Active Listening & Nonverbal Communication

1. Active Listening &Nonverbal Communication Introduction to Business & Marketing February 15, 2012

2. Today’s Objectives • Demonstrate listening and speaking skills important in the workplace. • Explain the importance of nonverbal communication in the workplace. • Describe the impact of cultural diversity on business communication.

3. Effective Listening

4. Listening • Active mental process by which a person recognizes, assimilates, assesses, and evaluates what is heard • Listening for understanding is one of the most valuable communication skills!

5. Barriers • Distractions • Noises • Conversations • Thinking about other things • Emotion / Opinion • Personal bias against speaker or message • Planning a Response

6. Active Listening • Process of giving the sender some type of feedback that indicates the message is being received and understood • Give feedback • Nod, smile, etc. • Engage / Connect • Make eye contact • Observe other cues • Speed, pitch, volume • Take notes

7. Nonverbal Communication

8. Nonverbal Communication • The sending and receiving of messages without using words • Includes use of: • Body language • Physical appearance • Pictures / Drawings

9. Non-Verbal Gestures Around the World • India – shaking the head from side to side means yes • Japan – removing your shoes before entering a home or place of worship is a sign of respect • Middle East – showing the soles of one’s shoes is rude • Middle East /India – using the left hand for anything except sanitary purposes is insulting

10. Importance of Eye Contact • In which countries are speakers expected to look at and speak directly to listeners? • United States • Canada • Australia • Great Britain • Other Western countries

11. Importance of Eye Contact • In which countries should speakers show respect by averting their eyes, speaking in soft tones, and approaching their subject indirectly? • Asian countries

12. Does “no” really mean “no”? • A speaker in Canada who wants to say “no” will simply say “no.” • A speaker in Korea who wants to communicate the same message may say, “That might be very difficult.” • Both speakers are saying the same thing, but the way the message is communicated reflects cultural differences.

13. Fun Facts! Walkabout Assignment

14. Cultural Diversity Business in a Global Environment

15. Global Cultures • Culture: the knowledge, habits, beliefs, skills, and morals of a society in a given time period • Cultural aspects that affect business • Language • Religion • Values • Attitudes • Behaviors

16. Language & Communication • There are more people who speak English as a foreign language than native speakers • 85% of European teens study English • Sony, Nokia, Matsushita require managers to speak English

17. Language & Communication • Westerners tend to be verbal, Asians value nonverbal communication • In the Mideast, Westerners should not show the soles of shoes or pass documents with the left hand • In Asian countries, different bows are used for apologiesand gratitude, to express different emotions, and in various traditional arts and religious ceremonies.

18. Middle Easterner Shows Soles of Shoes to President Bush

19. Language & Communication Hidden language of cultures… • Time flexibility and sensibility in Spain & Latin American countries • Personal physical space in the Americas

20. Nonverbal… Using Pictures • When Nike learned that this stylized “Air” logo resembled “Allah” in Arabic script, it apologized and pulled the shoes from distribution.

21. Create a group of 2-3 • Pick a country from the bowl of surprises  • Research communication & customs in your country • Research a popular dish from your selected country • Be ready to share your delicious dish with the class next Wednesday, Feb. 22nd Group Activity