In this lesson, you will learn how productivity, technology, and self and social awareness can help you improve your oral communication. Specifically, this lesson will cover:
1. Skills in This Unit
As you move on with this second unit, you will focus on oral communication. You will explore topics that include different types of oral presentations, the importance of considering your audience, and nonverbal strategies that will help you deliver more effective and professional communications.
While you delve into these concepts, it will be important to keep the 10 skills in mind. Employers want to know that the individuals they hire and employ can express themselves clearly when speaking to others. Language and communication that is unclear can lead to misunderstandings, conflict, or even loss of revenue.
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Consider your own work experience or even your personal life. Have you ever been asked to present to a group? What was that process like? In most cases, it is a process that takes some time. You need to not only deliver the information requested, but also take steps to prepare for that speech or presentation.
Preparing to deliver a speech or presentation can be daunting, but strong productivity, technology, and self and social awareness skills can help ensure success.
In particular, we will focus on the following:
Productivity
- Being organized allows you to prepare properly for any presentation/speech.
Technology
- Being familiar with research methods and tools allows you to best prepare for any public speaking scenario.
- The use of visual aids can be helpful when seeking to deliver content to an audience.
Self and Social Awareness
- It is important to avoid jargon and slang, as they can often lead to miscommunication.
- Understanding your audience is key. This allows you to deliver the content they need in a way they will comprehend.
- Being aware of nonverbal communication and its meaning is critical to successful oral communication.
Throughout the course, be on the lookout for various call-outs to help you better see the connections between the skills and the course content.
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- Productivity Skill
- A skill that helps you organize your communication in the best way possible.
- Technology Skill
- A skill that helps you use digital tools to improve your communication no matter what career you pursue.
- Self and Social Awareness Skill
- A skill that helps you understand yourself and how you relate to others so you can modify your communication to any situation or audience.
2. Top 10 Things to Consider to Make Yourself Heard
As you focus on oral communication, this quick tip list will help you ensure you are heard without any misunderstandings:
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Keep it real. Be authentic and honest. No need to pretend you're somebody you're not.
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Keep it crystal. The clearer you are, the better your communication. Speak clearly and concisely.
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Have a goal. Every conversation at work has a purpose. Know your purpose in advance to achieve your goal.
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Do the work. Prepare and practice to ensure you're sending the right message.
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Learn the lingo. Use the right language for each situation. Avoid slang and technical terms unless they're appropriate for your audience.
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Take a breath. Stay cool in professional situations. Emotions can cloud your message and make it hard to understand.
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Let your body talk. Use positive body language to nail your first impression: stand and sit up straight, smile, relax your arms.
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Read the room. Recognize if a situation is formal (like a performance review) or informal (like a lunch break) so you can use the appropriate language.
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Mind your manners. Use greetings and closings to let others know when to start and stop listening. Please and thank you go a long way, too.
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Use your experience. Learn from each interaction to improve the way you speak to others in the future.
A focus on these areas can help you succeed, no matter the audience or topic. You can download this list as a PDF below to keep for yourself as a reminder to practice good oral communication.
In this lesson, you learned the importance of the 10 skills when you are speaking. The skills in this unit include productivity, technology, and self and social awareness. You gained an understanding of how productivity can ensure you are prepared and organized. Part of that preparation is often the use of technology to research or create visual aids. You also need to understand your audience and use your self and social awareness skill to avoid any misunderstandings.
As you work through Unit 2, keep these skills in mind and consider how you can strengthen them to improve your oral communication. Additionally, the list of the top 10 things to consider to make yourself heard will help you practice your skills to communicate effectively and avoid misunderstandings.
Best of luck in your learning!
