Module 17 it titled “Listening.” The module advises that listening is the form of communication we practice most often. One of the sections in the module is “What do good listeners do?” Good listeners pay attention and this requires energy. You must resist distractions and tune out noise. Before a meeting anticipate the answers you need to get. Good listeners also focus on the other speaker in a generous way. You want to focus on what the speaker is saying, and not on his appearance or delivery. Take time to evaluate what the speaker is saying, and not just planning your rebuttal. Try to learn something from every speaker. You have to pay attention in order to do this. Avoid making assumptions about the speaker, and do not ignore instructions that you may think are unnecessary. Paraphrase what the speaker has said, which gives the speaker a chance to correct your understanding. Listen for feelings as well as facts. A good listener pays attention to tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language. Try to listen for feelings from the speaker.
Module 17 advises that listening is probably one of the things that we do most poorly, and that it is even more crucial on the job than in the classroom. The text describes active listening as demonstrating that we have heard and understood a speaker by feeding back either the literal meaning or the emotional content or both. We can also ask for more information and also state our own feelings. There were five strategies listed in the module for active responses. We can paraphrase the content by feeding back the meaning in your own words. You can also mirror the speaker’s feelings by identifying the feelings you think you hear. State your own feelings as this strategy works well when you are angry. You can also ask for information or clarification or offer to help solve the problem. Good listening enables you to find out why your opponent objects to the program or ideas you support.
Module 18 is titled “Working and Writing in Teams.” Teamwork is essential to success in an organization. The text describes three types of group messages. One is informational messages that focus on content. The content is made up of the problem at hand, data provided, and possible solutions. Procedural messages focus on method and process. How will the group function? Who will do what and when? Interpersonal messages focus on people, promoting friendliness, cooperation, and group loyalty. There were four phases of group development described in the module. These included; orientation, formation, coordination, and formalization. Orientation occurs when members meet and begin to define their roles. Formation is the phase where conflicts may arise as the group chooses a leader. Coordination is the longest phase as this is when the bulk of the work is done. The final phase is formalization which occurs as the group seeks a consensus and attempts to put aside earlier conflicts. There are a variety of roles that people play in a group and these roles can be positive or negative. Some of the negative roles that occur in a group are blocking, dominating, clowning, and withdrawing. A case study of student groups found that successful groups were not necessarily more skilled or more experienced than students in less successful groups. Instead, successful and less successful groups communicated differently in three ways. In successful groups, the leader established clear deadlines, scheduled frequent meetings, and dealt directly with conflict. The successful groups listened to criticism and made important decisions together. They also had a higher proportion of members who worker actively on the project.
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