Demonstrate Interpersonal Communication Skills - Assessment 3 - Due June 21ST 2011

TUESDAY 17^TH May 2011

Demonstrate Interpersonal Communication Skills

SWAT IT: Tuesday 12:30-15:30 Class

CLASS ID: 10622799

Assessment 3

Due Tuesday JUNE 21^st 2011

Task: Demonstrate Interpersonal Communication skills by writing a one page professional letter of complaint about a product or service at work or in your daily social activities. Upload letter on your blog as a post. I have included a sample letter template to help construct your letter.

Example Template Letter of Complaint

Your address

Your telephone   

Date

Name (if available, of person/company you are writing to)

Title (if no specific name, use Customer Service Manager or General Manager)

Address of person/company you are writing to

Dear (as appropriate)

State what you bought, when and where (including serial numbers

where appropriate). Or, what work you had done, when, where

and by whom.

State the problem you have with the product, the work or the

service and why you have this problem. Give as many relevant

details as you can. If it is a long story, it is a good idea to attach a

separate schedule of what happened in time order.

State what action you want taken to resolve your complaint.

Give a precise but reasonable timeframe for that action to be

taken, e.g. 10 working days.

State that if you do not hear from them, you will be taking your

complaint to …. (the relevant complaints agency).

Include details of when and how you may be contacted.

Yours sincerely

Your signature

Your name (printed)

WEEK 13 - TUESDAY MAY 17th - BUILDING POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS

TUESDAY MAY 17^th 2011

WEEK 13

SWAT IT: DEMONSTRATE INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

BUILDING POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS

POSITIVE: indicating, relating to, or characterized by affirmation, addition, inclusion, or presence rather than negation, withholding, or absence <took the positive approach and struck a new deal rather than canceling the contract.

NEGATIVE: lacking positive qualities; marked by features of hostility, withdrawal, or pessimism that hinder or oppose constructive treatment or development <a negative outlook> <negative criticism

Responses That Build Positive Relationships

Unfortunately, lack of respect in the workplace can lead to an unhealthy work environment. When people at work offend or humiliate us, it hurts our dignity and sense of self. It also affects our ability to work well. Our ability to perform at our best is dependent upon our physical, psychological and social well-being.  We have to rely on and work with others in order to be productive and achieve positive outcomes.

Another key to forming effective working relationships is to deal with differences directly. In a conversation where each person listens to the other, discovering more about the other’s values and opinions can be meaningful. One may, for example, discover a new perspective. While confronting differences face to face can be uncomfortable, attempting to understand them is a good step in building a positive relationship. This is more encouraging than withdrawing, blaming and fighting. Treating people unfairly because of differences only contributes to a hostile work environment.

The problem is that many work environments do not encourage positive relationships. Instead many of us have worked in environments where the supervisor and/or a colleague wait for an employee to make a mistake.  This is an environment where the focus is on ‘mistakes’ and this can lead to an unproductive and negative relationship responses. There are many ways to build positive relationships at work.

Respectful relationships at work also come from the cooperation and collaboration required to instigate solutions. When all workers are included in meetings, discussions, training and events, the opportunity for people to participate in quality improvement is created. While not every person can participate in every activity, it is important not to leave any one person out. Use people’s ideas to change or improve work, and praise much more rather than criticize. This attitude and environment can build satisfying and empathetic relationships.

                            Building Positive Relationships: Some Helpful Responses

1. Respect your colleagues and supervisor’s their point of view

2. Appreciate your time spent with them at work

3. Recognise their individuality

4. Accept differences of opinion

5. Know you can ask them for advice as you work through an issue

6 Being more than willing to offer your time and advice to them as well. The foundation of any healthy relationship,

                   Respect can be demonstrated by

1. Treating others with courtesy, kindness and consideration, regardless of their race, religion, gender, size, ability, age or country of origin.

2. Encouraging co-workers to express opinions and ideas. Listen to what they have to say before expressing your own viewpoint. Never interrupt or cut off another person.

3. Never insulting people, blaming, threatening or calling people names, even if you are angry or hurt.

4. Addressing conflict in a positive and respectful manner and reporting abuse, discrimination or harassment. Remember that constant criticism, belittling, judging, or demeaning behavior added up over time, constitutes bullying.

                      Reflecting Empathy

Empathy inspires one to be kind and sympathetic toward others. Developing the ability to respond empathetically to people at work requires a different way of thinking. First, it involves a commitment to suspending judgment while taking the time to truly understand another’s behavior. Understanding the needs, values and beliefs that influence an individual’s behavior can change one’s attitude toward this person. When you truly listen to them, you are able to develop empathy for their position or situation.

Secondly, an empathetic response involves acceptance of the facts. This does not mean that you agree with or approve of another’s choices. It simply means an acknowledgment of the facts without any value judgment. Understanding and accepting another’s behaviour can lead to forgiveness. Once again, forgiveness does not mean approval or agreement but simply a letting go of the past and looking toward a better future. When you forgive another, you have given up on revenge or retaliation. The accounts are balanced and nothing is owed for the mistake.

WEEK 12 - DEMONSTRATE INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

WEEK 18

TUESDAY 10^th MAY 2011

SWAT IT COMMS.

12:30-15:30

Welcome to Week  11 gang. Good to see some of you are still hanging in there.  Today we are continuing on with Identify attitudes, values and beliefs of others as well as: Identify appropriate behavioural conventions and communication situations.

Inappropriate work related behaviours can include

•being aggressive when communicating with co-workers

•self-centred behaviour such as not considering other co-workers

•inappropriate touching in the workplace

•criticism of co-workers

•showing disrespect towards supervisors or managers

•refusing to participate in work activities

•being rude or abrupt to customers.

Interacting according to social rules

•the concept of personal space such as, how close is appropriate to stand next to others at work

•when and how to show emotions with potential to become frustrated and aggressive easily

•how to interpret and respond to nonverbal communication such as facial expressions and body language

•what is appropriate physical contact with other employees within the workplace

•the type or amount of personal information which should be disclosed to the general public or co-workers.

•the concept of personal space such as, how close is appropriate to stand next to others at work

•when and how to show emotions with potential to become frustrated and aggressive easily

•how to interpret and respond to nonverbal communication such as facial expressions and body language

•what is appropriate physical contact with other employees within the workplace

•the type or amount of personal information which should be disclosed to the general public or co-workers.

Social values and behavioural conventions

Watch out when offering a banana to a Russian woman it can create problems!

In Russia, I was led to believe that the polite thing for a man to do when offering a banana is to peel it for the lady. Sometime during my third trip to St. Petersburg I was politely disabused of my notion.

"Oh no, Harry," my Russian friend graciously corrected me. "In Russia, when a man peels a banana for a lady it means he has a romantic interest in her." How embarrassed I felt. And here I had been proudly telling everyone about this titbit of cultural understanding.

Online

People from different cultures have their own rules and conventions when addressing and greeting each other or when meeting new people. Not knowing how to address someone properly can create an embarrassing situation for both parties. This can be a problem when dealing with a multitude of cultures and people online. Online networking is an important feature most workplaces and business have. It’s very common to complete an application or form online, to subscribe to some services, newsletters, etc.

So when  creating an online form, it’s important to remember that some names might need more space for example Spanish people usually have two surnames; Chinese names are listed in a different order; the forms should be set up to allow unicode characters as some languages have accents.

There are types of behaviour that are always inappropriate in your workplace. However, you may ask yourself, how can I identify this behaviour?  In some cases you may be to report them. Keeping inappropriate behaviour out of the workplace will raise employee morale and create a positive working environment.

1.    Know that jokes about someone's gender, race, cultural background, religion or other personal characteristics are very inappropriate.

2.    Remember that touching someone else's body or making comments that are sexual in any way are always inappropriate behaviours.

3.    Understand that dating among colleagues is usually inappropriate. However, this often depends on the company. In most cases though, relationships between a manager and an employee are inappropriate because they can cause problems in the workplace.  

4.    Consider possible instances of discrimination. Discrimination based on age, gender, disability, national origin, race and religion is always inappropriate in the workplace.

Sometimes people just don't take inappropriate workplace behaviour seriously, and the only way to get them to stop is to report them to a supervisor. If someone's behaviour hurts your feelings or makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to put up with it in the workplace. There are laws regulating workplace behaviour to protect workers.

Social norms are the accepted behaviours within a society or group. This sociological term has been defined as "the rules that a group uses for appropriate and inappropriate values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviours.. They have also been described as the "customary rules of behaviour that coordinate our interactions with others. Respect for the social norms maintains one's acceptance and popularity within a particular group.

By ignoring the social norms risks one becoming unacceptable, unpopular or even an outcast from a group. Many social norms are established and maintained through body language and non-verbal communication between people in their normal social discourse.

Demonstrate Interpersonal Communication Skill - Assessment 2 - POSTER

3^rd May 2011

Demonstrate Interpersonal Communication Skills

Assessment 2

Due date: Last week of course (week 18 Tuesday 21^st June 2011)

Concept

Create an Interpersonal Communication Skills poster that communicates:

1.       Message

2.        Feeling

3.        Idea

4.       Mood

5.       Attitude

6.       Experience

7.        Emotion

8.       Personal point of view

However, you may take the opportunity to be as creative and as expressive as you feel as long as your poster demonstrates the concept of Interpersonal Communication Skills. You may use:

1.        Graphics

2.        Photographs

3.       Text

4.       Slogans

5.       Quotes

6.       Illustrations

Here are a some poster examples lifted from Google Images.

What is self reflection?

Introspection is the self-observation and reporting of conscious inner thoughts, desires and sensations. It is a conscious mental and usually purposive process relying on thinking, reasoning, and examining one's own thoughts, feelings, and, in more spiritual cases, one's soul.

ATTITUDE, BELIEFS AND VALUES

WEEK 11

TUESDAY 3^RD MAY 2011

IT-CERT 2

COMMUNICATION

ATTITUDE, BELIEFS AND VALUES

12:30-15:30

Welcome back class, I take it that you were able to fully explore your now, diverse and growing range of interpersonal communication skills with friends, family and most importantly the Easter Bunny!

ATTITUDE, BELIEFS AND VALUES

An understanding of our own beliefs, values and attitudes will help us understand other. We have an awareness of ourselves that allows us to see how similar and different we are to others. We can describe how we have been changed by experiences, our abilities, intelligence, maturity as well as our own sense of where we ‘fit’ in society today. Once we think about where ‘I’ am in relation to others I can then begin to identify the attitudes, values and beliefs of others. However, it is not a matter of simply saying, “You’re different because of…” There has to be a deep understanding of yourself and this can be achieved by the process of self reflection, an ongoing process.

There are many factors that contribute to a person’s identity.

Can you name some?

Values

They are qualities that are considered worthwhile; they represent your highest priorities. When you are part of any organization, you bring your deeply held values and beliefs to the organization. There they co-mingle with those of the other members to create an organization or family culture.

What are values?

Ambition, equality, dedication, honesty, dignity, wisdom, courage, individuality, friendliness, loyalty, teamwork, compassion, generosity, credibility, accountability and many more.

Think about this gang, what is self-reflection?

The Five Types of beliefs as defined by the ‘AdMan’ Milton Rokeach.

1.   Type A beliefs: These are beliefs that we all share with one another about the nature of physical reality, social reality and awareness of self. For example, “I believe this is a table. I believe we are living on what we call planet earth. I believe my name is John Doe.” These beliefs are supported by the society we live in and are fundamental in maintain a cohesive society. Also very resistant to change.

2.   Type B beliefs: are also resistant to change. These beliefs arise from our deep personal experiences which do not depend on society to support. Type B beliefs are the ones that no matter what others say or do we continue to know ourselves as an intelligent, logical and rational person. It is our positive self image. However, Type B beliefs are also negative in that they manifest themselves as phobias, obsessions, compulsions, anxiety and self worth.

3.   Type C beliefs: This is called ‘Authority Beliefs’. Many aspects of physical and social reality have numerous interpretations. They can be controversial or cannot be verified by personal experience. Thus, we need to identify with ‘authorities’ because they help soothe the confusion and guide us to what we should and shouldn’t believe.  Evolution, war, abortion, welfare, charity, refugees are all issues that demand clarification from authorities such as; parents, teachers, scientists, religious leaders and we decide what authority is in our best interests.

4.   Type D beliefs: These are called ‘peripheral beliefs’. These beliefs come from the authorities we identify with. For example, a devote follower of the Temple of Flying Saucer Aliens has certain beliefs about technology and ‘where humans came from’. You believe this not because you have seen these aliens but because you trust the authority. However, peripheral beliefs change  and followers ‘peripheral beliefs’ will accept this change as long as it comes from one’s authority.

5.   Type E beliefs: These are called ‘inconsequential beliefs’. This is an acceptance of everyday mundane experiences and or attitudes that do not affect the rest of my belief system. “I believe,” for example, “I believe that drinking water from a bottle is no different from water coming from a tap. I believe that holidays on the coast are better than mountain holidays. I believe this detective novel is better that a romance story.” Yet, if you do change your mind about the water, holiday or novel the rest of my belief system is not going to be greatly affected.