Being a skilled communicator is essential to being a goodmanager and team leader. To understand why communication effortssometimes break down and to find ways to improve your communicationskills, it helps to identify the elements of the communicationprocess. In this activity, you will have the opportunity to watch amanager interact with a subordinate and deliver some tough news.You will be able to consider different aspects of the communicationprocess and watch different communication strengths and weaknessesin action, as you spend a few minutes with Pilar and Miguel.
As we know from personal experience, the sender's intendedmessage does not always get across to the receiver. You areoperating under an illusion if you think there is a perfectcorrelation between what you say and what people hear. Errors canoccur in all stages of the communication process. More generally,people's perceptual and filtering processes createmisinterpretations. Perception is the process of receiving andinterpreting information. As you know, such processes are notperfectly objective. They are subjective, as people'sself-interested motives and attitudes toward the sender and towardthe message create biased interpretations. People often assume thatothers share their views, and naturally pay more attention to theirown views than to those of others. But perceptual differences getin the way of shared consensus. To remedy this situation, it helpsto remember that others' viewpoints are legitimate and toincorporate others' perspectives into your interpretation ofissues. Generally, adopting another person's viewpoint isfundamental to working collaboratively. And your ability to takeothers' perspectives—for instance, to really understand theviewpoints of customers or suppliers—can result in higherassessments of your performance.
4. As Miguel reacts to Pilar's statement of the client "freakingout about the $11,000 over budget," we can see that he feelsstrongly about his talent and about the quality of what the clientreceived. Which of the following keys to effective listeningaddresses managing a response when emotions are running as high asMiguel's?
A. exercise your mind
B. be flexible
C. capitalize on thought speed
D. keep your mind open
E. listen for ideas
5. Miguel leaves the meeting saying "Sure, sure. Whatever. I gotit." He is showing disrespect to Pilar based on which of thefollowing?
A. tone
B. his coat
C. arm motions
D. being distracted
E. multitasking
6. As Miguel sits down, Pilar's nonverbal signals show
A. concern.
B. warmth.
C. respect.
D. a feeling of equality.
E. a coolness.
7. Miguel is communicating much more effectively in this meetingthan in the first one. Based on the communication model in thetext, what technique is Miguel using to improve communication?
A. filtering
B. perceiving
C. encoding
D. offering feedback
E. using a channel
