VAC 13

Communication Skills and Personality

Development

Value Added Course (VAC)

School of Vocational Studies

उ राख ड मु िव िव ालय
तीनपानी बाईपास रोड, ांसपोट नगर के पास, ह ानी- 263139
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वेबसाइट- www.uou.ac.in
 BOARD OF STUDIES,
SCHOOL OF VOCATIONAL STUDIES, UTTARAKHAND OPEN UNIVERSITY, HALDWANI
Academic Session 2023 - 24
Chairman
Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor, Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.
Convener
Dr. Ashutosh Kumar Bhatt, Director In-charge, School of Vocational Studies,
Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.
Members of Board of Studies, School of Vocational Studies
Prof. Manoj Kumar Pandey, Director,
Department of Computer Engineering & Applications, Amrapali Institute, Haldwani, Nainital.
Dr. Sandeep Budhani, Associate Professor & Head,
School of Computing, Graphic Era Hill University, Bhimtal, Nainital.
Mrs. Deepika Lohani, Instructor, Govt. Industrial Training Institute, Kaladhungi, Haldwani, Nainital.
Dr. Deepika Verma, Assistant Professor, Department of Home Science, School of Health Sciences,
Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.
Dr. Gopal Datt, Assistant Professor & Programme Coordinator,
School of Vocational Studies, Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.
Programme Coordinator
Dr. Gopal Datt, Assistant Professor
School of Vocational Studies, Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.

Unit Writers Unit No.

Mr. Sitangshu Dey, Assistant Professor, Birla Institute of Applied Sciences, Bhimtal,
1, 9, 11
Nainital.
Dr. V. Bhuvaneswari, Associate Professor, Law College, Uttaranchal University,
2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 12
Dehradun.
Dr. Jyoti Khare, Associate Professor, Govt. P. G. College, Maldevta, Raipur, Dehradun. 5, 6
Ms. Manisha Rana, Assistant Professor, Amrapali Group of Institutes, Haldwani,
8
Nainital.

Note- Wrap up material for study purpose only.

Formatting & Typesetting

Dr. Gopal Datt, Assistant Professor
School of Vocational Studies, Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani.

Copyright © Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani, Nainital

Edition- 2024, Pre-Publication copy for Limited Circulation, ISBN:
Publication- Uttarakhand Open University, Haldwani, Nainital.
E- Mail: [email protected]
Printer:
 VAC 13-
Communication Skills and Personality Development

INDEX

UNIT NO. DESCRIPTION PAGE NO.

1 Introduction to Communication 4 – 21

2 Non-Verbal Communication 22 – 34

3 Listening Skills 35 – 46

4 Reading Skills 47 – 61

5 Writing Skills 62 – 90

6 Writing Proposals 91 – 105

7 Report Writing 106 – 113

8 Letter Writing 114 – 130

9 Telephone and E-Mail Communication 131 – 156

10 Interview Skills 157 – 165

11 Introduction- A New Approach to Learning 166 – 181

12 Leadership 182 – 193

VAC 13- Communication Skills and Personality Development UOU

UNIT- 1
INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION

1.1 INTRODUCTION

1.2 OBJECTIVES

1.3 WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?

1.4 CATEGORIES OF COMMUNICATION

1.5 IMPROVING THE COMMUNICATION SKILL

1.6 NEED FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

1.7 THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

1.8 FLOW OF COMMUNICATION

1.9 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

1.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

1.11 GLOSSARY

1.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

1.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

1.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

1.1 INTRODUCTION
Communication is the act of transferring information from one place, person or group to
another. The transmission of the message from sender to recipient can be affected by variety
of factors. These include our emotions, cultural situation, medium used to communicate, and
even our location. The complexity is why good communication skills are considered so
desirable by employers around the world while accurate, effective, and unambiguous
communication is actually extremely hard.
Communication can have several different forms such as verbal or spoken, non-verbal,
written, and visualization. This includes telephonic conversation, written communication
such as letter and e-mail conversations. The term requires an element of success in
transmitting or imparting a message, whether information, ideas, or emotions.

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For our communication to be impactful, we need to learn about the essential parts of verbal,
non-verbal, and written communication skills as well as the process, levels and flow of
communication. Several barriers to effective communication must be kept in mind to make
our communication a success.

1.2 OBJECTIVES
After the successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-
 Understand, explain and define communication.
 Describe the different types of communication.
 Understand the process and levels of communication.
 Understand the flow of communication.
 Understand the barriers to effective communication.
1.3 WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
Communication plays a vital role in our daily life. For all fields of endeavour, we need good
communication skill. Whatever profession you have, whether you are an engineer, doctor or
an employee of any organization, having a firm grasp of communication will undoubtedly
play a key role in your success. So, we must first understand what communication is and
what different types of communication are.
Communication is the act of transferring information from one place, person or group to
another. Every communication involves (at least) one sender, a message and a recipient. This
may sound simple, but communication is actually a very complex subject. The transmission
of the message from sender to recipient can be affected by variety of things. These include
our emotions, the cultural situation, the medium used to communicate, and even our location.
The complexity is why good communication skills are considered so desirable by employers
around the world.

Accurate, effective and unambiguous communication is actually extremely hard. In other

words, communication is more than simply the transmission of information. The term
requires an element of success in transmitting or imparting a message, whether information,
ideas, or emotions.

Often at times, people with great technical skills reach a point in their careers where they are
no longer promoted, because of their inability to communicate effectively. Professors often
tell anecdotal stories about students that have been hugely successful in gaining jobs right out
of college, but then struggle to get promoted into management and leadership roles beyond
their technical duties. This is because they lack in one fundamental skill that would have
helped them shine above all their competition is ‘communication’.

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1.4 CATEGORIES OF COMMUNICATION

There are wide ranges of ways in which we communicate, and more than one may occur at
any given time. The different categories of communication include:

 Spoken or Verbal Communication

 Non-Verbal communication

 Written Communication

 Visual Communication

Spoken or Verbal Communication-

Verbal communication is the use of language to transfer information through speaking or sign
language. This includes face-to-face, telephone, radio or television, and other media. It is one
of the most common types, often used during presentations, video conferences, phone calls,
meetings, and one-on-one conversations. Verbal communication is important because it is
efficient. It can help support verbal communication with both nonverbal and written
communication.

Non-Verbal Communication-
Non-verbal communication is the use of body language, gestures, and facial expressions to
convey information to others. It can be used both intentionally and unintentionally. For
example, you might smile unintentionally when you hear a pleasing or enjoyable idea or a
piece of information. Non-verbal communication is helpful when trying to understand others
thoughts and feelings. There are many subtle ways that we communicate (perhaps even
unintentionally) with others. For example, the tone of voice can give clues to mood or
emotional state, while hand signals or gestures can add to a spoken message.
If someone displays “closed” body language such as crossed arms or legs, or hunched
shoulders, he/she might be feeling anxious, angry, or nervous. If they display “open” body
language with both feet on the floor and arms by their side or on the table, they are likely
feeling positive and open to information.

Written Communication-
Written communication is the act of writing, typing or printing symbols like letters and
numbers to convey information. It is helpful because it provides a record of information for
reference. Writing is commonly used to share information through books, pamphlets, blogs,
letters, memos, and more. Emails and chats are a common form of written communication in
the workplace.

This includes letters, e-mails, social media, books, magazines, internet, and other media.
Until recent times, relatively small number of writers and publishers were very powerful

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when it came to communicating the written word. Today, we can all write and publish our
ideas online, which have led to an explosion of information and communication possibilities.

Visual Communication-
Visual communication is the act of using photographs, art, drawings, sketches, charts, and
graphs to convey information. Visuals are often used as an aid during presentations to
provide helpful context alongside written and/or verbal communication. People have different
learning styles; visual communication might be more helpful for some to consume ideas and
information.

Graphs and charts, maps, logos, and other visualizations can all communicate messages. The
process of interpersonal communication cannot be regarded as a phenomena which simply
‘happen'. Instead, it must be seen as a process that involves participants who negotiate their
roles with each other, whether consciously or unconsciously. The sender sends a message or
communication through a communication channel to one or more recipients.

1.5 IMPROVING COMMUNICATION SKILL

Here are a few steps that you can take to develop your verbal communication skills:

 Use a strong, confident speaking voice- Especially when presenting information to a

few or a group of people, be sure to use a strong voice so that everyone can easily hear
you. Be confident when speaking so that your ideas are clear and easy for others to
understand.
 Use active listening- The other side of using verbal communication is intently listening
and hearing others. Active listening skills are key when conducting a meeting,
presentation or even when participating in a one-on-one conversation, doing so will
help you grow as a communicator.
 Avoid filler words- It can be tempting, especially during a presentation, to use filler
words such as “um,” “like,” “so” or “yeah.” While it might feel natural after completing
a sentence or pausing to collect your thoughts, it can also be distracting for your
audience. Try presenting to a trusted friend or colleague who can call attention to the
times you use filler words. Try to replace them by taking a breath when you are
tempted to use them.

NOTE- Few steps that you can take to develop your Non-verbal communication skills are-

 Notice how your emotions feel physically- Throughout the day, as you experience a
range of emotions (anything from energized, bored, happy or frustrated), try to identify
where you feel that emotion within your body. Developing self-awareness around how
your emotions affect your body can give you greater mastery over your external
presentation.

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 Be intentional about your nonverbal communications- Make an effort to display

positive body language when you feel alert, open, and positive about your
surroundings. You can also use body language to support your verbal communication if
you feel confused or anxious about information, like using a furrowed brow. Use body
language alongside verbal communication, such as asking to follow up questions or
pulling the presenter aside to give feedback.
 Mimic nonverbal communications, you find effective- If you find certain facial
expressions or body language beneficial to a certain setting, use it as a guide when
improving your own nonverbal communications. For example, if you see that when
someone nods their head, it communicates approval and positive feedback efficiently,
use it in your next meeting when you have the same feelings.

NOTE- Few steps that you can take to develop your written communication skills are-

 Strive for simplicity- Written communications should be as simple and clear as

possible. While it might be helpful to include lots of detail in instructional
communications, for example, you should look for areas where you can write as clearly
as possible for your audience to understand.
 Do not rely on tone-Always be careful when you are trying to communicate a certain
tone when writing because you do not have the nuance of verbal and nonverbal
communications, for example, attempting to communicate a joke, sarcasm, or
excitement might be translated differently depending on the audience. Instead, try to
keep your writing as simple and plain as possible and follow up with verbal
communications where you can add more personality.
 Take time to review your written communications- Setting time aside to re-read
your emails, letters, or memos can help you identify mistakes or opportunities to say
something differently. For important communications or those that will be sent to a
large number of people, it might be helpful to have a trusted colleague review it as well.
 Keep a file of writing you find productive or enjoyable- If you receive a certain
pamphlet, email or memo that you find particularly helpful or interesting, save it for
reference when writing your own communications. Incorporating methods or styles you
like can help you to improve over time.

NOTE- Few steps that you can take to develop your visual communication skills are-

 Ask others before including visuals. If you are considering sharing a visual aid in your
presentation or email, consider asking others for feedback. Adding visuals can
sometimes make concepts confusing or muddled. Getting a third-party perspective can
help you decide whether the visual adds value to your communications.
 Consider your audience. Be sure to include visuals that are easily understood by your
audience. For example, if you are displaying a chart with unfamiliar data, be sure to

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take time and explain what is happening in the visual and how it relates to what you are
saying. You should never use sensitive, offensive, violent or graphic visuals in any
form.
To make improvements to your communication skills, set personal goals to work through the
things you want to accomplish step by step. It might be helpful to consult with trusted
colleagues, managers or mentors to identify which areas would be best to focus on first.

1.6 NEED FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Besides the workplace and personal relationships, here are some other reasons why good
communication is important-

Understanding-
For better understanding what you want, what your need is and what is your intention, it is
desirable to have to communicate well. It can be the determining factor in negotiating a salary
or setting the course of a friendship or relationship. Often conflicts, arguments, and
disagreements stem from not communicating clearly. Preventing these misunderstandings is
one reason, communication is crucial.
Strengthening Relationships-

This is because building a rapport with someone comes from talking and listening. When you
can get to know each other and discover similarities, your relationship can build a more solid
foundation. This applies to anything in life: clients, friendships, and more.
Relieving Stress-

Whenever you are feeling overwhelmed, it is a great relief to get things off your chest by
discussing your problems with friends. This discussion also helps you to see your problems
from new perspectives.
Increasing Confidence-

Communicating clearly means that people will be more apt to listen to you. Not only will you
sound more intelligent, but will more easily get your point across. And when people value
what you say, your self-esteem naturally increases.
Happiness-

With the better upward mobility in the workplace, stronger relationships, lower stress, and
increased self-esteem, you should find yourself happier all around.

Communicating effectively is a powerful tool, and improving your skill set will lead you to a
drastically more fulfilling life, both personally and professionally. Set yourself now on the
path to increased happiness and prosperity by vowing to work on your communication skills
every day.

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As discussed now, we can say communication has three parts:

[1] The sender,

[2] The message

[3] The recipient.

The sender ‘encodes’ the message, usually in a mixture of words and non-verbal
communication. It is transmitted in some way (for example, in speech or writing), and the
recipient ‘decodes’ it. The sender must encode the message (the information being conveyed)
into a form that is appropriate to the communication channel, and the recipient then decodes
the message to understand its meaning and significance.
Of course, there may be more than one recipient, and the complexity of communication
means that each one may receive a slightly different message. Two people may read very
different things into the choice of words and/or body language. It is also possible that neither
of them will have quite the same understanding as to the sender.
In face-to-face communication, the roles of the sender and recipient are not distinct. The two
roles will pass back and forwards between two people talking. Both parties communicate
with each other, even if in very subtle ways such as through eye-contact (or lack of) and
general body language. In written communication, however, the sender and recipient are
more distinct.

1.7 THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is a process of the exchange of information between the sender and the
receiver. It always processes around us because we communicate to live as well as
understand with each other in order to express what we are thinking. But, sometime a
communication may fail to present, or sometimes the receiver misunderstands what the
sender is trying to give the information. Therefore, some skills help us have better and
effective communication. According to researchers, there are five steps of the communication
process: sender has an idea, sender decodes the idea in a message, message travels over
channel, receiver decodes the message and lastly feedback travel back to the sender.
The process of communication refers to the transmission or passage of information or
message from the sender through a selected channel to the receiver overcoming barriers that
affect its pace. The process of communication is a cyclic as it begins with the sender and ends
with the sender in the form of feedback.
The essential elements of the process of communication are the message, the sender,
encoding, the channel, the receiver, decoding, acting on the message, the feedback, and
the communication environment. Both the sender and the receiver play a role in
making communication effective.

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The five steps of the Communication Process

The steps on the theory of five steps communication process are encoding, planning, medium,
decoding, and lastly the feedback. There is the key point of explaining this assignment and
the correct way to ensure the intended audient received the right message. On the page below
will have the 5 steps of the communication process-
[1] Encoding

Encoding process involves translating an idea. Therefore, the idea will need to be changed
into ordinary language with letter or symbols to pass on the information to the other party.
However, the information of encoding is not yet sending out the message to the channel,
messages are only an idea that thinking in the sender. Besides, the sender might not have plan
of which the sending ways are the better way for the receiver. So, encoding is just an idea that
came out from the sender mind, and when the sender starts to plan for sending out the
message, it is the second step of the communication process, i.e. planning.
[2] Planning

The second step of the communication process includes the processes of organization and
sending. After encoding an idea, the sender will start to plan how to send the message. For
example, the sender uses a letter to send the message, he or she will translate the idea to an
ordinary language or symbols into words, the sender will make sure to use simple
comprehendible words for the receiver. Therefore, the receiver will easily get the correct
message from the sender rather than having communication gaps of misrepresentation and
misunderstanding. To cater it when the sender organizes the message, he/she make sure to
double confirm on the grammar and sentence meaning. When it is confirmed to be a right
message, it will come to choose the types of how the sender will use to send out the message
to the receiver.

[3] Medium
The information that the sender wants to communicate is transmitted over a channel through
which the message travels to the receiver. A channel or a medium connects the sender to the
receiver. Medium of communication may include a memorandum, a computer, a telephone, a
telegram, or a television.
The choice of a channel depends on the communication situation. For instance, when dealing
with confidential information, direct face-to-face interaction or a sealed letter are more
effective mediums than a telephone conversation.

[4] Decoding
The receiver is the person to whom the message is transmitted. In order to decode the
message, the receiver has to be ready to receive the message. That is the receiver should not

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be preoccupied with other thoughts that might cause him to pay insufficient attention to the
message. Decoding refers to the process of translation of symbols encoded by the sender into
ideas that can be understood.
Communication can be considered effective only when both the sender and the receiver
attach similar meanings to the symbol that compose the message. Communication is not
complete unless it is understood by both the sender and the receiver.

[5] Feedback
A message generated by the receiver in response to the sender’s original message is known as
feedback. Feedback is necessary to ensure that the message has been effectively encoded,
transmitted, decoded and understood.

It helps a sender evaluate the effectiveness of his message, so that he can modify his
subsequent messages. Feedback also confirms whether there has been any change in the
behaviour of the individual or in the organization as a result of communication.

Some other communication processes are-

Besides, the five types of the communication process, there are some other types of
communication processes to ensure that the intended audience receives the right message.

Body Language
Body language is the unspoken element, of communication that we use to reveal our true
feelings and emotions. Our gestures, facial expressions and postures. For instance, when we
are able to read these signs, we can use it to our advantage. For example, it can help us to
understand the complete message of what someone is trying to say to us, and to enhance our
awareness of people’s reactions to what we say and do.

We can also use it to adjust our own body language so that we appear more positive,
engaging and approachable.

Noise
Noise is anything that has a disturbing influence on the message. Since noise hinders
communication, the sender should choose a channel that is free from noise. Noise may occur
at the sender’s end, during transmission, or at the receiver’s end.

Levels of communication-
Communication between two people occurs on numerous levels simultaneously, each with its
nuances and complexities. These levels of communication are verbal, physical, auditory,
emotional, and energetic.
[1] Verbal Level of Communication

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This is perhaps the most apparent level of human communication. People can spend a
lifetime trying to master it. This level includes our selection of words based on an
understanding between the speaker and the listener. There are multiple definitions for most
words and few of hold the same meaning for each word. Different words evoke different
images, memories, and meaning for different people.
To communicate effectively on the verbal level, select the “right” words and understand the
context of the conversation (including moral, religious, ethnic and religious differences). Be
clear and concise. When possible, formulate your thoughts to avoid rambling. This is an art in
itself.
[2] Physical Level of Communication

Communication with eye contact, gestures, movements, stances, breathing, posture, and
facial expressions influence how we communicate. When used with integrity, techniques like
“matching and mirroring” people’s posture and gestures, including certain words too can
increase the receptivity of your message.

To communicate effectively on the physical level, it is helpful to physically align with others,
connecting with them in form and movement. It also helps to be mindful of your posture,
facial expressions, and hand gestures.
[3] Auditory Level of Communication

The sound of our voice, including the tone, range, volume, and speed affects how our
messages are received and interpreted by others. For example, fast talkers will find it
beneficial to slow their speech when speaking to a thoughtful, introverted person.
Also, how we enunciate, inflect, and emphasize on certain words affects how others interpret
the meaning of what we say. To communicate effectively on the auditory level, become
aware of various auditory cues, speaking to others in a manner more akin to their ways
(another form of “matching and mirroring”).
[4] Emotional Level of Communication

Few people appreciate how our emotional state affects what we communicate and how the
recipient interprets the message. Are you more receptive to someone who is positive and life-
affirming or one who is negative and critical, enthusiastic or dull?
The speaker’s emotions put the recipient in a particular state of mind and influence how the
listener interprets what is said. To communicate effectively on the emotional level become
aware of your emotional state, learning to pause and release negative emotions before
attempting to connect with others. Words delivered with pride, anger or fears are rarely well-
received.

[5] Energetic Level of Communication

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This is also called the psychic level. This level of communication encompasses a vast range
of unseen factors including, an individual’s level of consciousness, frequency or harmonics of
the message, and other subtle energies.
Some people seem to have an “X-factor”—a unique presence—that naturally imparts their
messages to others with greater receptivity and understanding.
To communicate more effectively, hold the highest intention for the other person’s wellbeing.
This requires a unique level of mindfulness generally cultivated through compassion
practices. When we are centred in a state of mastery, we are more likely to access
this psychic dimension that holds great treasures of insights into others, helping us
communicate with greater ease.

[6] Bringing all the levels of communication together

The verbal level is the content; it is what we say. The physical, auditory, emotional, and
energetic levels represent how we convey a message. These levels of communication are
interdependent, as each level affects the other.

For example, our emotional state affects our body language, and our feelings influence our
emotional state. Simply becoming aware of these various levels can be beneficial.

When we see complexities inherent in human communication, we can be made more patient
in our speech and more compassionate towards others and ourselves.

1.8 FLOW OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is vital to organizational life. Organizations exist through communication
without communication, there would be no organizations. As Herbert Simon expresses it,
“Without communication, there can be no organizations, for there is no possibility then of the
group influencing the behavior of the individual.”
Therefore, communication is the ingredient that makes organizations possible. It is the
vehicle through which the basic managerial functions are carried out. Managers direct
organizational activities through communication. They coordinate through communication,
and they plan, organize, motivate, and control through communication. Virtually all actions
taken in an organization has been preceded by communication. Thus, communication is an
essential ingredient of almost everything a manager does.
In an organization where we work, there are major communication systems. Communication
flow downward, upward or horizontally. As these terms are used frequently in organizations,
we need some clarification of each, which are as follows:

Downward Communication-
Downward communication is from superior to subordinate, i.e. from boss to employees and
from managers to operating staff. In any work place, managers communicate with their

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employees for job instruction which includes teaching new or current employees how to do a
particular task. They pass upon a organizational goal and train employee to achieve those
goals. Managers also do communicate with their employees to give them a feedback upon
their performance. They also take a role in having appraisal or superior’s evaluation of
employee performance. Downward communication flow is of course, related to the
hierarchical structure of the organization. Messages seem to get larger as they travel
downward through successive levels of the organization. A simple instruction given at the top
of the hierarchy, for example, may become a formal plan for operation at a lower level.

Upward Communication-
Upward communication is equally important for effective communication. Upward
communication travels from lower to higher ranks in the hierarchy. Various mechanisms are
used by organizations to facilitate upward communication. Suggestion boxes, group
meetings, grievance procedures, participate decision-making are some examples. This is
maintained to get feedback to managers from employees.

In general, in any organization employees talk to superiors about themselves, their fellow
employees, job satisfaction, perceptions of their work, feelings and opinions about
organizational goals and policies. The feedback that the management receives from the lower
level is thus extremely important and it should be encouraged. However, one must remember
if the right climate is not created employees may not provide their feedback freely and
accurately.

Diagonal Communication-
Diagonal communication is cross-functional communication between employees at different
levels of the organization. For example, if the vice president of sales sends an e-mail to the
vice president of manufacturing asking when a product will be available for shipping, this is
an example of horizontal communication. However, if a sales representative e-mails the vice
president of marketing, then diagonal communication has occurred. Whenever
communication goes from one department to another department, the sender’s manager
should be made part of the loop. A manager may be put in an embarrassing position and
appear incompetent if he is not aware of everything happening in his department. Trust may
be lost and careers damaged by not paying attention to key communication protocols.

Diagonal communication is becoming more common in organizations with a flattened,

matrix, or product-based structure (see fig. 1.2). The advantages of such communication
include:

 Building relationships between senior-level and lower-level employees from different

parts of the organization.

 Encouraging an informal flow of information in the organization.

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 Reducing the chance of a message being distorted by going through additional filters.

 Reducing the workloads of senior-level managers.

Fig. 1.1 Diagonal Communication

Horizontal or Lateral Communication-

Much information needs to be shared among people on the same hierarchical level. Such
horizontal or lateral communication takes place among people in the same work team (see fig
1.2). Hence, this form of communication is beneficial for achieving coordination. Different
units coordinate activities by such communication are required to accomplish task goals.
Inter-departmental uniformity may be achieved through diagonal communication (see Fig. 2).
Such communication takes place through telephone calls, short memos and notes, face-to-

Fig. 1.2: Direction of Flow of Communication

face interactions, etc.

Although this type of communication is not often encouraged, it is sure to take place.
Workers at the same level tend to talk with one another about their work, supervisors, and
working conditions. They also talk with one another about various personal and non-work

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problems. As a result, horizontal communication can contribute to self-maintenance goals as

well as to task goals. Horizontal or lateral communication takes place through informal
channels.

1.9 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

The process of communication has multiple barriers. The intended communication will often be
disturbed and distorted leading to a condition of misunderstanding and failure of
communication. The barriers to effective communication could be of many types like linguistic,
psychological, emotional, physical, cultural, etc. Below, we will discuss these types in detail-
Linguistic Barriers-

The language barrier is one of the main barriers that limit effective communication. Language is
the most commonly employed tool of communication. The fact that each major region has its
own language is another barrier to effective communication. Sometimes even a thick dialect
may render the communication ineffective.

As per some estimates, the dialects of every two regions changes within a few kilometers. Even
in the same workplace, different employees will have different linguistic skills. As a result, the
communication channels that span across the organization would be affected by this. Thus,
keeping this barrier in mind different considerations have to be made for different employees.
Some of them are very proficient in a certain language, and others will be ok with these
languages.
Psychological Barriers-

Various mental and psychological issues may be barriers to effective communication. Some
people have stage fear, speech disorders, phobia, and depression. All of these conditions are very
difficult to manage sometimes, and will most certainly limit the ease of communication.
Emotional Barriers-

The emotional capacity of a person determines the ease and comfort with which he/she can
communicate. An emotionally mature person will be able to communicate effectively. On the
other hand, people who let their emotions take over will face certain difficulties. A perfect
mixture of emotions and facts is necessary for effective communication. Emotions like anger,
frustration and humor can blur the decision-making capacities of a person and thus limit the
effectiveness of communication.

Physical Barriers to Communication-

They are the most prominent barriers to effective communication. These barriers are mostly
easily removable in principle at least. They include barriers like noise, closed doors, faulty
equipment used for communication, closed cabins, etc. Sometimes, in a large offices physical

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separation between various employees combined with faulty equipment may result in severe
barriers to effective communication.

Cultural Barriers-
As the world is getting more and more globalized, any large offices may have people from
different parts of the world. Different cultures have a different meaning for several fundamental
values of society. Dressing, religions or lack of them, food, drinks, pets, and general behavior
change drastically from one culture to another.
Hence, it is a must that we must take these different cultures into account during
communication. This is what we call being culturally appropriate. In many multinational
companies, specialized courses are offered at the orientation stages that let people know about
other cultures and how to be courteous and tolerant of others.
Organizational Structure Barriers-

As we saw, there are many methods of communication at an organizational level. Each of these
methods has its problems and constraints that may become barriers to effective communication.
Most of these barriers arise because of misinformation or lack of appropriate transparency
available to the employees.

Attitude Barriers-
Certain people like to be left alone. They are the introverts or just people who are not very
social. Others like to be social or sometimes extra clingy! Both these cases could become a
barrier to communication. Some people have attitude issues, like huge ego and inconsiderate
behaviors.

1.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Communication plays an important role in our daily life.
 Powerful communication skills are most needed in today’s diverse workplace, and
hence the importance of these skills can never be overlooked.
 To achieve effectiveness in communication, one needs to understand the basic of
communication. A clear comprehension of the communication process, its
fundamentals, and the various channels through which communication flows in an
organization is essential to become a successful communicator in any professional
setting.
 The act of transferring the ideas from sender to receiver may have various forms.
 There are several different types of communication we are using in our life, whether it
is personal or professional.
 Various levels of communications are being used in most of the organizations.
 Different processes are involved in effective communication.

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 Barriers to communication must be taken into consideration for making our

communication success.
 It is necessary to understand and appropriately deal with the communication failure
arising out of certain significant factors. One can enhance communication effectiveness
by adhering to the characteristics of effective communication and also by adopting
specific strategies for improving communication skills.

1.11 GLOSSARY
 Communication It is the passing of information and understanding from one person to
another at the same level or different levels.

 Verbal Communication It refers to the transfer of information through speaking or

sign language. It includes face-to-face, telephone, radio or television and other media. It
is mostly used during presentations, video conferences and phone calls, meetings and
one-on-one conversations.

 Non-Verbal Communication It refers to all unwritten and unspoken messages, both

intentional and unintentional. It includes facial expressions, eye contact, and tone of
voice, body posture and motions. It may also include the way we wear our clothes or
the silence we keep.

 Encoding It refers to the process of translating an idea. It is just an idea that came out
from the sender mind, and when the sender starts to plan for sending out the message, is
the second step of the communication process i.e. planning.

 Decoding It refers to the process of translation of symbols encoded by the sender into
ideas that can be understood

 Downward Communication It refers to the flow of communication from the superiors

to subordinates. Information, instructions, directions, and feedback flow in this
direction.

 Upward Communication It refers to communication flowing from subordinates to

superiors. Information, analysis, feedback etc. flow in this direction.

 Horizontal Communication It refers to communication among the various divisions of

an organization in order to share and coordinate the multifarious activities.

 Diagonal Communication It refers to communication that ignores the hierarchical

structure and that flows between persons who belong to different levels of hierarchy
and who have no direct reporting relationships.

 Communication Barriers It refers to certain factors that may pose problems in the
communication process, thereby causing failures in communication.

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1.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a) Explain the term ‘Communication’. Define and explain its processes.
b) What do you mean by verbal communication, and what is its importance?
c) What is the significance of non-verbal communication?
d) How can communication skills be improved?
e) Differentiate between written and visual communication.
f) Discuss the importance of effective communication.
g) What are the various levels of communication? Explain each.
h) Differentiate between Auditory level and Energetic level of communication.
i) What do you mean by Upward and Downward communication? Explain with suitable
example.
j) How does horizontal communication differ from diagonal communication?
k) Why must communication barriers be solved for effective communication?
l) Explain various barriers to effective communication.
m) Distinguish between Verbal and Non-verbal Communication.
n) What are the cultural and physical barriers to communication?
o) Write short notes on (i) Verbal and Non-verbal communication. (ii) Horizontal and
Diagonal of communication.
Objective type questions-
a) Verbal communication refers to ….. .
b) Body Language can be of ….. forms.
c) Any communication has the following 3 parts ….., …..&…...
d) Encoding refers to …...
e) Noise refers to …...
f) Video conference is a part of Non-verbal communication. (True / False).
g) Eye contact is a part of Non-verbal communication. (True / False).
h) The flow of information from subordinate to superior is considered as upward
communication. (True / False).
i) Downward communication flow is related to the hierarchy of any organization. (True /
False).
j) Language is never considered as a barrier to effective communication. (True / False).

1.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 http://www.managementstudyguide.com/business_communication.htm
 http://www.speak-first.com/news/effective-leader-tough-times.aspx

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 http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/au-24/kline.pdf
 http://www.managementstudyguide.com/business_communication.htm
 http://www.articlesbase.com/self-improvement-articles/types-of-communication-and-
its-characteristics-872799.html

1.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Sangeeta Sharma, Binod Mishra” Communication skills fo Engineers and Scientists”,
PHI
 Meenakshi Raman, Prakash Singh”Business Communication”, Oxford University Press
 Ruby Gupta, Anurag Rohini Lall “Basic Technical Communication”. Cambridge
University Press India Pvt. Ltd.
 Ruby Gupta “Advanced Technical Communication”, Cambridge University Press India
Pvt. Ltd.

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UNIT- 2
NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

2.1 INTRODUCTION

2.2 OBJECTIVES

2.3 CONCEPT OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

2.4 TYPES OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

2.5 VERBAL VS. NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

2.6 INTERPRETING NON-VERBAL CUES

2.7 ROLE OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION IN INTERVIEW

POWER OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION IN PRESENTATION AND

2.8
GROUP DISCUSSION

2.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER

2.10 GLOSSARY

2.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

2.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

2.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

2.1 INTRODUCTION
Communication is the greatest gift of God to mankind. It helps in spinning the wheel of
progress as it is through which human beings interact, inform and share their feelings with
each other. Communication is simply the act of transferring or exchanging of information by
speaking, writing, or using any other semiotic elements. This is fundamental for the survival
of human beings and plays a pivotal role in the functioning of an organization irrespective of
its size and structure.

2.2 OBJECTIVES
After the successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-
 Understand the concept of Non-Verbal Communication.

 Comprehend the various types of Non-Verbal Communication.

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 Realize the importance of Non-Verbal Communication.

 Interpret the Non-Verbal cues effectively.

2.3 CONCEPT OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Communication, in general, is classified into two types as Verbal Communication and Non-
Verbal Communication. Verbal communication is that which is done with the use of words,
whereas non-verbal communication is done without the use of words. Non-verbal
communication is the oldest means of communication which originated since the existence of
human beings. This was the early stage of communication, where man communicated
through sounds and symbols. Non-verbal communication includes body language, postures,
gestures, glances, etc. It is the vital aspect of the communication process, as a lot of meaning
can be conveyed even without uttering a word. Non-verbal communication is a dynamic and
effective process where the sender and the receiver use commonly used symbols and codes.
For instance, a smile or nodding of the head can convey message lucidly without the use of
words.

Importance of non-verbal communication-

Non-Verbal communication is subtle yet more effective than verbal communication. It plays
a significant role in the process of communication, as nearly 93% of meaning relies on the
non-verbal cues. The rest of the information is conveyed through appearance, postures, tone
and facial expressions. Verbal messages are voluntary, which come from the mind and could
be manipulated accordingly, while non-verbal signals are involuntary which come from the
heart and cannot be controlled consciously. In some cases, this is even more important than
the words spoken by an individual. It can have a great impact on the listener and the outcome
of the communication. Thus, it conveys the actual attitude and feelings of the sender. Hence,
it is vital to recognize the features and importance of non-verbal communication to become a
better communicator.

Elements of Successful Communication

Verbal
Vocalics
Body-language

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Fig. 2.1 [7% verbal, 38% Vocalics 55% body language.]

Functions of Non-Verbal Communication-

Non-Verbal communication is strongly related to verbal communication as it reinforces the
message conveyed through words. It also serves as a substitute or complement to clarify
verbal meaning. This helps one understand the emotional state or the feelings of the
communicator. Non-Verbal communication reinforces the relationship between two people
and helps them feel more connected. Besides this, subtle non-verbal signals like a smile,
nodding of the head, eye contact, etc regulate the flow of communication. There are instances
where non-verbal communication is used to contradict the message and thus to indicate the
listener that you are sarcastic or not telling the truth.

2.4 TYPES OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

[1] Kinesics-
This is also called as body-language and helps us to know the underlying emotions conveyed.
In communication, the spoken words state the linguistic or denotative meaning, while the
expressions that come along with it reveal the thoughts hidden in the heart.

Elements of body-language includes-

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 Facial expressions- As Adage says, “Action speaks louder than words”, human beings
can express countless emotions through facial expressions without even saying a word.
The face is the most expressive part of the human body. A smile can indicate approval

Kinesics-
Body
Language
Silence

Paralangua
ge – Voice
Modulatio
Non-verbal ns
communica
tion
Artifactual
– Personal
appearance Proxemics
- Space
Language
Chronemic
s – Time
Language

or happiness of a person, while a frown can signal unhappiness or disapproval. Facial

expressions are also used to effectively indicate anger, disgust, sadness, surprise, fear,
etc. Smile is a powerful communicative signal recognized universally. Smile is
infectious and invites an immediate response from the person on the other side. A smile
is considered to be genuine when one smiles with the eyes, as the muscles around the
eyes are activated, and this cannot be faked. “Human faces are able to make more
than 10,000 different expressions, and each one articulates volumes of information with
ease."

 Gestures– This is nothing but the movement of hands and legs to emphasize the
meaning of the spoken words. When a person speaks the words transmits the verbal
message, while the body serves as a useful tool to add clarity and effectiveness to the
words. Gestures should be convincing and well-timed. It should be natural and
spontaneous. The waving of hands or pointing out while arguing expresses our state of
mind without even thinking. The use of gestures varies from one culture to the other.
The OK sign made with the hand has a positive meaning in English speaking nations
while it is considered to be offensive in countries like Germany, Brazil and Russia.
Gestures clarify and support the spoken words, and stimulate audience participation as

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well. Hence, it is important to use these gestures carefully in order to avoid

misinterpretation.

 Postures– The position of one’s body, while speaking, is itself a set of visual messages
conveyed to the listener. This indicates if the speaker is nervous, alert or confident in
his words. The way a person sits, walks, stands or holds his head, conveys enormous
information to the world. Good speaking posture has a positive impact on the audience
while postures like slouching or sitting lethargically show a careless attitude of the
individual. A person sitting on a chair leaning forward with his head nodding implies
that he is open for the discussion. To be an effective and impressive speaker one should
hold one’s head erect and chin up comfortably. There should be a proper balance of the
body with slight natural movement expressing confidence.

 Eye-contact– Next to voice, eye contact is the most powerful tool for communicating.
Making eye contact with the audience is of prime importance to make them involve and
create a sense of personal connection. Looking into one’s eyes while speaking shows
sincerity and confidence. Speakers who use eye contact are considered to be honest,
friendly and skilful. This invokes attentiveness on the part of the audience, which in
turn will boost up the confidence of the speaker. Audience unconsciously mirrors the
speaker’s performance. By gauging the audience reaction, the speaker can alter his
words and make it enjoyable. Maintaining eye contact with the listener ensures that
what you speak is something important; failing this shows a lack of confidence on the
part of the speaker. Eye contact, when used rightly affects to intimidate the opponent,
express flirtation and to establish rapport or connection.

 Haptic– Haptic is a word derived from the Greek word, which means “I touch”. Haptic
communication is a branch of communication that deals with the way people and
animals communicate through the sense of touch. This is used to express love, care,
affection concern, etc. For example, a firm handshake conveys confidence while a
warm hug, a patronizing pat on the head shows love and concern, respectively. Human
beings, particularly infants, communicate a great deal through touch. New-borns have
poorly developed hearing and seeing sense, but they cling to their mother due to the
familiarity in their warmth and touch. Touch is the real way to sense the world and is a
highly emotional type of communication. It is an effective means to create bonding and
strengthening the emotional connection. A warm touch like a handshake, hug, a pat,
kiss, etc could bring out the positive outcome, while kicking, pushing, pulling pinching,
etc comes under physical abuse. Different cultures have a different interpretation, and
hence one should be careful in using this in different cultures. For e.g. Latin Americans
greet each other with a long cheek kissing, while in Europeans it is an unconventional
means of greeting.

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[2] Paralanguage-
Paralanguage is the voice modulation adopted while we speak. The study of paralanguage is
called paralinguistics. Most of the time ‘how we speak’ matters a lot than what we speak.
Words added with combinations of sounds symbolically represent the concept of our
communication. The spoken words state the literal meaning, while the way it is said shows
the implied meaning. This includes the following-

 Tone– Albert Mehrabian a Psychology professor states that the tone of voice influences
38% of the communication. This conveys the type of emotion one carries while
speaking. An authoritative tone is used to send across a strict message, influence or
persuade, while a light-hearted and a quirky tone is used while speaking to children.
The tone is used to express warmth, concern, humour, etc. A compassionate tone
creates a great impact on the listener. The tone should be used rightly to express
genuine perception, and this makes one stand apart from others.

 Pitch– Pitch is the highness or lowness of a person’s vocal tone and depends on the
number of vibrations per second produced by the vocal cords. This helps in regulating
the message and shows the intensity of the message. Greetings or a welcome note has a
higher pitch, and a farewell note is better conveyed in a lower pitch.

 Volume– Volume expresses the intensity in communication. Generally speaking, a

loud voice is considered to be intense while a soft voice or a whispering voice is used to
send a covert message or during a flirtatious chat. Volume should be used according to
the situation and the relationship with the concerned person. This, when used aptly,
enhances the professional image of an individual.

 Speed of delivery– This refers to the rate of speech or how fast or slows a person
speaks. This plays a prominent role in conveying the emotional state of a person. When
a person speaks very slowly, he may bore the audience, which will divert their
attention. On the other hand, a person who speaks at a faster rate may not be
comprehendible for the audience. Generally, speed of 120-150 words per minute is
recommended and could be beneficial for the audience. This is the normal rate of speed
where a speaker could articulate and pronounce his words clearly. Appropriate speed of
speech combined with the suitable tone and facial expression can do wonders in the
process of communication.

 Stress and pause – Stress in oral communication indicates emphasis on a particular

word. An important point or message in written communication is denoted by
highlighting or underlining it. The same is done by stressing the words in oral
communication. Pause is nothing but a small gap given for about a fraction of a second
while speaking. This, is in fact, a time given for the audience to assimilate what is said

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by the speaker. One should know how to use these aspects in the right way to make the
speech interesting.

Voice varies from person to person. Some may have a pleasant voice, while some people
might have a coercive voice. This mainly varies in terms of resonance, tone, pitch, etc. An
oral presentation is interesting when the speaker uses proper voice modulation instead of
being monotonous. Vocalic cues elaborate or modify verbal and non-verbal meaning by
complementing, substituting, regulating or contradicting.

[3] Proxemics-
Proxemics is the study of how space and distance between two communicating people
influence each other. This has a great deal in indicating the relationship between them.
Generally, space influences how people communicate and behave. Less space among people
in a crowded area like a train in a rush-hour or a fair in a town, demands a lot of management
to adjust the space issues. Whereas an unexpected or a voluntary violation of one’s personal
space can lead to an adverse reaction. In the first case, at a crowded situation nobody was
forced into our personal space, while in the second case, we could sense that someone has
violated our personal space. We all have varying definitions of personal space, and this is
based on the context and the relationship with the communicating person. Based on this, it is
divided into four zones as:

 Public Zone– This refers to a space of more than twelve feet away from our body. We
maintain this distance in a public place or with a stranger. It is the least personal of the
four zones and is used when engaging in a formal address or when a person of high
profile like a celebrity or an executive is on the dais. Maintaining such a distance shows
power and security reasons could be another aspect. Deep conversation with a person at
this level is difficult due to the distance and formality preserved.

 Social Zone– Communication in this zone is around four to twelve feet away from the
body. This zone is adopted while engaging in casual interaction, with an acquaintance
or a colleague. This stands between a public zone and an intimate zone. The expression
“Keep someone at arm’s length” clearly states that one should be kept out of personal
space and should be retained in a professional or social space. This zone is considered
to be a safe zone because the possibility of intentional touching, least exists here. In a
classroom environment, students and teachers maintain a social zone as this distance is
beneficial in acknowledging the presence of every individual student. They are close
enough to comprehend every important non-verbal cues and facial expressions.

 Friendly zone- This is the zone where the distance is somewhere between two-four
feet. Friends, family members, and close acquaintances are entertained in this zone, and
most of our communication is under the ambit of the friendly zone. But even in this

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zone, verbal communication is mostly used to indicate that the presence is not
something intimate. This again can be divided as an outer-personal zone which extends
from 1.5 – 2 feet distance and an inner-personal zone which comes within a distance of
1.5 feet. In this zone, briefly placing hands on each other’s arms or engaging in light
social touching to facilitate conversation or feelings of closeness is permissible.

 Intimate zone– This is the zone where a person is permitted closer than two feet
distance and is reserved only for close friends, family members and intimate people. It
is not possible to ignore a person’s presence literally when he or she is in this zone,
even if we want to. Being close to a person and feeling their physical presence is very
comforting than words or verbal communication at the time of distress. Nevertheless,
this comes with its own social norms with respect to the amount of closeness that could
be displayed in public.
There are many situations where our personal space is breached and is more upsetting, even
when it is least expected. In such a case, a verbal communication indicating that the closeness
is involuntary and unavoidable or non-verbal gestures like crossing our arms or avoiding eye
contact will lighten the situation. Hence, it is very crucial to respect others’ space in
communication for a better relationship.

[4] Chronemics-
Chronemics refers to the study of time and its role in communication. Time can be classified
into several different categories, including biological, personal, physical, and cultural. A daily
cycle that any human being follows like when we eat, sleep, wake up, etc is the natural
rhythm or the biological timings of an individual. When this gets disturbed, it affects the
mental health and competence of an individual. In the same way, the biological time should
be kept in mind while communicating with others as it may cause adverse effects in the
communication process. Personal time refers to the ways in which individuals experience
time. This is greatly influenced by our mood, our interest level, and other factors. Think
about how quickly time passes when you are interested in and therefore engaged in
something. Physical time refers to the fixed cycles of days, years, and seasons. Physical time
especially seasons, can affect our mood and psychological state. Some people experience
seasonal affective disorder that leads them to experience emotional distress and anxiety
during the changes of seasons, primarily from warm and bright to dark and cold (summer to
fall and winter). Cultural time refers to how a large group of people view time and its
influences on social realities and how we interact with others.

Besides, the way we utilize time shows our personality and status to a certain extent.
Executives and celebrities may run consistently behind schedule, making others wait for
them. Promptness and the amount of time that is socially acceptable for lateness and waiting

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vary among individuals and contexts. But maintaining punctuality and handling time
effectively portrays a positive image of oneself.

[5] Artifactual–
This denotes the meaning conveyed by the physical appearance of a person and the external
setting of a place. Physical characteristics include the body shape, weight height,
attractiveness and the way a person dresses himself or herself. This unconsciously sends a
message about a person’s interest in taking care of oneself, fashion quotient, etc. Although it
is not always right to judge a book by its cover to a certain extent, a physically attractive
person has distinct advantages in many aspects of life. This has resulted in, attracting
people’s interest in health and beauty, dieting, gym, etc. It is generally said ‘Dress yourself
as you expect to be treated’. But one should remember the fact that attractiveness varies from
culture to culture. This sends religious faith or cultural symbols. For example, white colour is
considered to be special and used in formal or special occasions in the Western culture, while
in Indian context, it is worn during mourning or funeral ceremony and is considered
inauspicious. This does not pertain only to accessories like jewels, clothes, hairstyle, etc but
also to the shape or physical stature of an individual.

Secondly, talking about the physical set up of a place or environment itself sends a subtle
message on the quality of a person dwelling in that place. The standard of furniture, their
arrangement, the lighting of the place in an office environment conveys the designation of the
person occupying the room. To sum-up, artifactual communication expresses the status of a
person which defines the roles within relationships.

[6] Silence
Silence, as said by Abraham Lincoln. “The more a man speaks, the less he is understood”,
silence is one of the most powerful communication tools. But this is widely underutilized by
many persons. The context of a situation better determined the power of silence. At
workplace what we speak is always not important, but the non-verbal signals communicate a
great deal of message to our colleagues. This, in fact, has a great impact on one’s career
prospects. Silence is laden with meaning and can make or break a relationship. A constructive
silence indicates respect, empathy and encourages a speaker, thus deepening the
understanding between the two parties. Sometimes silence is uncomfortable, embarrassing
and destructively happens to be a barrier in communication. People in higher position use
silence to strengthen their power and maintain their stature. For instance, an interviewer uses
silence as a tool to check how the candidate conducts himself or herself.

2.5 VERBAL VS. NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Verbal communication is where the sender uses words, technology and other social media to
convey or transmit messages. In contrast, non-verbal communication is where messages are

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conveyed through body language, gestures, vocalic elements and other environmental factors.
Verbal communication is done consciously and could be altered or manipulated according to
the need and hence not reliable in all situations. Non-verbal communication is an involuntary
action and comes spontaneously, thus taken to be more reliable comparatively. In the case of
verbal communication, we use a structured pattern which could be understood immediately,
and quick feedback is possible. At the same time, non-verbal cues depend on the context, and
one should have a mastery over it to interpret it rightly.

2.6 INTERPRETING NON-VERBAL CUES

Non-verbal communication plays a predominant role in communication, and hence it is
essential to learn how to use and interpret it for effective communication. Non-verbal
communications should reinforce the spoken words. In order to have a better understanding
of non-verbal communication, one should have the ability to listen with your eyes and ears,
and pay attention to people's posture, hand movements and eye contact. Interpreting gestures,
facial expressions and posture allows us to have a sneak peek into a person’s true emotional
status. Such insight can give you a definite advantage on the job. Review the basics of body
language then observe the emotional signals that others give off long before any words are
spoken. One can become proficient in mastering the ability to read other people’s body
language by practice. Expertise in interpreting will also give you more confidence and skill in
handling social and business interactions in an effective way.

ROLE OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION IN

2.7
INTERVIEW
Non-verbal communication, like body language and facial expressions, play a vital role at the
time of interviews. The first impression about a person is formed mostly based on the body
language, and the actual verbal content has a meagre role in it. In short, it is ‘Action speaks
louder than words.’ Professionally dressing oneself way with neatly groomed hair and a
formal outfit is what is needed to create a first visual impression with the interviewer. The
documents and testimonies which you carry should be arranged professionally in a proper
portfolio. After entering the company, a polite and professional approach should be adopted.
During the time of interview, the sitting posture should be proper. One should sit straight and
avoid slouching at the same time, appear natural and confident. Avoid fidgeting with your
pen or anything else. Make proper eye contact, be polite and keep an even tone in your
speech. Listen carefully and do not interrupt when the interviewer is speaking. Non-verbal
communication has a significant role in making or breaking a job opportunity.

POWER OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION IN

2.8
PRESENTATION AND GROUP DISCUSSION

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Non-verbal communication is a very powerful mode of communication which has a

prominent role in determining the success of an individual during group discussions and
interviews. During a presentation, when a speaker walks up the stage with a big smile and
greets the audience in a pleasant and a confident way looking into their eyes sets the tone for
the rest of the speaking time. Even before he started speaking, he has connected with the
audience and built up a friendly atmosphere. When a speaker makes eye contact with the
audience, he shows his level of confidence and engages the audience. Facial expressions are
also a reflection of emotions and add voluminous meaning to the spoken words. Posture or
the way a person stands while giving a presentation is another important aspect to govern.
One should stand straight with the body weight evenly distributed on both the feet. Leaning
on the podium, rocking from side to side or putting your hands into pockets, unconsciously
conveys one’s lethargic attitude. Paralinguistic elements like tone, volume, stress & pause are
aspects which make the speech interesting and worth hearing. Maintaining an even tone
throughout tends to make a speech boring. So, it is important to change the voice modulation
to grab the attention of the audience.
During a group discussion, using non-verbal communication like nodding one’s head or
waving hands can effectively demonstrate agreement or disagreement to some point. Not
making eye contact shows your lack of attentiveness and distracted mind. Tone and pitch
should be used properly to set the right tone of the discussion. The face is the most expressive
part of the body and when used in the right way can convey all kind of emotions like
happiness, fear, consent panic, etc. As one cannot speak throughout the discussion
involvement could be demonstrated through non-verbal gestures. Your words and body
language should complement each other. A group discussion is a situation where there is an
amalgamation of verbal and non-verbal communication which varies from person to person,
culture to culture and context to context. Using the right kind of non-verbal cues can aid in
building a good rapport with the counterparts and smooth flow of the discussion. A right mix
of verbal and non-verbal communication sends the messages in a better way leading to a
better perception of what is being said. Non-verbal communication reflects an individual’s
personality and professional stance.

2.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER

Non-verbal communication is the message passed on to the listener without the usage of
words. This is symbolic and includes elements like body language, facial expressions,
gestures postures etc. Non-verbal communication is an art and mastering the technique
doesn’t happen overnight and will demand an increasing self-awareness. Understanding these
cues is important not only for the speaker but also for the interpreter. Non-verbal
communication can take various forms, each of which illustrates or replaces a certain part of
the verbal communication, and it depends on the context. One needs to be intelligent,
intellectually and emotionally to assimilate non-verbal cues in the right way. And once

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you’ve gotten hold of your non-verbal communication, it’ll be an indispensable skill that can
definitely ensure credibility and success in your profession.

2.10 GLOSSARY
 Non-Verbal communication- is subtle yet more effective than verbal communication.
 Kinesics- also called as body language, helps us know the underlying emotions
conveyed.
 Gestures– is the movement of hands and legs to emphasize the meaning of the spoken
words.
 Postures– the position of one’s body, while speaking, is itself a set of visual messages
conveyed to the listener.
 Haptic– is a word derived from the Greek word which means “I touch”. Haptic
communication is a branch of communication that deals with the way people and
animals communicate through the sense of touch.
 Paralanguage- is the voice modulation adopted while we speak. The study of
paralanguage is called paralinguistic.

2.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a) Write a short note on the elements of communication.

b) Discuss briefly the importance of non-verbal communication during a presentation.

c) Define briefly the types of non-verbal communication.

d) Explain the role of non-verbal communication in an interview.

Objective type questions-

a) An upright body posture conveys …..
[A] Fear [B] Shyness [C] Confidence [D] Intelligence
b) Which of these is not an appropriate non-verbal communication at work place?
[A] Giving a firm handshake .....
[B] Putting arms around a co-worker’s shoulder
[C] Looking at the speaker with a smile
[D] Standing with an upright posture
c) Kinesics is the study of …..
d) ….. is the study of time in communication.
e) Personal appearance is not an element of non-verbal communication. (True/False)
f) Pitch variation is included in the personal appearance of a person. (True/False)

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Answers-
[A] c [B] b [C] Body language [D] Chronemics [E] False [F] False

2.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 Body languageby Allan Pease, Manjul Publishing house Pvt Ltd.
 The Secret Language of Your Body by Inna Segal, Attria Books Publishers.

2.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Non-Verbal Communication by Albert Mehrabian, Routledge Publications.

 What Every Body is Saying by Joe Navarro,

 Non-Verbal Communication – Readings with commentary by Shirley Weitz, Oxford

University press.

 Non-Verbal Communication: Studies and Application by Nina – Jo Moore, Oxford

University Press.

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UNIT- 3
LISTENING SKILLS

3.1 INTRODUCTION

3.2 OBJECTIVES

3.3 LISTENING PROCESS

3.4 IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING SKILLS

3.5 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEARING AND LISTENING

3.6 TYPES OF LISTENING

3.7 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE LISTENING

3.8 STRATEGIES TO LISTEN EFFECTIVELY

3.9 LISTENING AS A VITAL COMPONENT OF INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

3.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

3.11 GLOSSARY

3.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

3.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

3.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

3.1 INTRODUCTION
Communication skills have a great impact on the success of an individual. A person’s ability
to stand apart from his counterparts is often determined by his communication skills and
proficiency in English language. In order to be a well-rounded communicator, one should be
proficient in Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing (LSRW) the foundation skills of
language learning. All these four skills go hand in hand and should be learnt and practiced in
parallel. Speaking and Writing are said to be productive or active processes, as here an
individual comes out with the output of ideas and uses language. Listening and Reading are
receptive or passive processes, as one receives ideas and does not involve producing of
words, phrases or sentences. Mastering these skills is essential for personal as well as
professional betterment of an individual in this competitive world.

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3.2 OBJECTIVES
After the successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand the importance of listening skills.

 Assimilate the differences between listening and hearing
 Adopt simple techniques to ensure effective listening.
 Realize the vitality of listening as an interpersonal skill
 Listening strategies for better comprehension

3.3 LISTENING PROCESS

What is Listening skill?
Listening is receiving sounds through ears and identifying the speech sounds. Listening is the
ability to pay attention and understand the communicated information and providing
appropriate feedback. Listening is the key to effective communication, without which
messages can be misunderstood. It seems to be a natural activity but an essential skill that has
to be mastered. Listening is a receptive process which demands a lot of attentiveness.

Listening Process-
Process means a series of actions involved to complete a task successfully. Listening is a
process which involves receiving sounds and interpreting them into meaningful words. This
involves five stages in order to understand and retain what we hear fully.

 Receiving – This is an intentional focus on the sounds produced by a speaker. Here the
listener receives or hears the sounds through his ears. This is the response caused by the
sound waves which stimulates the sensory receptors of the ear.

 Understanding/Interpreting - This is the stage where we attempt to attach meaning to

the words received. Here the sound received by the ear reaches the brain, and the
sounds are deciphered into meaningful words of a language. Understanding the words
depends on the background, experience and accent of the speaker. This also depends on
our perceptions and prior experience with the concerned speaker. For example, advice
given by a person can be taken in the right sense by his close friend, but an
acquaintance or a colleague may not necessarily take it positively. Instead, he could be
annoyed and take it to be sarcastic. For better interpersonal relationship, a listener must
understand the intended meaning of the speaker along with the context.

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Receiving

Understanding Interpreting

Evaluating Remembering

 Remembering – Remembering is an important stage of the listening process, which

shows the listener has not only heard the sounds but also has interpreted the sounds and
stored it like words in the brain. Day-to-day messages or communication is easy to
understand while a highly complex message or a new concept demands greater
listening skill. Here, the comprehended message is absorbed and stored to facilitate
future recall.

 Evaluating – The fourth stage of the listening process is evaluating or analyzing the
received message. This evaluation again can vary from one person to the other.
Messages are positively evaluated if the speaker speaks clearly in a convincing way
with valid data and a positive body language rather than being rude and authoritative.
Personal opinions or prejudices also have a role in evaluating one’s message. It is
always better to refrain from making judgments and to focus on the message of the
speaker.

 Responding – Responding also referred to as the feedback is the final stage of the
communication process. This is where the listener shows his involvement or
participation in the communication process. Any signal given verbally or non-verbally
is considered to be feedback from the listener. For example, after a lecture in a
classroom, if the students come up with some doubts or questions for clarification, it is
a positive response. While the same students trying to leave the lecture room
immediately is considered to be a negative sign.

3.4 IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING SKILLS

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Listening plays an important role in the process of communication and is a vital skill needed
in every walk of life. While we listen, we build trust and a healthy relationship with the
speaker. In the era of high-tech communication, we should listen to one another whenever
possible, as one really gets rare opportunities and time to have a discussion or a conversation.
When we listen to others, we get to know about the skill of speaking, style of framing
arguments and the art of presenting facts. This will enable us to improve our vocabulary skill
and oratory skills. Listening intently avoids misinterpretation and reduces the risk of
misunderstanding. When a person listens he happens to know the opinion of others and
explore a new horizon of ideas leading to personal development. While paying keen attention
and interest to what others speak, unconsciously we convey to them that their message is
important. This paves the way for better prospects in team-based work culture.

3.5 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEARING AND LISTENING

Hearing is a natural ability of a person and an involuntary process where the brain
automatically responds to the sound that goes on in the surroundings, and it needs no effort.
This is a physiological process where the vibrations produced by sounds reach the eardrums.
Hearing does not require concentration, and we do not have any control over any sounds
which we hear. Listening, on the other hand, is a voluntary, diligent and a purposeful action
done by a person. This is the process of paying thoughtful attention and giving consideration
to the sounds or spoken words. Listening is where we set aside ourselves and be mindful of
other’s words.

For example, while standing on a railway platform, we happen to hear different sounds like
the coming of the train, birds chirping, a baby crying and the porters yelling. These sounds
come to us automatically, and we don’t pay effort to listen to them, this is called hearing. On
the other hand, amidst various noises, we pay a conscious effort to the announcement made
about the train which we are to board. Thus, listening is a conscious psychological process.

Hearing Listening
 Involuntary process  Voluntary process
 Passive  Active
 Physiological  Psychological
 An ability  A skill
 Does not require concentration  Does require concentration

3.6 TYPES OF LISTENING

Listening is not a skill that just happens, it needs a conscious effort to nurture and develop it.
The way we pay attention to what people say shows the relationship with the individual.

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Comprehe
nsive

Active Critical

Types of Listening
Appreciati Discrimina
ve tive

Sympathet Empatheti
ic c

 Active Listening- Active listening is where full concentration is paid to what the
speaker is saying. Here there is a deep engagement with the speaker and this is
expressed through several verbal and non-verbal cues. This could be particularly
observed in a classroom atmosphere. Active listening is very important for students
and has several positive outcomes. This means listening with all senses and can be
acquired and developed with practice. Non-verbal clues like maintaining an eye-
contact, nodding your head, giving a smile, etc could indicate your interest and
encourage the speaker. A posture like leaning slightly forward also shows attentiveness
on the part of the listener. Verbal indications like remembering the name of the speaker,
idea or the concepts conveyed during the previous conversation is an encouraging
factor. Raising questions is another aspect which not only shows the concentration of
the listener but also his interest in clarifying doubts and widening the knowledge.
Reflection is another method where the message is nearly repeated by paraphrasing the
message said by the speaker and demonstrating interest and understanding.
Summarizing is another technique in which the main points of the message are
reiterated logically. Engagement with the speaker could be done in any of these
methods. Lack of these signals could dissuade the speaker or make him feel that he is
boring. Active listening is a process which demands patience, practice and motivation
to listen. People from varied fields like leaders, entrepreneurs, students, managers need
to practice active listening for effective communication.
 Comprehensive listening- In Comprehensive listening, we pay attention to
comprehend or understand the message delivered by the speaker. This involves the use
of cognitive skills and is based on one’s knowledge and perception. It eventually varies
from person to person. For better comprehensive listening, we should have good

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vocabulary skills, for this one should be active and focused on interpreting the main
idea of the speaker. Listening to television news or attending a lecture may be an
example of a comprehensive listening.
 Discriminative Listening- This is the basic form of listening, where much attention is
not paid in interpreting the words. Here, the listener discriminates or distinguishes the
sounds of the words spoken by the speaker. In this type, the prime focus is paid to the
paralinguistic cues like accents, stress, pronunciation of words, etc. For example, when
a baby hears someone speaking, it first pays attention to distinguish or identify its
mother’s voice. It does not have the ability to understand the meaning of the words, but
it listens to the sound just to make out who the speaker is. This is also adopted by non-
native speakers of a language. Such type of listening helps us understand the mood of
the speaker when keen attention is paid to the tone. As we grow by age, we develop the
ability to identify the subtle differences in the way sounds are made or words are
pronounced. These subtleties make us understand if the person who is speaking is
happy or sad. This type of listening combined with visual stimuli like body language
helps one to comprehend the message rightly in every aspect.
 Critical Listening- Critical listening is where the speaker listens understands and
evaluates the message by analysing it. Since the message received is judged, it is an
intellectual process and demands a deep concentration and understanding of what is
said. Psychiatrist, lawyers and people adopt this type of listening in the business field,
education sector, etc where they grasp the points immediately and keep it streamlined
and efficient. By being critical in listening it enables one to scan through the vitality of
message which enables in the quick decision-making process and quicker analysis of
the problem. Critical listening is a skill greatly needed in highly stressful situations and
things related to finance. etc. One needs to master the art of critical listening and critical
thinking to scrutinize the fact amidst several opinions and exaggerations. Separating
facts from opinion is vital to judging the quality of evidence. When a person develops
the ability to think rationally, he can understand the logical connections between ideas
reflect on one’s own beliefs and systematically solve problems. Here one should
understand the message along with its context and consequently evaluate the message.
 Appreciative Listening- Appreciative listening is listening for pleasure or enjoyment.
This is where the listener is active to information or facts which he is interested in. It
may be anything that helps a person to achieve his goal or something entertaining. We
use appreciative listening while listening to good music, motivational speech, poetry or
anything pertaining to one’s interest. This again varies from person to person according
to the individual’s perception. It also depends on factors like presentation and previous
experience. For instance, a motivational speaker on the stage creates an impact on the
audience not only by his speech but also by his personality, voice and delivery style

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which entrances the listener. On the other hand, if we have encountered a bitter
experience with the same speaker, whatever he says will be looked upon in a biased
manner, unappreciatively. Appreciative listening is essential for partnerships or to make
any relationship work.
 Sympathetic listening- Sympathetic listening is listening with sympathy, showing
involvement and attempting to show understanding, compassion and support. When
someone from our friend’s circle or a close family member is in a difficult situation like
a loss in business or separation from a dear one, we use this type of listening to show
our concern for them. Here the listener tries to show that he understands the pain of the
speaker and what he is going through. This is better conveyed through suitable body
language accompanied by the verbal message. Being a good listener helps the other
person relax and have confidence in you.
 Empathetic Listening- Empathetic listening is where one tries to understand the
problem of the other person by placing oneself in the shoes of the other. In this type, the
listener tries to understand the situation by raising a series of questions which will bring
several factors to light. This is the highest degree of understanding not as an observer
but experiencing the feelings ourselves. In a close relationship, feeling others pain or
pleasure is a great sign of love or care for them. Empathetic listening is also called as
therapeutic listening, where the listener, like a therapist, tries to bring the speaker out of
the situation by the way of counselling, or advising without being judgmental.

3.7 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE LISTENING

A barrier, in general, is something which stops or interprets the free flow of a process. Barrier
in the process of communication results in misunderstandings leading to drastic consequences
at times. Barriers in listening could be in two forms as:

Environmental or Physical Barrier-

A physical barrier is the environmental condition that acts as a barrier in the process of
listening. This includes noise in any form or distance. Noise is any unwanted sound which
causes a great disturbance and reduces the effectiveness of communication. It becomes
difficult to pay attention in a noisy surrounding. When the speaker is speaking over a phone
and there arises a problem in the network, it causes disturbances in the flow of
communication. Similarly, unpleasant atmosphere or improper lighting creates uncomfortable
feelings and disrupts the attention of the listener, thus acting as a barrier. Information
overflow is another barrier which strains the listener from paying constant attention.

Psychological barrier or Cognitive Barrier-

A psychological barrier is the psychological influence or state of mind, which creates an
obstacle and prevents the listener from paying attention to what is said. This noise that stems

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out from our psychological state of mind can impede the listening process. State of mind has
a great impact in influencing the communication process. If a listener is not in a good state of
mind or is angry, his listening and interpreting ability gets blurred. Hence whatever he listens
is understood according to his mood, and thereby, he fails to take the message in its actual
sense. Perception is the mindset of the person which decides the interpretation of a message.
Attitude is the established way of understanding, and this also depends on previous
experience encountered with the concerned speaker. If we don’t have a cordial relationship
with the speaker, obviously there arises a barrier in our mind which prevents us from paying
attention to the speaker. This results in misunderstanding as the view of the person is already
set. Some people tend to jump to conclusions without involving active listening or resort to
selective listening. This ultimately lowers the morale of the speaker. Emotions such as anger,
nervousness, restlessness, etc also have a role in listening and communication process.

Prejudice is another preconceived opinion or feeling, which is irrational and dangerous. A

prejudiced person makes less effort to listen or understand. However, this barrier can be
overcome by making a conscious effort to have control over one’s thoughts, by being in the
present and respecting knowledge and skills of the person irrespective of their background.

3.8 STRATEGIES TO LISTEN EFFECTIVELY

For effective communication, listening skill plays a key role at various levels of any
profession or organization. Poor listening skills make a great negative impact and reduces
productivity and thus results in conflicts and misunderstandings between the speaker and the
listener. What employers look for in a person is not only hard skills but also the soft skills,
which includes communication, interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, etc. Listening
skill is a part of soft skill and is of great demand in service industries like education, banking,
health, etc. Good listening skill, like any other ability, comes by practice and can be honed by
putting in conscious effort.

 Desire to listen - The first step is that a person should be prepared mentally and
desirous to listen to the speaker. The focus should be on the speaker without any
distractions and concentrate on the message that is communicated.

 Listen without interrupting – When somebody is speaking, one should listen without
disturbing him by asking questions in-between. Once he has finished, his speech then
any clarification could be made. In short, listen to respond not to react.

 Put the speaker at ease- Audience plays a vital role in putting the speaker at ease and
encouraging them to come out with their best ideas in the best way possible. Non-
verbal signals like maintaining eye-contact reveal your interest in the speech.

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 Avoid distractions – When a person is speaking, avoid behaviours like fidgeting with
the pen, checking mobiles or looking out through the window indicates that you are
bored with the speech.

 Prevent mind wandering - This is an important distraction where people with

untrained mind get easily distracted by random objects or inner thoughts.

 Be Open-minded – Try to listen without judging or being critical of what the other
person is speaking. Do not try to justify your thoughts or beliefs and try to be patient
without trying to jump into a conclusion.

 Empathize – Try to understand the message from the speaker’s point of view. This can
avoid being judgmental. Set aside filters and listen to understand.

 Take notes – Importance of writing or taking notes cannot be denied. While taking
notes, we create a permanent record of what is being said besides reinforcing the
message. It is evident enough to show the interest of the listener.

 Listen to the tone and emotions – Paralinguistic elements like tone and volume
amplify the emotions and convey a lot about the feeling of the person. This can help us
to connect better with the speaker.

LISTENING AS A VITAL COMPONENT OF

3.9
INTERPERSONAL SKILLS
Interpersonal skill is the ability to communicate socializes and builds relationship with others.
This is also called as ‘People skills’ and includes the innate personality of a person to handle
a social situation. Effective interpersonal skills are vital for career advancement and are an
asset to steer through change and daily tasks. This includes active listening, teamwork,
responsibility, leadership quality, patience, empathy, etc to name a few.
Importance of listening in a relationship is quintessential. Listening or Active Listening is the
process where a person listens to others to gather information and connect with the speaker.
In this type, the listener avoids any kind of distraction and honestly tries to assimilate what is
being said. Listening is done for a variety of reasons like, some people listen to learn, to be
informed, or to get entertained and it depends upon the context of the communication. In
relationship, we listen empathetically, as at some point of time everyone wants to vent out
their feelings and problems to someone who will listen. We also listen to understand a person
who is attempting to speak emotionally, and intellectually. Listening is of two types, where
one listens to understand and the other is where one listens to respond. In cases, where people
listen to understand the relationship is smoother and cordial. Active and empathetic listening
is the life of any relationship. When we pay heed to other people, they feel respected, cared
and often less defensive. By listening we convey our concern to them. Good listeners are less
judgmental and provide a safe environment for the speakers. Active listening is a cornerstone

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of any relationship and cultivates intimacy when combined with empathy. This means that we
are fully present and reflective on how we listen to the person. The person who speaks does
not want a solution always, but they need someone to listen with humility and empathy.
Human being always has a tendency to be seen, heard and understood in a relationship. A
little bit of active listening from time to time profoundly nourishes the relationship.

3.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Listening is a vital part of the communication process and is one of the four skills of the
language.
 It is a receptive procedure where a person pays attention to what others say and try to
infer meaning out of it. This complex skill can be developed through constant practice.
 Listening process includes the action of receiving the message, comprehending it,
remembering, evaluating, and then responding.
 Generally speaking, there are eight types of listening, and this depends on the context
and purpose of the listener.
 At times there arises a number of obstacles that stand in the way of effective listening,
called barriers. These could be skilfully overcome by engaging in active listening and
being in the present moment.
 Keeping an open mind and avoid being judgmental is crucial for effective
communication. By preparing ourselves to be a good listener, we can become a good
communicator.

3.11 GLOSSARY
 Listening is receiving sounds through ears and identifying the speech sounds. Listening
is the ability to pay attention and understand the communicated information and
providing appropriate feedback.

 Listening plays an important role in the process of communication and is a vital skill
needed in every walk of life.

 Active listening is where full concentration is paid to what the speaker is saying. Here
there is a deep engagement with the speaker, and this is expressed through several
verbal and non-verbal cues.

 Comprehensive listening, we pay attention to comprehend or understand the message

delivered by the speaker.

 Discriminative Listening is the basic form of listening, where much attention is not paid
in interpreting the words.

 Critical Listening is where the speaker listens, understands and evaluates the message
by analysing it.

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 Appreciative listening is listening for pleasure or enjoyment. This is where the listener
is active to information or facts which he is interested in.

 Sympathetic listening is listening with sympathy, showing involvement and attempting

to show understanding, compassion and support.

 Empathetic listening is where one tries to understand the problem of the other person
by placing oneself in the shoes of the other.

 A physical barrier is the environmental condition that acts as a barrier in the process of
listening. This includes noise in any form or distance.

3.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a) What are the different types of listening?

b) What do you mean by listening process?

c) List the importance of listening skills.

d) Write down the barriers of effective listening.

Objective type questions-

a) Listening is ……… Sounds through ears.

b) Hearing is a ……… Process.

c) Critical listening is .....

[A] The rejection of a message.

[B] The practice of detecting flaws in a speech.

[C] Negative judgments listeners develop during speech.

[D] Careful scrutiny of ideas and logical elements of a speech

d) Listening to a speech with an open mind means:

[A] Listening in order to learn.
[B] Listening in order to quote the speaker later,

[C] Replacing your outdated knowledge with the new information

[D] To criticize the speaker.

e) Hearing is effortless, but listening is mindful and intentional. (True/False)

f) Evaluative listening improves a relationship. (True/False)

Answers-

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[a] Receiving [b] Involuntary [c] Careful scrutiny of ideas and logical elements of a speech
[d] Listening in order to learn. [e] True [f] False.

3.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 The Lost Art of Listening: How Learning to Listen can Improve Relationship by, by
Michael P. Nichols, 2009

 Listening: The Forgotten skill: A Self-Teaching guide by Willey, Jossey Bass; 2nd
edition (29 March 1995).

3.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Improve your Listening and Speaking Skills by Barry Cusack, Laxmi Publications (1
January 2007).

 Little Red Book of Reading and Listening skills by Terry O’Brien, Rupa Publications
India; First edition (3 May 2016).

 Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking by Robert Freire, Oxford University Press;
Student edition (18 October 2012).

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UNIT- 4
READING SKILLS

4.1 INTRODUCTION

4.2 OBJECTIVES

4.3 PREVIEWING

4.4 SKIMMING

4.5 SCANNING

4.6 IDENTIFYING THE TOPIC SENTENCES

4.7 INFERRING LEXICAL AND CONTEXTUAL MEANING

SEQUENCING OF SENTENCES AND IMPROVING COMPREHENSION

4.8
SKILLS

4.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER

4.10 GLOSSARY

4.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

4.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

4.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

4.1 INTRODUCTION
Reading basically is a physical process of comprehending a text using your very important
sense organ “Eyes”. However, reading becomes studying when it is done with the
involvement of all the mental strength, concentration, comprehension, and analysis. Studying
involves the practices of answering questions, note-making, summarizing, reading the text
more than once, and analysing the written words thoroughly.
In short, we can say to study is to read, observe or to know the information in depth. A study
of the major types of reading skills may assist you in improving reading comprehension as
well as in employing the required skill for different reading situations. The skills used while
reading includes Scanning /previewing, skimming, intensive reading, extensive reading
identifying, and sequencing.

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4.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand the mechanics of reading.

 Preview the text with the techniques discussed.

 Define and differentiate between skimming and scanning.

 Identify the context.

 Sequence the sentences with perfect comprehension skills.

4.3 PREVIEWING
Previewing means surveying a text quickly before, you read it carefully. You preview when
you want to get information. Previewing can help you with your reading. When you preview,
you get an idea about the content, this way, your brain which is already activate gets an idea
about the context and helps you in understanding the subject matter of the text.
For Example: You might preview by-

 A newspaper, by reading headlines

 A letter, by looking at its envelope

 A book, by reading its front and back cover

The previewing can help you to decide-

 Which article to read

 Whether to open a letter or not (It can be a junk mail).

 If the book is worth reading or buying.

Why use previewing?

According to research, previewing a text can improve comprehension (Graves, Cooke, &
LaBerge, 1983, cited in Paris et al., 1991). Previewing a text helps readers prepare for what
they are about to read and set a purpose for reading. Previewing helps students become more
active and powerful readers. By activating prior knowledge and making connections, students
are thinking about big ideas. They can predict and infer, looking for text evidence to support
their lines of thinking.
The genre determines the reader’s methods for previewing-

 Readers preview nonfiction to find out what they know about the subject and what they
want to find out. It also helps them understand how an author has organized
information.

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 Readers preview biography to determine something about the person in the biography,
the time period, some possible places, and events in the life of the person.

 Readers preview fiction to determine characters, setting, and plot. They also preview to
make predictions about story’s problems and solutions.

Previewing Techniques-
Consider previewing a text as similar to watching a movie preview. Think of previewing a
text as similar to creating a movie trailer. A successful preview for either a movie or a
reading experience will capture what the overall work is going to be about, generally what
expectations the audience can have of the experience to come, how the piece is structured,
and what kinds of patterns will emerge.
Previewing engages your prior experience, and asks you to think about what you already
know about the subject matter, or the author, or the publication. Then anticipate what new
information might be ahead of you when you return to read this text more closely. In order to
preview anything certain steps need to be kept in mind:

 Look at the title, subtitles, author, and source try to guess what the text is about.
 Read the introductory paragraph.
 Consider what you already know about the topic.
 Look at the visuals.
 If you are reading in a foreign language, try and predict which economic terms and
general expressions might appear in the text.

How to use previewing?

When readers preview a text before they read, they first ask themselves whether the text is a
fiction or non-fiction. If the text is fiction or biography, readers look at the title, chapter
headings, introductory notes, and illustrations for a better understanding of the content and
possible settings or events.
If the text is non-fiction, readers look at text features and illustrations (and their captions) to
determine the subject matter and to recall prior knowledge, to decide what they know about
the subject. Previewing also helps readers figure out what they don’t know and what they
want to find out.

4.4 SKIMMING
It is a method of reading a text rapidly in order to get the basic overall idea. For instance,
many people skim read a newspaper article just to get a quick overview. Skimming is
generally used to identify the main ideas of the text quickly. Skimming is done at speed three
to four times faster than normal reading. Skimming is done when one has to read a lot of

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material in a limited duration of time. It is used when one wants to see if an article may be of
interest in one’s research.

Skimming is done to gain a general impression of whether the text is of any use to you or not.
You can see people skimming through books in a bookstore before they decide to buy them.
You need not necessarily search for a specific item or keyword, and many parts of the
material may be left unread. The purpose of skimming is to get a gist, and check the
relevance, grasp its central theme and the main points. It prepares you for the more
concentrated effort of detailed reading, which is to follow if the text is useful.

Example-
A learner taking a reading exam decides to approach the text by looking at the title,
introductions, and any diagrams and sub-headings, then skim read to get a clear general idea
of what the text is about.
In the classroom, skimming is a specific reading skill which is common in reading
newspapers, messages, and e-mails. Learners must understand that there is no need to read
every word when skimming, so often teachers set this as a timed task to encourage speed.
In general, how to skim?
 Read the title.

 Read the introduction or the first paragraph.

 Read the first sentence of every other paragraph.

 Read any headings and sub-headings.

 Notice any pictures, charts, or graphs.

 Notice any italicized or boldface words or phrases.

 Read the summary or last paragraph.

Steps to Skim through a book-

 Title: Read the title carefully

 Subtitle: Some titles are ambiguous, but subtitles tend to shed more light so carefully
read the subtitle.

 Read the preface: In preface, the author explains exactly what the book is all about, so
this step need not be skipped.

 Look at the table of contents: Table of contents gives information on the book’s subject
structure and components.

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 Read the publisher’s blurb: Publisher’s blurb usually located in the back; some are
found in the books dust cover. This too is an excellent way to discover the gist of a
book.

 Identification of chapters: Identify the important chapters to be read.

 Topics of the chapter: Read the first and the last lines of each paragraph to get a feel for
the flow of argument and the topics of the chapter.
Steps to skim a general text-

 Look at the title, subheadings, pictures, diagrams and whatever else stands out on the
page. Turn the subheadings into questions in your mind.
 Read the first and last paragraph of the chapter. These paragraphs introduce and wrap
up the chapter. And contain keep information that can be important to remember.
 Read the first sentence of each paragraph. Try to restate what you read in your own
words. You can either write it down or say it out loud. This reiteration will implant the
subject material you are skimming in your head.
 Try to read the text quickly, but pay attention to what you pick up in the process. Focus
on the nouns and verbs. These are considered keywords and will help you in getting a
general sense of what the author is discussing.

4.5 SCANNING
It is reading something rapidly for some specific piece of information. You can use this skill
when you are in search of keywords. It is a method one often uses when looking up a word in
the telephone book or dictionary. One search for keywords or ideas. In most cases, one knows
what one is looking for, so one concentrates in finding a particular answer. Scanning involves
moving one’s eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is
also used when one finds a resource to determine whether it will answer to one’s question.
Once one has scanned the document, one might go and skim it.

Scanning is a reading technique to be used when you want to find specific information
quickly. In scanning, you have a question in your mind, and you read a passage only to find
the answer, ignoring unrelated information.
Example-

Scanning a telephone book or dictionary to look for a name or a word- You see every item on
the page, but you don’t necessarily read all the pages –you skip anything you are not looking
for. You just have to concentrate on the keyword and need not recall the exact content of the
page. Scanning saves times, but it has to be done with accuracy. This skill develops with
practice.

How to Scan?

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 State the specific information you are looking for.

 Try to anticipate how the answer will appear and what clues you might use to help you
locate the answer. For example, if you were looking for a certain date, you would
quickly read the paragraph looking only for numbers.

 Use headings and any other aids that will help you identify which sections might
contain the information you are looking for.

 Selectively read and skip through sections of the passage.

Scanning is basically skimming with a more tightly focused purpose. Skimming to locate a
particular fact or figure, or to see whether the text mentions a subject you’re researching.
Scanning is essential in the writing of research papers, when you may need to look through
many articles and books in order to find the material you need. Keep a specific set of goals in
mind as you scan the text, and avoid becoming distracted by other material. You can note
what you’d like to return to later when you do have time to read further and use scanning to
move ahead in your research project.

When to use scanning?

As convenient as it seems, skimming can’t guarantee you all the important points. Usually,
you need scanning when you find a friend’s phone number in a telephone book or last night
football scores in the newspaper. Or when you’re in a new restaurant knowing they have your
favourite dish but not sure the price is reasonable; you also need to scan along the menu to
see it with the price. Scanning significantly proves its value when researching and studying.
These two kinds of activity can’t be successful if they depend on only your general
knowledge.
You may also need scanning to locate the correct answer for given questions. You are likely
to scan when you have no intention of getting a general idea. Obviously, if you have no doubt
of your purposes for reading, and other unrelated information is far from support, now take
scanning into your consideration. Scanning is perfect when it comes to looking for something
more particular rather than an overview idea in your mind.

Skimming and Scanning are close friends-

Despite all the differences between skimming and scanning, those two friends seem to be best
together. They have been taught in almost every class of reading method. This is because of
the fact that practising either of them can show great results.

However, the combination of skimming and scanning is even much greater. It’s like
insurance for your fast reading: you read quicker, but you don’t miss out anything important.
Why and how can these techniques do such an amazing job? Skimming takes the role of
covering the whole reading material to assure you get what’s beneficial and leave out the

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useless ones. Scanning plays a part in taking out the most precious facts you need. It’s a
responsible way of fast reading that no one could deny.

4.6 IDENTIFYING THE TOPIC SENTENCES

The topic sentence is the main point, or main idea of a paragraph. The topic sentence should
identify the main idea and point of the paragraph. To choose an appropriate topic sentence,
read the paragraph, and think about its main idea and point. The supporting details in the
paragraph (the sentences other than the topic sentence) will develop or explain the topic
sentence.
A topic sentence essentially tells readers what the rest of the paragraph is about. For example,
if the topic sentence concerns the types of endangered species that live in the ocean, then
every sentence after that needs to expound on that subject. Topic sentences also need to relate
back to the thesis of the essay. If you cannot identify the topic sentence of a paragraph, your
comprehension will suffer since you will not be able to understand the author's main idea.

The following four steps will help you identify the topic sentence-
Step 1. Find the topic of the paragraph-

Do not confuse the topic with the topic sentence. The topic is simply the who or what being
discussed in the paragraph, while the topic sentence includes the topic and the point being
made about it. Knowing the topic will point you towards the topic sentence. Circle the words
used most often in the paragraph. Also, circle any synonyms or pronoun references.

Step 2. Identify the keywords that signal a topic sentence-

While not all topic sentences include keywords, when you come across sentences with any of
these phrases, you can be fairly certain that it is the topic sentence.

Topic Sentence Keywords

A number of steps Several kinds of The disadvantages of
A couple of effects A number of similarities Some differences
A series of A number of factors A number of benefits
Step 3. Identify the major details-
Sometimes, the supporting details are easier to find than the topic sentence. If so, identify all
major details, and see what they have in common. This is an especially effective technique
for paragraphs that do not have an explicitly stated topic sentence.

Step 4. Look beyond the first sentence to identify the topic sentence-
Do not assume that the topic sentence is the first sentence of the paragraph. In most
paragraphs, the topic sentence is one of the first sentences; however, that is not always the
case. Sometimes, the writer includes some introductory material before getting to the point,
or the writer sums up the major details with a topic sentence at the end.

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For example, look at the following paragraph-

“Most environmental scientists agree that human activity directly contributes
to global warming. Luckily, most also agree that human activity also has the
potential to reverse global warming. There are several changes that average
Americans can make to lower their carbon footprints. The first change they can
make is to reduce, reuse, and recycle as often as possible. A large amount of
pollution is expelled in the production of new products; whereas, it requires no
additional fossil fuels to reuse an item. Recycling, while still using fossil fuels
to reprocess the product, consumes much less energy than creating a new item
from scratch. Using public transportation is another way that Americans can
reduce their carbon footprints. Cars are the single biggest contributor to
greenhouse gases. Walking to work and school is even more beneficial. Lastly,
more Americans can adopt alternative energy sources. Installing wind turbines
and solar panels reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, which will reduce the
harmful emissions they cause. By adopting all three of these changes,
Americans can help ensure a brighter future for generations to come.”
Even though the first sentence has a solid main idea that could be the topic of a paragraph,
namely that humans cause global warming, the rest of the paragraph is not about that topic.
Following the steps outlined above helps identify the topic sentence.

Step 1. Find the topic of the paragraph- The topics are Americans, global warming, and
change.

Step 2: Identify the keywords that signal a topic sentence- See in the above paragraph
text, as "There are a several changes"

Step 3: Identify the major details- As, [i] Americans need to reduce, reuse, and recycle. [ii]
Americans need to use transportation other than cars. [iii] Americans need to adopt
alternative energy sources.

What do all of these major details point to? Americans can make specific changes to help
global warming.
Step 4: Look beyond the first sentence to identify the topic sentence- In this case, the
topic sentence is the third sentence. "There are a several changes that average Americans can
make to lower their carbon footprints."

Develop a topic sentence-Use these guidelines to help you develop effective topic sentences
of your own.

a) Know what you want to write and the point you want to make about it.
b) When appropriate, incorporate the above keywords into your topic sentence to signal its
location to your reader.

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c) Develop major details to support your topic sentence and vice versa.
d) Place the topic sentence early in the paragraph. This is not mandatory, but it is a
strategy that will ensure that you consciously have a topic sentence in your paragraph to
guide you as you write.

For example-
If you had an assignment to develop a topic sentence for a process paragraph where you need
to outline the steps in the rock cycle, the topic sentence might look something like this; There
are three steps in the rock cycle; as- [i] igneous [ii] sedimentary [iii]metamorphic.

Classification and types of topic sentences-

Topic Sentence is usually the first sentence and introduces the main idea, whereas sometimes
introduces the details.

Types of Topic Sentences-

[1] General Topic Sentence-
Names the main idea of the paragraph. Not specific.

Examples of a General Topic Sentence

The hot trend in advertising these days is to hire real, live stars.

Kevin James would have been 20 years old this September.

[2] Clueing Topic Sentence-

Names the main idea of the paragraph. This type of topic sentence gives a "clue" about the
details of the paragraph. This type gives a "hint" about what the paragraph is about!
Examples of a Clueing Topic Sentence are-
The four seasons spice up our lives.

Tents come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

The citizens of Lawrence have several reasons for building a new high school.

[3] Specific Topic Sentence-

Names the main idea of a paragraph, but names the specific details to be covered in order.
Example of Specific Topic Sentences-
Air pollution is caused by vehicles and industries.

Charles Darwin lived an interesting life as an explorer, writer, and scientist.

Diseases caused by vitamin deficiencies are beriberi, pellagra, and scurvy, and rickets.

4.7 INFERRING LEXICAL AND CONTEXTUAL MEANING

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Lexical meanings are actual meanings, meanings that are following the results of our sensory
observations, or meaning as they are, while contextual meanings are the meanings of a
lexeme or words that are in one context.
In communicating between speakers and speech partners sometimes misunderstandings
occur. This is because there are differences in the messages conveyed so that the meaning of
the language expressed by the speaker is not in accordance with the response of the listener.
The difference in response to meaning can occur because a word or a sentence can have
several meanings. Tarigan (1995: 11-13) generally divides meaning into two types, namely
linguistic meaning and social (cultural) meaning. Then the linguistic meaning is divided into
lexical meanings and structural meanings, as well as referential meanings and precedential
meanings. In line with Tarigan, Heatherington (1980: 135-136), as quoted by Tarigan (1995:
11-12), also divides meaning into two namely, lexical meaning and lexico-structural
meaning.
Furthermore, the lexical meaning is divided into denotative meanings and connotative
meanings, literal meanings and figurative meanings. The meanings associated with
morphemes and words are called lexical meanings (Chaer, 2012: 45).

Lexical meanings are actual meanings, meanings that are in accordance with the results of
our sensory observations, or meaning as they are, while contextual meanings are the
meanings of a lexeme or words that are in one context. (Chaer, 2012: 289-290). Meanings are
everywhere, for example in literary works, scientific works, songs, etc. With the many types
of meanings put forward by linguists
A lexical word or meaning is the meaning that corresponds to its referent, meaning that is in
accordance with the results of observation of the senses, or meaning that is truly real in our
lives, in other words, lexical meaning of a word is a real picture of a concept as the word
symbolizes it (Chaer, 1990: 63).
Lexical meanings can also be considered as the meaning contained in a dictionary (Chaer,
1990: 63). Djajasudarma (1993: 34), expressing the lexical meaning is the meaning of the
word that corresponds to what we encounter in the lexicon (dictionary). Lexical meanings can
be searched in the dictionary. Chaer (2012: 289), describes lexical meaning as a meaning that
is owned or existed in lexeme even without any context. The following will discuss some
examples of words in sentences that have lexical meanings.
The phrase “the mouse got killed by the cat” contains the word mouse that has the lexical
meaning of a rodent that can cause typhus. The word mouse in the sentence above refers to
the animal mouse and not to others. We can see these mice in dirty places and usually roam
inside the house, especially in hidden places. If you are not aware, these mice can damage
foods and can cause disease when touched/eaten by humans.

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Contextual meaning is a linguistic meaning in context. (Longman, 1992). For example, the
meaning of a word is in a sentence or a sentence is in a paragraph. The sentence "do you
know the meaning of war?" Has two different contextual meanings. The first contextual
meaning in the question sentence, "do you know the meaning of the word war is?" The
question sentence changes if expressed by a teacher to the students in the class. While the
second contextual meaning is "war produces death, injury, and suffering", if expressed by a
war-wounded soldier to politicians who support the war. 4 Kadmon (2001: 9), expressed his
opinion about contextual meanings as follows: "Besides that, we talk about the" context of
utterance.
"Each utterance occurs in a context. This context includes all sorts of things. It includes
previous utterances. The speech situation, including location, speakers, addressees, various
salient objects, and more. It includes various topics in the conversation, about the world in
general and about the subject matter of the conversation in particular. It includes assumptions
that interlocutors make about the beliefs and intentions of each other ". It can be concluded
that in each phrase, there is a context.
The context in question varies, including the context of the situation, location, speaker,
address, and other important objects. Context also includes various assumptions that
participants have in the conversation. Chaer (2012: 290), expressing contextual meaning is
the meaning of a lexeme or word that is in one context. The contextual meaning in the form
of word-level can be seen from the following example. The sentence that says "You
crocodile, he cheated his own mother!” has the contextual meaning of a rebellious child. The
word "crocodile" in the sentence above refers to a child who willingly commits a crime of
deception to his own parent without feeling guilty.

SEQUENCING OF SENTENCES AND IMPROVING

4.8
COMPREHENSION SKILLS
Sequencing "the identification of the components of a story- the beginning, middle, and end -
and also to the ability to retell the events within a given text in the order in which they
occurred". Sequencing is an essential strategy in comprehension, and the overall purpose of
reading is comprehension.
Sequencing is one of many skills that contribute to students' ability to comprehend what they
read. Sequencing refers to the identification of the components of a story — the beginning,
middle, and end — and also to the ability to retell the events within a given text in the order
in which they occurred.

Sequencing refers to putting events or information in a specific order. The ability to sequence
requires higher-order thinking skills, from recognizing patterns to determining cause and
effect, and more. Sequencing helps students understand and organize material they've learned
as well as helps them solve problems.

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There are 5 separate strategies that together form the high five reading strategy-

 Activating background knowledge. Research has shown that better comprehension

occurs when students are engaged in activities that bridge their old knowledge with the
new.
 Questioning.
 Analyzing text structure.
 Visualization.
 Summarizing.

Improve comprehension skills-

Comprehension strategies are conscious plans- sets of steps that good readers use to make
sense of the text. Comprehension strategy instruction helps students become purposeful,
active readers who are in control of their own reading comprehension. Certain steps that need
to be followed to improve comprehension skills are:

 Eliminate distractions from your environment. The first step towards improving your
reading comprehension has to be reading in a space where you'll be able to concentrate.
 Read with a helper if you're reading something above your level.
 Read aloud.
 Re-read text as necessary to improve your comprehension.

The “Super Six” comprehension strategies-

Such strategies are- Making Connections, Predicting, Questioning, Monitoring, Visualizing,
and Summarizing.
[1] Making Connections-

Students are encouraged to make personal connections from the text with: something in their
own life, another text or something occurring in the world. Students focus on making
connections in various activities via the Library and My Lessons. This occurs as students
associate what they are reading, understanding and seeing with familiar situations and texts.
For example, students predict what the book is about from an image of the front cover, using
their skills in making connections. This can be followed up in classroom discussions by
asking students to compare the books they read with other books and real-life situations. For
example, asking children to ‘explain to the class a time when you have experienced a similar
feeling to a character in the book you read’. Or ‘Does the front cover remind you of
something you have experienced in your life?’

[2] Predicting-
Students develop their predicting skills, using information from graphics, text and
experiences to anticipate what will be read/ viewed/heard and to actively adjust

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comprehension while reading/ viewing/listening. In ABC Reading Eggs, prediction plays a

significant part in introducing new texts to students, as they use cues from book covers, text
and familiar words to make predictions about what the story is about. Students are
encouraged to focuses on developing prediction skills throughout My Lessons and the
Library, in the book notes and before reading activities. For example, in the My Lessons
game “Arpiculate” students match each picture to its description. Students reveal sections of
the picture tiles until they can predict what the whole picture is about. The faster and more
accurately, students can answer, the more points they will earn.

[3] Questioning-
Students learn to pose and answer questions that clarify meaning and promote a deeper
understanding of the text. Books in the Library and My Lessons have quizzes at the start
and/or the end of the book to encourage students to make predictions and draw conclusions
from cues and also to test their level of understanding of the texts they read. Students are
presented with a range of activities to develop their questioning skills including prediction,
word understanding/meaning, dictionary meanings and word studies. For example, the
“Audience and Purpose” questions in My Lessons help students as they answer questions to
clarify the meaning of the text, encouraging students to develop a deeper understanding and a
big picture view of text they read. The skills students develop online can be further
consolidated at home or in the classroom by further questions from parents and teachers
during a book reading to continue to support a child’s understanding. Open-ended questions
or questions that connect with a child’s feelings toward the book can provoke further interest
and engagement is often a great place to start.

[4] Monitoring-
Students learn to stop and think about the text and know what to do when the meaning is
disrupted. With all library books, students are given access to excerpts and can re-read texts
at any point during the quiz so that they can be actively ‘monitoring’. This ensures students
have understood what they have read and encourages them to apply their knowledge in
answering the questions to find deeper meanings.

[5] Visualising-
Students create mental images from text they read/view/hear. Visualising brings the text to
life, engages the imagination, and uses all of the senses. The books within ABC Reading
Eggs have visual aids along with the text. However, the construction of the books use
language that assists in developing a student’s visualising skills as they learn to picture
scenarios being presented to them in their heads. Quizzes also promote this recollection of
images, where a student must draw on what they have read to answer questions that required
visualizing. For example, the ‘Picture this Sentence’ quiz in the stadium, students are
prompted to select the sentence that links most correctly to the picture displayed.

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[6] Summarising-

Students learn summarising skills as they identify and accumulate the most important ideas
and restate them in their own words. This is also focused on in My Lessons and Library
quizzes as many of the books have book notes and activities to encourage student
understanding to be further drawn out. For example, ‘Who, What, Where and When’ and
“Main Ideas and Details’ questions in My Lessons and the end quizzes help students to
identify and accumulate the most important ideas about the story as they make connections
from what they have learnt.

Tips for helping struggling readers to improve reading comprehension-

 Find books they’ll like.
 Read aloud.
 Skim the headings of the text.
 Re-read confusing sections.
 Use a ruler or finger to follow along.
 Write down words you don’t know.
 Discuss what your child has just read.
 Recap and summarize the main points.
 Use different formats.
 Identify reading problems.
 Get a reading tutor.

4.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Consider where you read. Always read in a well-lit and quiet place that is free of
distractions, and don’t get into the habit of reading unit materials in bed! (unless you
want to go to sleep).

 Don’t vocalise as you read. This will slow you down, it won’t help concentration, and it
will lead to bad reading approaches.

 Read at times when you can concentrate, and maintain concentration by taking regular
short breaks, perhaps every 30 or 45 minutes.

 Set yourself reading tasks (10 pages, 1 chapter, 1 section of a chapter, etc).

 Remember that reading often takes longer than you expect, and you often need to go
beyond set texts. Give yourself enough time!

4.10 GLOSSARY
 Topic Sentence- The topic sentence is the main point, or main idea of a paragraph. The
topic sentence should identify the main idea and point of the paragraph.

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 Types of Topic Sentences- General Topic Sentence, Clueing Topic Sentence and
Specific Topic Sentence.

 Scanning- It is reading something rapidly for some specific piece of information. You
can use this skill when you are in search of keywords.

 Skimming- It is a method of reading a text rapidly in order to get the basic overall idea.

 Previewing- Previewing means surveying a text quickly before you read it carefully.
You preview when you want to get information.

4.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

1) Define the "super six” comprehension strategies in brief.

2) Define types of topic sentences.

3) What is the role of scanning? How to scan?

4) Define previewing techniques.

4.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 Lumen learning.com.
 Teaching English org.uk.
 Source: www.startapp.com/android-appsinfographic/android-apps-infographic.pdf.
 www.bute.edu.

4.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

 English communication by Amit Ganguly SBPD publication.

 Comprehension and communication skills by Varinder kumar Bodh raja Kalyani

publishers.

 Communicative English by Nitin Bhatnagar Pearson publication.

 Business Communication, By Rajender Pal Sultan chand and sons.

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UNIT- 5
WRITING SKILLS

5.1 INTRODUCTION

5.2 OBJECTIVES

5.3 WRITING AND WRITING SKILLS

5.4 TYPES OF WRITING SKILLS

5.5 IMPORTANCE OF GOOD WRITING SKILLS

5.6 SENTENCE FORMATION

5.7 DICTION

5.8 PARAGRAPH AND ESSAY WRITING

5.9 TECHNICAL AND LITERARY WRITING

5.10 COMMON ERRORS IN WRITING

5.11 POINTS TO REMEMBER

5.12 GLOSSARY

5.13 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

5.14 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

5.15 SUGGESTED READINGS

5.1 INTRODUCTION
In the modern era, the word ‘Skill’ is gaining a lot of attention because of its importance. A
skill is an ability to do something in a well-developed manner and to make quick decisions.
Skills can be categorized in types like job skills, personal skills, hard skills, soft skills, and
many more. It got in use as per its requirement in various fields. Basic skills like listening,
speaking, reading, and writing are necessary for achieving the goal. Strong skills can help to
gain confidence and strong communication abilities. Knowledge and ability both are essential
to hone the skills. Excellent writing skills are based on tact, tips and grammatical knowledge
of it and ability to use correctly.

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5.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Adopt writing skills.

 Understand the elements of writing skills and its types.

 Understand the role of diction in effective writing.

 Take steps for good writing.

 Understand paragraph and essay writing.

 Understand technical and literary writing.

 Identify common errors in writing.

5.3 WRITING AND WRITING SKILLS

When we talk about communication, traditionally two ways instantly click in our minds: oral
and written. Written communication is more authentic and valuable to express one’s views
and ideas, as per its characteristics. Writing is the way of communication, by which one can
impress through his/ her thoughts, whatever he wants to express to others.
The word ‘Writing Skills’ adds the word ‘Skills’ in writing, which means competence,
expertise, and artistry. Writing is an art to express one’s views, thoughts through words, but
skill is a competence which enables the reader to understand the words exactly in the same
sense as written by the writer.

Writing skills are such expertise abilities that present the ideas and information in a nicely
written format for others to understand them. It organizes the knowledge and beliefs in a
convincing manner. To put the feelings and opinions, writing skills help the writer to impress
with voice, tone, mannerism, and body language without presenting himself/ herself in front
of readers. Writing is a way of representing the ideas into textual forms to convey a message
to the audience whereas writing skills have the ability to convert thoughts into words using
proper grammar, punctuation, and essential well-structured aspects of writing.

Meaning and Definition of Writing Skills-

Harmer (2001:79) says that writing is a form of communication to deliver thought or to
express feeling through written form. It means that writing is a productive skill that expresses
feelings through written communication.

Jonah (2006:14) argues that writing is a series of activities going on and involves several
phases, the preparatory phase, and the content development and review, as well as revisions
or improvements posts.

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According to Gebhardt and Dawn Rodriguez (19891) Writing is one of

the most important things you do in school. Good writing skills take a big part to
determine the success, whether it writing a report, proposal or assignment in school.
Peter T. Daniels (1996) defines “Writing as a system of more or less permanent marks used
to represent an utterance in such a way that it can be recovered more or less exactly without
the intervention of the utterer.”

Lado (1971:272) says “Writing is a graphic representation of a language and information is

conveyed through the written medium by the use of conventional graphemes.”

Elbow (181:369) thinks of “Writing as a kind of ‘magic’ that can be performed by anyone
who is involved in and believes in his tale”. So, the process of translating abstract ideas into a
concrete form is the art of writing.”

Objectives of Writing Skill-

Writing skill includes the abilities to represent words using recorded signs. Here, we discuss
some objectives of writing skills:

 To encompass intellectual or thinking skill.

 To encompass physical skills or the performance of actions.

 To present the attitude and values in written form.

 To target group/ audience for achieving the objectives of writing.

 To convey the message and opinion in front of the audience without the presence of the
writer.

 Outline opportunities and offer effective strategies and activities for developing
audience.

 Access the area of learning by writing skills.

 Apply effective techniques by writing skills to maximize performance.

 Understanding of the importance of good writing skills, basic rules of writing skills.

 Perfecting the language used in each of these new forms.

 Understanding of reading matter and in the application of grammatical forms.

Characteristics of Writing Skills-

In good writing, it is most essential that writing should have to be presented in such a
manner, readers can conceive the message the same as written. These characteristics can be
seen in effective writing:

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 Clarity and Focus: Effective writing refines the thoughts and ideas into simple and
easily considerable by the reader. No chance is left to be messed up with the complex
sentences.

 Grammatically Strong: Effective writing has a strong matter with the use of correct
grammar, punctuation, and rules of writing.

 Well Structured: A well-structured writing is not only clear but presented in a way that
could be logical and easily understood to the audience.

 Efficient Vocabulary: This is the most important tool in writing. Good writing includes
this element and uses accurate word choices and well-crafted sentences.

 Stimulation for Readers: Good writing affects edacious audiences. It inspires those
readers to read fondly.

 Having Mental Notes: Special mental notes come from continuous observation and
editing. It brings a special touch in writing.

 Well Editing and Re-evaluating: A good writer edits, again and again, rewrites and
marks the improvements in his work to get better and effective writing.

5.4 TYPES OF WRITING SKILLS

Mainly four types of writing styles are seen, but some other types of styles are also here as
under:
a) Expository Writing: This type of writing focuses on accepted facts. It does not include
the author’s views/ ideas and is totally based on the demand of the audience. In this
style, the writer tries to explain those concepts which are accepted by a wider audience.
Textbooks, recipes, news stories, business articles are some examples of expository
writing.

b) Descriptive writing: This style describes a character, an event or a place in detail. The
writer draws a picture as he likes, feels and notices. The author uses various adjectives,
idioms and adverbs to makes the picture vivid for the readers. This style is used to write
fictional stories/ novels/ poetry, journals, diary writing, and nature writing.

c) Narrative writing: Narrative writing is slightly different from descriptive writing.

Unlike the descriptive writing, in this style author can create characters that carry a
strong detail. It can be a fictional or non- fictional story. Writing stories requires a lot of
imagination and effective writing skills to convey it to the readers. We can say, it uses
creative writing on facts and figures, and not much attention is needed. It frames
dialogues, events, actions, emotions, novels, poetry (especially epic sages or poems),
anecdotes, and oral histories are some examples that are written in this style.

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d) Persuasive writing: As the word sounds, persuasive writing is written to persuade

readers about what the author has written. It includes opinion justification, explanation,
and personal point of view of the author. By his writing, he tries to convince the
audience of a position or belief. In other words, we can say this style is “argumentative
style”, cover letters, editorial newspaper article, review of items, letter of
recommendation come under this category. Generally, the writer’s biasness with the
thoughts and opinion is seen as evidence of the correctness of their position.
e) Objective writing: This is formal writing which uses facts and evidence. It statistically
and scientifically proves the reason so that the reader could make his/her own opinion.
In this style, the words like always, very and never are used.

f) Creative writing: As the name suggests, this writing is an art. This is not professional
writing. It’s aesthetic writing which is originated from author’s imagination. Horror,
crime, biographies, screens writing, script writing all come under this type of writing
style.

g) Review writing: Review means analysis and to check or inspect any place, product,
service or anything. The author writes his views/ experiences about books, product and
soon. The best example of this is an online review about the product. It requires both
persuasive as well as descriptive writing skills.

h) Subjective writing: This is an opinion-driven writing and follows the subjective

approach. It is originated from the author’s own experiences and observations.
Basically, it is an insight feeling in the form of writing, which is the author’s own
unique perception.

5.5 IMPORTANCE OF GOOD WRITING SKILLS

A question arises why a skill is important for writing; skill is the most essential element to do
any type of work. It enables a writer to communicate the message successfully with accuracy
and correctness to the wider audience. Here are some benefits we will discuss which we get
through good writing skills.

 Easy Communication: Communication is a medium to transfer the views, ideas, and

opinions. It is very important for the development of a business as well as a country,
without it we can’t imagine to proceed with anything. Oral and written communications
both have their own importance. Written communication makes a strong relation
between receiver and sender. Good writing skills communicate word accuracy and
efficiency that suits for development.

 Important Profession: Writing (written document) has its importance for official
work. Skills in writing are the most essential to write a resume, business letter, reports,

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and much more. When someone is engaged to write, possessing outstanding writing
abilities is necessary for the work.

 Perceive as A Trustworthy and Credible Candidate: By good writing skills,

someone can prove her/himself as credible for the organization. It makes him
dependable due to which he is assigned with more responsibility and considered as a
right candidate for recruitment or for promotion.

 Reflect the Persuasion: Excellent convincing skills in writing inspire others to

accomplish the goal. Skills bring innovation, and innovative ideas can enhance the
motivation of the target and persuade them to accomplish the work efficiently.

 Helps in Maintaining the Records: To store some paperwork as a document, and

record document that cannot be possible in oral communication, writing is a tool.
Gathering information on paper is the genuine process of saving it for a long time.

 Writing Skills Prove Strength of an Author: The way of writing reflects the skill of
an author. Grammar and punctuations are mentioned in effective writing correctly. It
shows the capability of a writer and enhances the process of observation. Strong and
excellent writing skills prove the author’s intelligence and ability to fit for any job or
for other tasks for which he is writing. He may be more influential than others only by
way of writing.

 Conveys Courtesy in Business: In formal business, correspondence writing with skills

covers the level of politeness and considerate attention to detail that is shown in face-
to-face interaction. A courteous business letter expresses the writer’s personal respect
for the addressee, they work for.

 Builds A Solid Web Presence: Of late, online presentation is becoming popular. It

helps potential customers discover the company and its products. Website, blogs and
media accounts are maintained, but without efficient writing skills, there are not
effective.

5.6 SENTENCE FORMATION

What is a Sentence? A group of words giving a meaningful sense is called a sentence. It
must contain a subject and a verb followed by a part of speech. A single word cannot
complete a meaning. For making a sentences author uses many grammatical rules. Correct
sentence formation makes an author’s writing justified. Parts of speech provide a framework
to write any idea clearly and effectively.

Definition of sentence formation- “The grammatical arrangement of words in sentences is

called a sentence structure.”

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“A sentence is a collection of words that convey sense or meaning and is formed according to
the logic of grammar.”

“A sentence is a set of words that is complete in itself, typically containing a subject and
predicate, conveying a statement, question, exclamation, or command, and consisting of a
main clause and sometimes one or more subordinate clauses.”

Elements of a Sentence-
 A sentence provides a clear meaning to the author’s written matter.
 It follows the rules of grammar.
 Correct punctuation is necessary to explain complete sense.
 Two or more noun, pronoun and verb may be used according to the types of sentence.
 It draws the framework for writing to an author.
 A sentence can be in the form of a question, a statement, an exclamation or command.

Types of Sentences-
Basically, sentences are of four types, but some other types of sentences also can be seen. We
will explain all these with examples ahead. So that it could be easily understood.
[1] Simple and Declarative sentence

This is a simple statement which states a fact and ends with a full stop (period). It contains
one independent clause. For example- (i) Ramesh goes to the cinema hall to watch a movie.
(ii) He is an intelligent boy.
[2] Compound sentence

When two or more simple sentences are written jointly, it is called a compound sentence.
These sentences have an independent clause that may or may not be connected with
conjunction like and, so, but, yet, because and so on. It can also be joint with a comma or
semi-colon. For example- (i) Chirag likes to read comics; he feels fresh after that. (ii) John
has an antique watch because he is fond of collecting antiques.
[3] Complex sentence

These types of sentences combine both dependent and independent clauses. A complex
sentence can start by any clause either dependent or independent clause, but if it begins with
a dependent clause, it is separated from the independent clause with the ‘comma’ simply.
But, if independent clause comes first, the words like although, as, even though, if, instead,
when, whenever, where, while are used to joint dependent clause. For example- (i) If you
work hard, you will definitely get success. (ii) I want to reach there where you want to go.
(iii) Although he earns well, he is still unhappy with his job.

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[4] Compound-Complex Sentence

As the rule of complex sentences, it begins with a dependent clause separated from the
central clause by a comma. In compound-complex sentences, the rule for both types of
compound and complex sentences is followed. Dependent and independent, both clauses are
used. At the end of the sentence, the independent clause is joined by a comma and the word
or, as in the rule for the compound. So, a compound complex sentence is made up of more
than one sentence joined by a conjunction, and at least one of those sentences is complex. For
example- (i) I will go to the market, but first, I have to complete my homework after I prepare
the tea. (ii) When I woke up in the morning, I saw the birds’ chirping in the garden, and it
made me happy.

[5] Imperative Sentence

This sentence shows command, order, or request. It ends with a mark of a period (full stop).
For example- (i) Open the door. (ii) Please give me a glass of water.
[6] Interrogative Sentence

This type of sentence is used for asking something, and this ends with question mark (?). For
example- (i) Where are you going? (ii) May I borrow your shirt for some days?

[7] Exclamatory Sentence

It is used for showing exclamations like emotion, grief, happiness etc. It ends with an
exclamation mark (!). For showing exclamatory expressions like wow, alas, hurray, oho,
bravo, fantastic ouch, etc is used before exclamation sign. As- (i) Wow! It’s amazing. (ii)
Hurray! We won. (iii) Oh! I forgot my notebook at my home.

Tips to Be Kept in Mind in Sentence Formation/ Structure-

A good sentence structure helps to eliminate the use of sentence fragments as well. A
sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence. So, under mentioned are some tips to be kept in
mind while forming a sentence:

 Be careful not to err on the side of a run-on sentence to avoid a sentence fragment. A
run-on sentence is when two or more independent clauses are joined without
appropriate punctuation or conjunction.
 Get the words in the right order. The most common order for the part of the sentence is
subject, verb, and object.
 Be aware of punctuation that can present a sentence correctly. One may decide whether
to use a comma with the subordinate clause in a complex sentence.
 Do not use “you” or “myself” in the imperative sentence.
 Do not use a question mark in a declarative sentence but the interrogative sentence
must end with a question mark.

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 Check carefully for the subject and verb in the text after conjunction to confirm the text
is an independent clause.

5.7 DICTION
Sentence formation and use of proper diction both are important in writing and come under
writing skills of an author. Diction has its own place in writing. It is an accent, inflexion,
intonation and speech-sound quality manifested by an individual speaker or writer. It
separates good from bad writing. Proper diction is important to get the message across.
According to an article, proper diction in writing follows three rules-

 Choice of the accurate and right word.

 Choice of the appropriate word according to context.

 Choice of reader’s/ listener’s understandable words easily.

Definitions of diction-

Diction can be defined as ‘style of speaking or writing, determined by choice of words by a

speaker or a writer’.

Diction (Latin: dictionem (nom. dictio), “a saying, expression, word”

According to dictionary.com (Thesaurus.com), “Diction is a style of speaking or writing as
dependent upon the choice of words.”

Aristotle, in the Poetics (20) states that, “Diction comprises of eight elements: Phoneme,
Syllable, Conjunction, Connective, Noun, Verb, Inflection and Utterance.”
In simple words, “Diction is the choice, and use of words in speech or writing” or “Diction is
the way and manner in which somebody pronounces different words”.
NOTE- Reasons behind to learn diction.

 To create correct phraseology and phrasing.

 To establish a narrative voice and tone.
 To establish the support to setting for the story.
 To pursue readers and entertain them with the correct choice of words.

Types of Diction-
Diction depends on the occasion and on the type of audiences. It reflects the character’s detail
like age, background, profession etc. Types of diction depict the way of expressing different
ideas. Types of Diction are as follows:

 Formal Diction

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In formal diction, the language used is formal. This language contains polite and proper
words that are descriptive. Conference Presentation, Business document, and legal
papers are all prepared in formal language. Generally, formal diction is used in formal
situations.

 Informal Diction
It is conversational and narrative language which is used in informal situations like
talking to friends, personal mail, and letters, etc. Informal language is the relaxed
language that we use in our daily life routine.

 Neutral/ standard Diction

It refers to the level of diction employed, writing assignment at college level and
newspaper. It maintains a professional tone but tries to avoid highly technical or
specialized term as formal diction.

 Colloquial Diction

It refers to non- standard languages like regional. It is also known as an appropriate

language to informal or conversational language and speech of writing. Example:
anyhow, gotcha, stats, info, guys, etc.

 Abstract Diction
The term abstract refers to ideas or concepts which are untouched by the writer. The
writer uses words to express something intangible. The author does not experience this
through his five senses.

 Concrete Diction
It is opposite of abstract diction. It uses those words which have a literal meaning and
relate to things that appeal to the senses.

 Poetic Diction
It consists of lyrical words that relate to a poem creating a euphonious or harmonious
sound.

Importance of Diction-
1) Diction conveys the author’s attitude, tone towards the topic.
2) It impacts on argument as well as the author’s credibility.
3) Show the strength of writing by ensuring the full range of meaning of the words that the
writer has used.
4) Appropriate everywhere, whether academic writing, professional writing or business
writing.
5) The writer’s tone can influence the reader’s response towards the writing.

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5.8 PARAGRAPH AND ESSAY WRITING

Paragraph writing-
Genres of writing are known as types of writing. Literary genres and professional genres both
have their own importance. From a small sentence to an essay, writing comes across a
number of elements and covers a number of styles. According to the syllabus, we will discuss
paragraph writing, essay writing, technical writing, and literary writing one by one.
Meaning-
A paragraph is a group of sentences by which the author keeps his ideas (central) and tries to
brainstorm logics behind the writing. A well-structured paragraph can be the backbone of any
literature. Length of literature decides a number of paragraphs and the length of a paragraph
depends on the information it conveys. A paragraph has a sequential series of sentences. This
is because the reader could know the organization of thoughts in an essay or any literature
(writing) and subdivided to define the beginning and end. It might describe a place, character
or process; it may narrate or compare a series of events.

Definition of paragraph writing-

According to Lunsford and Connors, “A paragraph is defined as “a group of sentences or a
single sentence that forms a unit”
“A paragraph is a subdivision of a written composition that consists of one or more sentences,
deals with one point or gives the words of one speaker, and begins on a new usually indented
line. “Or it can be defined as “Paragraph has sequential series of a sentence”.

Paragraph Structure-
Describing, comparing, contrasting or controlling information can all be used to structure a
paragraph by following these points:

 Topic Sentence: Topic sentence is a focus sentence. It organizes the entire paragraph.
This topic sentence summarizes the main idea of a paragraph.

 Supporting Idea: This supports the main idea, means, it is more focused on arguments
that strengthen the main ideas.

 Adding Detail: To bolster the paragraph writing, add a few sentences. These sentences
describe the details of the further storyline.

 Concluding Sentence: This concluding sentence in a paragraph brings closure to the

main idea. This is a final thought about the topic on which they are writing. Generally,
this sentence starts with: therefore, overall, thus, finally, lastly, for this reason, and so
on.

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Characteristics of paragraph writing-

In writing, paragraph formation is most essential. A small paragraph presents the whole
picture of the objective for writing. A good paragraph has these characteristics:

 Unity: The whole paragraph represents a single sense or thought. As the paragraph is
made by group of sentences that depends on each other.

 Order: In a paragraph, sentences are organized in a sequence. That’s why a paragraph

contains a series of sentences. This series connects each other to present the main idea
effectively. So, it follows the specific step by step order.

 Content Length: No one likes to read a long paragraph because it deviates the reader’s
mind and makes it boring. It concludes that a good paragraph is the one that have a
proper length of content.

 Coherence: Paragraph presents the sentences in coherence. All sentences of a

paragraph should relate to each other.

 Binding: This is the main characteristics of paragraph writing. It bounds a reader to

read. The reader feels interesting to continue reading.

Steps to Write a Paragraph-

To construct a fine paragraph, a writer should follow these steps:

 Decide the topic of your paragraph

 Develop a topic sentence

 Demonstrate your point

 Give your paragraph meaning

 Conclude

 Look over and proofreading

Essay Writing-
The word ‘essay’ is derived from Latin word “exagium” which means ‘presenting a case’ and
from French word ‘essayer’ which means “to try” or “to attempt”. An essay has everything
that needs to be said. An essay contains a selection of topic, critical evaluation, organization,
and presentation of facts. It is considered synonymous with a story or a paper or an article
covering the serious topics. An essay can be formal as well as informal.
Definition of an essay-

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A famous English essayist, Aldous Huxley defines essays as “A literary device for saying
almost everything and anything”. According to Oxford Dictionary, ‘Essay is a short piece of
writing on a particular subject.”

Characteristics of good essay writing-

 Well Developed-An essay has a series of paragraphs. All paragraphs connect with each
other to come out at the end and describe the story in short. All it is well developed by
an essayist.
 Discipline- Essay is not too short as a paragraph. It makes a chain of thoughts and
keeps a picture before the audience as a short story. It is descriptive in nature.
 Unambiguous-Essay is written to the point and focus on any serious topic or any
event. It should be written univocal, always maintaining the main content of the essay.
 Subjected- Good essay writing consist subjectivity with the topic. An essayist always
maintains a great intonation till the completion of essay.
 Argumentation- If the author wants to make an essay reading interesting and binds the
reader; he tries to put arguments and disagreements in the essay. So, a good essay must
be argumentative.
 Anecdotal- An essay covers a story or an event or a serious topic. It can be
biographical, incidental, accidental, or historical. To narrate any of them may be helpful
to the society. An essay is aimed to show writers personal opinion about the subject.
 Organized-An excellent essay organizes all paragraphs in such a way that conveys full
information to the readers. It represents an order to structure an essay.

Types of Essay Writing-

a) Definition Essay: The point of this type of essay is to explain something on a higher
level than dictionaries do. Definition essay aims to define the subject in a few
sentences.

b) Compare and Contrast Essay: An essay can be written upon on differences and
similarities between objects or event. This type of essay is known as a compare and
contrast essay.
c) Cause and Effect Essay: Essay reminds a study where essayist writes to show what
cause has led to a particular result. This type of essay shows the logical connection
between cause and effect.

d) Process Essay: Basically, this type of writing is used to write a paper. It requires the
same level of understanding of the subject, and it works.

e) Argumentative Essay: This type of essay writing aims to change the reader’s attitude
towards something. It is written to manipulate people’s thoughts to create their interest.

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f) Critical Essay: This critical essay presents the writer’s thought analytically. It defines
‘Good’ and ‘Bad’ consideration of the problem. The purpose of writing this type of
essay is to focus on weak and strong features of something (problem).
g) Expository Essay: Writer’s own experience is presented in an expository essay. It
requires a lot of knowledge about the subject. Expository essays are the exposition of
the writer’s knowledge and research.

h) Persuasive Essay: The topic of this type of essay is related that are relevant here and
today. Persuasive essays are very tough and influential. These essays require a better
understanding of the subject and goodwill.
i) Descriptive Essay: A descriptive essay describes a place, an object, an event in depth.
One clever way to do that is to evoke the senses of the reader.
j) Narrative essay: It is like storytelling, about a certain event in personal life. Events, for
example: watching cinema, festival celebration, etc are written in this form. Usually, it
is written in the first person.

Tips for Writing an Excellent Essay-

 Keep the word limit of an essay short. It should not be too long for the reader to feel
bored. The limit should be between 300-500 words.
 An essay must be traversed around the central idea giving an appropriate and
interesting title so that the readers can create interest to read it.
 Keep the language simple and crisp.
 It must be free from grammatical errors.
 Before starting to write an essay, the writer should re-look into the thought and
organize it in a sequential manner.
 Proofread again and check the errors.
 End the essay with completing a subject.

Steps to be taken while writing an essay-

 Develop a topic.

 Taking critical notes and read carefully by conducting research

 Create a research statement

 Integrated research evidence is used in formally formatting the essay

 At last, edit, view, and revise.

Difference between paragraph and essay writing-

Difference between paragraph and essay writing

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Base Paragraph Essay

It is a composition of at least 3-5
Composition It is composed of multiple paragraphs.
sentences.
It is focused on a much larger topic
Focus A paragraph focuses on one topic.
than a paragraph.
An essay introduces the topic by the
Paragraph introduces the topic with
paragraph i.e. introduction paragraph,
Parts the first sentence that supports details
body paragraph, and a concluding
and a conclusion.
paragraph.
It is generally short, maybe of one An essay is lengthier than paragraph.
Length
sentence and having a specific theme. It takes more time.
A paragraph cannot be written An essay can’t be completed without
Relationship
without sentences. using the paragraph.
A paragraph ends with a concluding An essay ends with a conclusion
Conclusion sentence that states the basic points paragraph that summarizes the content
of the paragraph. of the essay.

5.9 TECHNICAL AND LITERARY WRITING

Technical Writing-
In the 20th century, technical writing had its place and was officially recognized. Technical
writing was in high demand and became an official job title during World War II. Complex
writing machines were being invented. Universities, library, engineering, military hardware,
aerospace led to technical writing. With the growing popularity of computers the field of
technical writing also grew.
Technical writing is significantly different from other types of writing, like narrative,
because technical writing is intended to impart some specific skill or ability. This style of
writing has a very different purpose and different characteristics according to the purpose
than other writing styles such as creative writing. Technical writing is done to educate,
informing, or directing someone on how to do something.

Technical writing required strong technical skill. It also requires a writer to examine the
audience extensively.

Definition of technical writing-

The traditional definition of technical writing is: “Technical writing is the practice of
documenting processes, such as software manuals or instructional materials. Traditionally, it
was limited to user manuals of some sort.”

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Today technical writing encompasses all documentation of complex technical processes. It

includes reports, executive summary statements and briefs. Each time technical information
is conveyed in writing at work, it is, by definition, technical writing.

Characteristics of Technical writing-

 It is straight forward and clear.

 Use of computer is important for technical documentation.

 Technical writing is done for a specialized topic.

 Providing instructions about how to do a particular task.

 Technical writing covers a wide range of genres and technologies like press release,
memo, reports, etc.

 Need for awareness about the audience’s existing knowledge.

 Technical writing takes much more time to write.

 Technical writing is detailed and informative.

 Technical writing is done in a concise and well-structured manner.

Genres of Technical writing-

This type of writing covers different styles depending on the audience and information. These
styles include proposals, procedures and instructions, press release, e-mail, letters
memoranda, resume, job application, case study, etc.

Tips for good Technical Writing-

If a writer keeps in mind the following tips, he can easily and quickly explain any complex
piece of writing:

 Know about your audience for whom writing is done because in technical writing, a
complex language is used and many abbreviations, acronyms are directly applied to
such a field according to the audience.

 Use an impersonal style.

 A writer must write in simple and straight forward language which a reader can
understand easily.

 Collection of information must be analysed thoroughly.

 Information must be arranged into an understandable and conceivable format.

 Check repeatedly after writing. It should not be lengthy and monotonous for the reader.

Skills needed for Technical Writing-

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A successful technical writing has to have set of skills like good written communication skill,
document design skill, fluency with digital tools, graphic software knowledge, screen capture
tool, web developing tools, component management systems, and desktop publishing tools or
word process, abbreviations, acronyms and technical language that make a technical writing
efficient.

Literary writing-
Literary writing is creative writing and used in fiction. For this writing, personal motivation
of a writer is essential. It is an art and a depiction of thoughts and views in writing as poem,
story, novel and any form of literature. Literature word is derived from the Latin word
meaning “writing formed with letters.” Literature is a form of human expression which is
organized and written down in expressive manner. Literature also functions more broadly in
society as a means of both criticizing and affirming cultural values.

Definition of literary writing-

Definition of the word literature tends to be circular. The 11th edition of Merriam-Webster’s
Collegiate Dictionary considers literature to be “Writing having excellence of form or
expression and expressing ideas of permanent or universal interest.”
The 19th-century critic Walter Pater referred to “The matter of imaginative or artistic
literature” as a transcript, not of mere fact, but of fact in its infinitely varied forms.”
According to thesaurus.com, “Literature is writing in which expression and form, in
connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristics or essential
features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays.”

Features of Literary Writing-

 It has a narrative element.

 Literary writing is the reflection of ideas, passions of human being.

 It is an art, having creativity.

 It paints a picture of author’s feelings like a real world.

 Objective of literary writing is to provide information to the audience.

 It is done as an intellectual and imaginative work.

Functions of literary writing-

 Knowledge Sharing: Through literature, the writer shares the knowledge, information,
thoughts, and ideas with audience creatively.

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 Entertainment: Literary writing gets the wonder feel to the audience. The writer
presents his idea in an influence manner.

 Shaping the Aesthetic Sense: Literature describes behaviour, attitude and all in an
aesthetic sense. It helps us to notice everything beautiful around us.

 Self- Development: Through literature, an author helps himself with new ideas and
information. Readers inhale all those qualities and knowledge what he reads in books
and magazines.

 Transformation: A good literature can transform a reader’s behaviour, attitude and

bad memories into good and beautiful. The audience get inspired with it.

Genres of literary writing-

The styles of literary writing include the way to write literature or can be said in other words
‘style’ in which it is performed. Normally, these genres are familiar: Poetry, Prose, Drama,
essay, fable, and fiction and non-fiction are often divided into sub-genres.

Steps to be Taken While Writing a Literature

 To understand the purpose of literary writing.

 To decide the format.

 Execute the plan of how to write and what you analyse to write.

 Now start writing.

 After completion of literary writing, edit your work.

Difference between technical and literary writing-

Difference between technical writing and literary writing
Base Technical Writing Literary Writing
Technical Writing is used for a Literary Writing is used for literary
Field
particular field. work.
Technical Writing is the process of
Process
managing.
Audience of technical writing are Literary writing is for the general
Audience
academicians and experts. public.
Literary writing is mostly fiction
Fiction/ non-fiction Technical writing is non-fiction
and may be non-fiction.
Logic and reasoning dominate Humanism dominates the literary
Dominance
technical writing. writing.
Tools Technical writing is to the point and Literary writing use figure of

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straight forward. speech.

5.10 COMMON ERRORS IN WRITING

Without using grammar in a sentence, it can’t make complete sense. Grammar exposes the
author’s thought and ideas in the same manner as those are. A minor error distracts readers
from understanding the author’s writing. So, it’s very important to be alert about the errors
and keep all those in mind. Here we discussed some errors which commonly occur
unknowingly or due to negligence of knowledge about grammar:

Without using grammar in a sentence, it can’t make complete sense. Grammar exposes the
author’s thought and ideas in the same manner as those are. A minor error distracts readers
from understanding the author’s writing. So, it’s very important to be alert about the errors
and keep all those in mind. Here we discussed some errors which commonly occur
unknowingly or due to negligence of knowledge about grammar:
[1] Errors about Singular- Plural related to Subject-Verb

The verb of a sentence must be according to the subject. If the subject of the sentence is
singular, its verb must also be singular; and if the subject is plural, the verb must also be
plural. Example:
Incorrect: An essential chapter of that book has been missing.

Correct: An essential chapter of that book has been missing.

[2] Incompleteness of Sentence

Incomplete sentence due to number of clauses is called a sentence fragment. A fragment may
lack a subject, a complete verb, or both. Sometimes fragments depend on the proceeding
sentence to give it meaning. Example:

Incorrect: He gave a treat to all his friends. Despite of the fight.

Correct: Despite of the fight, he gave a treat to all his friends.

[3] Errors related to use of a comma

‘Comma’ is used in many senses to give a proper meaning to a sentence. Due to misuse of it,
meaning can differ. Here, some errors are discussed which are usually occurred with the
misuse of ‘comma’ like:

 Missing comma: A comma should be used after an introductory word, phrase, or

clause. This gives the reader a slight pause after an introductory element and often can
help avoid confusion. Example:

Incorrect: Before she could stop him the kid rang their neighbor’s bell.
Correct: Before she could stop him, the kid rang their neighbor’s bell.

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 Comma with a conjunction: A comma separates two or more independent clauses in a

compound sentence separated by a conjunction. The comma goes after the first clause
and before the coordinating conjunction that separates the clauses. Example:

Incorrect: He was handsome and he was successful and he was full of life.
Correct: He was handsome, successful, and full of life.

 Superfluous Commas: To throw commas around liberally when they aren’t necessary
is occurred. Example:

Incorrect: The woman never sang in public, because she was not comfortable to sing in
front of a crowd.

Correct: The woman never sang in public because she was not comfortable to sing in
front of a crowd.

 Splice of a comma: A comma splice occurs when two separate sentences are joined
with a comma rather than a period or semicolon. Writers often create comma splices
when using transitional words, such as however, therefore, moreover, nevertheless, or
furthermore. Example:

Incorrect: My plan was to go out for a movie, however I had to cancel that due to an
urgent meeting.

Correct: My plan was to go out for a movie; however, I had to cancel that due to an
urgent meeting.

[4] Misplaced or Dangling Modifier

A misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly separated from the word
it modifies or describes. Sentences with this error can sound awkward, ridiculous, or
confusing. A dangling modifier is a word or phrase that modifies a word not clearly stated in
the sentence. Example:
Incorrect: While walking along the beach, Silvia found a sparkly girl’s set of earring.

Correct: While walking along the beach, Silvia found a girl’s sparkly set of earring.
[5] Wrong Word Usage

There are a variety of words and phrases that are commonly confused and misused in
sentences. So before using homophones, the word having the same pronunciation but
different meaning, the author must go through its meaning carefully. There are hundreds of
these commonly confused words; here we will see the difference in the use of similar
pronunciation word because of their spelling. Example:
Incorrect: I never want to loose a good friend like Sita.

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Correct: I never want to lose a good friend like Sita.

For examples, some other words that create confusion are:

 To/ too/two

 There/ their

 Lose/loose

 Mare/ mere

 Buy/by

 Hole/whole

 Write/right

 Week/weak

 Steal/steel and many more.

[6] Lounge Sentence
A sentence can become a burden to read when there are too many equally weighted phrases.
These make it lengthy and boring for readers. Example:
Incorrect: Jason was planning to attend his friend’s wedding on June 30, but at the last minute
he found out he had a jury duty, so he couldn’t attend the wedding, and he felt really guilty
about it.

Correct: Unexpectedly, Jason was called for jury duty and couldn’t attend his friend’s June
30 wedding. He felt guilty about missing it.

[7] Colon Mistakes

A colon is used after a complete sentence to introduce a word, phrase, clause, list, or
quotation. The colon signals that what follows proves or explains the sentence preceding the
colon. Example:

Incorrect: People move to cities for: the better lifestyle, high paying jobs, and a good
atmosphere.

Correct: People move to cities for three reasons: better lifestyle, high paying jobs and good
atmosphere.

[8] Errors in Using Infinitive:

An infinitive is the word “to” with a verb. There are no grammar rules that prohibit split
infinitives, but many experts disapprove of them. If the sentence sounds awkward by
correcting the split, our rule of thumb is to go with, what makes the most sense in the context
of your writing and for the ease of reading. Example:

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Incorrect: She tried to quickly finish her breakfast before she had to leave.

Correct: She tried to finish the breakfast quickly before she had to leave.

[9] Errors in using Apostrophes:

The apostrophe is used for a purpose, either to indicate a possession (implying ownership) or
a contraction (in place of other letters). Since, its use to indicate a contraction is easiest, we
will deal with this first. But, if it is used wrongly, the meaning of a sentence can be
misunderstood by the readers or it might sound awkward. It can be explained by the
following examples:

[a] Using Apostrophes to Indicate Contraction- Where one or more letters have been dropped,
an apostrophe is used as a replacement:

 It is = it’s
 We are = we’re

 Does not = Doesn’t

 Of the clock = o’clock

Example:
Incorrect: I don’t believe its finally Friday.

Correct: I don’t believe it’s (it is) finally Friday.

[b] Using Apostrophes to Indicate Possession- Apostrophes are also used to indicate
possession/ custody or occupancy. Matthew’s car
 The teachers’ staff room

 The farmers’ fields (multiple fields owned by multiple farmers)

[c] When Not to Use Apostrophes- If the word is a plural, then do not use an apostrophe like
people, children. There are possible exceptions to this rule are if the word comprises a single
letter, a number or abbreviation where the simple addition of an s could cause confusion.
Hence:
There are three r’s in word ‘Error’.

To write “There are three rs in word ‘Error’ may confuse the reader even though it is
grammatically correct. Alternatively, you could rephrase this as “There are three “r”s in the
word ‘Error’.
[10] Unnecessary or Missing Capitalization:

Use capitalization with a proper noun, pronoun, adjective, first words of sentences, and
highlights of important words in titles. Example:

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Incorrect: there are many ways to skin a cat.

Correct: There are many ways to skin a cat.

[11] Unnecessary Hyphen:

The use of hyphens has combined all of these words into a single word. Hyphen is used
between parts of a compound name or words. It serves to remove confusion from sentences
and to combine multiple words to form a single meaning. Example:

Generation-Z is tech-savvy.
I want to buy blue-coloured shirt.

Using hyphen, a writer must keep in mind these characteristics:

 If a compound adjective comes before the noun, they are hyphenated.

 If a compound adjective comes after the noun, there is no hyphen.

 The hyphen is omitted with such compound adjectives as well as adjectives preceded
by adverbs that end in ‘-ly’ such as:

Writing being a complicated task, language might be confusing due to its spelling and
grammar checkers that will not differentiate between some of the often-used words that are
confusing.

5.11 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 The word ‘Writing Skills’ adds the word ‘Skills’ in writing, which means competence,
expertise, and artistry. Writing is an art to express views and thoughts through words,
but skill is a competence which enables to understand the words exactly in the same
sense as the writer has written.

 Clarity and Focus, Grammatically Strong, Well Structured, Efficient Vocabulary,

Stimulation for Readers, Having Mental Notes, Well Editing and Re-evaluating are the
essential characteristics which makes good writing.

 Mainly four types of writing are seen: Expository Writing, Descriptive writing,
Persuasive writing and Narrative writing. Also, some other sub-styles are used in
writing like Objective writing, Subjective writing, Creative writing, Review writing,
etc.

 Skill is the most essential element for any type of task. It enables a writer to
communicate the message successfully with accuracy and correctness to the wider
audience. It makes him dependable, assigned with more responsibility and makes him
the right candidate for recruitment as well as promotion. Also, helps in maintaining the
Records

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 The grammatical arrangement of words in sentences is called sentence formation.” An

effective sentence has to involve the clear meaning, rules of grammar, correct
punctuation etc. all these elements in his writing. We use a different type of sentence in
writing like Simple and Declarative sentence, Compound sentence, Complex sentence,
Compound- complex sentence, Command and imperative sentence, Question and
Interrogative sentence, Exclamatory sentence.

 Diction is an accent, inflexion, intonation, and speech sound quality manifested by an

individual speaker or writer. It separates good from bad writing. Diction is of many
types: Formal Diction, Informal Diction, Neutral/ standard Diction, Colloquial Diction,
Abstract Diction, Concrete Diction, Poetic Diction. Diction conveys the author’s
attitude, a tone, which can influence the reader’s response to the writing towards the
topic. It shows the strength of writing and the author’s credibility by ensuring the full
range of meaning of the words that the writer uses.

 A paragraph has a sequential series of sentences. This is because the reader could know
the organization of thoughts in an essay or any literature (writing) and subdivided to
define begins and end. For structuring a paragraph, a writer has to follow four
component topic sentences, supporting ideas, adding detail, concluding sentence step
by step. A paragraph contains unity, order, content length and coherence.

 The word ‘essay’ is derived from Latin word “exagium” which means ‘presenting a
case’ and in French, word ‘essayer’ which means “to try” or “to attempt”. A famous
English essayist, Aldous Huxley defines essays as, ‘a literary device for saying almost
everything about almost anything” An essay must be well disciplined, unambiguous,
argumentative, anecdotal and well organized. It is written in many different forms like
definition Essay, compare and contrast essay, cause and effect essay, process essay,
critical essay, expository essay, persuasive essay, narrative essay, and many more.
When essayist starts to write an essay, he should follow some steps keeping in mind the
word limit and give an appropriate and interesting title so that readers can create
interest to read it. Language should be simple and crisp, free from grammatical errors
and sequentially organized.

 The main difference between a paragraph and an essay is that a paragraph is composed
of three-four sentences ending with a concluding sentence while essay has multiple
paragraphs and ends with a conclusion paragraph.

 Traditionally, two types of writing are seen: technical writing and literary writing.
Technical writing is done for the purpose of educating, informing or directing someone
on how to do something. A computer is used to write this type of writing; it is straight
forward and clear. Technical writing is written in a concise and well-structured manner.

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Proposal, document, business letter, etc use this technical writing. A specific skill is
needed in technical writing.

 Literary writing is creative writing and used in fiction. It is an art and a depiction of
thoughts and views as poem, story, novel and any form of literature. Literature is a
word derived from the Latin word meaning “writing formed with letters. Literature is a
form of human expression which is organized and written down in an expressive
manner. It serves society in terms of knowledge sharing, entertainment, shaping the
aesthetic sense, self- development and transformation of society.

 Sometimes, a writer gets stuck in his writing due to occurrence of some errors.
Incompleteness of Sentence, errors related to use of comma, dangling modifier, wrong
word usage, lounge Sentence, colon mistakes, errors in using infinitive, errors in using
apostrophes, incorrect word, and capitalization are some common errors that must be
acknowledged by an author. Error correction is very important to keep the audience
engaged to your piece of writing.

5.12 GLOSSARY
 Expository Writing- A type of writing focussing on accepted facts.
 Descriptive writing- This style of writing describes a character, an event or a place in
detail.
 Narrative writing- Narrative writing is a style where the author can create characters
that carry a strong detail.
 Persuasive writing- As the word sounds, persuasive writing is written to persuade the
readers about what the author has written.
 Objective writing- This is formal writing which uses facts and evidence. It statistically
and scientifically proves the reason so that the reader could make own opinion.
 Creative writing- As the name suggests, this writing is an art. It’s aesthetic writing
which is originated from author’s imagination. Horror, crime, biographies, screens
writing, script writing all come under this type of writing style.
 Review writing- Review means analysis and to check or inspect any place, product,
service or anything. The author writes his views/ experiences about books, product and
soon. The best example of this is online review about the product.
 Subjective writing- This is an opinion driven writing and follows subjective approach.
It is originated from an author’s own experiences and observations. Basically, it is an
insight feeling in the form of writing that is the author’s own unique perception.

5.13 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions (Short questions)
a) What do you mean by skill writing?

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b) Define a sentence.

c) What is Diction?

d) Write the steps for writing a paragraph.

e) Define technical writing.

f) What is literary writing?

g) Write any four functions of literary writing.

h) What are the main differences between paragraph and essay writing?
i) Which are the types of error regarding ‘comma’? Explain in brief.

j) What steps should be taken by an author for good writing?

Descriptive type questions (Long questions)

a) What is a writing skill? Explain its component and importance.

b) Explain the types of sentence.

c) Define Diction. Explain types of diction and the importance of diction in writing?

d) How is a paragraph structured? What steps should be taken for writing a paragraph?
e) Define an essay. How many types of essay are used in writing? Explain the differences
between an essay and paragraph writing.
f) What genres are used in technical writing? What are the main differences between
technical writing and literary writing? Discuss.
g) What type of errors commonly occur while writing? Explain in detail.

Objective type questions-

1) Writing skills are such ………… abilities that present the ideas and information in a
nice written …… ……..for others to understand and feel them.
2) In …………..writing, a writer tries to explain those concepts which are accepted by a
wider audience.
3) ………………is statistically and scientifically proved the reason so that the readers
could make their own opinion.
4) To store writing is a tool as a document and records which cannot possible in
………………..
5) The …………………. of words in a sentence is called sentence structure.
6) Correct ………….. is necessary to explain complete sense.
7) Two or more simple sentences are written jointly are called …………. sentences.

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8) A sentence shows the command, order or request is called …………. sentence.

9) …………is the choice and use of words in speech or writing.
10) ………….. refers to non- standard language as a regional language.
11) A paragraph is a ………….. of a written composition that consists of one or more
sentences.
12) A paragraph contains a ……… of sentences.
13) An essay has series of ……………….
14) …………….. can be biographical, incidental, accidental or historical.
15) In ………………writing, machine is used.
16) …………..writing is creative writing.
17) Poem, story, and novel are the genres of ……………writing.
18) …………………… dominate technical writing and ……………..dominates the literary
writing.
19) The …………. goes after the first clause and before the coordinating conjunction that
separates the clauses.
20) A dangling modifier is a ……………… that modifies a word not clearly stated in the
sentence.
Answers- (objective type questions)
[1] Expertise, format [2] Expository [3] Objective Writing [4] Oral Communication [5]
Grammatical arrangement [6] Punctuation[7] compound [8] Imperative [9] Diction [10]
Colloquial Diction [11] Sub- division [12] Series [13] Paragraphs [14] An esaay[15]
Technical [16] Literary [17] Literary [18] Logic & Reasoning, Humanism [19] Comma [20]
word & Phrase

5.14 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 Bhasin, Hitesh. (2019), Marketing articles “8 Different Types of Writing’
 Wilbers. Stephen, an article “Five elements of writing with style and personality”
 Oldcastle, John, an Article “What is Literary Writing?”, http://www.literature-study-
online.com/essays/literary.html
 Master Class, (2019) an article “What Is Diction? Learn 8 Different Types of Diction in
Writing with Example,” https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-diction-learn-8-
different-types-of-diction-in-writing-with-examples#what-is-the-purpose-of-diction-in-
writing
 Manda. Gilbert, an article “What Are the Purposes of Diction?”
https://penandthepad.com/purposes-diction-8592496.html

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 Lunsford, Andrea A. and Karen J. Lunsford. “’Mistakes are a Fact of Life: A National
Comparative Study.” CCC 59 (2008) 781-806. https://undergrad.stanford.edu/tutoring-
support/hume-center/resources/student-resources/grammar-resources-writers/top-
twenty-errors-undergraduate-writing
 DuPuis. Tom,(2018), an article “What is Technical Writing? [New Definition for
2018]” https://www.instructionalsolutions.com/blog/what-is-technical-writing
 Johnson, Tom (December 19, 2011). "What Tools Do Technical Writers Use". I'd
Rather Be Writing. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
 "History of Technical Writing". Proedit. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
 Perelman, Leslie C., Barrett, Edward, and Paradis James. "Press jaylan peregrino". The
Mayfield grave naba Handbook of Technical & Scientific Writing. Retrieved May 4,
2014.
 F.L. Lucas,(2016), “How do you write clearly and effectively? If you want to write
well, this list includes 10 principles of effective writing”published in book ‘.Style: The
art of writing well’.
 Kokemuller. Neil,(2017), an article “what Are the Elements That Make for Good and
Effective Writing?”
 Hasa, (2015), “Difference Between Technical Writing and Literary Writing”,
https://www.toppr.com/guides/business-correspondence-and-reporting/introduction-to-
basic-writing/steps-for-writing/
 Brooks. Michelle,(2017), a blog “10 REASONS WHY BUSINESS WRITING SKILLS
ARE SO IMPORTANT”
 Holman, William (2003). A Handbook to Literature (9 ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
 Willson.Jessica (2018), an article“Why Writing Skills are Important”
https://medium.com/@missjessicaalbay/why-writing-skills-are-important-
3780b8d77419
 https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-technical-writing-and-vs-
literary-writing/
 https://authority.pub/common-grammar-mistakes/
 https://msu.edu/course/cep/886/Writing/page1.htm
 https://teaching.uncc.edu/sites/teaching.uncc.edu/files/media/files/file/GoalsAndObjecti
ves/DevelopingLearningOutcomes.pdf
 https://www.inc.com/kaleigh-moore/the-6-most-important-qualities-of-an-effective-
writer.html
 https://writerswrite.co.za/ten-principles-of-effective-writing/

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 https://classroom.synonym.com/elements-make-good-effective-writing-19674.html
 https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/aboutwriting/chapter/types-of-writing-styles/
 https://www.toppr.com/guides/english/writing/essay/
 https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-differenc-between-an-essay-paragraph-
92871
 https://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/sentences.htm
 http://plato.algonquincollege.com/applications/guideToGrammar/?page_id=3243
 https://www.nust.na/sites/default/files/documents/LIP411S_Steps%20for%20paragraph
%20writing.ph
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diction
 https://literarydevices.net
 https://airfoilgroup.com/the-six-elements-of-your-writing-style/
 https://www.austincc.edu/history/inres10a4style.html
 https://www.skillsyouneed.com/write/common-mistakes1.html
 http://awinlanguage.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-function-of-literature.html
 https:// www.britannica.com/art/literature
 https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-definitions/definition-of-technical-
writing.html

5.15 SUGGESTED READINGS

-

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UNIT- 6
WRITING PROPOSALS

6.1 INTRODUCTION

6.2 OBJECTIVES

6.3 WHAT A PROPOSAL IS?

6.4 TYPES OF PROPOSAL

6.5 COMPONENT OF BUSINESS PROPOSAL

6.6 HOW TO START WRITING A PROPOSAL?

6.7 PROJECT PROPOSAL

6.8 POINTS TO REMEMBER

6.9 GLOSSARY

6.10 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

6.11 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

6.12 SUGGESTED READINGS

6.1 INTRODUCTION
No proposal can be drafted at all without skills and knowledge. It is important to know how
to use both of these. However, both seem to be same actually, they are not. By knowledge,
can understand the concept and help give the track but skill gives shape to particular thing
filled with feelings.

So, skill is an application and practical approach. For writing a successful proposal,
communication skill with good writing is most essential. A good proposal may be helpful to
communicate full information to their customers.
In economic world, a proposal has an important place. Whether a company or an organization
wants to build good connections with customers and wants to increase the sale, or customers
want to get a product which meets their requirements, everywhere there is a need to write a
good proposal. A good proposal attracts and fulfils all the needs of that person who writes the
proposal with any purpose.

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6.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand proposal types and their components.

 Know the features of a proposal.
 Draft business proposals.
 Draft project proposals.

6.3 WHAT IS A PROPOSAL?

In the business world, proposal is an important document that ploughs the initial relationship
between organizations and customers. The proposal frames the extensive information in such
a way that can achieve the goal to write this proposal. It is helpful to eliminate the stones by
including the information. A proposal is used by the sales person to meet the specific needs
required by the customers. It seems like an estimation but estimation and proposal both are
different documents. For small businesses, it may be the same. Nevertheless, it is vital to
remember that proposals are always first and foremost sales document. It is an offer to finally
manage to get what you want in an argument or business agreement.

Definition-
 According to the British English dictionary “A proposal is a plan or an idea, often
a formal or written one, which is suggested for people to think about and decide upon.”

 Wallace and Van Fleet say that "A proposal is a form of persuasive writing; every
element of every proposal should be structured and tailored to maximize its persuasive
impact."
In a nutshell, a proposal is a document that is prepared for a prospective customer to persuade
the prospect to adopt the solution to a problem or the fulfilment of a need proffered in the
proposal. Proposals are written for both private and public sector organizations.”

Characteristics of a proposal-
 A proposal is an informative document.

 A proposal may be used as a report.

 A proposal is written in a structured form.

 It impacts persuasive writing.

 It identifies the strategy of an organization.

 It is helpful to outline the plan/ research design.

Proposal and Proposal Writing-

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a) A proposal is a document whereas writing proposal is a process.

b) A proposal contains all important information about organization whereas writing a

proposal is a thinking and persuasive process.
c) Proposals are of many types whereas writing proposal contains many steps.

d) A proposal is an already prepared form (or a complete document) whereas proposal

writing needs skill requirement to shape a proposal.

6.4 TYPES OF PROPOSAL

There are many types of proposals. These can be categorized according to the particular aim
of the person who writes the proposal. It may be academic, professional, and commercial.
Here, in a simple manner, it is categorized into four types- Internal Proposal, External
Proposal, Solicited Proposal, and Unsolicited Proposal.

[1] Internal Proposal-

A proposal that is written within the same organization, department may vary, is called an
internal proposal. It is not too lengthy and is not required to explain much in detail. We can
say it is not very explanatory.
[2] External Proposal-

A proposal which is written to a certain organization/ government/ business, including a lot

of information is called an external proposal. It is written for some specific purpose.

[3] Solicited Proposal-

A proposal which is based on request for a proposal to be sent, by the recipient / customer is
called solicited proposal. They may ask verbally, or they may issue a written request for the
proposal. This proposal has a specific purpose.

[4] Unsolicited Proposal-

This type of proposal does not have specific requirements. However, it is most valuable for
starting to write the proposal. It is in the form of a casual conversation.

Types of Business Proposals-

A business proposal is a document written in a business-related context. These are used to
make a plan or design the path for increasing sale and increasing marketing of the products or
services, etc. These can also be divided into three types- Formally Solicited Business
Proposal, Informally Solicited Business Proposal, and Unsolicited Solicited Business
Proposal.

[1] Formally Solicited Business Proposal

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To meet the business requirements, Formally Solicited Business Proposals are created by the
company for their recipients like customers or an audience. Formally Solicited Business
Proposal is prepared in such a structure with the aim to quantify the needs of the business.
The following types of Formally Solicited Business Proposal are used in an organization:

a) Request for Quotation (RFQ): Quotation is a document which contains the

information like time period, cost specific, terms of services, etc. A customer issues the
proposal to the supplier when there is a need of large quantity of goods.
b) Request for Proposal (RFP): Basically, it is written by the customer’s side in order to
meet their needs regarding product or services if available product or service is not up
to their satisfaction level or what they want.

c) Invitation for Bid (IFB): Bid is an offer or an effort to do something and to pay a
particular price for the same. It is done to check the price, when a customer wants to get
the required services, then IFBs are issued.
d) Request for Information (RFI): This is the first proposal above all. The purpose of
writing the RFI is to get information about the product, services, vendors etc. It gives
the shape to further decision.

[2] Informally Solicited Business Proposal

Informally Solicited Business Proposal is the descriptions of the vendor, product or
prospective customer based on a conversation with key issues. They do not contain formal
requirements to respond.

[3] Unsolicited Business Proposal

These are also called “marketing brochure” as earlier explained that these proposals are used
just to introduce the product or services by the vendor initially. It does not contain specific
information. The main aim to prepare this business proposal is to reach up to prospective
customers. These are not designed to close a sale, but just to introduce the possibility of a
sale.

6.5 COMPONENT OF BUSINESS PROPOSAL

A good business proposal can achieve business heights. A proposal describes the description
of a business in a summarized way. So, it says much in fewer words. The best elements of a
business proposal that are must be included are:

 Executive Summary.

 Company’s Description for Targeting Audience.

 Marketing and Sales Analysis.

 Competitive Analysis.

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 Management Team Description.

 Financial Plan.

 Prospects and Procurement of Business.

 Request for Funding.

 Projection of Financial Assistance.
Executive Summary:

As the title says, this is the most essential and executive component for any business
proposal. It highlights all the information on which other info and detail of the plan/ proposal
depend. It includes the company’s mission statement along with a short description for the
audience.

Company’s Description for Targeting Audience:

After preparation of the executive summary, a businessman prepares this section. In this
section information regarding the company’s policy, terms, services, products are described
with well-focused customers/ audience. The target is to prepare this section to fulfill the aim.
How an organization or company stands out as one and how the provided product/ service
will be helpful to the audience.

Marketing and Sales Analysis:

The writer of business proposal outlines the marketing strategies and techniques of sales
promotion by which he can achieve the target of the sale of product and services. This section
reveals how a businessman implements the strategies including sales forecast, advertising,
public relation etc. For this, the writer of a proposal can provide the testimonial from existing
customers.
Competitive Analysis:

Competitive analysis is a statement of the business strategy. The purpose of this analysis is to
determine the strength and weaknesses of the competitors of the same business that are
running. The analysis of competitors can be done according to customer’s point of view and
company’s strategy viewpoint. This analysis, in conjunction with an examination of
unsuccessful companies and the reasons behind their failure, should provide a good idea
about what key assets and skills are needed to be successful within a given industry and
market segment. It is needed to establish this competitive advantage clearly so that the reader
of the proposal understands not only how the company will accomplish its goal but also why
the company’s strategy will work.
Management Team Description:

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This section is prepared keeping in mind the reader of proposal and how to influence them.
Company’s executives, managers, and personnel bios should be mentioned in such a manner
that would help them to meet business goals. Experienced management team can get the faith
of audience to perceive lower risk.

Financial Plan and Analysis:

This element includes the company’s terms and policies regarding finance and financial
assistance. It is the most important section because finance is the blood of all companies, and
through this, a company can earn the profit. So, by this element, it should be discussed how a
business will be able to utilize the customer fund by providing quality product/ services and
will satisfy their expectations.

Prospects and Procurement of Business:

A proposal is a comprehensive roadmap for future planning of a business. This specifies the
relevant information about future prospects like, how it works and what targets do a company
has and how it will earn the profit.

Explanation of achievement is necessary to get the faith of the customers. In this element, a
writer should mention all the attainments of the businesslike, patent, copyright, prototype,
location of facility, registration, etc., that are essential for the development for the
organization.

Request for Funding:

When a company needs funding from the public, to add this section becomes necessary. It is
so that the company should explain the strategy of how a company will use funds that are
invested by the people. A company discloses all the information regarding a project in a
much-defined manner.
Projection of Financial Assistance:

This is the final section of a business proposal. This section includes the financial goal and
expectations for the future that are analyzed based on market research. What annual projected
earnings are there shall also be discussed.
So, above all elements are essential and must be kept in mind while preparing a proposal. It
may vary up to some extent, depending on the need of a company.

6.6 HOW TO START WRITING A PROPOSAL?

When a person starts to think about writing a proposal, he draws a draft, the outlines that are
essential for his objectives. Here, two things are to be remembered. One is, what things have
to be taken care of before starting to write a proposal, and second is the steps while he starts
to frame the proposal. Here, this process is divided into two ways:

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[i] Points to be remembered before starting to write a proposal.

[ii] Steps to be taken while framing a proposal.

Points to be remembered before starting to write a proposal

 First of all, choose the audience and area in which you want to start working or that
belongs to your interest and challenges you.

 Find out the right topic in which you are capable of doing work.

 Concise your work/ problem.

 Do research to find out the information regarding the research problem.

 Draw an outline for investigating the research problem.

 Make notes and organize them.

Steps to be taken while framing a proposal

The best way to write a proposal is to put all of the information in a concise and less
descriptive way. It helps a writer to get what he wants. It is an idea to ask permission to
execute or to get action on. It is a well-structured offer. A proposal generally consists of:

a) Title- It consists of the keywords for indexing. It is important because it defines the
problem in brief. It should be short and simple, along with the keywords.

b) Abstract- It is of about 150-200 words. Basically, it is the summary of how the work
would be carried forward and what are the objectives, scope, and expected outcome.

c) Introduction- It is a hook to start out the proposal. This makes sure a reader
understands why this proposal is to be chosen. In this, the writer uses some background
information to get the readers in the zone. A good hook should explain exactly what
you could do for their business. A writer could make attractive promises like schemes,
discount, offers, etc.

d) State the Problem- After the introduction, the proposal will set a body to discuss the
purpose of the problem. In this section, it explains the reason and need of discussing the
problem. Why it is worth looking for and how it is needed to understand to get the
solution for the problem.

e) Plan- Plan helps in fixing the issue that is needful to convince the reader. In this, the
writer discloses all the facts regarding the plan so that audience may take this seriously.

f) Solution to the Problem- This is written to convince the reader. It includes the
proposed action whatever is beneficial for the proposed problem. It also includes the
recommendation for the solution of the problem for the readers.

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g) Costs- List of costs in a business proposal must be explained in the proposal. It can
help out the reader to decide whether or not they would be able to afford a particular
product/ services. In addition to this, the writer also should disclose additional financial
benefit that will be received by the reader after making the purchase.

h) Conclusion- This is the final stage of a proposal. It restates the problem and the
proposed solution. To encourage the reader to act on the proposal, it should end with a
positive note.

Things to remember while writing a proposal-

 The proposal should be well-structured, well-researched, short, and simple.

 It assures that the rationale for the project is clear and carries worth.

 The means (methods) of completing the project are logical and well defined.

 The scope of the project is feasible regarding time frame and resources.

 The project and the proposal are thoughtful, reflective, and meaningful connecting with
project future plans.

 Keep on focusing on those people who can be helped with the proposal and proposal
writing.

Checklist after writing the proposal-

A writer must be assured about the information that he has written in the proposal before it
reaches the audience:

 It has been carefully read, and it follows the instructions for completion of the grant or
fellowship proposal.

 Writing is clear, concise, and grammatically correct.

 The order and structure of the presented proposal description follow that of writer’s
abstract.

 Corresponds about the budget has been outlined. Calculation & total of the proposed
costs have also been checked for its accuracy.

 Objectives are clear, and the scope of the project is feasible.

 Proposed work should be explained in such a manner that individuals who do not have
knowledge in this field can also understand.

 Carefully proofread and then share the proposal with others for clarity and accuracy.

Importance of writing a good proposal-

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a) Plan for work- Proposal is a plan or an idea for the work to be done. It mentions the
outlines and designs the way how a seller satisfies his buyer. It is helpful to quantify
and analyze each hazard.
b) Justify the Claims- Through a proposal; the seller can justify the claims with extensive
information that has been written in a proposal.
c) Provide Statistics- Proposal also provides statistical analysis of how a proposer will
accomplish the objectives within time and cost what he has produced.
d) Communicates the Information- Proposal is an informative document. It is made in a
way that it contains all that information that is useful to increase the sale and marketing
of the product.

e) Solve the Problems- It explains explicitly how to meet out the requirement of a client
what he wants to resolve.

f) Decrease Duplication- A proposal helps in decreasing the duplication of previously

used information which is unavailable due to change with occupancy status.

g) Minimize the Risk- Risk can also be minimized through a good proposal because
proposal manages the method in such a way to carry out the work done positively.

h) Improve awareness of employees- It outlines the steps, and include details of the
actions taken to improve employee awareness and training is also provided accordingly.

i) A proposal can also be used as continuation, renewal or supplemental document.

6.7 PROJECT PROPOSAL

To understand the project proposal, this is necessary to know about the ‘project’, at first.
Projects are unique kind of letters which creates the inimitable and special product and
service. It is not long lasting, having specific objectives. It is clearly defined and
describable. It would be better to say that project has a finite length and requires some
amount of work to be performed. A successful project requires the end product or result to
be well-understood before the project begins.

A project proposal is used early in the project life cycle to describe the project vision,
timeframes, and deliverables so that to know what has to be done and by when. Also, delivers
all the information that is needed for the success of completion of the project.

Project Proposal Tips-

 Keep it Simple/Estimate.
 Make a Hypothesis.
 Include an Appendix for extra information.
 Outline the Budget.

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 Include deadlines and set realistic expectations about when stakeholders should expect
to see results.

 Tailor it to whom you’re writing for. Keep this in mind while drafting a proposal.
After approval of the proposal by that sponsor to whom it is written, the project proposal
document would be useful. And then the project officially starts. According to the goal, it is
needed to identify the correct format which is most appropriate for the respective audience;
this can be a customer, a funding agency, or an end user. So, what makes a project unique,
creating and delivering and makes it a good project proposal. Here many kinds of
proposals are written according to their field.

 Basic Business Proposal

 Development Project Proposal

 Construction Project Proposal

 NGO Project Proposal

 Student Project Proposal

 Research Project Proposal

 Business Project Proposal

 Community Project Proposal

Sample Project Proposal for Funding-

[1] Proposal summary
Proposal summary consists of two or three paragraphs summarising the key points or
objectives of the project. It should have sufficient detail and specifics.
This section may be the last one that you complete as it is a synopsis of the entire proposal.

[2] Introduction/overview of your business or organization

Here you include a biography of key staff, your business track record (success stories)
institution goals and philosophy; essentially why your company should be selected for the
proposed grant/research.

Include also all valid industry certifications (ISO or Quality Certifications), licences and
business and indemnity insurance details.

You need to show that your company or organisation has the capacity and the ability to meet
all deliverables form both an execution perspective but also meet all legal, safety and quality
obligations.

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[3] Problem statement or Needs analysis/assessment

This is especially for the purpose of the grant proposals. In the problem statement, you
explain who will benefit and how the solution will be implemented.
[4] Project objectives

It includes details of the desired outcome and how success will be measured. This section is
key to providing information on the benefits of grantee, community, and government.

Key performance indicators need to be articulated and explained with specific measurements
details.

[5] Project design

Skills needed for success, what additional facilities, transport and support services needed to
deliver the project and defined measures for success. Good project management discipline
and methodologies with detailed requirements specified and project schedule is a must.

[6] Project evaluation

It covers product evaluation and process evaluation. Also, include the time-frame needed for
evaluation and who will do the evaluation, including the specific skills.
[7] Future funding / Self sustainability

This section of your grant proposal is for funding requirements that go beyond the project,
total cost of ownership including ongoing maintenance, business, as usual, operational
support and may require you to articulate the projected ongoing costs (if any) for at least 5
years.

An accurate cost model includes all factors including inflation, specialist skills, ongoing
training, and potential future growth, decommissioning expenses when the project or the
product reaches the end of life, all need to factor into this section.
[8] Project budget

How much money is required to be funded to deliver the results? Provide full justification for
all expenses including a table of services (or service catalogue). Remember that the project
budget section is the true meat of your grant proposal.
Note- Bonus tips for writing a grant proposal:

 You must have a good understanding of the proposed plan/ proposal.

 You should become closely familiar with all of the criteria related to the program for
which a grant is being sought.

 Be a good project manager, know how to plan, lead, and deliver projects.

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 Understand the organization that is providing the funds, understand their goals and
align your proposal to them.

 Ensure that your idea or service is unique and not already funded by other government
or private grants or is already implemented.

 Ensure that the benefits generated from the grant are tangible, measurable, benefit a
wide spectrum of your community, and are a good value for the money invested.

Basic project proposal sample-

Source:https://appfluence.com/productivity/project-proposal-template/

6.8 POINTS TO REMEMBER

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 A proposal is an important document that ploughs the initial relationship between the
organization and customers. The proposal frames the extensive information in a way that can
achieve the goal to write this proposal. It is helpful to eliminate the stones by including the
information.

 It can be defined as “A proposal is a document that is prepared for a prospective customer to

persuade the prospect to adopt the solution to a problem or the fulfillment of a need in the
proposal. Proposals are written for both private and public sector organizations.”

 There is a difference between a proposal and writing a proposal. A proposal is an informative

and important document having many types while writing a proposal is a thinking and
persuasive process having many steps.

 A proposal plans for work justifies the claims and provides information to the readers. It
solves the problem, decreases the duplication, and also minimizes the risk.

 Mainly, three types of business proposals are there like Formally Solicited Business Proposal,
Informally Solicited Business Proposal, and Unsolicited Solicited Business Proposal.
Business is of Request for Quotation (RFQ), Request for Proposal (RFP), Invitation for Bid
(IFB), and Request for Information (RFI).

 Executive Summary, Company’s Description for Targeting Audience, Marketing and Sales
Analysis, Competitive Analysis, Management Team Description, Financial Plan, Prospects
and Procurement of Business, Request for Funding, Projection of Financial Assistance are the
main elements which are included in the business proposal.

 To start writing a proposal, it is important to think about the area of the problem, topic,
gathering information, etc. first and then start writing. Remember that the writer of the
proposal should follow the format according to his needs. Basically, title, abstract,
introduction, state the problem, solution of the problem, cost, qualification of the project is
included in a format of business proposal and ends with a conclusion.

 Things to remember at the time writing a proposal: The project and the proposal should be
thoughtful, reflective, meaningful, and well-defined connecting with project future plans.

 Checklist after writing the proposal is followed by the writer of the proposal like an assurance
for the conciseness, correctness grammatically, budget, accuracy of totaling, etc.

A project proposal is exactly a proposal which is helpful to convince the audience. It is a

document prepared and takes the approval of the sponsor before commencing the project.
Many types of proposals like development project student project research project business
project proposal are there. It is meaningful and most important to identify the appropriate
format of proposal.

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6.9 GLOSSARY
-

6.10 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Objective type questions-
a) The proposal frames the………… information in a such way that can achieve the goal
to write this proposal.

b) A proposal identifies the ………………of an organization.

c) Seller can justify the………with extensive information that has been written in
proposal.

d) A proposal that is written in ……… is called internal proposal.

e) ………… type of proposal does not have specific requirements.

f) ……… Business proposals are created by the company for their recipients like
customer or an audience.
g) ……………is written by the customers’ side in order to meet their need regarding
product or services.
h) Objectives should be clear and the……… of the project is feasible.

i) A good……… should explain exactly what you could do for their business.
j) Draw an outline for investigating the……………

Descriptive type questions-

a) What is a Proposal?
b) How does a proposal differ from proposal writing?
c) How many types of business proposal are there?

d) What precautions should have to be remembered by the writer at the time writing a
proposal?

e) What do you mean by a project proposal?

f) State the checklist before sending a proposal to the clients.

g) What is a project? Explain its characteristics and functions?

h) Explain various types of proposals? Also, discuss the types of business proposals.

i) What kinds of components are included in a proposal?

j) State the different steps are to be taken to start writing a proposal. Discuss in detail.

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k) What is the project and project proposal? How is it prepared? Explain through a sample
format of the project proposal.

Answer (Objective type questions)-

[a] Extensive [b] Strategy [c] Claims [d] The organization/ government [e] Unsolicited
proposal [f] Formally Solicited [g] Request for Proposal [h] Scope [i] Hook [j] Research
Problem

6.11 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 Nordquist Richard ‘What Is Proposal Writing?’ Business and
AcademPublications,November 13, 2019

 Timothea Xi, ‘career trends, types of letters of intent’ September 26,2017

 Ben Mulholland, ‘6 Types of Project Proposals That Get Approved (and How to Write
Them)’ July 31, 2017

 Wanda Thibodeaux, ‘The Advantages of a Business Proposal’

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-business-proposal-21239.html

 http://www.businessstudynotes.com/others/business-communication/business-proposal-
types-of-business-proposals/

 https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/technicalwriting/chapter/3-2-types-of-proposals/

 5-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proposal_(business)

 https://hosbeg.com/importance-of-business-proposals/

 http://grant-central-station.com/articles/the-hidden-benefits-of-proposals/

 https://wecanhelp.ca/proposals-advantages-and-disadvantages/

 https://www.method123.com/project-proposal.php

 https://www.hloom.com/more/sample-proposal-templates/

 https://www2.clarku.edu/offices/career/internships/pdf/ProposalWriting.pdf

 https://appfluence.com/productivity/project-proposal-template/

 https://www.examples.com/business/project-proposal.html

 https://www.theprojectmanagementblueprint.com/blog/project-overview/definition-
what-is-a-project

 https://www.yorksj.ac.uk

 https://students.ucsd.edu/_files/aep/research-proposal-guidelines-13.pdf

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UNIT- 7
REPORT WRITING

7.1 INTRODUCTION

7.2 OBJECTIVES

7.3 TYPES OF REPORTS

7.4 STRUCTURE OF A REPORT

7.5 ESSENTIAL STAGES TO WRITE UP THE REPORT

7.6 REPORT WRITING CHECKLIST

7.7 POINTS TO REMEMBER

7.8 GLOSSARY

7.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

7.10 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

7.11 SUGGESTED READINGS

7.1 INTRODUCTION
A report is written for a clear purpose and to a particular audience. In other words, reports are
designed to record and convey information to the readers. Reports serve to document new
information. Specific information and evidence are presented, analysed and applied to a
particular problem or issue for specific audiences, goals, or functions. The type of report is
often identified by its primary purpose, as in an accident report, a laboratory report, or a sales
report.
Reports are often analytical or involve the rational analysis of information. Sometimes, they
report the facts with no analysis at all. Other reports summarize past events, present current
data, and forecast future trends. The information is presented in a structured format making
use of sections and headings so that the information is easy to understand and follow.
An effective report presents and analyses facts and evidence that are relevant to the specific
problem or issue of the report in brief. All sources used should be acknowledged and
referenced throughout, under the preferred method of referencing.

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Many business professionals need to write a formal report at some point during their career,
and some professionals write them regularly. Key decision-makers in business, education,
and government use formal reports to
make their important decisions. Several NOTE- When preparing for the writing of
different organizational patterns may be your report, ask yourself the following
used for formal report writing. questions-
However, all formal reports contain  What guidelines have you been given?
Title of the report, introductory  What’s the purpose of the report?
material, and a body, supplementary  What type of report is it?
items (discussions and  What do I need to show?
recommendations). The introductory  What do I need to do?
material is therefore critical to providing

PLAN WRITE REVISE

(Purpose Preliminary (Writing/Layout and (Proofreading and
Research outline) Pages) Verify purpose)

the audience with an overview and roadmap of the report. In contrast, the body of a formal
report discusses the findings that lead to the recommendations. Above, is the sample process
of formal report writing.

7.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand the basics of report writing

 Understand various types of reports.

 Understand the structure of the reports.

7.3 TYPES OF REPORTS

Reports come in all sizes but are typically longer than a page and are somewhat shorter than a
book. The type of report depends on its function, and different organizations have reports
specific to them. For example, science researchers write lab reports, while incident reports are
common in health-and-safety environments. Reports vary by function, organizational needs,
and style. There are many types of reports discussed here:

 Lab Report- Communicates the procedures and results of laboratory activities.

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 Research Report- Studies problems scientifically by developing hypotheses, collecting

data, analysing data, and indicating findings or conclusions.

 Field Study Report- Describes one-time events, such as trips, conferences, seminars, as
well as reports from branch offices, industrial and manufacturing plants.

 Incident or accident Report- Describes events such as accidents or altercations in the

workplace to document them for legal and insurance purposes officially.

 Progress Report- Monitors and controls production, sales, shipping, service, or related
business processes.

 Technical Report- Explains processes and products from a technical perspective.

 Financial Report- Analyses status and trends from a finance perspective.

 Case Study Report- Represents, analyses, and presents lessons learned from a specific
case or example.

 Needs Assessment Report- Assesses the need for a service, product, project, program,
or initiative.

 Comparative Advantage Report- Discusses competing products or services with an

analysis of relative advantages and disadvantages.

 Feasibility Report- Analysis problems and predicts whether current solutions or

alternatives will be practical, advisable, or produce the desired outcome(s).

 Instructional Report- Explains step-by-step instructions on the use of a product or

service

 Compliance Report- Documents and indicates the extent to which a product or service
is within established compliance parameters or standards.

 Cost-benefit Analysis Report- Analysis of the costs and benefits of products or services,
including return-on-investment considerations.

 Recommendation Report- Makes recommendations to management and serves as a tool

to solve problems and make executive decisions.

7.4 STRUCTURE OF A REPORT

The main features of a report are described below to provide a general guide. These should be
used in conjunction with the instructions or guidelines provided by your organization as-

Cover Letter/transmittal letter# - It is either attached to the outside of the report with a
paper clip or it is bound within the report. It is a communication from you (the report writer)
to the recipient, the person/organization who requested the report. The transmittal letter

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explains the context of the events that brought the report about. It contains information about
the report (in very short) that does not belong in the report.

NOTE- # Transmittal letter is a brief letter or note sent with a document or parcel to explain
the contents.

In the example of the transmittal letter in the following, notice the standard business-letter
format. If you write an internal report, use the memorandum format instead; in either case,
the contents and organization are the same as-
First paragraph- Cites the name of the report, putting it in italics. It also mentions the date of
the agreement of writing the report.
Middle paragraph- Focuses on the purpose of the report and gives a brief overview of the
report's contents.
Final paragraph- Encourages the reader to get in touch if there are questions, comments, or
concerns. It closes with a gesture of goodwill, expressing hope that the reader finds the report
satisfactory.

Title Page- This should briefly but explicitly describe the purpose of the report. Other details
you may include submitted by, submitted to, the date and for whom the report is written.

Terms of Reference- Under this heading, you could include a brief explanation of who will
read the report (audience) why it was written (purpose) and how it was written (methods). It
may be in the form of a subtitle or a single paragraph.
Summary (Abstract) - The summary should briefly describe the content of the report. It
should cover the aims of the report. The summary should provide the reader with a clear,
helpful overview of the content of the report, just as outline or main points.

Contents (Table of Contents) - The contents page should list the different chapters and/or
headings together with the page numbers. Your contents page should be presented in such a
way that the reader can quickly scan the list of headings and locate a particular part of the
report.

Acknowledgements- Where appropriate, you may wish to acknowledge the assistance of

particular organizations or individuals who provided information, advice or help.

Glossary of Technical Terms- It is useful to provide an alphabetical list of technical terms

with a brief, clear description of each term. You can also include in this section explanations
of the acronyms, abbreviations or standard units used in your report.
Introduction- In the introduction part, the aim and objectives of the report should be
explained in detail. Any problems or limitations in the scope of the report should be
identified, and a description of research methods, the parameters of the research and any
necessary background history should be included. In some reports, particularly in science

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subjects, separate headings for methods and results are used prior to the main body
(Discussion) of the reports, as-

(i) Methods- Information under this heading may include a list of equipment used,
explanations of procedures followed, relevant information on materials used, including
sources of materials, and details of any necessary preparation.
(ii) Results- It includes a summary of the results of the investigation or experiment together
with any necessary diagrams, graphs or tables of gathered data that support your results.
Discussion- The main body of the report is where you discuss your material. The facts and
evidence you have gathered should be analyzed and discussed with specific reference to the
problem or issue. If your discussion section is lengthy, you might divide it into section
headings.
Conclusion- In the conclusion, you should show the overall significance of what has been
covered. You may want to remind the reader of the most important points that have been
made in the report or highlight what you consider to be the most central issues or findings.
However, no new material should be introduced in conclusion.
Appendix- Under this heading includes all the supporting information you have used that is
not published. This might include tables, graphs, questionnaires, surveys or transcripts.

7.5 ESSENTIAL STAGES TO WRITE UP THE REPORT

All reports need to be clear, concise and well structured. The key to writing an effective
report is to allocate time for planning and preparation. With careful planning, the writing of a
report will be made much easier.
Stage 1: Understanding the report in brief

You need to understand the purpose of your report as described in your report brief or
instructions. Consider who the report is for and why it is being written.

Stage 2: Gathering and selecting information

Here, you need to begin to gather relevant information. Your information may come from a
variety of sources, but how much information you will need will depend on how much detail
is required in the report. Keep referring to your report brief to help you decide what relevant
information is.
Stage 3: Organizing your material

Begin by grouping together points that are related. These may form sections or chapters.
Choose an order for your material that is logical and easy to follow.

Stage 4: Analyzing your material

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It is not enough to simply present the information you have gathered; you must relate it to the
problem or issue described in the report brief.

Stage 5: Writing the report

Having organized your material into appropriate sections and headings, you can begin to
write the first draft of your report. You may find it easier to write the summary and contents
page at the end when you know exactly what will be included.

Here you may plan for-

To introduce the main idea of the chapter/section/paragraph.

To explain and expand the idea, defining any key terms.

To present the relevant evidence to support your point(s).

To comment on each piece of evidence showing how it relates to your point(s).

To conclude your chapter/section/paragraph by either showing its significance to the report as
a whole or making a link to the next chapter/section/paragraph.
Stage 6: Reviewing and redrafting

Ideally, you should leave time to take a break before you review your first draft. Be prepared
to rearrange or rewrite sections in the light of your review. Try to read the draft from the
perspective of the reader. It is easy to follow with a clear structure that makes sense.
Stage 7: Presentation

If you are satisfied with the content and structure of your redrafted report, you can turn your
attention to the presentation.

7.6 REPORT WRITING CHECKLIST

In the process of writing a good report, you should always be careful about the following-

 Plan the stages of your research well and writing the report carefully.

 Report considers the audience’s needs; write with the reader in mind at all times.

 Do your research – the groundwork for your report.

 Format should reflect institutional norms and expectations.

 Information should accurate, complete, and documented.

 Keep very accurate records of all of your findings.

 Information should easy to read and understand.

 Terms should clearly define.

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 Figures, tables, and art support written content as well.

 Figures, tables, and art should clear and correctly labeled.

 Figures, tables, and art should easily understandable without text support.

 Words should easy to read (font size, arrangement and organization).

 Results should be clear and concise.

 Report precisely and evaluate honestly.

 Recommendations should be reasonable and well-supported.

 Study examples of similar reports to understand the correct style and content to use.

 Report should represent your best effort.

 Report speaks for itself without your clarification or explanation.

 Write clear references for all quotations and source material you have been used in your
report.

7.7 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Reports are designed to record and convey information to the readers.

 The type of report is often identified by its primary purpose, as in an accident report, a
laboratory report, or a sales report.

 An effective report presents and analyses facts and evidence that are relevant to the
specific problem or issue of the report in brief.

 The type of report depends on its function, and different organizations have reports
specific to them.

7.8 GLOSSARY
 Progress Report- Monitors and controls production, sales, shipping, service, or related
business processes.

 Research Report- Studies problems scientifically by developing hypotheses, collecting

data, analyzing data, and indicating findings or conclusions.

 Case Study Report- Represents, analyses, and presents lessons learned from a specific
case or example.

 Compliance Report- Documents and indicates the extent to which a product or service
is within established compliance parameters or standards.

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 Transmittal Letter- The transmittal letter explains the context of the events that
brought the report about. It contains information about the report (in very short)
that(letter) does not belong in the report.

7.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a) What is the purpose of the report?

b) What are the types of reports?

c) List the checklist for preparing a good report'.

d) Define the structure of the report in bullet points.

e) Why 'the terms of references' is necessary in report writing? Define.

7.10 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/arley/chapter/ch-11-writing-reports/

 https://www.prismnet.com/~hcexres/textbook/report_design.html

 https://learn.solent.ac.uk/mod/book/view.php?id=232731&chapterid=36551

 http://elss.elc.cityu.edu.hk/ELSS/Resource/Report_Writing.htm

 https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-businesscommunicationmgrs/chapter/how-to-
write-a-formal-report/

 https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/communicationatwork/chapter/7-3-reports/

 https://pressbooks.senecacollege.ca/buscomm/part/report-types-and-function/

7.11 SUGGESTED READINGS

 https://www.skillsyouneed.com/write/report-writing.html

 https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/reading-to-write/

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UNIT- 8
LETTER WRITING

8.1 INTRODUCTION

8.2 OBJECTIVES

8.3 LETTER WRITING

8.4 FORMAL LETTERS

8.5 INFORMAL LETTERS

8.6 DEMI-OFFICIAL LETTERS

8.7 BUSINESS LETTERS

8.8 JOB APPLICATION COVER LETTER

8.9 BIO-DATA, CURRICULUM VITAE (CV) AND RESUME

8.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

8.11 GLOSSARY

8.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

8.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

8.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

8.1 INTRODUCTION
Writing skill is an essential part of communication as it allows an individual to transfer
his/her thoughts, ideas, suggestions and opinions in an effective way. Good writing skill is
part and parcel of life, as it helps an individual to embark their career professionally. Well-
refined writing skills are needed at administration, business, management, negotiations, legal
presentations, etc. Writing skills comprises the adequate format, style, diction and layout.
Everything you write should be well-tailored in a structured way so it will be deciphered
easily.

In today’s era, every business or administrative activities is executed only by the means of
communication. This will be not an exaggeration if we call communication is the life-blood
of business. A good written communication shows one’s credibility with his work.

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8.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand the importance of Letter writing.

 Learn different styles of Letters.

 Differentiate between Biodata, Curriculum Vitae (CV) and Resume.

 Learn the format of Biodata, Curriculum Vitae (CV) and Resume.

8.3 LETTER WRITING

Letter writing constitutes the most important role in written communication. A letter is a
written message that can be handwritten or typed. Letters whether formal or informal have
some sort of format and layout. An individual should adherently follow the rules and
regulations for writing letters. This helps the receiver to comprehend the information in the
desired manner by the sender.

Every individual must have some basic writing skill, as this is the most important part of
communication skill. Anywhere in life weather an individual is related to academics or
business, must possess the knowledge of good writing. Business or any other field requires
good writers; even the digital age has not reduced the need for writing. Like online
conversation chats, e-mail, reports, website updates marketing, advertising, etc. all these
requires excellent writing skill.

Importance of letter writing-

 It is an effective way of communication.

 It has credibility and legality.

 It is useful regarding complaints, requests, marketing, negotiating, etc.

 It is useful for academic field. For e.g. research paper, research proposal, etc.

 It is useful for administrative field. For e.g. complaint and request letters, government
schemes execution letters, etc.

 It is used for business field. For e.g. business letters of agreement, proposals,
negotiations, etc.

 It also fosters an individual to share their refine ideas to others.

 It also helps an individual to showcase their writing skill at the time of writing job-
application and resume.

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 Letters can be formal and informal, but they convey a sense of responsible attitude of
sharing information towards the receiver.

 Good letter writing improves the company’s image towards the public interest.

Effective ways of writing letters-

 Firstly, follow the accurate format and layout for writing any letter.

 Mention the correct address followed by the proper salutation in regards to the receiver.

 Begin the letter with positive vibes with well-knitted sentences.

 State properly the motive of writing a letter.

 Organize your important information in points.

 Do not use highly embellish words as it will create ambiguity.

 Avoid using technical jargons if the letter is for the layman.

 The content of the letter should be properly tailored and ideas should not be
fragmented.

 Conclusion of the letter should be there that consist the gist of the letter.

 Complimentary close of the letter must be followed by full name and designation of the
sender.

 Formal letters and demi-official letters should be followed by copy notations if needed
as they make letters more effective.

 Avoid using idioms and phrases while writing official letters as it reduced the
effectiveness of it.

8.4 FORMAL LETTERS

Formal letters are those letters which have set defined rules and regulation. These letters have
impersonal tone and formal content. Formal letters especially are written for the formal
communication such as communication at office, organizations, companies, etc. totally
professional in nature.

Formal letters are written for official purposes to authorities, dignitaries, colleagues, seniors
etch and not to personal contact or family members. These letters hold specific format and
layout, which gives them a professional touch as well as make formal communication
effective.

Format of Formal Letters-

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Well-cultivated formal letters tone should be serious but not complex. In formal letters,
content is literal in nature and to the point. To write effective formal letters, an individual
should adhere to the basic pattern mentioned below.

 Sender’s Address

 Date

 Receiver’s Address

 Subject of the letter

 Salutation

 Main body [i- Introduction of the matter, ii- Explanation of the matter, iii- conclusion]

 Complimentary close.

Let’s detail the parts of a formal letter:

 Sender’s Address- Address of the sender with detail like Name, Title,
company, e-mail, contact no, city, state and postal code.
 Date- undated letters gives a bad impression. The date should always be written
in full. A date can be written with two different styles. Example- DD/MM/YY
or MM/DD/YY
 Receiver’s Address- Address of the receiver should be written at left side after
the date. It consists of the full and clear address of the recipient preceded by the
courtesy title like ‘Mr.’ or ‘Ms.’
 Subject- It gives a brief introduction of the content of the letter. It should be
written in one line. The subject of the letter should be bold and underline.
 Salutation- If you know the recipient’s name, you can write like Dear Mr. XYZ
or Dear Dr ABC and if not aware with the name, Dear Sir/Madam. If there are
two recipients or more than two, we address them like Dear Messrs. Alex and
smith Lambert / Dear Messrs.
 Main body- It is the most important component of the business letter. The main
body of the letter has three part of division:
[i] Introduction – This part of the letter tells the main purpose of writing.
[ii] Explanation – This part elaborates relevant details concerning purpose of I
paragraph.
[iii] Conclusion – The last paragraph concluded the relevant details as well as
talk about the actions of the recipient expected by the sender.

 Complimentary close- It is mandatory to end the letter politely by using a

complimentary close. The most common closes are “yours faithfully/yours sincerely”.
It is also followed by the signature, name and designation of the sender.

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Sample of formal letter-

Sender’s Address
(Name,Title,Company full Address,city,state,e-mail,contact,postal code)

DATE: DD/MM/YY
Recipient’s Address
(Name,Title,Company full Address,city,state,e-mail,contact,postal code)

Salutation
(Dear Sir/Madam)

Main Body
 Introduction
 Main speech
 Conclusion
(One line space between paragraph)
Complimentary close
 Name of sender
 Sender’s designation

Do’s at the time of writing Formal letters-

 Firstly, the foremost thing to write a formal letter effectively is to adhere to format and
layout.

 The content of the formal letter should to be the point and specific in nature.

 Addresses of the sender and recipient’s must be clearly written.

 There will be no comma followed by the salutation, Sir.

 Proper line spacing should be given at the time of writing a letter.

 Outlook of the letter should be neat and clean.

 Main body of the paragraph should be properly divided into Introduction, main speech
and conclusion.

 Complimentary close like Yours faithfully/Yours sincerely; in this, there will be no

apostrophes at yours.

 All the parts of a formal letter aligned to left margin.

 Subject of the letter should be underlined and bold.

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Don’ts at the time of writing Formal letters-

 Don’t be careless at the time of writing recipient’s name, title, gender, and designation.

 Do not use fragmented ideas as it leads to create ambiguity.

 Do not use decorated words and highly embellished phrases.

 Don’t commit grammar and spelling error as it gives a wrong impression to the reader.

 Do not use slang, jargons, and colloquial language.

 Do not use personal pronoun, i.e. I, you, we.

 Do not write letters in the passive voice.

 Do not use long sentences as it sometimes diverted the real meaning.

 Do not rely so much on spell-check. Always proofread before sending the letter.

 Do not make formal letters colorful and choose font style aptly.

8.5 INFORMAL LETTERS

Informal letters are mainly used for personal communication. They are personal in tone, non-
serious in nature and casual in conversation. They are written to close acquaintances,
relatives, family members, etc. Thus, they do not have a specific format and layout which one
to adhere to it. They can be written as per the writer’s wishes and the requirement of the
situation.
Informal letters are flexible in nature. The subject matter of these letters is full of affection
and conversation in tone. In these letters, you can use your personal slang language. There is
no rigidity over the choice of words and phrases.

Informal Letter Format-

As we mentioned above, that there is no set format for writing an Informal letter. But some
general conventions have to be followed. We will be looking at the general pattern to write
effective and impressive Informal letters.

 Sender’s Address
 Receiver’s Address (optional)
 Date
 Main body- [i] Introduction [ii] Explanation [iii] conclusion
Let’s detail the parts of formal letter:

 Sender’s Address: Address of the sender should be located at the right or left
corner. It is necessary to provide full address with a name, street name, city, zip
code, country, etc so it helps the recipient to make a reply.

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 Receiver’s Address: This part is optional as the receiver’s address is also written on
the envelope.

 Date: The date is mentioned below the address after one-line spacing. It is
customary as it allows the receiver to know when the letter has written.

 Main Body: Usually, the main body is divided into three parts-
[i] Introduction: Informal letters start with great warmth and a casual tone. Begin
with asking or showing concern towards the recipient. Example-
Hope you are doing good.
It’s been a while when I have heard you.
I hope this letter finds you in the best of spirits.
[ii] Central Body: In this part, the main intention of writing a letter is revealed in
the most unofficial and conversational tone.
[iii] Conclusion: It is the closing part of the letter where the writer summarises and
bid goodbye with affection. Example-Hope to see you soon, etc.
 [iv] Closing: At last writer close the letter with affectionate phrases like- Yours Lovingly,
Lots of Love, Yours Affectionately. These closings are followed by the writer’s name.

Sample of Informal letter-

ADDRESS – Street name and number, postal code and city, country

DATE – DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY

Salutation- Dear friend / Dear Abc

MAIN BODY-
Introduction – It set the tone for the whole letter. Start with asking the
wellbeing of the recipient.
Central Idea –All the main cause of writing letter.
Conclusion – Summarize the letter with the affectionate goodbye to the reader.

CLOSING- Sign off Informal letters with Lots of love, Best wishes, etc.

Sample Example-
Write a letter to your friend Suchita inviting him to spend the summer vacation at your place
in Nainital. You are Suchita/ Sumit. Do not exceed 120-150 words.
131, Adarsh Nagar
Haldwani
Nainital-263001
January 05, 2020

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Dear Suchita,

It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you. Where have you been? I hope this letter finds
you in the best of your spirit.
As summers are approaching, I was thinking if we could spend the summer break together at
my place in Nainital. I will introduce you to all my friends and close relatives. I will give you
a city tour as well. We will spend some quality time in the afternoons near the beautiful Naini
Lake. To add a cherry on the cake, the weather here is very pleasant during those days due to
mountain winds.

I am excited even at the thought of you and I spending the summer together after so long. I
have to tell you a lot of things and expect the same from you. Give my regards to aunty and
uncle!
Hope to see you soon.

Yours lovingly
Sumit.
8.6 DEMI-OFFICIAL LETTERS
In general term, Demi-official letter is defined as the letter that communicates official
correspondence along with personal news is called Demi-official letter or Demi-government
letter. These letters are official letters that help attain official objective through personal
relationship known as demi-official letters. These letters are less formal than formal letters.
There are no strict rules to be followed in drafting such letters.

As these letters are more flexible in nature because of their language, writing style, and
presentation, thus, it is practiced widely in communication. However, this letter includes both
personal and official information, so it is written for the particular receiver not in a
generalized way. People holding the same authority and status usually exchanged this type of
letters.

Features of Demi-official Letters-

 Purposes: The main purpose of a demi-official letter is to serve some personal affairs
along with official matters. To attain an official objective through personal
relationships is the purpose of the demi-official letter. This letter is written to exchange
business information with a personal touch.

 Language: It is written in such a language that has a personalized tone. Such a letter can
be written through personal gestures for which language seems to be very simple and
clear.

 Nature: Its nature is flexible. It is administrative, commerce, and business oriented. It is

moderately big in size compared to the formal letters.

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 Status: This letter is exchanged among the people who possess the same status. In this
letter, the person who writes the letter is quite familiar to the recipient’s status in a
friendly way, thus the language is casual and less formal.

 Structure: Demi-official letter does not follow any specific structure. It follows the
basic pattern of formal letters, but the language is friendly and away from structured
content. It cannot be classified as an official letter.

 Copy: No carbon copy is initiated for these letters as they are written to a specific
recipient.

 Salutation and complimentary close: Use of salutation and complimentary close depend
on a personal relationship between the sender and receiver.

 Appeal: Its appeal is limited to the specific individual only.

 Enclosure: Use of enclosure in such a letter is a rare case as it belongs to a specific

individual.

Attributes of Demi-official letters-

 To succeed in an official objective through personal relationships is the reason for the
demi-official letter.

 If the subject matter is confidential in nature, then this type of letter is helpful.

 Its nature is versatile, i.e. combination of personal and official. It is moderately large in
size.

 Such a letter can be written through a personal touch for which language seems to be
very simple.

 Avoid needless obtrusion by other people and avoid the delay that may be caused by
custom official communication.

 It is usually addressed by the name and title of the person who is thought to attend to
the focus subject of the letter.

 Salutation normally starts with ‘My Dear X’ ‘Dear Mr./Mrs. Y’

 The appropriate manner of a subscription is ‘Yours sincerely’

 Such a letter is signed by the officer concerned and not by someone else on behalf of
the officer.

 Generally, these letters don’t contain carbon copy and enclosure.

 Content of the letter has the tint of personal tone with official information.

Difference between official and demi-official letters-

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Points of
Official letter Demi-official letter
difference
Official interest with a personal
Official interest is served with
Purpose relationship is served with demi-
official letters.
official letters.
Is rigid and impersonal with sort of
Nature Is flexible and personal.
rules and regulations.
Classification It is formal style. It is of semi-formal style.
Size Size is small. Size is comparatively larger.
A specific structure is mandatory to A specific structure is not required to
Structure
be followed. be followed.
Totally official and impersonal Style may be influenced by a personal
The official style
style. touch.
Status of the Always be professionally stated and
Structured with semi-professionally.
letter structured.
Conventional and official with
Use of Language Lucid with a friendly tone.
decorum.
Depend on the relationship between
Salutation Follow the official conventions
sender and receiver.
Copy Carbon copy issued. No need for carbon copy.
Enclosure in the letter is such a rare
Enclosure Enclosure is used here.
case.
Use of Grammar Active voice and direct speech. Passive voice and indirect speech.
Application is limited to the
Application Application is general.
individual.
Complimentary Depend on the relationship with the
Officially closed
Close receiver.

8.7 BUSINESS LETTERS

Business letters are one of the most essential means of communication in the business world.
Due to the vast expansion of commerce and trade, the importance of letters has increased. A
well-written and structured letter represents the business identity as well as conveys the
professionalism of a company.
Business letters can be written for various commercial purposes such as business deal,
complaint, warning, notice, invitation, declaration, information, apology, and various other
corporate matters.
Nowadays, business operations are not restricted to any state or nation, all over the world
there are numbers of organisations big and small. All types of exchange of goods and
materials or any other thing require documentation; business letters is one amongst such
documentation. Business letters are the cheapest and most extensive form of communication
used all over the world.

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Different kinds of business letter-

Correspondence is an integral part of commerce to exchange ideas, thoughts and opinions
with others. There are different kinds of business letters, but they follow a generalised pattern
with different subject-matter. They are the principal source of business communication which
helps in the growth of the trade and establishing bonding among business partners.

 Sales letter
 Business inquiry letter
 Quotation letter
 Order letter
 Complaint letter
 Recovery letter
 Letters of goodwill
 Collection letters
 Bank and insurance correspondence
 Correspondence with media and government offices
Parts of a business letter-
Each business letters have fixed components which can be described as parts of the business
letter. Each component adds to an overall impact which the letter makes over the reader. The
parts of the business letters are as follows-

 Letter head / Heading

 The reference
 Date
 The inside name and address
 Salutation
 Subject
 The body paragraphs
 Complimentary close
 Signature
 Enclosures
 Copies
Format of Business Letters-

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Letter Head
Name, Company, Title, Email-id, Contact no, fax no and Company Logo.
Reference Number:

Date: DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY

Inside Address
(Recipient’s Name, Title, Company full Address, Postal Code)

Salutation
(Dear Sir/Madam)

Main Body:
Introduction:
(one line space between paragraph)
Main speech:
Conclusion:

Complimentary close:

Name of Sender
Sender’s Designation

Enclosure

Carbon copy

Key concern at the time of writing business letters-

 Good composition is essential in business correspondence.

 Highly decorated words such as proverb and poetry have no place at writing business
letter.

 Avoid long phrases, idioms, and assumptions.

 Each sentence must be simple, clear, accurate, complete and clean.

 If there is a lot of information to be stated, the letter may be divided into paragraphs
and written step by step.

 Letter should be error free means no grammatical and spelling mistakes.

 Use active not passive voice.

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 Main body must be divided into: Introduce, say and summarize.

 Print business letter on standard sized paper.

 Write a business letter on a letterhead.

 Subject matter of business letter must be adhering to the information.

 Unnecessary jargons should not be used.

 Language should be formal and straightforward.

 Follow the correct format and layout.

 Enclosure and carbon copy should be used when necessary.

8.8 JOB APPLICATION COVER LETTER

A letter of a job application, also known as a cover letter is a document sent with
your resume to provide additional information about your skills and experience to the
recruiter. The letter of application is intended to provide detailed information on the
candidate’s eligibility for the job.

Your resume’s cover letter is one of the strongest tools in your job hunt. It can strengthen a
weak resume, distinguish you from boring job candidates, and help you make a connection
with the hiring manager that would otherwise be impossible. A cover letter (also known as a
covering letter or application letter) is a one-page document that introduces a job seeker’s
work history, professional skills, and personal interest in applying for a job. Your cover letter
should include relevant professional experience, a persuasive matter, and avoid basic spelling
and grammar mistakes.

Key points of job application cover letters

 Include relevant information regarding your qualification and work experience.
 The appeal of the letter should be eye-catching.
 Present yourself in an impressive tone.
 A cover letter should be totally related with the job requirement.
 End your letter with a reason for the recruiter to contact you.
 A cover letter should not be exceeded one page in length.
 A good conclusion that reiterates your interest in the job.
 Include brief-introduction of your key traits which are useful for the job.
 Avoid using exaggeration words as it leads to a negative impact.
 Sign off the cover letter by mentioning all the contact details.

Job-Application Sample Letter-

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Write an application for seeking the job of a Software Engineer in a company ‘Crescent
Industries Noida’. Mention all the necessary details (Suppose you are Lalit Kumar).

Lalit Kumar
Adarsh Nagar
Haldwani, Nainital, Pin-Code- 263139
E-Mail- [email protected], Mob- 839382****

Date: 08/02/2020

The Manager
Crescent Industries
R.T. Road, Noida
Uttar Pradesh, India.

Subject: Job Application for the post of an Engineer Supervisor.

Dear sir,
With reference to your advertisement in ‘The Times of India’ dated on 29/01/2020. I have the
honour to offer my services as an Engineer supervisor in your renowned company. As
requested, I have enclosed a complete job application, certification, and resume.

The role is very appealing to me, and I believe that my strong technical experience and
education make me a highly competitive candidate for this position. With an MCA degree in
computer programming, I have a comprehensive understanding of the full lifecycle of
software development projects. I also have experience in learning and applying new
technologies as appropriate. Kindly consider my CV for additional information on my
experience.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to speaking with you.

Yours sincerely
Lalit Kumar

Enclosures:
[i] Copies of certificates and testimonials.
[ii] CV
8.9 BIO-DATA, CURRICULUM VITAE (CV) AND RESUME
Biodata, CV and Resume are the three terms used to express the profile of an individual. All
these three consist of their own personal traits, though closely related but are different in
nature. They are the documents highlighting skills, education, and experience that a candidate
submits when applying for a job.

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To bring out from the confusion, these are the differences between “Resume, CV and Bio-
data”.
Bio-Data

Bio-data means biographical data. It is short and comprises general information like name,
date of birth, religion, gender, marital status, nationality, and educational qualification. It is
an old version of resume and CV. Its data comprises only in one page with the basic
information. It is generally outdated for seeking a job as it comprises less information of the
candidate.
Resume

Resume is a word that originated from the French word means summary. Education, skills &
employment summarized together is called a Resume. A resume generally starts with the
career objective, followed by education qualification, project details, major skills, internships,
workshops, strengths, interests, personal details, etc. Usually, it consists of details about a
person, broken into bullets & written in active voice and subjective details. A resume should
not exceed more than 2 pages, but it should also be not less than 1 page. It is best used to
advertise your professional profile in the corporate world.
Curriculum Vitae (CV)

CV can be defined as curriculum vitae. It is a Latin word meaning “Course of Life”. As the
meaning suggests, it consist all the details of an individual in an elaborated manner. It
consists of information like qualification, job description, and specification, technical skills in
detail, hobbies, strengths, weakness, rewards, etc each in detail as you are describing the
summary of your life. It should be of at least 2 to 3 pages. It could also exceed more than 3
pages depending upon one’s experience. It covers all details in chronological order. It is more
popular in corporate at international level. CVs are mainly used to applying for –
international job, health care, research, academic, teaching, scholarships, apprenticeships,
fellowships, internships, and scientific jobs.

8.10 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Writing skill is an essential part of communication as it allows an individual to transfer
their thoughts, ideas, suggestions and opinions in an effective way. Good writing skill
is part and parcel of life, as it helps an individual to embark their career professionally.

 A letter is a written message that can be handwritten or typed. Letters whether formal
or informal have some sort of format and layout.

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 Formal letters are written for official purposes to authorities, dignitaries, colleagues,
seniors, etc and not to personal contact or family members.

 Informal letters are mainly used for personal communication.

 In general term, Demi-official letter is defined as the letter that communicates official
correspondence along with personal news is called demi-official letter or demi-
government letter.

 Bio-data means biographical data.

 Resume is a word originated from the French word means summary. Education, skills
& employment summarized together is called a Resume.

 Curriculum Vitae (CV) can be defined as a Latin word meaning is “Course of Life”. As
the meaning suggests, it consist all the details of an individual in elaborated manner. It
consists of information like qualification, job description, and specification, technical
skills in detail, hobbies, strengths, weakness, rewards, etc each in detail as you are
describing the summary of your life.

8.11 GLOSSARY
 Bio-data- Biographical data.

 CV- Curriculum Vitae.

 Business Letter- Most essential means of communication in the business world.

 Demi-official letter- A letter that communicates official correspondence along with

personal news is called demi-official letter or demi-government letter.

 Informal Letter- Mainly used for personal communication, non-serious in nature and
casual in conversation.

 Formal Letter- A letter with set defined rules and regulation. These letters have
impersonal tone and formal content; specially written for formal communication such
as communication at office, organizations, companies, etc.

8.12 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a) Explain the importance of letter writing in written communication.

b) Difference between formal, informal and demi-official letter.

c) Explain all the components of a business letter.

d) What are the concerns at the time of writing a business letter?

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e) Difference between Biodata, CV and Resume.

8.13 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 http://www.businesscommunicationarticles.com/difference-between-official-and-demi-
official-letters/

 https://zety.com/blog/cv-vs-resume-difference

 https://www.qsstudy.com/business-studies/difference-official-demi-official-letter

 https://www.mod-0/Lec-01/businessletters/writing/Lecture-01

8.14 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Sinha, K.K. “Business communication”.

 Raman, Meenakshi & Sharma, Sangeeta “Technical communication”.

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UNIT- 9
TELEPHONE AND E-MAIL COMMUNICATION

9.1 INTRODUCTION

9.2 OBJECTIVES

9.3 TELEPHONE SKILL

9.4 PHONE ETIQUETTE

9.5 E-MAIL SKILLS

9.6 E-MAIL ETIQUETTE

9.7 POINTS TO REMEMBER

9.8 GLOSSARY

9.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

9.10 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

9.11 SUGGESTED READINGS

9.1 INTRODUCTION
Telephones are devices that allow the user to communicate messages across lines
electronically. Alexander Graham Bell invented the first telephone in 1876 in Boston. It is
difficult to estimate the total number of telephones that exists today. They are ubiquitous
(present everywhere) because of their extreme importance as a communications tool.
Telephone skills become important as technology and equipment change rapidly. Good
communication skills will always be highly essential when using the telephone. Evolving
technology will enhance the use of telephone in the future. Effective telephone skills are
predicated on strong communications skills. Telephone etiquette refers to the principles of
behaviour that one should use during a telephone conversation.

An e-mail is a digital message sent electronically from one computer or device to other
computers or devices. E-mail or "electronic mail," is one of the most widely used features of
the Internet, along with the web. Ray Tomlinson is universally known as the creator of e-mail
as part of a program for ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) in 1971.

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Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) in India, launched the country's first public internet
service on 14th August 1995, and thereafter e-mail become an essential part in our life.

E-mail is information stored on a computer that is exchanged between two or more users over
internet. More precisely we can say e-mail is a message that may contain text, files, images,
or other attachments sent through a network to an individual or group of individuals.
E-mail etiquette refers to the principles of behaviour that one should use when writing or
answering e-mail messages. E-mail etiquette depends upon the person to whom you are
writing: friends & relatives, partners, customers, superior or subordinates, etc. It is also
known as the code of conduct for e-mail communication.
There are pros and cons for both telephone and e-mail communication. The most important
thing is the context, i.e. why you need to communicate, and what you are communicating.
Some things are best discussed through e-mail, and some are best though the phone.

9.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Understand, explain and define telephone as well as e-mail communication.

 Describe the different characteristics of telephone communication.

 Write e-mail in an attractive and efficient manner.

 Understand the etiquette for telephone and e-mail communication.

9.3 TELEPHONE SKILL

Telephones are devices that allow the user to communicate messages across lines
electronically. One can easily communicate with those both nearby and far away using a
telephone by simply dialling a specially designated number. The word telephone comes from
two Greek words meaning "far" and "sound."
Handling the wide variety of both incoming and outgoing telephone calls requires in-depth
skill. Customer service is an extremely important aspect of telephone skills. Good customer
service via the telephone shows respect for the customer and builds business and
relationships. Good customer service is provided by maintaining an excellent voice quality
that is easy to understand and includes a pleasant tone spoken at a reasonable speed. Selecting
appropriate vocabulary is also important. If words are used that are not understood, positive
communication will not be conveyed.

An efficient business telephone streamlines good communication between organization and

customers. A telephone offers a faster interaction than e-mail, is more personal, easy, and

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quick to use. We must follow some telephone skills in our daily life for better
communication. The details of such skills are described here.

Basic Telephone Skills-

The basic telephone skills include appropriate methods for calling, answering calls,
transferring calls, putting calls on hold, taking messages, and recording voice mail messages,
etc. Here are some very common questions that we can ask ourselves during a telephone call.

 How to communicate effectively on the telephone,

 How to talk to customers,

 How professionally we need to talk.

[1] Effective Communication-

Here are some basic skills, we need to follow for communicating effectively on the
telephone:

Skill 1: Answer the phone specifying who you are.

Start your call with three parts greetings. The three parts are: the buffer words, the company
or department name and your name.
A pleasant buffer phrase such as “Good Morning,” or “Thank you for calling XYZ
Company,” sets the stage for the call. Follow that buffer phrase with the name of the
company or department and then your name.

Skill 2: Speak clearly.

Before you make the phone call, think about the purpose of the call. For example, do you
want to gather information, communicate information, negotiate, obtain agreement, make
arrangements, sell something, or develop an idea? Always talk clearly and be specific during
telephone calls. Long sentences do not always show fluency. Throughout the telephone call,
try to bring your ideas across in a structured way. Do not be tempted to hop from one subject
to another; even new ideas come into your mind.
Skill 3: Use words that make sense to the other person.

Messages may also be conveyed in the way the words are delivered. If you sound bored,
angry or disinterested, the other person may well pick up on it, and it will then be irrelevant
how good your proposal is or how valid your arguments are. It is true that they cannot see
you, but a lot can be communicated through your tone of voice, so make sure that it matches
the message that you are trying to get across.
Good customer service is provided by maintaining an excellent voice quality that is easy to
understand and includes a pleasant tone spoken at a reasonable speed. Selecting appropriate

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vocabulary is also important. If words used are not understood, positive communication will
not be conveyed. Listen carefully when servicing a customer. Be prepared to offer responses
that will be delivered in a positive manner.
Skill 4: Use good, descriptive language during the conversation.

A key difference between professional and personal phone calls is obvious, i.e. the language.
It might be acceptable to use slang and swears when talking on the phone with your close
friends, but never use such types of language with customers as you may lose your customers
forever. Always be mindful and respectful with your customer during phone calls. You never
know what customers might be offended by something you say, so it is best to use formal
language. It is okay to throw in humour if appropriate, but never crack a joke that could upset
a customer.
Skill 5: Write down important points before making a call.

It is an excellent idea to write down the important points or any questions prior the call or
during the call. During the call, when both parties are asking questions, it is equally important
to listen attentively. Attentive listening can be demonstrated by speaking in such a way that
the listener knows you are hearing.

Skill 6: Repeat important points during a call.

This is actually a good idea in any situation. Especially if you are communicating on the
telephone, or in another language, there will be times when you are not sure about something
that the other person said. It could be because they have not been clear. Maybe there was
background noise. It could be that they were speaking quickly, or they have a regional accent.
The reason does not matter. It is always better to ask for clarification than to guess what the
other person meant, or to be unsure about what they think or are going to do. It is also better
to repeat and clarify important points during the telephone call.

[2] Communication with Customer-

Our communications with the customer over telephone have a great impact on our business as
well as personal life. Here are some basic skills that we need to follow while talking to any
customer over telephone:
Skill 1: Practice active listening skills. Never argue or interrupt the customer.

The four major means of communication are speaking, reading, writing, and listening, with
listening being the most important part. Listening involves sensing, interpreting, evaluating,
and responding.
Use a combination of different words and short phrases to acknowledge that you heard and
understand what the caller has said. Spoken feedback signals are even more important on the
phone than face-to-face. Without them, customers wonder if you are listening or not. If you

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are adding notes on the computer, tell the caller, so they know the typing sound they hear is
related to their call.

Skill 2: Lower your voice and speak in an even tone.

A positive tone and friendly voice can encourage comfort in the caller. Starting a
conversation with a pleasant greeting sets the tone for the whole phone call. Answering in a
rushed or annoyed manner puts a negative impact on the conversation, leading it in the wrong
direction. The thing you want is for your caller, especially someone who is particularly
helpless, like a patient facing a medical emergency, to feel even more nervous or anxious
than they already are.
People do not just communicate with their words. Messages are also conveyed in the way that
words are delivered. If you sound bored, angry or disinterested, the other person may well
pick up on it, and it will then be irrelevant how good your proposal is or how valid your
arguments. It is true that they cannot see you, but a lot can be communicated through your
tone of voice, so make sure that it matches the message that you are trying to get across.

Skill 3: Establish rapport through empathy.

Empathy is “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another”. Rapport is “a close
and harmonious relationship in which the people or groups concerned understand each other's
feelings or ideas and communicate well”. Rapport is all about highlighting common interests
and establishing a mutual feeling of friendliness. When people like each other, whether in
business, friendship, or both, they tend to help each other.

Here are three ways you can increase your rapport rating with prospects and
customers:

Match your customer’s style: Pay attention to how your customer prefers to communicate
and get in step. Does your customer prefer to get right down to business, or warm up by
engaging in small talk? What kinds of things does he or she find funny, interesting, or
exciting? If your customer talks quickly and loudly, make an effort to match that energy.

Trust builds rapport: Your customers will learn to trust you if you fulfil your promise.
Keep your commitments, call when you say you will, and always follow through. Be careful
not to make promises you might not be able to keep. Too many salespeople make well-
intentioned commitments, only to find they are unable to find time to fulfil them. They may
not always lose a sale because of this, but they are certainly not building the kind of trust that
will make that customer anxious to give referrals.

Another way to build trust is to demonstrate that you are interested in their well-being,
beyond your own profit potential. Know and appreciate your customer’s needs beyond your
product. See what you can do to help them meet those needs. Little things like finding

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information for them or putting them in touch with other suppliers, tend to make a big
difference.

Practice reciprocity: When you treat people in a certain way, they tend to want to treat you
in the same way. Find ways to treat your customers as valued members of your professional
and even social circle. In life and in business, the little things make a big difference.
Skill 4: Avoid getting upset or angry.

There are various reasons why customers become angry. Your product or service is
not always what is specifically upsetting to them. Angry customers could be under great
stress, having trouble at work, experiencing family issues or be facing some other life
challenge. Avoid the impulse to talk over them, even if you have good news when you find
the caller or customer is in a different mood.
Here are some tips for answering and handling calls professionally:

Tips 1: Promptly answer calls. The average ring takes 6 seconds.

Tips 2: Be warm and welcoming.

Tips 3: Introduce yourself and your business.

Tips 4: Speak clearly.

Tips 5: Do not use slang or buzz words.

Tips 6: Ask before you put people on hold.

Advanced Telephone Skills-

Advanced telephone skills will allow you to develop the core skills of being able to influence
on the telephone and further build rapport with your clients or customers. Develop the
confidence needed to have that difficult conversation and get your own way. Here we will
discuss some advanced telephone skills for better communication over the telephone with
customers. Here are ten simple yet crucial reminders for delivering exceptional customer
service on the phone.
Skill 1: Answering a Business Call

Start your business call with any one of three buffer phrases as per timing. Pick up the phone
in time and after the greeting introduce yourself and your company. When answering
a business phone, it is important that it is not allowed to ring more than three times. Advise
employees that the second or third ring is the ideal time to pick up the telephone.

The phone should be answered with a positive greeting such as “Hello,” “Good Morning,” or
“Good Afternoon,” etc. Following the greeting the person who answers the phone should
give his or her name and the name of the business or organization that is being contacted.

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Put on a smile before placing or answering a phone call. Whenever a person smiles, it affects
the sound of his or her voice and gives a more pleasant and friendly tone. For clarity, the
telephone should be held a distance of two fingers from the mouth.
Speak in a clear tone using a voice that is neither too loud nor too low. Words should be
enunciated and said slow enough that people are able to understand what is being said to
them. When a caller is speaking, listen to what he or she has to say without interruptions.
Skill Example:
(You) “Good Morning, “Good Afternoon” or “Good Evening”.

Skill 2: Putting a Caller on Hold

If someone must be put on hold, ask for permission first and give him or her option to leave a
voice-mail message. When taking them off of hold, thank the caller to show that their time is
respected. Be sure to let the caller know why you need to put them on hold, ask if they are
able to hold and then wait for a response. Callers hate being ordered to hold with no control
over the situation. If the caller is not able to hold, handle their needs by offering options, such
as a call back.
Skill Example:

(You) “I’ll need some time to pull up that information from the system and it might take few
minutes. Are you able to hold?”

(Caller’s Response) “Yes, thanks!”

Skill 3: Thanking the Caller for Holding

When a caller has to be put on hold or gets dumped immediately into a hold queue when they
call, it is very frustrating. You can ease that frustration and put the call on a positive path by
thanking the customer for holding. This reconnects with callers and puts the conversation
back on a positive path.

Skill Example:
(You) “Thank you for holding”.

Skill 4: Monogramming the Call

People enjoy hearing their name, so using it helps set a positive tone for the call. Using the
caller’s name and saying it correctly is an efficient way of letting them know that you intend
to assist. Do not be afraid to ask for help with pronunciation and spelling. It signals to the
caller that you are willing to take time to give good service.
Skill Example A:

(Caller’s Request) “Hi. My name is Chris Dixon, and I need to change an order I placed
yesterday.”

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(Your Response) “Sure, Chris, I’ll be happy to help you. My name is Karen. What do you
need to be changed?”

Skill Example B: (Caller’s Request) “Yes, would you please tell him that Bob Rebzinski
called?”

(Your Response) “I’m sure a lot of people misspell your last name, and I don’t want to be one
of them. Would you please spell your name?”

Skill 5: Avoiding Excuses

Callers want solutions, not excuses. What excuses annoy customers the most? Things like,
“Our computers are down” or “Sorry, but that’s our policy.” Take responsibility for all the
calls you answer and tell your callers that you intend to help. If you receive the first contact
with the customer, take 100% of the responsibility to guide the caller to a place where there
will be a resolution. Rather than telling a customer, “That’s not my department,”.

Skill Example:
(Caller’s Request) “This is Mr Whitfield. I have some questions about the invoice I
received.”
(Your Response) “Hi Mr Whitfield. Thanks. You’re actually going to need to speak with
Keisha in our billing department. I’m in the service area, but I can go ahead and connect you,
and, just in case we get disconnected, Keisha’s extension is 292. Are you able to hold?”

(Caller’s Reply) “Sure.”

Skill 6: Giving Spoken Feedback Signals

Use a combination of different words and short phrases to acknowledge that you heard and
understand what the caller has said. Be sure to mirror back some of what the caller has said.
Spoken feedback signals are even more important on the phone than face-to-face. Without
them, customers wonder if you are listening, if they have been disconnected or if you are
even able to help them. If you are adding notes on the computer, tell the caller, so they know
the typing sound they hear is related to their call.

Skill Example:
(Caller’s Request) “I’d like to have my things packed up by your movers on the 23 rd in the
morning.
(Your Response) “Good. I’m jotting this down. All right. Got it. Pack on the 23 rd in the
morning.” (Caller Continues) “Right. We’ll need the packers to come in first and pack my
dishes. So, they need to be very careful when they pack my dishes.”

(Your Response) “Sure. I understand. I’ll mark that on the order: Be very careful when we
pack the dishes.”

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(Caller’s Reply) “Good. Thanks for being so thorough. I appreciate it.”

Skill 7: Being Prepared

It is a good practice to keep paper and a pen or pencil next to your phone at all times. Writing
a message word for action is the best way to make sure you do not mangle it.

Skill Tip: Being prepared:

The reality is that not everyone likes to leave a message on voice mail. Always be ready to
take a message or information from a customer.
Skill 8: Controlling the Conversation

Rapport building is good, but it is your responsibility to build rapport while remaining in
control of the call. If a caller gets off subject, take control of the conversation. If things get
off track, ask a question related to the purpose of the call as a subtle buffer to get it back on
track. Customers appreciate your handling their needs efficiently.

Skill Example:
(You) “When would you like us to deliver your new monitor?”

(Caller’s Response) “Well, let’s see, I have an uncle coming into town. He’s a professional
fishing guide, and his specialty is shark fishing. You ever go deep sea fishing?”

Skill Example A. Controlling the conversation (with a gentle, related question):

(Your Reply) “You know, I haven’t, but that sounds very interesting, and it would be a great
reason to set up everything early, wouldn’t it? In fact, you might want to set up your monitor
before your uncle comes in. So, do you want us to deliver that new monitor Wednesday
afternoon or Friday morning?”
Skill 9: Avoiding Mouth Noises

Mouth noises annoy and alienate the other person. The mouthpiece of a telephone is a
microphone that amplifies sounds on the receiving end. While on a call, do not eat, drink,
hum or chew gum.
Skill Tip: Work to avoid annoying mouth noises.

Skill 10: Leaving a Positive Last Impression

A positive last impression counts as much as a good first impression. End your conversation
on a positive note. Let the caller feel that you are glad and that you look forward to hearing
from them again. This last impression is often the way they remember the entire call.

Skill Tip:
(You) “I’ll let our crew member know, and he’ll take care of it for you. He’s very good. We
appreciate your business, Ms Clinton. Thanks for calling.”

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(Caller’s Response) “Thank you!”

(Your Reply) “You’re welcome.”

Essential Telephone Skills-

Telephone calls may be broken into three major parts-

1) The introduction, in which both parties establish their identity and the convenience of
the call.

2) The purpose, which involves communicating needs by asking well-constructed

questions.

3) The conclusion, whereby both parties reach a verbal agreement on the points made
during the call and any specific action that needs to be taken.

Here we discuss some essential telephone skills:

Making a Telephone call

Before making a telephone call, consider its purpose calls could possibly be made to obtain
information, return a call, schedule an appointment, or service a customer. Be ready
psychologically to make the call. Have a positive attitude toward making the call. Keep all
the necessary information available when you make the call.
When making a call, be sure to do the following:

 Identify yourself immediately to get the call off to a positive start.

 Tell the purpose of the call to the person you call. Be specific.

 Ask well stated appropriate questions to obtain the desired action.

 Close the call in a friendly tone with an understanding between both parties of the
action(s) that need to be taken.

Incoming Telephone Calls

Be prepared to answer the telephone when it rings. Keep pens and message pads close by as
well as telephone directories and other reference materials. Use an answering machine if
necessary. When answering the phone, follow these guidelines:
 Answer the telephone no later than the second ring.

 Identify yourself in a friendly tone.

 Use the caller's name.

 Gather as much information as possible.

 Do not interrupt the caller.

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 Give accurate information.

It is an excellent idea to write down any questions prior to beginning the call or during the
call. During the call, when both parties are asking questions, it is equally important to listen
attentively. Attentive listening can be demonstrated by speaking in such a way that the
listener knows you are hearing.

Question Skills
Questions should be asked in such a way as to obtain the desired information. Normally there
are three major types of questions:
 Open questions: These questions call for more than a yes/no answer and often begin
with who, what, where, when, why or how.
 Closed questions: These questions are used primarily to verify the information. Often
these questions begin with are you, do you, can, could, did, will, or would.
 Forced-choice questions: These questions call for an either-or response. The listener
has the choice between at least two options.

Maintaining Telephone Numbers

Telephone numbers may be obtained from your own record, from directories, or from
directory assistance. Have the telephone number visible when you get ready to make the call.
Developing a personal telephone list is very helpful. Telephone directories that contain both
white pages and yellow pages can also be sources of excellent information. Use the white
pages to locate a specific name of a person. Use the yellow pages to locate a product or
service. Directory assistance provides access to a telephone number by going through a
directory assistance operator. Usually, there is a fee for obtaining this information.

Operator Assisted Calls

Operator-assisted calls are the most expensive type of telephone calls. Avoid them if
possible. Types of operator-assisted calls include the following:

 Collect calls: In collect calls, the person called must agree to accept the charges for the
call.

 Third-number billing: Such a call is billed to a third party.

 Person-to-person: Such a call involves telling the operator you will speak only to a
designated person. If that person is unavailable, you will not have to pay for the call.

Screening Calls

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Screening a call means using judgment to determine whether you should put the caller
through to the desired person by being friendly to the caller without revealing embarrassing
or unnecessary information.

Transferring Calls
Transferring a call means that, for any number of reasons, it would be best for the caller to
speak with someone else. It is important to be thoroughly familiar with the specific procedure
for transferring a call.

Message Taking
Messages may either be left as voice-mail messages for the person being called or written
down by someone else. If you are writing down the message, use a telephone message form
to fill in the appropriate parts.

Specialized Telephone Calls

Handling the wide variety of both incoming and outgoing specialized telephone calls requires
in-depth skill. The following are some of the more common types of specialized calls:
 Information calls: Calls made to gather information require careful thought to
determine exactly what information you are trying to obtain.
 Scheduling appointment calls: Know exactly when you want an appointment before
placing the call. Have all information in front of you when you place the call. If you are
making calls for another individual, notify that person of the scheduled appointment.
Likewise, be certain you have carefully recorded on an appointment calendar the
designated scheduled time as well as any special instructions.

 Complaint calls: Often, a complaint call can become a negative experience by nature.
Be prepared to deal with emotions in as positive a fashion as possible.

 Collection calls: Collecting money over the telephone is a challenging experience.

Good questioning skills are of paramount importance in handling a collection call.

 Telemarketing calls: Selling a product or service over the telephone is done by a skilled
salesperson called a telemarketer. Generally, telemarketers have been trained to deal
with a wide variety of responses and situations.
It is wise to follow these steps when dealing with specialized calls:

 Always respond in a courteous and professional manner.

 Give accurate information.

 Be prepared to deal with rejection and negative responses.

 Offer a variety of positive solutions.

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 End all calls courteously.

Telephone Skills and the Future

Telephone skills will undoubtedly continue to be increasingly important as technology and
equipment continue to evolve. Strong communication skills will always be highly essential
when using the telephone. Evolving technology will enhance the telephone in the future.
Telephone skills must be integrated with that technology to make the process work.

9.4 PHONE ETIQUETTE

Telephone etiquette means being respectful to the person you are talking with, showing
consideration for the other person's interest, allowing that person time to speak,
communicating clearly and much, much more. Your voice must create a pleasant visual
impression over the telephone.
Good phone etiquette is important because we cannot see the facial expressions and body
language of the other person and vice versa. We must balance our voice by choosing our
words carefully during conversation and using much more tone variation to convey our
message. Here are some tried and tested tips on telephone etiquette to help us become aware
of the courtesies that could easily be overlooked.

 Check the number carefully & then dial it correctly

 Allow it to ring long enough to give the called person time to get to the phone

 Do not ask them to wait the moment they answer

 Identify yourself immediately. Do not make them guess who is calling

 Ask if it is convenient to talk now.

 Talk loud enough directly into the phone to be heard without shouting

 If you have dialled a wrong number. Apologize. Do not just hang up.
Always remember you are talking to a person now, not a machine. So, speak accordingly
Observe courtesies like “Hello, Please, Thank you, and Good bye”

Etiquettes while making a Call:

 Be an attentive listener; do not do other jobs at the same time

 Do not interrupt while the other person is speaking. Use common courtesy.

 Use the caller’s name.

 If they have to be put on hold, ask if you can call them back rather than keep them
waiting indefinitely on the line.

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 If they would like to wait on the line, get back to them every 30 seconds to update them
and give them another opportunity to be called back.

 Bad news should be delivered face-to-face if possible and not over the telephone.

Etiquettes while receiving a call:

 Answer your phone promptly to save the time of both the caller and yourself.

 Greet the caller pleasantly.

 If you have company, let the caller know that you must be brief or that you will call
back later.

 Take messages for others clearly and politely.

 Be sure to pass on the message.

 Always return telephone calls and do so as soon as possible.

 If it is necessary to transfer the call, first tell the caller that you are transferring the call
and then do it.

 Let the caller be the one to end the call first.

 Remember to farewell the caller with, “Goodbye” or something similar.

 Hang up the phone gently.

9.5 E-MAIL SKILLS

An e-mail is a digital message sent electronically from one computer to one or more other
computers. E-mails are flexible and can be used for giving instructions, serving as
documentation, providing confirmation, communicating rules and procedures, making
recommendations, providing a status update, making an inquiry. Like a memorandum, it is
more precise than an oral conversation, it provides a record of the communication, and it can
send a single message to a large number of people. During the 1960s, Ray Tomlinson
invented e-mail. E-mail operates across computer networks, which today is primarily the
Internet. There are primarily three types of e-mails:
a) Direct e-mails: These are the personal e-mails that are sent from one person to another,
with content that is designed to do a specific thing, like thank for a meeting, book
lunch, introduce the organization, or convey an attachment. They are customized,
specific to the sender and recipient, and sent directly from a person’s e-mail address.
b) Broadcast e-mails: These are the newsletters, alerts, advertisements, and other
materials that are floated to many different persons or organization. The key point
behind this type of e-mail is the one-to-many nature of it.

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c) Sequence e-mails: Sometimes called nurture e-mails or drip marketing e-mails, these
are a series of e-mails that are sent to a specific person. For example, if your
organization does a repeated event – say a seminar for prospective clients – then the
attendees likely have an interest.

The main features of e-mail are:

[i] Attachment: Ability to attach the files along the messages.

[ii] Address book: It is also the most important features of e-mail that allows a user to store
the information along with the e-mail addresses.

Basic E-Mail Skills-

Let us discuss how e-mail works and what basic skills we need for using e-mail.

To send or receive an e-mail, we must have an account on a mail server. This is similar to our
mailing address where we receive letters. Our e-mail message is sent from our computer to a
server where the computer looks at the e-mail address and then directs the message on to the
server associated with the recipient’s e-mail account. Once our e-mail arrives at its
destination mail server, the message is stored in an electronic mailbox until the recipient
retrieves it. We can still receive e-mail while our computer is turned off. The mail server
collects and stores our incoming e-mail until the next time we access your e-mail by opening
our mailbox and downloading our messages.

We can send an e-mail to anyone in the world, as long as we have his or her e-mail address.

[1] Understanding E-mail Addresses

An e-mail address has two main components:

 The user name comes before the “@” sign. When we sign up for an e-mail account, we
are usually asked to supply a user name (our first initial and last name is often used).
The domain name comes after the “@” sign. This refers to the mail server, the
computer that stores our electronic mailbox. It is usually the name of a company or
organization.

 Finally, there is a dot (.) followed by letters that indicate the type of domain (.com, .edu,
.net, .org, .lib, .in, .us, and so on). Example of an e-mail address: [email protected] or
[email protected] etc.

[2] Composing and Sending an E-mail Message

Followings are the basic steps for composing an e-mail:

 To create a new e-mail, click the red “Compose Mail” button (on the left-hand side of
the screen). Type the recipient’s e-mail address in the “To:” box.

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 To send a message to more than one person, you may enter multiple addresses by
placing a comma and space between each address. (E.g,: To: [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected])

 Ensure that you correctly enter the e-mail address or the message will be sent either to a
different person or returned back to you with a note that it was undeliverable.

 Type the subject of the message in the “Subject:” box. Keeps the subject to a word or
phrase summarizing the content of your message (E.g.: Subject: Today’s Work
Progress).

 Use your mouse and click inside the message box it is where you will write your e-mail
letter, i.e. the body of the message.

 When you are finished typing your message and are ready to send it, click the red
“Send” button.

[3] Reading an E-mail Message

To read an e-mail, click on the subject of the e-mail. [Note: Unread messages in your Inbox
will be highlighted.]

[4] Replying to a Message

 Open the message that you want to reply.

 Click the “Reply” button, which looks like an arrow pointing to the left. The program
will present you with a message already addressed to the sender. The subject line will
state “Re:” and then the old message’s subject. You will probably not change the
subject line, so the receiver knows that you are replying to a previously an e-mail that
was previously sent.

 [Note: the difference between “Reply” and “Reply All.” Clicking the “Reply” button
will send your reply only to the original sender of the message. Clicking the “Reply
All” button will send your reply to everyone who received the original message.]

 Click in the box above the text to which you are replying.

 Complete you reply message.

 Click “Send” when you are finished typing your message and are ready to send it.

[5] Forwarding a Message

 Open the message you wish to forward to another person.

 Click the down arrow next to the reply arrow.

 Click on “Forward”.

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 Type the recipient's address or addresses (if there is more than one recipient) in the
“To:" box.

 Type a note above the forwarded message (optional).

 Click "Send".
On the Internet, everything moves at the speed of light, including e-mail. Because e-mail can
be sent and received so quickly, it is often written in a more conversational manner than a
formal letter. An e-mail with grammatical errors can be viewed as being “sloppy” and so you
should ensure that your e-mail is written in a manner that will be deemed appropriate by the
person that reads it. Always double check your e-mail before clicking the send button. Use
proper grammar; capitalize the letters as and when it is required.

Advanced E-Mail Skill-

Now we are familiar with e-mail basics. There are many advanced features available with e-
mail. Let us discuss here these features.

Attachment
An e-mail attachment is a computer file sent along with an e-mail message. One or more files
can be attached to any e-mail message and be sent along with it to the recipient. This is
typically used as a simple method to share documents and images. We can send one or more
files containing texts or images, such as a photograph, sent as part of an e-mail message.
However, there are some limitations related to the size of the file. These files are quite
common and safe:

 .txt - Plain text file.

 .jpg (or .jpeg) - Image file for photos etc.

 .gif - graphic file.

Click the "Open" or "Choose File" or another similar button to attach the file to your e-mail.
Then, continue composing your e-mail (put the e-mail address of the person you want to
send the attachment to in the To: field, add a subject and message in the body, and hit Send).

Sending a copy of the mail-

We can send the same contents of the mail to others in two different methods: Cc and Bcc:
Cc means CARBON COPY and Bcc means BLIND CARBON COPY. We can use Cc when we want
to copy the mail to others publicly, means all the recipients will know, who others are also
getting the same mail.
When we use Bcc, it means we want to mail it privately. Any recipients on the Bcc line of
an e-mail are not visible to others on the e-mail. For security and privacy reasons, it is best

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to use the Blind Carbon Copy (Bcc) feature when sending an e-mail message to a large
number of people. When we place e-mail addresses in the Bcc field of a message, those
addresses are invisible to the recipients of the e-mail.

Essential E-Mail Skills and Tips-

Here are some tips for Effective E-mail Communication:
Write a clear and concise message.

The message you want to mail should be clear and concise. This saves your time as well as
the receivers. You can write this by the following skills: Use bulleted points to clearly
express your thoughts and outline the points you are trying to get across in an easy to
understand format.

Always reread your message and double-check for grammar and misused words before
sending an e-mail.

Use spell check after composing your message. You should also make it standard procedure
to reread your entire message before sending. This practice reduces the chance of making
mistakes.
Copy back salient points when replying to an earlier message.

It is frustrating when someone sends you an e-mail, with a specific answer but you are unable
to recall the original issue. This problem can be avoided by copying a portion of the original
message alluding to the context.

Use specific subject line descriptions.

Since many e-mail messages go back and forth several times over the course of many weeks,
it is important to describe what the reader will find inside the mail accurately.

Ensure the recipient or recipients before sending mail.

E-mail is also ridiculously easy to edit and forward. Keep in mind that sending a message to
one person can eventually be viewed by many other unintended parties. Always double-check
the recipient line before sending any e-mail.

Never send mail when you are upset.

It is never a good idea to send an e-mail when you are angry or upset. Only later, after we
calm down, we revisit the message and realize that we dramatically overreacted. But it would
be too late to do anything now, except apologize and try to mend. This is more common than
you think.
If you compose an e-mail in anger, wait a predetermined period of time before sending it.

Avoid shortcuts and abbreviations e-mail messages.

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Sometimes shortcuts and abbreviations can be used to write or forward a message to our
friends for personal e-mail. However, such shortcuts and abbreviations are never to be used to
business or official communications. Some common shortcuts like “LOL, BRB, OMG, 2, 4,
SMH and u r” are used in personal communication but are simply too casual for most
business communication.
Never forward Viral Messages.

Nowadays, many fake messages float in social media. It’s not wise to forward such messages
to your contacts. Unless and until you are sure about the messages you received then only
forward those messages if it is required.

9.6 E-MAIL ETIQUETTE

E-mail etiquette refers to the principles of behaviour that one should use when writing or
answering e-mail messages. It is also known as the code of conduct for e-mail
communication. E-mail etiquette depends upon to whom we are writing mail, i.e. friends &
relatives, partners, customers, superior, or subordinates.

We must follow e-mail etiquette in our professional communication because it is a form of

communication which is a reflection of senders and responders. Bad e-mail etiquette reflects
badly on us, and a record of this is kept in mailboxes over which we have no control. Good e-
mail etiquette reflects well on us, improves our public perception and persona and increases
the chance of a prompt and comprehensive response. It is not hard to maintain good e-mail
etiquette once we know what it is. A company needs to implement etiquette rules for the
following three reasons:

 Professionalism: By using proper e-mail language, your company will convey a

professional image.

 Efficiency: E-mails that are to the point are much more effective than poorly worded e-
mails.

 Protection from liability: Employee’s awareness of e-mail risks will protect your
company from costly lawsuits.

Before Composing E-Mail:

One thing before you start means before composing or responding to an e-mail, ask yourself
this: is e-mail the right medium for this communication? If you are not sure, pick up the
phone or walk over to the person and have a conversation. E-mail only if it is the right
medium.
The first step in writing an e-mail message:

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Identify the purpose of the message in the e-mail you are going to send. In other words, focus
your objective, i.e. try to follow the five I’s: Inform Inquire, Influence, Instruct, and Incite.

Focus your content. Do not let unnecessary ideas impose on your principal message.
To:

Each individual on the To box of an e-mail is responsible for the response or taking an action
(or part of an action) outlined on the Subject line and the message relates directly to them.

CC:
Cc means Carbon copy and the same message will be received by the recipients along with
the recipients mentioned in the To box of the mail. No action or response is expected of
individuals on the CC the recipient needs only to read or file the message. The individuals
whose work is indirectly affected by the communication should be included on the CC.
BCC:

BCC means Blind Carbon Copy and the same message will be delivered to the recipients
mentioned in the Bcc, CC and To box of the e-mail. However, the recipients are invisible to
the other recipients mentioned in the BCC. So always use Bcc field cautiously.
Subject:

A subject line effectively summarizes the message. If the subject line is clearly written, each
recipient will have a clear understanding of the objective that the message relates to.

 Subject line should effectively summarize the message

 Do not use more than six or seven words in a subject line

 Never use capital letter

 When replying, change the subject line when the topic changes.
Salutations:

We should be very careful in writing the salutation (greeting) because it can be mistranslated
by the reader. So, the sender must ensure that his/her reader is comfortable and happy with
the salutation, otherwise, rest of the communication may not bring any positive result.

Privacy:

E-mail is not and never has been private. Once you send an e-mail, the recipient can and will
do what they want with it. If you need to share private information, pick up the phone, use a
different secure system, or use coded attachments.
Use your corporate e-mail for work only. Never use it for personal stuff. Corporate e-mail is
not private, it is archived, it is monitored, and most have policies against it. Use your private

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e-mail for personal affairs; never send personal messages to a recipient’s corporate addresses.
Use the blind copy (BCC) or mail merge function to protect the privacy of your contacts.

Attachments:
When you are sending an attachment, tell the recipient what the name of the file is? What
program it is saved in, and the version of the program. Compress large attachments and send
attachments only when they are necessary. Use a good virus scanner as mails with viruses are
not appreciable, and the receiver may become annoyed.
Reply or Reply to all:

Ask yourself: “Does everyone need to know this information?”

 Each e-mail should be replied to within at least 24 hours and preferably within the same
working day.

 If the e-mail is complicated, send an e-mail saying that you have received it and that
you will get back to them. This will put the people’s mind at rest, and usually, they will
be patient.

 Respond only to messages that require one. When replying, make sure that you are
adding value to the conversation, truly moving it forward.

 While replying to an e-mail message with an attachment, which is to accompany your

reply, you must forward the message instead of using the "Reply" or "Reply All"
button. Otherwise, the attachment is not included with the message.

 Do not reply to spam.

The Closing:
In the business world, ending an e-mail professionally is just as important as perfecting the
rest of the message. If you do it sloppily, you might lose some precious business
opportunities. Courtesy is always important, no matter how short the e-mail is. Before you
end your e-mail, you can add some sentence as follows: Thank you for your patience and
cooperation, Thank you for your consideration. Include an accurate follow-up statement:

 I will send you additional information.

 I look forward to receiving your input.

 If you have questions or concerns, do let me know.

 I look forward to hearing from you.

 Please let me know if you need further assistance on this.

 If a response is required, specify what, when.

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Do not forget to attach documents:

If you plan to attach a document, attach it as soon as you refer to the document in the e-mail.
So, often people forget to attach even when they indicate an attachment.
Signatures:

A professional signature makes it easy to contact you. Your e-mail account can automatically
add these data to the bottom of the e-mail: Full professional name, Job title, Business
phone/fax numbers, Business street address, Business website (if any), A legal disclaimer (if
required by your company).

9.7 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Phone and e-mail conversations are every bit as important as face-to-face interaction.
The goal should always be to bolster relationships with customers and never to provide
a bad customer experience. Every conversation will mould the public's perception of
your company and build (or destroy) your brand.

 While e-mail and mail communication may be efficient, the telephone is still an ideal
way to contact customers. Phone calls create stronger relationships, foster clear
communication, and allow you and your customers to save time by getting the answers
you need in real-time.

 The invention of the telephone provided an important device for facilitating human
communication. No longer did people need to be co-located beside each other to be
able to converse. Through the use of the telephone, people could have equally
meaningful conversations at a distance, all the while preserving reciprocity.

 One of the most important contributions the telephone has brought to the lives of
people is the ability to call during emergencies. Telephones are very helpful during
emergency situations because they are able to connect to the department you are calling
than going to the place with yourself.

 How has the telephone changed and improved our lives? The telephone
changed society for the better by making it easier for people to communicate.
The telephone made it possible for two people to communicate directly, making it
easier to interpret messages based on the speaker's tone of voice and overall
demeanour.

 There are pros and cons for both e-mail and telephone communication. The most
important thing is context - why you need to communicate, and what you are
communicating. Some things are best discussed through e-mail, and some are best left
for the phone.

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9.8 GLOSSARY
 Telephone- These are devices used to communicate messages across lines
electronically. Alexander Graham Bell invented the first telephone in 1876 in Boston.

 Basic Telephone Skills- This refers to communicate effectively on the telephone to

customers by following some skills.

 ARPANET- A research organization Advanced Research Projects Agency Network

 Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL)- India’s telephone organization started

internet for the public in 1971.

 Buffer words- These refer to three parts of greeting: “Good Morning”, “Good
Afternoon” or “Good Evening”.

 Advanced Telephone Skills- This refers to develop the core skills to influence on the
telephone and further build rapport with clients or customers.

 Feedback Signals- This refers to the response to the caller during a telephone
conversation.

 Essential Telephone Skills- This refers to the most professional skills while making
conversation over telephone with the customers.

 Telephone Etiquette- This refers to the respect to be shown to the caller during a
telephone conversation. This includes the way we speak to the customer to make a good
rapport.

 E-mail- This is the new and advanced method of communication in a digital mode, and
messages are sent electronically from one computer to one or more other computers.

 Direct e-mails- This refers to one-to-one communication includes mainly personal

messages.

 Broadcast e-mails- This refers to one-to-many communication, includes mainly

advertisement, newsletters, etc.

 Sequence e-mails- This refers to the communication to selective persons from any
organization, etc.

 Mail Server- This refers to a remote or central computer that holds electronic mail (e-
mail) messages for clients on a network is called a mail server. A mail server is similar
to the post office, where mail is stored and sorted before being sent to its final
destination.

 E-mail Address- This is a unique identifier for an e-mail account. It is used to both
send and receive e-mail messages over the Internet. In other words, we can say this

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refers to a name that identifies an electronic post office box on a network where e-mail
can be sent.

 Domain name- This refers to the website name. A domain name is the address where
Internet users can access the website. This is also used for finding and identifying
computers on the Internet.

 Mail attachment- This refers to a computer file sent along with an e-mail message.
One or more files can be attached to any e-mail message and be sent along with it to the
recipient. This is typically used as a simple method to share documents and images.

 Cc and Bcc- Cc means Carbon Copy and Bcc means Blind Carbon Copy. Cc and Bcc
are almost similar except that the e-mail address of the recipients specified in the Bcc
field does not appear in the received message header and the recipients in the To or Cc
fields will not know that a copy sent to these addresses.

9.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-

a) Discuss the basic Telephone skills required for effective communication.

b) What are the different types of e-mail we are using? Explain each.

c) What is the difference between CC and BCC in e-mail writing?

d) Discuss the importance of telephone and e-mail communication.

e) What are the basic telephone skills we need for effective communication? Explain in
details.

f) What do you understand by Question skills in connection to Telephone

communication?

g) Telephone and E-mail Etiquette plays an important role in our business. Explain.
h) What do you mean buffer words? When are these buffer words used in communication?

i) What is a mail server and what is its importance in e-mail communication?

j) What are the different types of e-mail used in our daily life? Explain each.

k) What is E-mail address? What are its components?

l) What type of files normally used as an attachment with any e-mail communication?

m) Write short notes on: [i] Rapport through empathy [ii] Feedback Signal [iii] Telephone
etiquettes [iv] E-mail etiquettes.

Objective type questions-

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a) Telephone is a device used for .....

b) Telephone was invented by .....

c) E-mail is a ......
d) E-mail was first introduced by ..... in India.

e) ..... is universally known as creator of e-mail.

f) ARPANET is a Research Organization. (True / False).

g) Direct e-mail refers to one-to-many communication. (True / False)

h) E-mail address contains @ character to specify domain name. (True / False)

i) If BCC is used while sending a mail then, the TO or CC fields will also know that a
copy sent to these addresses. (True / False)

j) Feedback Signals refers to the response to the caller during a telephone conversation.
(True / False)

9.10 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 https://intranet.bloomu.edu/technology/phone/etiquette

 https://telephonedoctor.com/10-essential-business-telephone-skills/

 https://the-media-house.co.uk/advanced-telephone-techniques/

 https://www.inc.com/business-insider/e-mail-etiquette-rules.html

 https://www.inc.com/guides/2010/06/e-mail-etiquette.html

 https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/e-mail-etiquette-tips-rules

 https://www.crazycall.com/blog/phone-etiquette

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_telephone

9.11 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Friedman, Nancy J. (2000). “Telephone skills from A to Z: the telephone doctor phone
book (rev. ed.).”, Menlo Park, CA: Crisp Learning.

 Maxwell, Dorothy A. (2006). “Phone skills for the Information Age (3rd ed.)”. New
York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

 Neal, D. (1998). “Telephone Techniques (2nd ed.)”. New York: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill.

 Ramakrishna Reddy, “Write Effective Emails at Work: 6 Keys That Take 5 Minutes or
Less”, Kindle Edition.

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 Heather Wright“A Quick Guide to Writing Better Emails (Better Business

Communication)”, Paperback – 4 Oct 2015.

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UNIT- 10
INTERVIEW SKILLS

10.1 INTRODUCTION

10.2 OBJECTIVES

10.3 INTERVIEW PREPARATION

10.4 INTERVIEWING ESSENTIALS

10.5 TYPES OF INTERVIEWS

10.6 TIPS FOR GOOD JOB INTERVIEWS

10.7 SAMPLE JOB INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

10.8 POINTS TO REMEMBER

10.9 GLOSSARY

10.10 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

10.11 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

10.12 SUGGESTED READINGS

10.1 INTRODUCTION
Interview is a kind of assessment to assess a candidate’s personality, skills, attitude, overall
conduct, interests and to determine whether he/she is fit for the job? It is a kind of
conversation that occurs between a prospective employee (candidate) and an employer or
organization. There are several mediums to assess a candidate- one of them is interview.
Interviews are also various kinds, such as- Telephone Interview, Face-to-Face Interview,
Panel Interview, Lunch/Dinner Interview, Informal Interview, Portfolio Based Interview, etc.

10.2 OBJECTIVES
After successful completion of this unit, you will be able to-

 Prepare yourself for the interview.

 Know about various interview skills.

 Know about interview essentials.

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10.3 INTERVIEW PREPARATION

There are the following tips to prepare well for the interview-

Analyze job
description Research
Examine the
organization's the
website company

Interview
Preparation

Make a
Practice match with
interviewing the job
Practice
interview
etiquette

a) Carefully analyse the job description

You should go through the job description, where the employer describes the
qualifications and desirables.

b) Make a match with the job

After going through the job description, prepare a list of your assets and match them to
the job requirements.
c) Prepare examples of your accomplishments

Better to saying something, share your accomplishment that proves your skills. Focus
on how you utilized your skills in such a harsh situation; get success as a leader/team
member.
d) Research the Company

Use any search engine (e.g. Google, DuckDuckGo, Bing, and YouTube) to gather
relevant information about the organization, look for product or service reviews, collect
information about the organization and their competitors, read their annual reports/
progress reports (if available).

e) Examine the organization's website

In today's scenario, almost all organizations have their own website. Start with the
home page of the website and carefully read the "About us", "Vision", "Mission" page,

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etc. Also, get familiar with the products or services, press release (if any) and key
officers/founders.

f) Check the LinkedIn and Facebook Company Profiles

After getting the information about the company from various sources, you will be able
to understand more and more things about the company. Company’s social media
accounts help a lot to understand about services/products offered by the company.

g) Use Google, YouTube, and LinkedIn and other social media platforms to research
any names (if you have)

Hopefully, you know the names of the people who will be interviewing you. You may
find that you have something in common with someone interviewing you. Try to get a
sense of the kind of people who work there. Also, try (If interviewer has written and
posted) to read the articles on LinkedIn or any other websites written by the
interviewer.
h) Practice Interviewing

Do practice answering interview questions that you probably think may be asked. This
activity will enhance your confidence level during the interview.

i) Get your interview clothes ready

Have an interview outfit ready to wear at all times, so you don't have to think about
what you are going to wear while you are scrambling to get ready for a job interview.
j) Decide what to bring for a job interview

Make a list of things you need to bring for an interview before getting ready for the
interview so, that you can get relaxed at the time of job interview.

k) Practice interview etiquette

Remember to greet your interviewer and everyone else you meet politely, pleasantly
and enthusiastically. Proper interview etiquettes are important. During the interview,
watch your body language; shake hands firmly and make eye contact as you articulate
your points. pay attention, be attentive, and look interested.
l) Listen and Ask Questions

Listening is just as important as answering questions during interview. If you are

unable to pay attention, so, you are not going to be able to give a good response. Also,
be ready to engage the interviewer, if one to one conversation is there.
m) Prepare for the salary expectation question and negotiation

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Get ready to face the salary negotiation related questions. Prepare yourself well with
the lower limit of the offered salary and what you expect. Also, get ready to justify your
expected salary with acceptable justifications.

10.4 INTERVIEWING ESSENTIALS

 The handshake- A strong, but not too strong handshake is a power move. Take control
and give a firm handshake when you meet a manager and when you leave the

Body
Language
Presentation
Skills Posture

Interview
Essentials

Attitude Always
Listen

Confidence

interview.

 Body language- Simply sitting up straight, looking at who is speaking to you and
keeping still makes a huge difference in your appearance.

 Posture is important- Sitting up straight and planting your feet gives you confidence
without you even knowing it.

 Be confident- Never underestimate how valuable you are. Be confident in your work,
personality, and skills.

 Stay Positive- Negative comments about former employers and lack of enthusiasm is
not a good signal in the context of job interviews. Remain enthusiastic and maintain eye
contact with interviewers as much as possible.

 Always listen- Always listen carefully, then start answering.

 Stay Calm- Even if the interviewers asked unexpected questions or role-play activities
unannounced, present calm and collected appearance throughout the interview to prove
your capability.

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 Bring a notebook, your resume, and a pen- Always keep a notebook, CV (minimum 2
copies) and a pen with you.

 Attitude- Attitude is a very important factor during interview, show a positive attitude,
smile and act happily.

 Give specific examples- Your answers should relate to your work so be specific and

knowledgeable about what you have done.

 Decide when to talk, when to remain silent.

 Answering the interview questions- Some questions may take time for you to answer
properly, do not be afraid to ask for a moment to ensure you have an accurate answer.

 Presentation Skills- Many interviews will involve giving some form of presentation –
whether it’s prepared or not. Ensuring you appear confident, eloquent, and informed is
essential to scoring top marks during any presentations.

 Follow up with a Thank You Note- Send thank you note immediately after the
interview. A thank you note can be sent via email.

10.5 TYPES OF INTERVIEWS

a) The Telephone Interview- In today's scenario, telephone interviews are a popular one,
because they speed up the interview process and minimise time-wastage. Telephonic
interviews are quicker, cheaper, less effort for interviewer and the candidate, reach till
long distance, etc.

b) The Face-to-Face Interview- These types of

interviews are, by far the most popular and
efficient form of assessment. Allowing you to get
up close and personal with each candidate while
keeping an eye on their body language is far

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more effective than any other interviewing format. You have enough time to build a
relationship with interviewer so that you can answers confidently.

c) The Panel Interview- Panel interviews are the same as the individual, face-to-face
interviews, but with two or more interviewers in the room. The main advantage of
panel interviewing is that it precludes any personal biases that might creep into the
assessment process. Each interviewer will pick up on different characteristics, strengths
and weaknesses and together (hopefully) make a much fairer judgement.
d) The Group Interview- Several candidates, are present at this type of interview. You
will be asked to interact with each other by usually a group discussion. You might even
be given a task to do as a team, so make sure you speak up and give your opinion.

e) The Sequential Interview- These are several interviews in turn with a different
interviewer each time. Usually, each interviewer asks questions to test different sets of
competencies.
f) Competency-Based Interviews- Interviews that require you to give examples of
specific skills are called competency-based interviews, or job-specific interviews or
skill-based interviews. The interviewer will ask questions that will help them determine
if you have the knowledge and skills required for the specific job or not.
g) Formal / Informal Interviews- Hiring managers (when the candidates have proven
skills and a renowned name in the field) may begin the screening process with a
relaxed, informal conversation instead of a formal interview. This is more of a casual
discussion than a typical job interview. On a similar note, a chat over a cup of coffee is
another less formal type of job interview.

h) Portfolio Based Interviews- In the digital or communications industry, it is likely that

you will be asked to take your portfolio along or show it online. Make sure all your
work is up to date without too little or too much. Make sure that your images if in print
are big enough for the interviewer to see properly, and always test your online portfolio
on all Internet browsers before turning up.

10.6 TIPS FOR GOOD JOB INTERVIEWS

 Do your homework.

 Determine your value.

 Be prepared for tough questions and practice.

 Avoid bad habits.

 Be on time.

 Dress comfortably.

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 Anticipate questions and prepare talking points.

 Rehearse with mock job interviews.

 Build your confidence.

 Make a strong first impression.

10.7 SAMPLE JOB INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

a) What are your key experiences and accomplishments?

b) How did you hear about the vacancy?

c) Explain your reason for leaving your current job.

d) Why are you qualified for this position?

e) Tell me about the last time a co-worker or customer got angry with you. What
happened?
f) Describe your dream job.

g) Where do you see yourself in five years?

h) Share your experience regarding the said position.

i) Out of all the other candidates, why should we hire you?

j) Why do you want to leave your current job?

k) What kind of work environment do you like best?

l) Tell me how you think other people would describe you.

m) What can we expect from you in your first three months?

n) What was your salary in your last job?

o) What are your salary requirements?

p) Why was there a gap in your employment?

q) How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?

r) Tell me about a time you demonstrated leadership skills.

s) Have you any questions for me? (Yes/No; below questions can be asked by the
candidate)

t) What do you expect me to accomplish in the first 90 days?

u) What really drives results in this job?

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v) What are the company's highest-priority goals this year, and how would my role
contribute?

w) What percentage of employees was brought in by current employees?

x) Please share with me the company’s mission.

10.8 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Interview is a kind of assessment which assesses a candidate’s personality, skills,
attitude, overall conduct and interests in respect to the prospective job.

 Interviews are also various kinds, such as- Telephone Interview, Face-to-Face
Interview, Panel Interview, Lunch/Dinner Interview, Informal Interview, Portfolio
Based Interview, etc.

 There are some interview preparation skills, e.g. analyse the job description, research
the company, examining the organization's website, practice interviewing, interview
etiquette and more.

 Some of interview essentials are- body language, handshake manner, sitting posture,
confidence level, positive attitude, etc.

10.9 GLOSSARY
 Portfolio Based Interviews- Online collection of your documents, experience, and
qualification in a well and presentable manner.

 Competency Based Interviews- Interviews that requires showing specific skills or

competency.

 Panel Interview- Where two or more interviewers are taking interview at same time in
the room.

 Interview essentials- Necessary things or tips to get ready for the interview.

10.10 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

a) Write down minimum five tips for preparing the interview.
b) What are the types of interviews? Explain each of them briefly.

c) Write down the tips for good job interviews.

10.11 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 Available at- www.themuse.com/advice/interview-questions-and-answers, Date-
February 2, 2020

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 Available at- www.inc.com/jeff-haden/27-most-common-job-interview-questions-and-

answers.html, Date-February 2, 2020

 Available at- www.thebalancecareers.com/how-to-prepare-for-a-job-interview-

2061361, Date-February 2, 2020

 Available at- www.job-hunt.org/job_interviews/pre-interview-preparation.shtml, Date-

February 2, 2020

 Available at- http://placement.freshersworld.com/interview-questions-and-answers,

Date-February 2, 2020

 Available at- www.velvetjobs.com/articles/insights/20-essential-job-interview-tips,

Date-February 2, 2020

 Available at- https://thepalmergroup.com/blog/top-10-interviewing-essentials, Date-

February 2, 2020

 Available at- www.interview-skills.co.uk/blog/9-essential-interview-skills-success,

Date-February 2, 2020

10.12 SUGGESTED READINGS

 The Secrets of Getting Success in Interviews, by BS Sijwalii, Indu Sijwali (Author),
Arihant publication.

 Campus Recruitment Complete Reference, by Praxis Group.

 How to be Successful at Interviews, by A.L.M. Ameer.

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UNIT- 11
INTRODUCTION- A NEW APPROACH TO LEARNING

11.1 INTRODUCTION

11.2 OBJECTIVES

11.3 LEADERSHIP SKILLS & PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT

11.4 PLANNING AND GOAL SETTING

11.5 HUMAN PERCEPTION

11.6 UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE

11.7 SOFT SKILLS

11.8 SELF MANAGEMENT SKILLS

11.9 DEVELOPING POTENTIAL AND SELF-ACTUALIZATION

11.10 NEED OF SPIRITUAL INTELLIGENCE

11.11 POINTS TO REMEMBER

11.12 GLOSSARY

11.13 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

11.14 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

11.15 SUGGESTED READINGS

11.1 INTRODUCTION
Learning is a process to develop skills. We can learn how to achieve and maintain a positive,
optimistic and cheerful attitude under almost all circumstances. We can learn how to develop
a fully integrated, fully functioning, fully mature personality. When we decide to do
something to achieve, we need to unlock our hidden powers to succeed. Leadership and
personality both are the hidden power as well as the key factors of success.
Leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act toward achieving a common goal.
Leadership means different things to different people around the world and different things in

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different situations. For example, it could relate to community leadership, religious

leadership, political leadership and leadership of campaigning groups. A great leader can
have a clear vision, integrity, honesty and clear focus on the target. All these lead to a good
personality.

The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive character

is known as personality. In other words, personality refers to individual differences in
characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. The most important thing
which makes a person unique is that his/her ability to present oneself in the crowd.
Personality development plays an important role in improving communication skills. This
also helps us to develop an impressive individuality and makes us stand apart from the rest.
Individuals have to master the art of expressing their thoughts and feelings in the most
desired way.

11.2 OBJECTIVES
After the successful completion of this unit, we will be able to-

 Understand the importance of leadership skills and personality development.

 Improves leadership skills and personality.
 Explores the different aspects of human perceptions.
 Understand soft skills.
 Defines self-management skills.
 Understand the need for spiritual intelligence.

LEADERSHIP SKILLS & PERSONALITY

11.3
DEVELOPMENT
Leadership Skills-
Here we must first describe the terms “leader”, “leadership” and the “personality
development” which makes a person a successful leader. The person who leads or commands
a group, organization or country is “leader”. Also, we can say a leader is the one who is in the
charge, who convinces other people to follow and inspires confidence in other people and
moves them for action.

The words "leader" and "leadership" are often used incorrectly to describe people who are
actually managing. These individuals may be highly skilled, good at their jobs, and valuable
to their organizations, but that just makes them excellent managers, not leaders.
The word "leadership" can bring variety of images in mind. It could be a political leader, an
explorer or an executive. Whatever may be the case, we can say that leaders help themselves
and others to do the right things. They set direction, build an inspiring vision and create
something new.

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Here we will focus on the leadership skills and how to improve it. An effective leader is a
person who does the following:

 Creates a clear and inspiring vision.

 Motivates and inspires people.
 Manages to fulfill that vision.
 Builds a team for achieving the vision.
Leadership brings together the skills needed to do the above-mentioned things. We will
discuss each of these in details.

Creates Vision-
In business or in any organization, a vision provides a direction, sets priorities, and provides
an indication, so that the organization can achieve its goal. To create a vision, leaders first try
to find the organization's strengths. To find this, leaders may use some tools such as PEST
Analysis, USP Analysis, Core Competence Analysis and/or SWOT Analysis. Let us discuss
these in brief.

A PEST analysis is a strategic business tool used to find out, estimate, sort out, and track the
economic factors which can have an impact on business in the current situation and in the
future. This analysis normally examines the opportunities and threats due to political,
economic, social and technological forces which influence the business of any organization.
USP Analysis or Unique Selling Proposition is an approach which is implemented on the
features of a product that is marketed to find out the uniqueness of the product to make it
special. Normally this analysis focuses on the product's elements that distinguish the
organization from other competitors in the industry.
Core Competence Analysis is the process of identifying a company's
fundamental strengths and attributes that are unique and serve to differentiate it from its
competitors, as well as how to capitalize on these core capabilities to build sustained
competitive advantage.

SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis is a framework used to

evaluate a company's competitive position and to develop strategic planning. SWOT
analysis assesses internal and external factors, as well as current and future potential. In other
wards it is a study undertaken by an organization to identify its internal strengths and
weaknesses, as well as its external opportunities and threats.

The leaders normally try to find out, about the measures how to improve the performance of
their business or organization. They test their visions with appropriate market research and
also by assessing major risks factors using one important technique say Scenario Analysis.

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Scenario Analysis is a process of analyzing the future events by taking into consideration all
possible alternative outcomes. This is also called "alternative worlds". Scenario analysis, is a
form of projection, but cannot be the exact picture of the future. This only gives an alternative
of the vision.

Considering the above, we can say leadership is one proactive problem-solving idea by
looking ahead. Leaders are never satisfied with whatever they have or are, rather they always
try to improve the current condition of the business or the organization. Leadership combines
the passion with analytical side of vision to create something that would be really meaningful
and helpful to the people belonging to the business or the organization.
Motivation-

A powerful vision always provides the foundation for leadership. A vision may provide the
success for the business or an organization, but sometimes it is also failing. There may be
many different factors for such failure. However, it is the ability of the leader to motivate and
inspire people who are involved in the organization to accomplish that vision.

Leaders can also motivate and inspire people who are involved or part of the business or
organization through their natural personality and appeal. They also do things that inspire
people, such as the power to pay bonuses or assign interesting tasks. However, good leaders
do not rely too much on these types of power to motivate and inspire others.

Managing Vision-
This is the area of leadership which is directly related to the term management. Leaders must
ensure to fulfill the vision of the business or organizations either by themselves, or by a
dedicated manager or team of managers. Leaders need to ensure that the vision created by
them is easily understood by their team. To fulfill that vision the team members need to be
dedicated to their job and honest to their leaders. Leaders also need to make sure that,
they manage changes effectively whenever it is required. This helps to ensure that the
changes needed to deliver the vision are implemented smoothly.

Building a Team-
Team is the backbone of any organization. Building a team is an important activity carried
out by leaders. To develop a team, leaders must first understand the strength of the team. A
leader must then ensure that the team members are skilled enough and have the abilitie to do
their job to achieve the vision. To improve team’s performance, they do this by giving and
receiving feedback of their work regularly and also by providing training as well as
coaching staffs to improve individual as well as team’s performance.

Personality Development-

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It is always heard that the leaders should have a good personality. As far as personality is
concerned it refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and
behaving. The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive
character is known as personality.

The personality is the typical pattern of thinking, feeling, and behaviour that make a person
unique. When we say that, someone has a "good personality", we mean that they are likeable,
interesting and pleasant. Personality development helps us to develop and makes us stand
apart from the rest. Personality development also plays an essential role in improving
communication skills.
A positive attitude, a balanced extroversion and confidence have been revealed as the most
attractive qualities. The most important thing which makes a person unique is that his/her
ability of willingness to present oneself and stand out from the crowd.

Personality is influenced by mostly three factors. These are heredity, environment, and
situation. Heredity refers to the influences on our personality that we are born with. They are
in our genes and there is not much we can do to change these traits. The various things that
people experience will leave imprints on and help to develop his or her personality. A bad
personality truly does not exist. Whether the person says a bad word or acts in a weird way
does not describe that person's personality to be negative.

Environment / people and situation can alter personality for good or bad, but we will
always have original personality that we were born with. Personality is a quality that can
be made but can also be influenced by genetics. While personality behaviour is relatively
stable over time, they can often do gradually change across the life span. Fig. 1 illustrates
this. We can say the Personality development of any person occurs by the ongoing interaction
of temperament, character, and environment. Fig. 2 illustrates this.

Figure 1 Personality Figure 2 Personality Development

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11.4 PLANNING AND GOAL SETTING

Planning is the fundamental duties of management function. Decision making depends on
planning and normally with the following queries what, when, how and who? That is “what is
to be done”, “when to be done”, “how it is to be done” and “who is going to do it”.
Planning can also be described as an intellectual process which is the key factor of any
business or organization that develops various cases of action, by which the organization can
achieve those objectives. It clearly chalks out exactly, what to do and how to attain a specific
goal. Planning is thinking before the action takes place. It helps us to take a peep into the
future and decide in advance the way to deal with the situations, which we are going to
encounter in future. It involves logical thinking and balanced decision making.
Also, we can say planning is the process of thinking about the activities required to achieve a
desired goal. It is the first and foremost activity to achieve desired results. It involves the
creation and maintenance of a plan, such as psychological aspects that require conceptual
skills. Here in the fig. 3 some are the major functions that we need to follow for any planning.

Figure 3 Characteristics of Planning

 Managerial function: Planning is the first and foremost managerial function which
provides the base for other functions of the management, i. e. organizing, staffing,
directing and controlling, as they are performed within the periphery of the plans made.

 Goal oriented: It focuses on defining the goals of the organization, identifying

alternative cases of action and deciding the appropriate action plan, which is to be
undertaken for reaching the goals.

 Pervasive: It is pervasive in the sense that it is present in all the segments and is
required at all the levels of any organization. Although the scope of planning varies at
different levels and departments.

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 Continuous Process: Plans are made for a specific period or term, say for a month,
quarter and year and so on. Once that period is over, new plans are made with
consideration of the organization’s present and future requirements and conditions.
Therefore, it is an ongoing process, as the plans are framed, executed and followed by
another plan.

 Intellectual Process: Think intellectually while planning a goal. It is a mental exercise

as it involves the application of mind, to think, forecast, imagine intelligently and
innovatively.

 Futuristic: In the process of planning, we need to think about the future of the business
or organization. This includes analyzing and predicting the outcome and challenges that
any organization may face in future and can handle these challenges effectively.

 Decision making: This is the most important component of planning. A good and
effective decision of any organization leads to its success. Decisions are made
regarding the choice of alternative courses of action that can be undertaken to reach the
goal. The alternative chosen should be best among all, with the least number of the
negative and highest number of positive outcomes.

So, we can say planning is concerned with setting objectives, targets, and formulating plans
to accomplish them. The activity helps managers analyze the present condition to identify the
ways of attaining the desired position in future. It is both, the need of the organization and the
responsibility of managers. Here we will discuss some importance of Planning

 By establishing objectives and selecting a course of action it helps managers to improve

future performance for the benefit of the organization.

 This minimizes risk and uncertainty, by looking ahead into the future.

 It facilitates the coordination of activities. This reduces overlapping among activities

and eliminates unproductive work.

 It provides direction for action. It states in advance, what should be done in future.

 It uncovers and identifies future opportunities and threats.

 It sets out standards for controlling. It compares actual performance with the standard
performance and efforts are made to correct the same.

Planning is present in all types of organizations, households, sectors, economies, etc. We

need to plan because the future is highly uncertain and no one can predict the future with
100% accuracy, as the conditions can change anytime. Hence, we can say, planning is the
basic requirement of any person, organization or business for the survival, growth and
success.

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Goal setting is a process that identifies what we want to achieve, and creating a plan to
achieve those desired results. By setting goals on a routine basis, we decide what we want to
achieve. Next, we systematically move towards those goals. Finally, we can say
Goals provide us with a focus for life.

Now we will discuss how to set a goal. We must follow SMART goal-setting process when
setting goals. SMART (Specific, Measurable, Agreed to, Realistic and Timely).

 Always set Specific goals. Instead of writing “Increase sales of the business,” a specific
goal would read, “Increase gross sales by 15 percent by December 31 of this year.” A
specific goal makes it easier to plan the objectives we need to reach in order to achieve
it.

 Develop goals that can be measured. It is impossible to monitor how well we are doing
in achieving the goal without measuring the same. In the above example, a 15-percent
increase in sales is measurable. A business owner can easily look at sales reports and
income data to determine if sales have increased by 15 percent at year-end. When
setting measurable goals, it may be helpful to set mini-goals with it. With example, a
business may also implement quarterly increase, that would be needed to reach the
overall 15 percent increase in sales for the year. This can ensure that the business
progress throughout the year.

 Implement business goals that are attainable by the business and its employees. It is
important that the goals we set can actually be reached based on the current resources
of our business. If unattainable goals are set, then there is a chance that we are only
setting up our business and our employees for failure. So, always try to set reachable
goals as a way to motivate employees. Always try to give employees a goal that they
can reach, so when each mini-goal is achieved it gives us motivation.

 Be realistic when planning and setting goals. Some business owners will go overboard
in setting goals for the business. The goals will focus on areas of the business that are
not important or will not have a great impact on the overall direction of the business.
Then set secondary goals that support it. This will ensure they are relevant to the
success of the business.

 Follow Timeline or attach deadlines to our goals. Without time lines, goals are useless.
In first example about increasing sales, “Increase business sales” is not a timely goal.
However, specific goal gives a deadline of December 31 of this year to increase sales.
This provides a deadline for the goal. It gives a time when the goal should be measured
to determine whether the objectives have been achieved. All goals that are set should
have a time line attached so that we can measure and track our successes regularly and
equally, also we can check where we might need to improve.

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Here we will discuss the importance of setting a goal. Setting goals gives us long-term vision
as well as short-term motivation. It focuses our acquisition of knowledge and helps us to
organize our time and our duties so that we can lead a successful life.
By setting clearly defined goals, we can gain and take pride in the achievement of targeted
goals. Also, we will see the progress in achieving the goal. It would also raise our self-
confidence, as we recognize our own ability and competence in achieving the goals that we
have set. We must try to set goals to give a broad, balanced coverage of all important areas in
our life. Following are some areas where we must set our goals:

 Career- We must set a goal to achieve what we want to achieve in our life.
 Financial- How much do we want to earn in our life and at what stage?
 Education- Is there any knowledge we want to acquire in particular?
 Pleasure- How do we want to enjoy our self?
 Public Service- Do we want to make the world a better place?
Spend some time brainstorming for the above-mentioned things and then select one or more
goals in each category that best reflect what we want to do.

11.5 HUMAN PERCEPTION

Perception is the process of getting, interpreting, selecting, and organizing sensory
information. Perception usually deals with the human senses that generate signals from the
environment through sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste.
In other words, perception is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory
information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment.
All perception involves signals that go through the nervous system, which in turn result from
physical or chemical stimulation of the sensory system.
Humans have five basic senses: touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste. The sensing organs
associated with each sense send information to the brain to help us understand and perceive
the world around us. Sensory perception is often the most striking proof of something
factual—when we perceive something, we interpret it and take it as “objective” or “real”.
Most obviously, we can experience this with eyewitness testimonies.

Perceptual illusions can be seen, interpreted and used in two very different aspects: on the
one hand, and this is the common property assigned to illusions, they are used to entertain
people. They are a part of everyday culture; they can kill time. On the other hand, they are
often the starting point for creating insights.

Perception is the key to gaining information and understanding the world around us. Without
it, we would not be able to survive in this world filled with stimuli surrounding us. This is
because perceptions not only mould our experience of the world but allows us to act properly
within our environment.

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When individuals have a preconceived perception about a given person or situation it will
result in the reality of their expectation. Identifying and understanding the way the brain
processes information through our senses is one of the most beneficial tools of the cognitive
mind.

11.6 UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE

Understanding a person is a good quality of perception. Many factors influence this quality,
one of the important factors is the quality of listening. So, in this section we will discuss how
to understand people or how to read others. People who are good at understanding others are
usually good listeners. How to become good listener is one important question. Listening
skills can be built with the following practices:

 Practice listening well in every conversation.

 Pay attention to what the other person is saying.
 Train ourselves to think of listening as more important than talking.
The ability to read others will greatly affect how we deal with them. When we understand
how another person is feeling about a situation, we can communicate with that person in
suitable manner. Our message and communication style will also change according to that
situation. However, this is not the scenario always. Here are some tips for reading or
understanding others:
Create a baseline- Creating a mental baseline of others normal behavior will help us to
understand the person talking to us. People have different habit and patterns of behavior. For
example, they might clear their throat, look at the floor while talking, cross their arms,
scratch their head, stroke their neck, look sideways, show displeasure, or shake their feet
frequently. Initially, we may not even notice when others do these things. People display
these behaviors for different reasons. We can simply ignore these behaviors of the person and
concentrate on the matter he/she is trying to communicate.

Notice the deviations- Pay attention to irregularity between the baseline we have created and
the person's words and gestures. We may have noticed that a supplier of ours has the habit of
clearing his throat repeatedly when nervous. It is always better not to ask so many questions
that make him more confuse and nervous. In such situation talk to him normally that make
him comfortable.
Identify the strong voice- Confident people have strong voice. The most powerful person is
not always the one sitting at the head of the table. The most confident person is very likely to
be the most powerful one. He/she can have a good posture, strong voice, and a big smile. It is
always better to identify the strong voice from a group of people and listen carefully that
make us understand the person better.

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Identify action words- Words represent thoughts, so identify the words that have some
versatile meaning. Action words offer insights into the way a person thinks. Sometimes the
person in front of us do not speak the whole thing he/she wants to say. In such situation we
need to concentrate on his/her action words, find out the meaning of such words and act
accordingly.
Look for personality clues- Each of us have a unique personality, but there are basic
clarifications that can help us relate to another person so we can read him or her accurately.
Putting it all together

This is true that, it takes time to learn how to read people accurately. Though theoretically
some rules or clues are always there to follow to understand people, however it is also true
that there are exceptions to every rule. But keeping these principles in mind as we build our
powers of observation will greatly enhance our ability to read others, understand their
thinking and communicate effectively.

11.7 SOFT SKILLS

Soft skills relate to how we work. Soft skills are a combination of many skills like social
skills, communication skills, character or personality, attitudes, social intelligence and
emotional intelligence. Also, we can say soft skills include interpersonal skills,
communication skills, listening skills, time management skill and so on.

Soft skills are one of the major characteristics of a person and are always in great demand in
the workplace. Organizations normally look for job candidates with soft skills, as they make
it more successful in the marketplace. Someone can be excellent with technical, job-specific
skills, but if they cannot manage their time or work within a team, they may not be successful
in the workplace. Soft skills are also important to the success of most employers. After all,
nearly every job requires employees to engage with others in some way. This makes
candidates with soft skills to be very adaptable employees.
Soft skills are particularly crucial in customer-based jobs. These employees are in direct
contact with customers. It takes several soft skills to be able to listen to a customer and
provide that customer with helpful and polite service. Soft skills characterize how a person
interacts in his or her relationships with others. Finally, we can say soft skills of any person
include the following characteristics: Adaptability, Communication, Creative thinking,
Dependability, Work ethic, Teamwork, Positivity, Time management and many more.

11.8 SELF MANAGEMENT SKILLS

Self-management skills are the abilities that allow people to control their thoughts, feelings
and actions. If we have strong self-management skills, we will be able to set goals
independently and take the initiative to achieve them.

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Self-management means the ability to manage the daily tasks of our live. Whatever situation
comes in our life we can very easily manage it if we have self-management skill. It means
having the skills and confidence to take charge of our daily needs, our everyday roles and
responsibilities and our emotions. We are able to live a healthy live with our chronic health
condition. There are many factors that influence the routine of our daily life. Some of these
are fatigue, pain, depression, stress and anxiety that can result from having chronic
conditions. We can control or mange these facts with the following skills:
 Physical activity
 Healthy eating
 Managing pain and fatigue
 Managing stress
 Understanding emotions

DEVELOPING POTENTIAL AND SELF-

11.9
ACTUALIZATION
Self-actualization means the need for personal growth and development that may exists
throughout our life. If we are self-actualized, then we work hard to grow and become what
we want to be in life and reach our full potential. However, to achieve all these in our life we
need to answer some questions. Are we an honest person? Are we really creative? Are we
following strong moral/ethical standards? If the answer of all these “yes” then we may be on
our way towards achieving self-actualization.

Abraham Maslow was a prominent psychologist mostly known for his contributions to
humanistic psychology. His interests in human motivation and self-actualization stemmed
from his experiences both early on as a timid child and later on as a father witnessing the
horrors of World War II.

According to Maslow, people have lower order needs that in general must be fulfilled before
higher order needs can be satisfied. The 'five sets of needs are physiological, safety,
belongingness, esteem, and finally self-actualization'. This is illustrated in the below figure.
Although self-actualization is most often associated with Maslow, the term was first coined
by Kurt Goldstein. Goldstein characterized self-actualization as an individuation, or process
of becoming a “self,” that is holistic means the individual realizes that one’s self and one’s
environment are two pieces of a greater whole and acts as a primary driving force of behavior
in humans.

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Figure 4. Self-Actualization

Although Goldstein’s concept did not get much traction at the time, it was popularized when
Maslow adopted it into his theory on the human hierarchy of needs. Maslow discussed self-
actualization by stating, “What a man can be, he must be. This needs we may call it as self-
actualization”. In other words, self-actualization can generally be thought of as the full
realization of one’s creative, intellectual and social potential through internal drive, which is
reverse of external rewards like money, status, or power.

Since self-actualization is based on leveraging one’s abilities to reach their potential, it is a

very individual process and will probably vary significantly from person to person. Here we
will discuss the characteristics of a Self-Actualized Person. A self-actualized person is
described as someone who feels fulfilled and has accomplished all the things for which
he/she is capable of accomplishing in one’s life through personal growth and experiences.
These are the moments of deep meaning or emotion. Here are a few characteristics of a self-
actualized person:

 Problem-centered but not self-centered.

 Highly creative.
 Work hard and takes responsibilities.
 Strong moral/ethical standards.
 Honest and avoids deception.
This list of characteristics may or may not exist for every self-actualized person. We can be
self-actualized without being problem-centered if we have a number of other positive
characteristics relating to our desires in life. The ability to reach self-actualization is based on
our success in reevaluating what we need to survive in order to reach the accomplishment and

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fulfillment that we seek in our life. As human beings, we have basic psychological needs for
personal growth and development throughout our lives. By accomplishing self-actualization,
we are able to find meaning and purpose of our life.

11.10 NEED OF SPIRITUAL INTELLIGENCE

Spiritual intelligence is a term used to describe the understanding of life. This expands our
capacity to understand others at the deepest level. Also, this allows us to distinguish both the
'true cause' of behaviour without judgement, and serve the 'true needs' of others until they
themselves learn to meet their own needs. It helps us to understand the purpose of our
existence and to see things as they really are not as they appear. When we develop spiritual
intelligence, we enjoy an increased ability to pick out the actions, experiences, beliefs and
values that create greater meaning and purpose in our individual lives.

However, if we want to grow in spiritual intelligence, we must take action rather than simply
talking about it. It is important to commit time to a regular practice, such as meditation and
yoga.

11.11 POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Leadership and personality both are the hidden power as well as the key factors of
success.
 The words "leader" and "leadership" are often used incorrectly to describe people who
are actually managing.
 The word "leadership" can bring variety of images in mind. It could be a political
leader, an explorer or an executive.
 A PEST analysis is a strategic business tool used to find out, estimate, sort out, and
track the economic factors which can have an impact on business in the current
situation and in the future.
 SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis is a framework used
to evaluate a company's competitive position and to develop strategic planning.
 The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive
character is known as personality.
 Heredity refers to the influences on our personality that we are born with.
 Planning can be described as an intellectual process which is the key factor of any
business or organization that develops various cases of action, by which the
organization can achieve those objectives.
 Decision making is the most important outcome of planning.
 Goal setting is a process that identifies what we want to achieve and creating a plan to
achieve those desired results.
 SMART goal-setting process is when setting goals in Specific, Measurable, Agreed to,
Realistic and Timely.

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 Perception is the process of getting, interpreting, selecting, and organizing sensory

information.
 Humans have five basic senses: touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste.
 Soft skills are a combination of many skills like social skills, communication skills,
character or personality, attitudes, social intelligence and emotional intelligence.
 Self-management means the ability to manage the daily tasks of our live. This is the
ability that allows people to control their thoughts, feelings and actions.
 Self-actualization means the need for personal growth and development that may exists
throughout our life.
 Abraham Maslow was a prominent psychologist most known for his contributions to
humanistic psychology.
 Spiritual intelligence is a term used to describe the understanding of life.
 To develop spiritual intelligence, it is important to commit time to a regular practice,
such as meditation and yoga.

11.12 GLOSSARY
 PEST Analysis: Political, Economic, Social and Technological Analysis
 USP Analysis: Unique Selling Proposition Analysis.

 SWOT Analysis: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats Analysis

 SMART Goal setting Process: Specific, Measurable, Agreed to, Realistic and Timely.

11.13 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Descriptive type questions-
a. What is the quality of a leader? Define with example.
b. How leadership differ from managerial activities?
c. What is SWOT analysis? Where it is used?
d. Describe the major functions of planning.
e. What do you understand by human perception?
f. Explain the tips for understanding people.
g. What are the characteristics of soft skills?
h. Write a note on self-management.
i. What do you mean by self-actualization? Explain the differences in ideas between
Abraham Maslow and Kurt Goldstein’s concept of self-actualization.
j. Why we need spiritual intelligence?
Objective type questions-
a) Leaders and managers are considered as same person. (True / False)

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b) Heredity is an inborn factor that influences our personality. (True / False)

c) Decision making is not the important outcome of planning. (True / False)
d) Dependability is a characteristic of Soft Skill. (True / False)
e) Self-actualized person is always self-centered. (True / False)
f) USP Analysis … … ...
g) Scenario Analysis is a process of analyzing the … … ... events.
h) To develop spiritual intelligence, we need to do … … ...
i) SMART stands for … … ... … … ...
j) Abraham Maslow was a prominent … … ... … … ...
Answer (Objective Type Question)-
[a] True [b] True [c] False [d] True [e] False
[f] Unique Selling Proposition [g] Future [h] meditation and yoga

[i] Specific, Measurable, Agreed to, Realistic and Timely [j] Psychologist

11.14 BIBLIOGRAPHY / REFERENCE

 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal
Change Paperback – Special Edition, 19 November 2013
 Handbook of Self-actualization by Alvin Jones, Rick Crandall · 1991
 https://www.skillsyouneed.com/leadership-skills.html
 https://www.imd.org/imd-reflections/leadership-reflections/leadership-skills/
 https://thesystemsthinker.com/spiritual-intelligence-a-new-paradigm-for-collaborative-
action/

11.15 SUGGESTED READING

 Effective Communication and Soft Skills: Strategies for Success by Nitin Bhatnagar
and Mamta Bhatnagar, Pearson
 How to Win Friends and Influence People: Publisher: Simon and Schuster (1936),
Author: Dale Carnegie Publication date: October 1936
 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Revised and Updated: 30th Anniversary
Edition Kindle Edition by Stephen R. Covey (Author).

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UNIT- 12
LEADERSHIP

12.1 INTRODUCTION

12.2 OBJECTIVES

12.3 LEADERSHIP SKILLS: AN OVERVIEW

12.4 COMPELLING QUALITIES OF A GOOD LEADER

12.5 LEADERSHIP THEORIES

12.6 TYPES OF LEADER

12.7 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

12.8 IMPORTANCE OF LEADERSHIP SKILLS

12.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER

12.10 GLOSSARY

12.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

12.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

12.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

12.1 INTRODUCTION
Human resource is the biggest asset of any organization. Effective use of this resource is the
skill of its leader and the management. Leadership exists in every organization irrespective of
its size and function. A leader plays a pivotal role in the success of an organization and serves
as a bridge between the employer and employee. The success or failure in a sport or in a
business is mainly attributed to the ability of the person who leads it. Leadership is that
quality or driving force which persuades an individual to accept the objective of an
organization as ones’ own and strive to achieve it enthusiastically. Even in this technological
era an organization has a tough time in finding a suitable leader. In this unit let us discuss the
traits and importance of good leader.

12.2 OBJECTIVES
After the successful completion of this unit, we will be able-

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 To get acquainted with the concept of leadership and its need to influence people.
 To understand the need and importance of an eminent leader.
 To understand the types and traits of leadership.
 To assimilate the various theories of leaderships.
 To distinguish leadership and management.
12.3 LEADERSHIP SKILLS: AN OVERVIEW
The word ‘Leader’ is taken from the word ‘leader’ in old English meaning ‘to guide’, bring
forth’, ‘guidance’, ‘transformation’ etc. The word ‘leadership’ is a noun, leader+ship
meaning position of a leader. Leadership is the process of motivating and influencing others
to work willingly and enthusiastically to achieve predetermined goals. However, leadership
has a different meaning to different people starting from leading a family to running a
multinational organization. Even in varied situations the qualities of a leader remain the same
while the skills differ according to the needs of the organization or the situation. A leader has
an important role in both personal and professional life. He is the one who pushes people to
bring out their best in order to achieve the common goal in a given situation. They extend the
guidance needed for an individual to extend his contribution to the organization with great
zeal and enthusiasm.
Who is a leader?

The world has seen innumerable people who had taken the position of a leader. But all were
not motivating and inspiring, as some were ruthless, inhumane, and destructive creating
chaos amidst the people. A true leader is someone who can motivate people by creating a
positive impact in them. Great leaders have the ability to forecast things and make a strategic
planning with a decisive vision and persuade the followers to take that direction. They are
skilled enough to connect with people and make them work to make a vision into reality. A
great leader serves as the spine of a successful organization. An effective leader has
consistency and exhibits broad range of leadership attributes to get the job done. The
objective of leadership is not just getting a work done or achieving a stated goal but
accomplishing the task in a specific way which requires the involvement of the people whole
heartedly.

12.4 COMPELLING QUALITIES OF A GOOD LEADER

Leaders play an important role in determining the shape of a nation or an organisation.
Anyone can be a leader, but it really takes certain distinctive innate qualities for one to
become a great and inspiring leader. A great leader stands as an example in the society. His
life and actions create an impact on his fellow mates and followers.

[1] Honesty and Integrity

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‘Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching you’. A leader is one who
keeps up his commitment and words and has the courage to do the right things, even when
everyone is against him or something unpopular. A leader with great integrity fosters an
environment of courage, confidence and an uncompromising attitude among the employees.
Honesty is being transparent in all the dealings and the willingness to listen to others before
arriving at a decision. An honest leader always tries to keep up his commitment and promises
even during the time of difficulties. Honesty and integrity are considered to be the prime
quality of a leader and every employee sternly believes that a leader with honesty and
integrity will guide him rightly and treat him well. Such leaders coupled with competence
have high moral standards and are the most valuable asset to an organisation.

[2] Vision
Leadership is all about having a vision and developing a commitment to achieve it. An
eminent leader is one who articulates his vision clearly and develops a passion in his
followers and work relentlessly to achieve it. Ambitious leader has his vision manifested in
all his actions and beliefs which powerfully drives his employees to work towards it. A
visionary leader excites and motivates people and lead them with a clear direction for a well-
set purpose. They make people believe that they are working really for a better cause and
make them foresee their future while working in the present. Leadership vision should be
crystal clear to depict the future picture and feasible to inspire people to work for it. A great
leader makes his vision rational, reasonable, and credible enough to reflect the organisational
beliefs and values.
[3] Commitment and Passion

Commitment for a leader means to stick to his projects or tasks undertaken and completing it
at any cost. It also includes being courageous, leading the team by principles and inspiring
them to take up challenges. Passion is having an unwavering commitment and a relentless
desire to achieve a set goal. Passion is contagious and is strong to drive the values and
purposes into action to make it a reality. It all begins with the leader to elevate productivity
among the employee by influencing their activities to perform it in an exceptional way. A
passionate leader is sure to bring energy and focus in the minds of the employees that is
needed for the growth and success of an organisation. It sets the tone for sustainable and
continuous productivity of the people involved.
[4] Empathy

Empathy is the ability to understand one’s feelings and problems by placing oneself in others
shoes. It is a prime attribute of leadership, essential to relate to the feelings of another person
in a given situation and understanding the needs of the other person. Leaders who take time
or show concern towards their fellow beings succeed in building trust consequently
strengthening their relationship, thereby bringing out better collaboration and productivity.

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Empathy is a natural and inherent quality of human being and could be well expressed
through verbal and non-verbal cues in our everyday communication. An empathetic leader
takes effort to understand the root cause of poor or under performance of his team and
supports them to improvise in the task. Most of the organisations just focus on their personal
productivity and are negligent towards their employees’ well-being and fail to retain their
human resources which could be an asset. An organisation which encourages a culture of
empathy recognises and values the difficulties faced by its employees and tries to sort it out,
thus winning the support of them, who in turn work hard to turn the vision of their
organisation into reality. Empathy is an important managerial tool that has to be maintained
by every leader to bring tangible results which will help and motivate the team even through
the time of crisis.
[5] Positivity and enthusiasm

Positivity or an optimistic approach is one of the important characteristics of a great leader. A

leader who focuses on the end goal tries ways and means to achieve it and synergises to find
out the possibilities to succeed rather focusing on failure. They use strong and inspiring
words to keep up the spirit of the entire team to face new challenges. A leader with positive
attitude offers opportunities for the growth of his fellow mates to harness the hidden skills
and talents required for the success of the organisation. Enthusiasm is another quality of a
leader which inspires and influences people and drive them towards success. It is easy to
make people work out of fear or intimidation, but it is not productive enough in the long run.
Motivated people are confident, positive, and enthusiastic enough to lead people in a positive
way and handle obstacles and challenges with great resilience. A better solution to a problem
is always through the problem and people with a positive attitude are ready to handle
challenges head-on with great momentum and move forward. Attitude plays a great role in
influencing the lives of a leader and the team members as well and a positive attitude simply
radiates energy gravitating more people and energy towards us.

[6] Open mindedness

A leader with an open mind is respected by all as he is curious and patient enough to listen to
others perspective in each situation. Having an open mind when solving problems enables
one to be impartial with others opinion by being mindful over long-term implications. People
working under such leader will be happy to bring out their suggestions, creative and
innovative approach to handle things in a feasible way. Being open minded could be
challenging for a leader, but it paves way to growth and development for the people around
who share the same values and principles, particularly in a working atmosphere. A strong
leader is open to new ideas and is ready to explore things in a broader horizon while enjoying
the benefits of experimentation. Challenging the beliefs of oneself with innovative ideas and
open mindedness could be liberating and interesting way to increase productivity. It brings

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enthusiasm to the team while adding thirst for knowledge with better ideas and opportunities
thereby increasing involvement and boosting the morale of its members.

[7] Ability to delegate

Delegation is a skill which every leader should be a master at, because everything cannot be
done by the leader alone. The transition phase of a leader from doing to leading is a difficult
makeshift much needed to multiply the value of an organisation. A leader who involves
himself in each and every task is admired by everyone, but in the long run when
responsibilities multiply it becomes difficult for one to eventually manage things. Therefore,
it becomes essential to share responsibilities and collaborate with people for the best output.
Leader should know the knack to prioritise things and be wise enough to activate the team
members and bring out the best in them. This inspires the team members to get actually
involved wholeheartedly in the task they undertake and become accountable for their actions.
The onus lies on every leader to build a strong team and this could be achieved by proper
delegation of work to the right person for long term success. Expectations and the timeline of
the projects should be clearly set out along with the needed assistance for its execution. This
effort of the leader will go a long way in tapping the success of a team.

[8] Humility
The word ‘leadership’ reminds us of mightiness and qualities like vision, enthusiasm,
optimism etc. and the most essential humane quality called ‘humbleness’ is often overlooked.
People often are carried away by success and fame with the opinion that they can impress
others by their showboats. Showing off one’s achievements is not a sign which will bring
people together as a team. Humility is a trait which very few leaders possess and stay as an
inspirational image in the minds of the team members. Leaders who are humble, keep
themselves in the back-stage and try to promote and acknowledge the skills and talents of
others serving as a source of encouragement. Their very presence and open mindedness
enhance a collaborative environment as cohesiveness promotes team spirit resulting in better
productivity. Humble leaders are approachable and are admired by the people as they are able
to connect with them emotionally which is paramount to the growth of an organisation.
Leaders who believe in intimidating people may succeed in making his team, work for him in
the beginning, whereas in the long run humility helps to tap the best out of the team for
overall effectiveness. Humbleness enables one to connect, inspire and build a better rapport
with the people they are working with.

[9] Accountability
Accountability is the commitment; one has towards his actions and the responsibility for its
consequences. An accountable leader can build a team with high morale marked with
commitment better participation and involvement. Holding accountability for one’s actions is
a symbol of strength and courage of a person and gives complete control of the situation. It is

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always easy to play the blame game, but such people are never trusted neither by the
employer nor by the team members. An accountable leader always strives to achieve
executional excellence and has a good reputation and earns the trust of the team as they are
able to deliver the results they commit to. Effective leaders know how being accountable will
instil accountability among the employees and optimize the organisational performance. Such
leaders create an inclusive environment and motivate their people to put the best possible
effort. A disciplined leader has the sense of responsibility and contributes to the success of an
organisation.

[10] Inspiring
Passionate leaders are always inspiring, and their authenticity is reflected in every words and
actions of them. Inspiration is a quality which has nothing to do with one’s education,
background or status and is completely the attitude of an individual. A leader who has a
thorough knowledge of the task undertaken and is keen in accomplishing the task truly
engages with the people and inspires them to do what he wants. Developing a personal
connection with the team members through a good rapport is the prime quality of an efficient
and admirable leader that separates one from being an average leader. An inspiring leader has
a clear vision and clearly demonstrates it to the team members and keep them focused on the
goal. A leader who is authentic and has set principles, takes time to listen to others and show
empathy towards others. He makes his colleagues feel valued and always appreciate and
recognise the efforts and contribution of every individual in journey to success. Emulating a
positive attitude and demeanour coupled with a well-groomed look has a profound effect in
influencing people around. Inspiring leaders succeed in building a productive team and they
constantly strive for greater heights thereby enhancing the commitment of the human
resources involved. Their charismatic qualities drive enthusiasm in people to bring out their
talent optimally for the attainment of personal and professional growth.

12.5 LEADERSHIP THEORIES

Leadership theories are school of thoughts coined by eminent personalities and psychologists
to explain how certain qualities can differentiate an ordinary leader from an eminent leader in
the eyes of an organisation or the team members. Earlier the focus was on the qualities that
differentiated a leader and a follower, but currently the competition has turned towards
exceling as a leader and the various approaches to succeed. The following theories
demonstrate various traits and behavioural patterns of leaders as the situation demands.

[1] Trait theory

Trait theory focusses on various qualities and personality that creates a great leader. Carlyle
stated that a person is shaped into a leader by his inherent qualities and are not those which
could be inculcated. The practice of these traits determines the difference between a great and
a mediocre leader. Ralph M. Stogdill proposed that effective leaders possess certain traits

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prominently. It includes physical (appearance) demographic (social status, educational

background, age) cognitive skills (decision making skills, intelligence) and personality (self,
confidence, persistence, sociability, teamwork) factors. A person with these core skills is said
to possess the leader element in leadership process. In fact, these qualities could be honed by
any individual to hold a strong position in the organisation. It helps one to understand one’s
own strength and weaknesses and work towards improving oneself. Leadership skill is an art,
but still it depends how certain skills are utilised and developed. Self-confidence comes with
one’s knowledge in a particular task undertaken, while honesty and integrity are a matter of
personal choice and motivation to lead a team depends on the passion and determination to
achieve the said target. Ambitious leaders exhibit high energy and work persistently
demonstrating confidence and instilling the same in the team members. A great leader has
the potential to influence people thereby captivating them in his realm to lead.

[2] Behavioural theory

Behavioural theory evaluates a leader based on the qualities exhibited in the working
environment. This theory is a great leap from trait theory which states that leadership
qualities are those which are inherited by a person whereas behavioural theory states that
leadership qualities could be developed in time. It creates a sense of awareness in a person as
it greatly influences the productivity and motivational level of the team. This theory strongly
emphasises the point that great leaders are self-made and depends on the personality, beliefs,
values, and social skills of the individual. A survey carried out by the ‘Ohio State studies’ and
‘University of Michigan’s studies’ on leadership behaviour was based on two criteria namely
‘Initiating structure’ and ‘Consideration’. Initiating structure is all about how a person as a
leader is skilled enough in completing the task at hand by delegating it to the right person
with clear directions and motivating them to complete it in time. Consideration is
characterised by a person’s relationship with the others like mutual trust and the concern
which he shows. A leader who shows concern recognises the problems faced by others and
appreciates the efforts put in doing a work. One area which this theory fails to identify is that
there is no one particular set of traits which could be adopted by leaders of every field and
situation.
[3] Situational Theory

This theory comes with the assumption that there is no fixed style of leadership and the
success of leader varies with the techniques he adopts from one situation to the other. An
effective and skilful leader knows the tact to mould his approach differently as the situation
demands. It also depends upon the people whom he is supposed to lead. For instance, some
people are so lethargic and careless that require the authority to exercise their power of
control. In such cases, the leader is ought to be authoritative and commanding. On the other
hand, there are people who exhibit their full potential under liberty and here the leader is

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supposed to just assign the task with proper directions and then step back giving the members
the freedom to do it in their own manner. Leadership style varies with profession and a
particular style cannot be adopted everywhere, as there are certain field which requires
technical and domain skill while certain professions demand people skill or interpersonal
skills. ‘Hersey-Blanchard Model’ on situational theory states that leadership skill should be
based on the task undertaken and people oriented to ensure success in an organisation. This
theory has four different approaches of leadership style as ‘Telling’, ‘Selling’, ‘Participating’
and ‘Delegating’. Telling is where the leader gives complete guidance to the team and has an
authoritative approach in getting the task done. In ‘Selling’ method the leader assigns the task
and steps back and simply motivates them. A leader with participatory approach exercises
democracy and acts as one among the team by supporting and appreciating them, while a
delegating leader delegates the work and supervises the completion of the task. ‘Goleman’s
Model of Situational Leadership’ observes that a leader should adopt the concept of
emotional intelligence according to the situation to become successful. Effective situational
leaders are flexible and have a proper insight of the team members, show compassion, and
encourage them to increase their skills and elevate enthusiasm.

[4] Systems Theory

Systems theory of leadership is where one leads a team or a department, when is not in the
authority position but influences others and creates an impact in them by creating conducive
conditions so that they can work to their fullest potential. This kind of leadership is required
in a complex organisation which demands more of resources, ideas, and expertise of different
aspects. The leadership style and the strategy of an organisation is an innovative and adaptive
approach based on the behaviour of people, community, and the system. It can be used to
catalyse the organisational system and enhance its productivity. The key elements of the
Systems Leadership include three components namely ‘The individual’, ‘The Community’
and ‘The System’. This approach is better suited to complex entities with multiple challenges
and where the control is not vested in a single person. It involves the commitment of each and
every individual along with the coalition of the organisation to create an impact at a larger
scale. The strategy adopted should also be flexible and conducive as complex systems are
always amenable as the situation demands. Traditional and hierarchical approach of
leadership where the control goes from upward to downward direction cannot be applied in
an organisation with a complex structure working with several policymakers, stakeholders,
and research institutions. The leaders in systems theory develop their own abilities and those
involved in the system and catalyse the formation of a powerful network thus enabling
progress of the organisation in its entirety.

12.6 TYPES OF LEADER

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Leadership is a dynamic skill and constantly changes according to the system and the need of
the situation. A wise leader knows the knack to mould himself from one style to other. Great
leader has the ability to create a positive impact on the fellow workers and harness their
strengths and bring success to the organisation. Since ancient days history has seen many
personalities who have played the role of a leader and left a footprint of their style, as an
example for the future generation. Let us discuss, the following types of leaders and how
effective they are.
[1] Democratic leaders

A democratic leader gives the liberty to all the team members to voice their opinion before
taking any decisions. This gives a satisfaction that all the members have an equal opportunity
and participation in the system, though one is aware of the fact that the final decision lies in
the hands of the authority. Democratic leadership style fosters innovation and creativity and
is considered to be a commonly effective style as it enhances employee involvement and
workplace satisfaction.

[2] Authoritative leader

Authoritative leaders are autocratic in nature and always carry their power and authority with
them in all circumstances. They are never ready to involve the subordinates in any sort of
discussion or decision-making process and are simply expected to follow the instructions
given. This type of leadership is rarely effective and is exercised in organisations where there
is command and control style, or the chain of command is clearly followed. Team
collaboration is reduced and there is an increase employee turnover rate.
[3] Laissez-Faire leader

This style of leadership is in total opposition to an authoritative or autocratic leader. Here, the
leader exhibits his authority to the minimum and gives liberty to the people to express their
potential. A Laissez-Faire leader is successful, when he is working with a team of skilled and
organised people but fails when the members are less motivated and less target oriented. For
effective functioning, the right leadership style should be executed.
[4] Participative leader

Participative leadership is based on the democratic theory and intends to involve the team
members in any project related discussions or decision-making process. This approach
embraces the entire team and gives them a satisfaction of being included and engaged. The
leader arrives at a decision after reviewing the inputs of all the members. This leadership
encourages employee productivity and creativeness and helps in building a strong team. One
disadvantage could be the transparency of information which could be a threat to the
company’s security and the amount of time taken to arrive at a decision.

[5] Transformational leader

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Transformational leaders are those people who inspire the people and motivates them to
come out with their best skills and talents. This goes a long way in increasing the employees’
participation and productivity, thereby contributing to the success of the organisation. In this
case, there are chances that some members could be overused leading to exploitation of
human resource and over-expectation of the leader as well. These leaders tend to value
people and their calibre irrespective of the position they hold.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LEADERSHIP AND

12.7
MANAGEMENT

S.no. Leadership Management

Focus is on the short goals or the
1. Focus on the vision of the organisation.
current task at hand.
2. Drafting rules and policies. Implementing rules and regulations.
Provides the guidance and direction needed to Delegation of work and supervising
3.
carry out a particular task. their execution.
Managers tend to control and adopt
4. Leaders motivate and inspire people.
an authoritarian style.
Leaders have followers as they support and Managers minimize risks and cater to
5.
encourage their team to take risks. the needs of his team members.
6. Leaders are people oriented. Managers are task oriented.

12.8 IMPORTANCE OF LEADERSHIP SKILLS

Leadership skills is a must-have attribute for any individual to have better prospects career-
wise. Great leadership qualities can be inculcated and maximize the efficiency to achieve the
organisation goals. The following points justify the need of leadership skills for success.

 To motivate and build morale of the employee by instilling confidence in them.

 Vital to foster a strong ground for relationship and problem solving.
 To develop a sense of responsibility and ensure providing the needed guidance to
complete a task.
 To build a conducive and stable work environment to retain employees.
12.9 POINTS TO REMEMBER
 With the changing scenario of work culture leading a team of people is a great
challenge for any organisation.
 A leader is the greatest resource and should invest a considerable time in equipping
himself with technical skills as well as soft skills.

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 A vibrant personality with versatile skills has the potential to inspire others and fuel
change and progress at all levels.
 Great leaders serve as a role model and alters obstacles and hindrance as steps to
success.
 Several theories have been framed to study the behavioural patterns of various leaders
in varied situations. Yet, leaders have their own style of executing their power and
leading the team in improving productivity adhering to the values and integrity of the
organisation.
 There are several abstract attributes needed for an impactful leader and when practised
diligently it is sure to bring tangible results and transform the organisation to greater
level.

12.10 GLOSSARY
 Empathy- Empathy is the ability to understand one’s feelings and problems by placing
oneself in others shoes.

 Open mindedness- A leader with an open mind is respected by all as he is curious and
patient enough to listen to others perspective in each situation.

12.11 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Objective Type Questions-
a) Leadership is the ... ... ... of motivating and influencing others to work willingly and
enthusiastically.
b) ... ... ... is all about having a vision and developing a commitment to achieve it.
c) Laissez-Faire leader exhibits his authority to the minimum and gives liberty to the
people to express their potential. (True/False)
d) Leadership skills is not an important quality for career prospects. (True/False)
e) A democratic leader is one who ...
[a] allows the team members to voice their opinion.
[b] Tries to control and dominate the team members.
[c] Simply delegates the work.
[d] Doesn’t encourage innovative and creative ideas.
f) Leadership is all about ...
[a] motivating and inspiring people
[b] implementing rules and regulations
[c] controlling and commanding
[d] delegation of work
Answer (Objective Type Questions)
[a] process [b] Leadership [c] True [d] False
[e] allows the team members to voice their opinion

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[f] motivating and inspiring people

Descriptive Type Questions-
a) What are the compelling qualities of a great leader?
b) Analyses the various theories based on leadership.

12.12 BIBLIOGRAPHY/ REFERENCES

 The Leader Who had no Title – Robin Sharma –Jaico Publishing House; First edition (8
February 2010).
 The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership – John C. Maxwel HarperCollins Leadership;
Revised, Updated, Anniversary edition (21 August 2007).
 Principle-Centered Leadership – Stephen R. Covey Simon & Schuster; Export edition
(20 January 2003).

12.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

 Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ Paperback – September 27,
2005, by Daniel Goleman Bantam; 10th Anniversary edition (September 27, 2005).
 Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box Paperback – April 30, 2015, by
The Arbinger Institute Berrett-Koehler Publishers; Second edition (April 30, 2015).

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