Archive for May, 2009
CEO Tips for Getting Staff to Understand You
Posted by: | CommentsCopyright (c) 2008 Pamela Scott
This article is directed to the CEO, but it can help anyone in a management position communicate more clearly with staff.
Glenn, owner of a midsize professional services firm, describes his situation: “Every January I give a state of the company address to the troops. The usual stuff: how we did last year, where we’re going this year, how excited/optimistic/cautious I am about the future, and so on. And for the next 12 months, every year, managers and staff ask me where we’re going, how we’re doing, etc.
“What am I doing wrong? I keep telling them what they want to know, but nobody seems to get it.”
What’s going on
This example demonstrates why communicating effectively is so tough. Think about these points.
Nobody – and I mean nobody — has the same perspective as the CEO. The CEO sees how myriad pieces come together. He or she is really alone in this position.
Managers have been told what’s going on, but they are human beingsthey have their own concerns. They each have their own turf or silo to take care of and be held accountable for.
The general staff know what they do on a daily basisget in by 8 a.m., out by 5:30 with luck, make calls, take care of the project, do good work. But they lose sight of the company’s strategic goals and plans for the future.
What to do so they get it
Start with asking yourself some critical audience analysis questions. What do they (your managers, staff, and/or stockholders) . . .
- Already know?
- Want to know?
- Not want to know?
- Need to know?
- Not need to know?
When the CEO speaks, it’s like hearing the booming voice of the wizard in “The Wizard of Oz.” Everyone is wary, particularly in a tough economy. So the CEO has to think through the perspectives of everyone in the audience and figure out to deliver the message. This applies whether it is a small firm or a multistate firm with hundreds of employees.
No one can read minds. Clear communication from the CEO is absolutely essential for a firm to be successful.
The Challenges
When addressing a large, diverse group of people, you have multiple needs to meet.
1. Some listeners/readers want a history of how we got to where we are. This is a favored approach for many left-brained types. So, you tell your story from a chronological standpoint. “In 2006, we were here… In 2007, we…”
2. Upon hearing that, other folks will think, “Here we go again. Same old, same old.” And they will stop listening. These are likely the folks who want the big picture: “Where are we going in 2008? What new markets are we looking at? What new and exciting opportunities do we expect to find?” They are looking to the future and new possibilities.
3. You also have the group that wants to hear the logic behind these plans. This group can come across as challenging the CEO and his thinking. Their challenges can come across as micro-managing or as if they think the CEO weren’t thorough in his thinking. For this group, the CEO needs to enlighten them on the thinking behind your decisions.
4. Then there are the folks who always want to know about the impact on the people.
What’s a CEO to do?
Sit back and think about your audience and your message. Start with what you want the outcomes to be from your speech or presentation. Some call this reverse engineering; I think of it as starting from the end and working backwards.
To begin your message, set the framework for what you are going to talk about. For example, “I want to take the next 20 minutes to recap where we’ve been, where we are going this year, and what we expect a couple years down the road.” I’m being very loose in my wording. You would be more specific in terms of “couple years.”
Set the tone of the message. “Last year was a mediocre year. We’re expecting similar outcomes this year. However, we are putting things in place to ensure the firm grows in the next couple of years.” Keep it simple. Be specific. But this is not the place to quote your P&L.
Then tell them the story.
A. Since you have given a framework for your comments, which makes the folks in No. 2 above happy, you can go to No. 1 and give the history and financials.
B. Tell more now about the future and expectations. Remember to convey the logic behind your decisions to keep the folks in No. 3 above at bay.
C. Focus on the impact on your people, point No. 4 above. What opportunities do you expect? What new education or training can they take advantage of?
D. You’ve heard it before: Tell them what you told them. Recap, highlighting the points you most want them to remember. Listeners and readers always remember the last point they heard before they remember anything else you said. If you want to downplay information, put it in the middle of your speech.
The CEO as Storyteller
The CEO needs to be the Chief Storyteller. Take time to craft a story that conveys your message in a way that your staff can understand.
Remember: Numbers may drive the business, but people drive the numbers.®
Pamela Scott
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/ceo-tips-for-getting-staff-to-understand-you-489856.html
Skills That Can Be Put To Use For A Home Based Job
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There are some skills that are clearly unsuitable for a home based job, but there are also other skills that, paired off with a home based job opportunity, seem like a match made in heaven. If you’re wondering whether your existing skills are suitable for a home based job, the following tips might help nudge you to the right direction.
Writing and Editing
If you’re exceptionally good with words then you definitely have a future with a home based writing job. Internet based employers and companies are always on the look out for people with excellent writing and editing skills because you’ll be able to help in providing and editing content for various websites.
Anything Computer-Related
If you’re a computer whiz – your field of expertise doesn’t matter – then you’re sure to find a home-based job that could allow you to earn as much or even more as you are now with your present job. Communication will usually be done online, but keep in mind that you might be required to keep odd hours for work if your boss is living in another continent.
Baby Sitting and Tutorial Services
As long as your home is adequately presentable, has all the necessary furniture and fixtures, equipment, and resources to make your charges comfortable, you can definitely start a home based baby sitting or tutorial business. This idea might seem amenable for everyone, but in reality, taking care of kids and teenagers is a lot harder than it looks. If you don’t have genuine fondness for kids or a sincere passion for teaching, it’s best to pass this up because you can easily get sued if you accidentally mishandle or neglect any of your charges.
The same advice can also apply for a pet sitting and training business (usually for dogs and cats). Keep in mind however that you should also have genuine fondness for four-legged creatures to ensure that your business will earn.
Drawing and Painting
If you are good at illustrating, consider offering lessons from your home. Unlike writing and other skills which do not necessarily require a teacher and student to personally see each other during lessons, drawing and painting falls in an entirely different category. It will be easier for a student to understand the finer concepts of illustration if he can actually see how it’s done. You can ensure the success of your workshop simply by diligent advertising. Avoid overcharging your students as well! The same advice applies if you have skills in playing any musical instrument or any indoor sport. Make sure of course that you have the necessary equipment as well.
Cooking and Baking
If your kitchen is well-known in your area for producing exquisitely delicious food then don’t you know that you’re being extremely selfish for neglecting to share your talent with the rest of the world? You do, however, need to observe the following rules if you wish for your home based cooking or baking business to profit:
Firstly, your food must be prepared in completely hygienic settings. This must be adhered to at all times as anything less than 100% hygienic can compromise the health of your customers. Use ingredients as well of acceptable quality.
Secondly, your product will not sell well just because it’s tasty. It must also be competitively priced.
And lastly, use your creative mind to come up with attractive packaging for your product.
Mario C Churchill
http://www.articlesbase.com/careers-articles/skills-that-can-be-put-to-use-for-a-home-based-job-113176.html
Does The First Amendment Always Protect Us Media
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The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, as interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court, provides the strongest guarantee of free speech in the world. Unlike people in many other countries, Americans are free to criticize each other and government officials in language both fair and foul, to engage in racist or other hateful speech, and to use expletives and other bad language in public. In some states, like California, they may even exercise their right to free speech on other people’s private property. Americans are very proud (some foreigners would say inordinately) of their right to free speech; most of them feel that it encourages a strong free press which regularly cleanses corruption out of American government (e.g., Watergate) and thus ensures its unique stability.
By the early years of the republic when the U.S. system of checks and balances was devised, a daring journalistic community had already become established. A bold and scrappy press was an influential force in denouncing the rule of an English King and leading Colonial America into its revolution against the British Empire. With journalistic freedom protected in the 1791 Bill of Rights, the press became an assertive force during the first decades of nationhood. The U.S. media today is frequently known as the Fourth Estate, an appellation that suggests the press shares equal stature with the three branches of government created by the Constitution. But although the press was not established as an institution by the U.S. constitution, today many citizens believe that it constitutes a branch of U.S. government. Numerous debates still rise regarding press’s freedom to act as a watchdog of the American government. Is it protected by law?
Several critical court cases have been landmarks in establishing the rights of the press to pursue information and to publish government documents or derogatory information about public figures. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the media should have some First Amendment protection from the laws of libel for fear that lawsuits and possible monetary damages might disincline media owners from fully reporting on public matters. In order for a public figure to win a defamation case against a media defendant, the plaintiff must show “actual malice,” which the courts have defined as knowledge that the published statement was false or as “reckless disregard of whether it was false or not”.
In our time, American free speech law has become an issue of international appeal since the Internet rose as another main medium of communication. Probably, this is because many banned groups can take advantage of Internet service providers based in the United States to send their messages around the world, even where such speech is banned. U.S. courts will not enforce foreign judgments contrary to domestic public policy, including the liberal U.S. policy on free speech. As for the U.S. perspective, many Americans dislike attempts by common law jurisdictions to extend their personal jurisdiction to American defendants whose alleged defamatory speech acts occurred over the Internet and were not targeted towards those jurisdictions. If the First Amendment cannot protect them, what else can? Is diplomacy a solution? The fact remains that political and social scientists seem to have set off in unknown waters.
Kadence Buchanan
http://www.articlesbase.com/affiliate-programs-articles/does-the-first-amendment-always-protect-us-media-58303.html
How Important Is It To Streamline Communication
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Today’s organizations must contend with increasingly complex communications environments that feature a wide array of communications methods. Employees, business partners, and customers communicate with one another through infinite combinations of phones, voice messaging, e-mail, fax, mobile clients, rich-media conferencing and other communication gadgets. One thing that is very important is proper communication. Whether you use the age-old snail mail or an email, the key to success lies in effective communication. One should get clear message as to what exactly is required or told by you. It is very important to streamline communication whether you are conversing in person or through an age-old snail mail, email or over the phone.
When you are talking to a person or a group of people face to face, to streamline communication follow some simple rules. Always prepare your opening lines. Sometimes, you may not agree with their response, but please do not immediately push your opposite view at them. Another way which streamline communication with others is when you give positive re-enforcement to the people you talk with and keep away from criticism of people that are not present. Speaking just a bit slower to allow yourself to select your most appropriate vocabulary and to give the impression of thoughtfulness is another way that streamline communication.
For business, streamline communications in emails and letters is simple yet is not really cared about most of the people. There are certain ethics if business emails and letters that are to be followed that in turn streamline communications.
While writing a letter or an email, list those personal details of the person you are writing to which you will use in the letter. Write as if you were just talking to the reader, stick to one main topic in a letter. When you have covered all the important points, STOP.
Your phone communication also plays a vital role in building effective relationships. To streamline communication, it is necessary for you to create a good impression over the phone. Be careful of what you say over the phone. Try to set up a block of time where you can make your phone calls with minimum interruption. Write down, either on paper or on your computer, the essential points that you want to cover in the call before you pick up the handset. Think carefully about the first thing you will say to the other person
Your voice is of great importance in phone communication. Correct tone and language leaves great impact over the listener. Presentation of a message over the phone is of great importance in streamline communication. Make sure that you do not deliver an unpleasant message over the phone. Most important of all is a good listener. Do not interrupt when the other person is expressing his or her view.
Communication in any form plays an important role in our lives. No one can teach how to streamline communication but offer guidelines to do so. All one needs is practice!
John Khu
http://www.articlesbase.com/communication-articles/how-important-is-it-to-streamline-communication-158971.html
Web Communication: “Sign, Sign, Everywhere A Sign”
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Your business success depends on your ability to communicate effectively to an interested audience. Driving appropriate traffic to your site is important, but the tactics that generate visitors are not the same tactics that get visitors to stay on your site.
Websites that consistently under perform and that don’t meet business expectations generally suffer because they are not designed to hold viewers attention long enough to communicate a clear concise marketing message.
Web-communication is a series of elaborate multi-sensory sign languages; signs being the words, images, audio and videos that constitute the range of presentation vehicles that like all forms of communication have their own grammar, context, and relevance as interpreted from personal experience by each member of your customer-audience.
When Words Lose Their Meaning
Marketing is one of those words that has lost its currency because it has been tossed about with little respect for its meaning. To many, it’s merely just another word for advertising, which of course it is not. To the more sophisticated it takes in all the disciplines of branding, positioning, identity, advertising, and more. Above all marketing implies a strategic approach to implementing these tactics.
For companies interested in using the Web to further their business objectives, Web-marketing is the execution of a communication strategy through the creative implementation of multi-sensory signature presentations.
Semiotics: The Study of Signs
“Sign, Sign, everywhere a sign,
Blocking out the scenery breaking my mind,
Do this, don’t do that, can’t you read the sign.”
- Five Man Electrical Band
Like the lyrics of the song, ‘Signs,’ by the Five Man Electrical Band’ suggests, we are surrounded by signs, the interpretation of which creates our reality. The study of signs and how meaning is derived from them is called ’semiotics.’
We are bombarded by signs, not just images, but the words, voicing, gestures, posture, attire, and movements of the messengers, as well as the music and sound effects that accompany the presentation; not to mention the chosen media itself.
Each of these elements is a language all its own. And like all forms of language if you don’t learn the rules, the grammar and syntax, you can’t communicate coherently.
Fear of Meaning
Most business communication is shrouded in a haze of protective ambiguity caused by the fear of making a decisive statement of who you are, and what you stand for. This kind of defensive thinking may protect your company from some criticism, but it also distances you from your real audience, people and businesses that could be responsive to what you have to offer.
Advertisements, videos, images and copy designed to not offend, will fail to communicate meaning and if what you have to say is not meaningful, how can you expect your audience to respond? Bland royalty-free images, stock video clips, and talking-head presentations of statistics and specifications will guarantee all the money you spent on generating traffic will go down the drain as visitors leave faster than they arrive.
Instead of just looking at how many hits your website is getting each week, take a look at how long they are staying on your site. If people are leaving within a few seconds of arriving, then they have determined you have nothing to offer them, which may or may not be true. You need your website visitors to stay long enough to get the essence of your marketing message and if they aren’t, then maybe it’s time to rethink the message and how it’s being delivered.
A Little Yiddish May Help
Yiddish is a language of idiom, of colloquial metaphor, a series of expressions that by strict interpretation of the words mean little, but through the common experience and relevance of the listener mean more than mere words can imply.
In Yiddish there are many ways to tell somebody to ‘drop dead,’ not a very nice thing to say to someone, but a sentiment that is often expressed anyway.
So how then do you tell someone how you feel without resorting to the crude direct approach? In Yiddish you would use one of the many expressions available such as, “zolst vaksn vi a tzibele mitn kop in dr’erd!” which literally means “may you grow like an onion with your head in the ground,” a far more colorful, poetic turn of phrase with humorous undertones that softens the intensity of the raw meaning.
Our everyday language is full of idiom and metaphor and for the most part we don’t even notice. If we want to outwit our competition, we instruct our staff to “take no prisoners” and if we are successful we ‘blew them away;’ business often resorts to war metaphors to emphasize the enormity of the stakes involved in business initiatives, or should I say ‘campaigns.’
And it is not just written and verbal communication that is perpetually encased in a cocoon of evocative metaphor. Visual communication, including images and video, has its own idiomatic metaphorical sign language that helps communicate a message in meaningful short-hand. The producers of 30-second TV commercials are expert in this style of communication, how else can a complete marketing story be told in 30 seconds?
Relevance of Character and Situation
When we create Web-video commercials we need to tell a story that the audience can relate to. This story should be a metaphor that draws upon the audience’s own experiences, and if done properly it should allow the viewer to let down their natural sales defense mechanism and let the humanity of the characters and situation penetrate on a meaningful human level. This style of presentation makes the point and delivers the message in a much more effective manner than a hit-you-over-the-head, hard sell style commercial, or a meaningless exhortation of business platitudes.
Dr. Satoshi Kanazawa, a sociology professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, in the ‘Psychology Today’ article, ‘Friends In Cerebral Places’ by Kaja Perina states: “The human brain is hardwired to respond to stimuli as it did in its ancestral environment, where television and movies didn’t exist. Kanazawa says that we have evolved to believe that ‘all realistic images of people you encounter repeatedly are friends and family.’
In the environment of evolutionary adaptedness there was no one-way acquaintance, as there is today with celebrities.”
The implication of Kanazawa’s research for the Web-marketer is significant. If you as marketers can create websites and webmedia presentations populated with ongoing characters to which your Web-audience can relate, then you have solved the biggest obstacle in the Web-sales process: lack of trust.
People buy things from people they trust, people they know and like, and people to whom they can relate. You can establish this relationship with a continuous campaign of audio and video presentations delivered by characters representing your company’s personality, delivering a message that improves your audience’s lives or business interests.
The Familiarity of Presentation Genres
An effective Web-commercial must touch your audience in some way. One method that we use to make this connection is through the exploitation of genres.
Genres are storytelling formats with built-in conventions, rules and guidelines. These conventions provide a communication-shorthand allowing Web-storytellers to deliver rich content in an economical use of time and space.
Since the audience already understands what the conventions of the recognizable genre are, resources need not be wasted establishing a frame-of-reference that is built into the genre itself.
It is here that the Web-commercial producer must expand the concept of genres beyond that which is normally understood. Everyone understands the western, detective, romance, and sitcom styles of storytelling genres, but genres exist beyond the confines of literature, movies, and television series. Genres also exist in the truncated world of television commercial storytelling. Take for instance the current ubiquitous series of Macintosh television commercials that have been copied numerous times by many people on the Web and even on television itself.
The use of genres as a method of presenting Web-commercials provides a set of expectations for the viewer or what has been referred to as ‘cultural capital.’ While the recognition of the familiar provides a connection, its creative manipulation provides enjoyment and more importantly aids memory and enhances recall. You can see an example of this genre manipulation at http://www.mrpwebmedia.com/ads.
The Bottom Line
If real estate is about, ‘location, location, location’ then websites are about, ‘communication, communication, communication.’ The skillful Web-marketer will understand this and use their website the way it was always supposed to be used, as a means of communication; but that communication no longer has to be delivered in mere text form, but rather it can now be delivered using all the multi-sensory media tools available. The caveat, of course, is knowing how to use these tools properly.
Jerry Bader
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/web-communication-sign-sign-everywhere-a-sign-110952.html
What Else Can you Do With a Communication Degree?
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The ability to communicate effectively is often cited as the skill rated number one for career advancement across all professions. Unless you leave alone in an island which is disconnected from the rest of the world, else you will need to communicate with other people either on personal stuffs or on the business needs. If you are a working individual or a businessman, a good skill in communication and the success of using communication techniques are keys to ensure the success of your career advancement. Everybody knows the important of communication, but what else can you do with a communication degree?
Career Opportunities
There are many potential career opportunities available for those people with communication studies degrees. Among the communication careers are business, sales, human relations, customer service, social services, management, public relations, advertising, media, fund raising, law, politics, consulting, and publishing. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, nine of the possible career paths mentioned above will be the biggest generators of new jobs over the next ten years.
It may surprise you to discover exactly who holds a communication degree. There are many success people who have both studied in the discipline and received degrees in communication. To name a few, David Boreanaz, actor on the T.V. series Angel, holds a communication degree; Evan Bayh, Indiana Senator studied debate and other communication-related courses at Indiana University; successful broadcast journalists who hold degrees in communication include network news anchor, Connie Chung, shock-jock radio personality, Howard Stern, and television news host, Bob Costas.
The communication qualities such as listening, speaking, creative thinking, decision making, problem solving, reasoning, self-esteem, sociability, self management, integrity, and honesty are the major skills which you will gain from a communication degree. According to the Department of Labor states, the above skills are among the most important qualities for high job performance and these are the key elements of success in almost all job professions.
Communication Degrees Are Available Online
Seeing the high market demands and the need of communication skills in all professions, there are many universities offer communication as one of their major degrees. And online communication degree has also make available for those busy individual who want to enhance their communication skills for career advancement. If you are in the category of “busy people” who want to pursue communication degree, you may consider online universities such as AIU Online, University of Phoenix Online, Capella Universities, DeVry University Online and Ellis College. These prestige online universities offer communication degrees with a few specialization areas, you could choose the one that best suit your needs; and pursue your communication degree online while continue with your current lifestyle and career.
Summary
Communication studies majors and minors find opportunities in the positions mentioned above and in many other types of positions and industries. The writing and communication skills gained in communication studies, prepares you for future employment in almost any field of interest.
Take a visit to http://www.studykiosk.com for more information on all online degrees available. Earning your education is one of the biggest and most important investments in your life. Our goal is to help you quickly find online degrees and online programs. We feature over 1,000 online degrees and accredited online degree programs.
Jullie Harvard
http://www.articlesbase.com/college-and-university-articles/what-else-can-you-do-with-a-communication-degree-85627.html
Managing and Dealing with an Aggressive Boss
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It is tough having to deal with someone who abuses you and even more so when the person has extra authoritative power then you.
If the verbal and other forms of mental abuse begin to get really serious and even approach physical abuse, then the issue can become legal. I have heard that people are trying to pass legislation in an American state that disallows workplace abuse. However, unfortunately just about all laws do not take into account verbal workplace conflict so you’ve got to learn how to handle bullies by yourself for your own happiness and well-being.
Most people who lack the communication skills to deal with a bad boss either:
1. Endure the bullying and intimidation in fear thinking their job is at risk if they address their boss about the problem.
2. Face their boss about the problem but do so incorrectly. It’s quite common for the problem to then intensify.
Enduring the Bullying
The absolute last thing you want to do when being abused by anyone is accept the abuse.
You have got to stick up for yourself in an assertive manner otherwise your confidence, happiness, and in this situation, your work will suffer. People who receive aggressive behavior that is not correctly handled have been known to develop serious physical problems such as strokes, heart attacks, suicide, migraines, escalated stress levels, insomnia, and terrifying nightmares. One person who will remain anonymous often dreamt her boss pointing a gun at employees so they would complete their work.
The first listed reaction to a bullying boss is a passive response. You forgo your own person needs while your boss happily tramples over you.
The most common reason for accepting intimidation from others is the fear of repercussions if you stick up for yourself. In a work situation and especially with someone who has authoritative power, you probably do not defend yourself in fear of losing your job. This fear I believe is real because when most people stick up for themselves, they do so in an aggressive manner causing negative results which you’ll soon see more about below.
These passive people forgo their own needs, are dominated by others, and live in massive amounts of frustration as their anger is bottled up inside. They do not have the effective communication skills to address the problem thinking they must accept what happens and live with the intimidation hoping the abusive person stops bullying.
It’s a win for the bully and a loss for you.
Bullying the Bully – Poorly Addressing the Problem
The second listed reaction but not limited to a bullying boss is an aggressive response. These people usually have more confidence then the passive lot and are willing to defend themselves. They see that in order to get what they want they must retaliate. It becomes fire against fire. A fight starts as the two of you take to a verbal boxing ring mentally beating out each others minds.
People may become aggressive for several reasons:
- They were abused by their parents at an early age and placed under emotional trauma.
- They are mentally ill. I’m not referring to a jokingly mental illness but someone who has a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia or a personality disorder.
- They think the only way to stop someone else’s abusive behavior is to abuse them back.
- The aggression is a release of anger often caused from responding passively like the first situation. This type of behavior is otherwise known as passive-aggressive behavior where the person is frequently passive but randomly explodes their frustration and anger onto others. After the occasional and often unexpected outburst, the person sinks back to his/her passive behavior.
- The person is experiencing high pressure creating stress and then aggression. This type of aggressive behavior is common in work environments.
- An aggressive boss maybe trying to prove his toughness, control, discipline, or results-focus to superiors through his/her behavior.
- While aggression in the workplace may create the necessary level of productivity, it is strongly related to a high turnover rate said to be an average of 1.5 years and other commitment problems such as increased days off and loss of passion in the employee towards work. It can create unproductive employees as they “hide” by staying under the radar seeking to comply yet they do nothing that stands out that could potentially bring them attention.
The aggressive communication being exchanged between two people becomes a loss for them both.
Techniques to Deal with a Bad Boss
So the question remains, how do I face an abusive boss in an assertive manner?
Depending on the situation, occasional aggressive behavior can be definitely welcomed. In order for the aggressive behavior to be successful it must be expressed appropriately and constructively. You could even say this constructive type of aggression is like assertive communication which must be your goal if you are to not respond passively like the first situation and aggressively like the second situation.
There are several assertive communication techniques you can use to stop the bullying, stop your fear, build your self-confidence, and actually create a nice working relationship with your boss. This is the power of assertive skills.
Before approaching your boss about the problem, ask yourself “What can I change in my behavior to solve the aggression?” What you are doing is owning your behavior and not blaming your boss for what you have control over. It creates personal responsibility within you and helps prevent you from blaming your problems on your boss. Sometimes analyzing yourself and solving the problem may actually stop the aggression.
You need to be calm but at the same time responsive. Once you do this first step, you will almost completely remove your aggressive communication which can also help reduce your boss’ aggressive communication. Fire needs some sort of fuel to stay alight and what you are doing by being calm but responsive is you are removing psychological fuel from your boss’ aggressive fire. Being calm isn’t enough as it can show that you’re ignoring your boss. Only being calm and not responsive hurts in showing empathy and diffusing the boss’s emotions. You do not want to ignore an angry boss!
Have the right mindset of resolving the problem at hand. When faced with a difficult person it is easy to want to be only right. Acknowledge that you may need to comprise yourself to progress forward with this problem. Drop your pride and be the first one to step forward towards problem resolution.
Now that you’ve learned these techniques it’s time to approach your boss. You need to find the best time to address your boss. Do not try and solve this problem in a high emotional situation. You may need to wait till the end of the day or even end of the week until you think you can approach your boss.
What you are doing by asking for their point of view first, you are able to see things through their perception which may give you a whole new side to the story. It will help you understand and even help your boss understand why he is aggressive. Your boss will begin to feel understood by you when you actively listen which can lead to a tonne of great things such as him feeling your empathy, knowing you care, having less intense emotions, and be more willing to change. By practicing good listening skills you are using the secret of persuasion.
After your boss has made suggestions, you can then give your ideas to solve the problem. Keep calm and stay focused on resolving the problem. Ask for your boss’s feedback as you suggest ideas. You are making it a joint solution which will give both of you a greater total level of satisfaction.
As you are talking, take note of the positive points your boss does show in his behavior and compliment him on these. You are attempting to keep the conversation positive as solving a problem can seem negative even though it is actually good that you are trying to remove the problem!
Using these techniques to communicate assertively will reduce your boss’ aggressive behavior. You will no longer have an unproductive and unhappy working relationship. You’ll develop a more productive and possibly joyful working relationship for your own good and your organization’s good. Who would have thought you could have an enjoyable relationship with an aggressive boss.
Joshua Uebergang
http://www.articlesbase.com/communication-articles/managing-and-dealing-with-an-aggressive-boss-85731.html
Understanding Interactive Marketing Communication
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Defining Interactive Marketing.
Interaction can be defined simply as straightforward communication between two parties.
Presently we are in danger of losing the real meaning of interaction as we tend to focus discussions on the emerging technologies and neglect the communication process itself.
With an understanding of the real meaning of Interactive Communication, existing media can be made interactive, and subsequently far more cost effective.
Goodbye to the halcyon days of the TV advertisement of old?
A new wave of technology is promising to transform the obsolete analogue technology of television into a two-way medium which allows the viewer to determine what is to be watched, and when.
This could well create a situation where the consumers solicits information from the advertiser, rather than the advertiser soliciting the attention of the consumer.
Viewers are becoming impatient with televisionâ??s linear flow and are increasingly using the limited opportunities available to them to avoid the intentions of advertisers and programme makers.
Even though to many the remote control is a fairly recent development, 44% habitually use it to avoid advertisements.
Television is an advertising medium, not a communications medium and, as television declines in the face of competition from the new media, conventional advertising will decline with it.
In many ways, â??advertisingâ?? is an outmoded concept, since media advertising is simply one means of communication with customers.
In an environment in which the balance of power is shifting in favour of the consumer rather than the advertiser, manufacturers and service providers need to look at ways of replacing the monologue of advertising with a dialogue which can utilise a range of different â??relationshipâ?? marketing techniques.
Advertising has to modernise & change.
The market place has changed. Newspapers and television have lost their exclusive hold on the advertiser, the number of print and electronic advertising channels has substantially increased, such as pre-printed booklets pushed through letterboxes, or hung on doorknobs, local cable TV and Direct Mail.
Recent events have given advertising a permanently diminished role in the selling of goods and services.
At the same time cynical consumers are wearying of the constant barrage of marketing messages.
Theyâ??re becoming less receptive of the blandishments of advertisements, and their loyalty to brands erode as they see more products as commodities distinguished only by price.
Advertising ignores communication theory.
As the mass media have matured, the behavioural dynamics of perception and interaction, which were not address by Advertising Agencies in the 70s and 80s, during the explosive growth of advertising have become critical to the redefinition of media and its role in marketing communication.
With passive, one way, forms of advertising such as media displays or television advertising, there is a certainty of a degree of non-response.
Lack of communication competence.
Most Advertising Agencies lack the skills of communication, advertising messages are more carefully prepared than interpersonal communication and yet â??messageâ?? comprehension tends to be lower.
Advertisements are more carefully prepared because gatekeepers (those who prepare and send out messages) are more cautious about what they say to large audiences than they are to audiences of one or a few, they check their facts more carefully and they prepare their syntax and vocabulary more precisely.
And yet, because their audience contributes much less feedback, the source cannot correct for any lapse or understanding, so people are more likely to misinterpret what they hear or read over the mass media.
It is also important to note, of course that just because mediated messages are more carefully prepared, they are not necessarily more accurate.
Gatekeepers have a way of looking at the world based on personal beliefs or motivations. This â??world viewâ?? sometimes tends to make media messages inaccurate.
However, Interactive Communication leads to a commitment to participate.
With interactive marketing communication, there is a commitment to participate, which in turn leads to a set of possibilities which are significantly different in how they affect the communication process itself.
The need for product information.
Image advertising doesnâ??t give the information needed to buy knowledge-driven products.
Moreover communication results from an interaction in which two parties expect to give and take. Audience members must be able to give feedback.
Media practitioners must be sensitive to the information contained in the feedback. This give and take can result on real understanding or real feedback.
The need for Interactive Marketing Communication.
Put simply, because there is a human desire for interaction.
We have created a media society during the past 40 or 50 years where there is an extraordinary reduction in interaction because of the one-way and more passive form of information retrieval that exists.
People desire to be taken account of, to affect change, learn and personalise their relationships with their environment. There is a phenomenal number of reasons which cause people to interact which go far beyond just giving them things.
When people participate in interactive marketing communication they are told that their efforts and feedback are of positive help to the advertisers.
Moreover, by participating, they then learn and understand the message from the advertiser, personalise their relationship with the advertiser and their products (or services).
Consumers tend to filter out information they do not want to hear and this alters the effectiveness of advertising in quite a dramatic way.
The purchaserâ??s decision is invariably a compromise and this leads to a certain amount of anxiety. The worry that perhaps the purchase decision was not the best or right one. In order to minimise this anxiety the purchaser seeks to reinforce his choice and begins to take more notice of his chosen productâ??s advertising.
And, at the same time, the purchaser deliberately suppresses data which might challenge his decision by ignoring the advertising of competitive brands.
People are often loyal to a brand simply because they do not want to readdress a decision. The opportunity to screen out undesired data always exists when media advertisements have to stand on their own and fight for attention.
Interactive Communication takes the consumer through the barrier of not wanting to address change; and this is the ultimate market the advertiser is after â?? the people who use his competitorsâ?? products.
Now the consumer can say â??Yes, I will change my behaviour and I have a very good reason or series of reasons whyâ?Â, and have a well informed opinion or image in mind.
If someone goes into a product purchase decision with a very specific image of the product and its reason to exist and why they have decided those reasons are worth its purchase, the test in reality, the use of the product, will tend to confirm that premise, and therefore conversion will be enormously enhanced.
Interactive Marketing Communication turns passive advertising into active advertising and actually alters behaviour during the communication and learning process.
Interactive Marketing Communication increases sales.
And thereâ??s more!
It enhances relationships and dramatically improves consumer knowledge, understanding and loyalty.
1. Strong Company or Brand Values.
To be effective communication has to be single minded in choosing a specific proposition which by definition cannot appeal to all.
Yet every product, service or retail outlet can offer several attractive benefits and in some cases these can be numerous.
Interactive Communication presents consumers with a â??menuâ?? of powerful benefits, both rational and emotional, and asks them to choose the one which they find most relevant and appealing to them.
This allows them:-
a. To personalise their relationship with the communicator.
b. To absorb and retain the majority â?? or even all â?? of those extra benefits while making their choice.
c. Not one, but several, good reasons for buying the product or service.
Equally it puts these benefits into context, educating consumers to understand just how important those benefits are to them, and positions the product or service as unique in satisfying all those needs.
2. The emotional relationship.
By asking consumers for their opinions rather than telling them, the company makes them feel special and involved in an unprecedented way.
A company prepared to listen!
This disarms consumers and produces a feeling of trust and thereby an emotional commitment to the company and its products which cannot be generated any other way.
That emotional commitment enhances the more rational understanding of the Company or Brand Values discussed above and establishes an unprecedented, personal, relationship with the manufacturer/brand/retailer â?? even amongst those who may have had no previous experience.
3. Consumer Feedback.
Allowing consumers to interact with the brand by offering their opinions and views does more than create an emotional commitment; it allows large numbers of real people to express ideas in a way they have not had the facility to do before, to a company evidently prepared to listen and act.
Consumers are seduced and this generates genuinely expressed observations on the strengths of the company â?? as well as areas of opportunity for improvement or exploitation.
It is, in effect, an enormous piece of qualitative research, but without consumersâ?? ability to vouchsafe real opinions being inhibited or guided by a researcher.
Thus the combination of all these elements produces a deep understanding of the company and its brands â?? and its role and value to the consumer; a greater level of involvement in an emotional commitment to the brand and an enhanced desire to buy it.
Understanding Interactive Marketing Communication.
With a better understanding of the nature of Interaction allows us then to give a more precise definition of the process, that is:
â??With Interactive Marketing Communication
the reader/viewer is actively encouraged to take careful note of what is being taught him,
learn rather than be taught the message, and
then give tangible evidence that the lesson, in
this case the advertising/marketing message,
has been learnt.
Interactive Marketing Communication ensures
that the initial message receiver anticipates
and then subsequently evidences a response
using a predetermined mechanism.
Paul Ashby
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/understanding-interactive-marketing-communication-108518.html
Internal communications statistics presentation
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In today’s business environment we face a number of challenges when crafting communications which effectively engage our staff.
The Fifth Business researched the volume of communication taking in places in today’s businesses. Not only is it difficult to find out who to have conversations with, there are also a number of obstacles put in the way that communications people need to hurdle. Internal communications compete for space in inboxes, time in diaries and the attention span of busy professionals. From an audience perspective this can leave you feeling like there’s a monkey on your back…another harassment in your working day, not an engaging, informative experience.
The Fifth Business is an integrated communications, learning and design company. For more than a decade we have been developing an excellent reputation for exciting, engaging and creative communications, coaching and change initiatives focused around people.
Duration : 0:3:32
Telepathy – Part 4 of 4 – Opening to Higher Communication
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Jasmuheen shares a few techniques for opening for Higher (telepathic) communication as part of the Universal Harmonization Program for the Embassy of Peace.
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