etc. All these points including avoiding awkwardness come down to "Think for others". Thinking for others is always a good way to have nice conversations since communication involves not only yourself. So in a word, think for others to avoid awkwardness in conversations.
What contributes to a comfortable conversation? I think no awkwardness is an important aspect. Here I will share with you some of my thoughts on how to avoid awkwardness in conversations. Let's start with a little story.
In the first date with Susan, John saw a boy wearing a T-shirt marked with Manchester United. As a fan of Man Utd, John started to talk about how he loved Man Utd. However, Susan knew nothing about soccer and she didn't want to listen to John's long speech about soccer. So she said, "Hmm, I am sorry but I am not interested in soccer. Could we change to another topic?" Then John, who was in high spirits, suddenly had no words. There came the awkward silence.
How the embarrassing situation came up? It is because John chose a less common topic and Susan interrupted his talking abruptly without thinking about John's feelings. For John, he should more carefully choose a topic to make sure both can enjoy the conversation. And for Susan, what should she do when others already talk about a topic she doesn't like? Pretended to be interested and kept listening? That is a viable way but if John found out that she pretended to do so, John might not be happy because he would feel like being cheated. A better way is to think up a topic that they both have some words to say about and then switch to that topic smoothly. For example, Susan could say, "So do you want to watch the games in England? Do you have any travel plans?" Then the topic would switch to travel. Or she could also say, "My brother loves soccer as well. And he also loves music. Do you love music too? What else do you like?" Then the topic might switch to hobbies. Thus Susan doesn't need to pretend to be interested in soccer and there is no embarrassing interruption in the conversation either.
Therefore, to avoid the awkwardness in conversation, the first thing you need do is to choose a common topic. And if you are already talking an embarrassing topic, such as a topic you have little knowledge about or you have no interest in, don't interrupt others' talking abruptly. Instead, you should think up a more common topic and change to that topic gently and cleverly. When changing the topic, don't show weariness in your voice or face or other body language.
There are many other important points on having good conversations, such as putting yourself in others' places, keeping eye contact, listening carefully when others are talking, etc. All these points including avoiding awkwardness come down to "Think for others". Thinking for others is always a good way to have nice conversations since communication involves not only yourself. So in a word, think for others to avoid awkwardness in conversations.
Guest Post: Brittany Binford
Brittany is one of Chris' Fall 2011 Professional Speaking students at Carnegie Mellon. Here she writes about real-world oral communication.
Stellar oral communication skills are extremely important today, as indicated in the extensive number of job postings on the web entailing “excellent oral and written communication skills” as a primary requirement for most positions. There are a number of resources available that pinpoint the various means to the most effective oral communication. At the core of each of these different resources is the mutual understanding that the main goal of oral communication is to get the message across to others clearly. Whether one is applying for a job in IT consulting or in architecture design, effective oral communication is key in not only maintaining internal relations, but most important, client relations.
In order to disseminate information effectively, whether during an interview or a presentation to clients, the communications process must be executed with little external barriers/noise. The communications process follows as such: the source encodes the message in a way that will is understandable to the source; the message travels through a channel, or means of delivering the message such as conferences, phone calls, etc.; the message is decoded in a way that is understandable to the receiver; and finally feedback is delivered back to the source (see Figure 1.)
Through the involvement of encoding, decoding and pushing through external barriers, portions of a message may be lost in oral communication if the message is not initially produced as clearly and concisely as possible. The best measure of how effectively the message travelled is feedback. Essentially, the source should anticipate a certain magnitude of feedback if his message was delivered appropriately. Feedback returning opposite of the source’s anticipation is more than likely a result of the message travelling through heavy barriers.
Traversing difficulty in conversations is a direct effect of messages travelling through external communication barriers. These barriers can include, but are not limited to: physical distractions, information overload, distorted preconceptions and cultural differences. While physical distractions can come in the form of uninviting body language and literal background noise, information overload is apparent in delivering too much too soon. Distorted preconceptions are often present in the form of defensiveness, power struggle and value judgment; while cultural differences play a major role in communication barriers in the obvious form of language barriers, in addition to role expectations, and culturally linked mannerisms. No matter the form, it is critical that both the source and receiver quickly identify and remove these barriers in order to focus on the message at hand.
Again, removing communication barriers, and initially producing the message in the clearest form possible are key in effective oral communication. Today’s job market not only calls for effective communicators, but also effective listeners. Therefore, it is not only the source’s responsibility to produce the clearest message initially in order to be an effective oral communicator, but also the receiver’s responsibility to critically listen in receiving oral communication. Both of which must be barrier free in order to maintain an efficient communications process.
(Figure 1)
Stellar oral communication skills are extremely important today, as indicated in the extensive number of job postings on the web entailing “excellent oral and written communication skills” as a primary requirement for most positions. There are a number of resources available that pinpoint the various means to the most effective oral communication. At the core of each of these different resources is the mutual understanding that the main goal of oral communication is to get the message across to others clearly. Whether one is applying for a job in IT consulting or in architecture design, effective oral communication is key in not only maintaining internal relations, but most important, client relations.
In order to disseminate information effectively, whether during an interview or a presentation to clients, the communications process must be executed with little external barriers/noise. The communications process follows as such: the source encodes the message in a way that will is understandable to the source; the message travels through a channel, or means of delivering the message such as conferences, phone calls, etc.; the message is decoded in a way that is understandable to the receiver; and finally feedback is delivered back to the source (see Figure 1.)
Through the involvement of encoding, decoding and pushing through external barriers, portions of a message may be lost in oral communication if the message is not initially produced as clearly and concisely as possible. The best measure of how effectively the message travelled is feedback. Essentially, the source should anticipate a certain magnitude of feedback if his message was delivered appropriately. Feedback returning opposite of the source’s anticipation is more than likely a result of the message travelling through heavy barriers.
Traversing difficulty in conversations is a direct effect of messages travelling through external communication barriers. These barriers can include, but are not limited to: physical distractions, information overload, distorted preconceptions and cultural differences. While physical distractions can come in the form of uninviting body language and literal background noise, information overload is apparent in delivering too much too soon. Distorted preconceptions are often present in the form of defensiveness, power struggle and value judgment; while cultural differences play a major role in communication barriers in the obvious form of language barriers, in addition to role expectations, and culturally linked mannerisms. No matter the form, it is critical that both the source and receiver quickly identify and remove these barriers in order to focus on the message at hand.
Again, removing communication barriers, and initially producing the message in the clearest form possible are key in effective oral communication. Today’s job market not only calls for effective communicators, but also effective listeners. Therefore, it is not only the source’s responsibility to produce the clearest message initially in order to be an effective oral communicator, but also the receiver’s responsibility to critically listen in receiving oral communication. Both of which must be barrier free in order to maintain an efficient communications process.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
