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Communication methods in the business environment
Communication methods in the business environment
Communication methods in the business environment
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COMMUNICATION BARRIERS 2
Effective business communication is central to the success of an individual’s career and consequently to that of the overall business entity. It would be imaginable therefore that there is some form of correlation between effective communication skills and such success. To put this into context, University of Kent (2011) has placed Verbal Communication at the top of the ten skills that employers most commonly look for. On the same note, anything that hinders effective communication is bound to have a negative effect not only on the specific message delivery, but also on the overall success of a career. In this paper, some of the barriers to effective business communication are discussed, with a few examples of how they affect the process.
The six major barriers to communication according to McLean (2010) are the use of clichés, jargon, slang, sexist and racist language, euphemisms, and doublespeak. These were discussed in the context
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In the technical field for example, there is technical jargon, as legal jargon is to the legal field. I have used the term “subnetting a segment of nodes” in a business context while describing the kind of work that was to be done, to some users of a system. The users only worked with applications and were not familiar with the details of networks, and it is no surprise that they could not understand what was said. Rephrasing helped clear this up.
Slang is mostly used in informal contexts and it would mostly be inappropriate for business communication. The use of words or expressions that take the place of conventional words may give a negative impression in a business context and so the intended message may not be fully appreciated. For example, using the expression “hey, what’s up” to your supervisor at work is likely not going to be the best way of conveying your
The constant changing of technology and social norms makes difficult for different generations to understand one another and fully relate to each other. Diction and slang change as years pass and what is socially acceptable may have been prohibited in the previous generations.
In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? by James Baldwin and Mother Tongue by Amy Tan both shows idea of uses of slang and language in different context. In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? Baldwin states that how language has changed and evolved overtime, Baldwin describes how black English were used as white English, in civil rights movement where blacks were treated as slaves and the used slang language to communicate so that the whites won’t understand. This slang was taken from black language and now everyone uses to make the communication short. In the essay Mother Tongue Tan explains that how language could affect people from different culture. Tan states that how Asian students in America struggle in English. Tan also states that her mother is smart but she couldn’t communicate in English. Tan thinks that’s a big disadvantage for her mother and people coming from different countries cannot show their talent because of their weakness in communication.
For example, a lot of colloquialism was used when Aibileen, a character in The Help, said, “I reckon that’s the risk you run, letting somebody else raise you chilluns” (Stockett 2). Because African Americans were treated unequally, they were denied a good education just because they spoke very differently than white people. The speech of an African American was one of the many reasons why whites were racist towards them. Also, Aibileen used slang when she said, “Around Lunchtime, when my stories come on tee-vee, it gets quiet out in the carport” (22). An African American’s word choice may be considered colloquialism because they use a lot of slang in their daily language. Aibileen, from The Help, is one character that talks with a very uneducated mannerism. Overall, the way that an African American talks can decide on how a racist a white person was towards
David A. Fein and Milton Millhauser have both written articles pertaining to the topic of slang. Fein and Millhauser provide two different viewpoints, and they employ information and their opinions in different ways. David A. Fein’s article, “Vulgarity by Teaching Slang in the Classroom”, makes a good argument as to why slang should be utilized in teaching, while Milton Millhauser’s article, “The Case Against Slang”, explains that slang is to be avoided in teaching, but fails to provide a good argument for his claim.
In his essay “The World of Doublespeak” Emeritus Professor William Lutz explained the concepts of doublespeak and the dangers involved in doublespeak. He outlined and explained in full details the four kinds of double doublespeak which includes: “Euphemism”, “Jargon”, “Gobbledygook” and “Inflated language”. Lutz explained that “Euphemism” are words that are used to avoid harsh and unpleasant reality. They are also used to make negative situations look positive and he gave an example of situations like death where we use positive terms to condole the family of the deceased. The next kind of doublespeak that he talked about was “Jargon” which is mostly used by professionals and is complex in nature because of the way professionals use it. He gave different examples one of which include: “Involuntary Conversion” of property.
Lytle, Ryan. "How Slang Affects Students in the Classroom." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 13 June 2011. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
Slang is the everyday common language, generally used by young adults and children, although it is not exclusive. Slang is known to be very informal and usually inappropriate. Today adolescents know more slang words than they do SAT words. According to Valerie Strauss, author of "More and More, Kids Say the Foulest Things," teachers have noticed the rise of this common language in hallways, classrooms, and playgrounds. They believe this is causing the decline of youth's English language skills and leads to a general decline in youth's thoughts. Granting this is a common misconception, often the inability to express one's inner thoughts in a correct manner is confused as being simple minded. She also states that popular culture has played a
Furthermore, we once again see the slang words, and lack of vocabulary. Judging by all of the above-mentioned quotations, the vocabulary is poor, and the tone of voice is very affected by the use of slang,
Through their use of language, speakers are able to communicate their belonging to a group. The use of slang, jargon and ethnolect varieties play a crucial part in enabling a speaker to reinforce their group belonging. Through this use of language, members of the group are thus able to communicate and bond over shared and common interests, knowledge or culture, reinforcing and reflecting group solidarity.
Varun Gupta Professor Natalie Suzelis Interpretation and Argument 76-101 12 December 2012 Language as the Marker of Subculture Introduction The Jargon used by people in a career can occasionally make it difficult for people to join that career. It can make it incredibly difficult for people outside of that workplace to understand communication that happens within the workplace, excluding people outside of that specific group. An example of this is the EMT slang, scoop and run, which seems completely inane to anyone who is not an EMT, but is a meaningful term in the EMT world. Another example is “Campers” a bit of slang used by restaurant servers to describe customers who don’t leave their table even long after they are done eating. This is
Waldeck, J., Durante, C., Helmuth, B., & Marcia, B. (2012). Communication in a Changing World: Contemporary Perspectives on Business Communication Competence. Journal of Education For Business, 87(4), 230-240. doi: 10.08832323.2011.608388
The reader of your message will find it easy to interpret and fully understand your message if it’s written clearly. Therefore, avoid using inappropriate language such as jargons, slangs, clichés, and so forth, they are barriers to communication. Here is an example of one of my pieces of writing that clearly expresses and communicates my message: A banner at the entrance of Ramayana boutique reads: Attention! Attention! Do not miss out on our massive discount offer, starting 9/10/2015, women and men’s shoes - 30% discount, children’s shoes – 50% discount and hair accessories – 40%
Sexist and racist language also offends people when they find themselves excluded. For example like, ‘that Asian women very quiet, don't speak much’ or ‘that African-American guy is such a nice looking guy’ or ‘you are too pretty to be a female engineer’. Doublespeak also called double talk, which is the language intended to deceive or confuse people. Doublespeak is often used in business purposes and make negative situations sound better. Phrases such as ‘senior citizens’ may be used in public situation in a more accepted and politically correct way to identify older people in our society.
Communication plays a key role to a leader. To have communication skills is to have the ability to express oneself clearly to others. It is extremely important as...
As in all aspects of personal and professional life, having effective communication is a key element of success. Effective communication can benefit your relationships with people. By conveying your message and integrating them as a member of the team and not just a subordinate leads to better production. By effectively communicating you can clearly define job responsibilities and expectations. The better you are able to communicate the less likely organizational turnover of personnel will occur. Supervisors and leaders in the professional workplace find that the most important factor in advancement and retain ability is effective communication. Senior level executives and human resources managers are stressing the importance of communication and providing more training for mid-level management. Emphasis is placed on communication being clear by being transmitted strongly.