MANAGERIAL COMMUNICATION

Prof. Megha Gupta

 What is Communication?
Communication is the transmission of an idea or feeling
so that the sender and receiver share the same
understanding.

Communication is not a mysterious process.

It takes place when the ideas from your mind are transferred
to another’s and arrive intact, complete, and coherent.
UNDERSTANDING & MANAGING
SELF
 JOHARI WINDOW
• This model is based on two ideas- TRUST can be acquired by revealing information about you to others and learning yourselves from their
FEEDBACKS.
• Each four window signifies personal information, feelings, motivation and whether that information is known or unknown to oneself or
others in four viewpoints.
• Open/self-area or arena – Includes information about the person such as his/her attitudes, behaviors, emotions, feelings, skills and views
that will be known by the person as well as by others. This is mainly the area where all the communications occur and the larger the arena
becomes the more effectual and dynamic the relationship will be. ‘Feedback solicitation’ can increase information about one’s blind spots,
reduce hidden area and lead to exploration of the unknown area.
• Blind self or blind spot – Information about yourselves that others know, but you are unaware of it. Others may interpret you differently
than you expect. The blind spot is reduced for an efficient communication through seeking feedback from others. In the example of public
speaking, you may develop some physical and unconscious habits. Things like rubbing your hands through your hair or averting eye contact
with the audience are physiological responses to being nervous. You probably don’t know that you’re doing these things, meaning you’re in
the blind area, but others can observe you doing them.
• Hidden area– Information that is known to you but will be kept unknown from others. This can be any personal information which you
feel reluctant to reveal. This includes feelings, past experiences, fears, secrets etc. We keep some of our feelings and information as
private as it affects the relationships and thus the hidden area must be reduced by moving the information to the open areas. audience.
• Unknown area – The Information which is unknown to both us and others. This includes the information, feelings, capabilities, talents etc.
This can be due to traumatic past experiences or events which can be unknown for a lifetime. The person will be unaware till he/she
discovers his/her hidden qualities and capabilities or through observation of others. Open communication is also an effective way to
decrease the unknown area and thus to communicate effectively. The key to this is that new experiences teach us things about ourselves
and others that would not have been known otherwise. Breaking into the Unknown area pane of the Johari Window model can help us get
out of our comfort zone and understand the world a bit better. It can be a challenge to bring awareness to the emotions, stresses,
feelings and thoughts that exist in the Johari Window unknown quadrant, but it’s not impossible. 
 Listening
• Hearing - a sensory process in which sound waves are transmitted to the brain and
someone becomes conscious of sound.
• Listening - a mental operation involving processing sound waves, interpreting their
meaning, and storing their meaning in memory
Listening is an active process.
• It involves understanding the meanings of words, expressions, and ideas.
• It is evaluating the content of the message. It requires the listener to assimilate, or
make a part of himself, the message or the thought being sent.
• Each of these process-understanding, evaluating, and assimilating-requires the
conscious action of the listener.
 Active Listening
• Show interest.
• Be understanding of the other person and use words such as “I see” or “I understand” to confirm your understanding.

• If there is a problem, listen for the cause and single it out.

• Help person associate problem with the cause.
• Encourage the speaker to develop ability and desire to solve his or her own problem.

• Learn to be silent.
• Restate what the speaker has said to let him or her know you are listening/ Paraph
End the conversation by repeating and confirming what has been discussed.

• Concentrate intently on the speaker.

• Practice reinforcing nonverbal behaviors, such as leaning forward, establishing and maintaining eye contact, etc.

• Be alert and attentive.

• Ask questions
• Imagine yourself in this person’s place.
Listening is needed everywhere…

• Listening skills form the basis of:

• Continued learning
• Teamwork skills
• Management skills
• Negotiation skills
• Emotional intelligence

9
… But not practiced effectively

• 70% of all communication is

• Misunderstood
• Misinterpreted
• Rejected
• Distorted
• Not heard

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Good Listening Is An Active Skill

Observing – what one does

Hearing – what one says and how
one says it
Feeling – how one is feeling
Sensing – what one has not said, but
wishes to or means to say
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Listening Skills
1. Have a purpose or reason for listening.

2. Ask questions.

3. Provide speaker with verbal and nonverbal feedback

4. Be aware of your attitudes towards the speaker and

attempt to listen objectively.

5. Wait before responding. Do not formulate your response

while the speaker is delivering the message.

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6. Listen with your eyes as well as your ears.

7. Listen for feelings as well as information.

8. Look for important themes.

9. Avoid imposing your values on the speaker. Listen

in a non-judgmental way.

10. Overlook negative aspects of the speaker’s delivery

which might interfere with your understanding
the message.

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Emotions
 Emotional Intelligence
• The ability to detect and to manage emotional cues and information.
• Self-Awareness: It’s the ability to accurately perceive one’s own emotions in the moment
and to understand ones tendencies across different situations. To improve self-awareness,
spend time thinking through them and lean into emotions. Only when one knows self, can he
understand others.
• Relationship Management: People with high EQ tend to be able to build strong bonds with
others through effective networking. They have the capabilities to develop others, to have
influence, to be change agents, be great communicators, manage conflict and exhibit great
leadership in their daily actions.
• Self-Management: It includes self-control, initiative, adaptability, a high achievement drive,
motivated, conscientiousness to complete what one is supposed to do, trustworthiness,
discipline. This helps you to achieve what you want in life. Management is the key to success.
• Social Awareness: This is about being empathic when dealing with others. It is the ability to
feel others' difficulties. It is also about taking on a service orientation, serving others to ensure
their total satisfaction is gained with their purchase of your product or service.
Basic Communication
Structure Intent
Nonverbal

Nonverbal
Less Structured More Spontaneous
Harder to Classify Less Control
Verbal

Verbal
More Structured Conscious Purpose
Easier to Study More Control
Types of Communication

One-way communication

Two-way communication

One to many
Most common ways to communicate

Spe ges
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 The Communication Process

• Communication is the process of transmitting information and common

understanding from one person to another. It ranges from one-way, two-way to
mass communication.
• Elements of communication process include sender, receiver, message, medium,
noise and feedback (Cheney, 2011).
 The Communication Process
• Sender: initiates the communication
• Receiver: the individual to whom the message is sent
• Encodes: The sender encodes the idea by selecting words, symbols, gestures, with which
to compose a message
• Message: The outcome of the encoding, which takes the form of verbal, nonverbal or
written language
• Medium/channel: carrier of communication that ranges from face-to-face, telephone,
email, whatsapp, social media, zoom/MSteams, written reports
• Noise: Anything that distorts the message, including various barriers from perception to
language to emotions to attitudes etc
• Feedback: Receiver responds to sender’s message and returns the message to the sender
• A problem in any one of these elements can reduce the effectiveness of
communication
 Barriers to Communication

Organizational
Personal Barriers
Barriers

Mechanical
Physical Barriers
Barriers
 Process Barriers
• Sender barrier: A new employee has an innovative idea but doesn’t voice it for
fear of being reprimanded
• Encoding barrier: A Japanese speaking employee cant get the English speaking
colleague to understand the grievance he is facing
• Medium barrier: A very upset employee sends an emotionally charged mail to
the manager
• Decoding barrier: An older colleague may not understand and appreciate being
called WOKE by a Gen-Z employee
• Receiver barrier: A preoccupied manager, may not listen to an employee who is
disturbed and mistakes her to be rude
• Feedback barrier: During a meeting, the failure of asking questions by the mana
 Physical Barriers
• Geographical distance, or proximity, noise, weather disturbances, natural
calamities
• Time pressures – hurried and shortened messages
• Physical distractions –noise, continuous telephone interruptions, people
walking in and out of the room, sender’s mannerisms, constant messages on
social media
 Personal Barriers

Psychosocial barriers can cause

Semantic psychosocial distance and Cultural
filtering

• Words • Attitude • Geographical

• Gestures • Bias • Economical
• Translation • Heightened emotions • Social
• Signs and symbols • Perceptual Variations • Religious
• Frames Of Reference • Values • Educational
• Background • Occupational
• Experiences
• Personality
• Mental competency
• Listening
• Expectation
Organizational Barriers
Structural Barriers
• Many levels
• Grapevine
• Upward, Downward & Horizontal

Status Effect
• Misinterpretation
• Distortion
• Exposure
• Criticism
• Reprisal
• Filtration
Mechanical Barriers
• Technical impediments
• Faulty channel of communication
• Noise in the channel
• Information overload / Underload
 How to overcome the barriers
For the sender
• Be clear about the message to be sent
•Plan well, what, how, when ,where, why, you want to communicate
•The purpose of communication- what is the goal and accordingly adapt language, tone, approach to serve that specific objective
• Be precise, focussed and to the point
•Can seek participation of others in planning communication
• Do not be verbose
• Use a language understandable to the receiver
•Be conscious of tone, expression, apparent receptiveness
•Be conscious of the physical surrounding: is the message better delivered in person or in public, expectations of the audience
•Be mindful of what the receiver interest, need etc especially when one has to persuade, influence or get the work done
•Follow up or revise or recap
•Asking questions
•Verbal to be consistent with the non-verbal
•Authenticity
•Listening
• Write the message if required
• Request a feedback to ensure receipt of message
For the receiver

• Be attentive
• Concentrate on the message
• Ask for clarifications wherever
required
• Listen objectively
• ‘Listen’ for body
language
• Make notes if required
Effectiveness Of Communication depends on:
Emotional
Prior State Informal -
Knowledge Of Grapevine
The Situation Group
Affiliations
Relationship
– Positional Experience

Belief
Language

Personality
Questioning Attitude
skills Cultural
Background
…. Effective Communication
Remove barriers ……. build gateways

Do’s Don’ts

• seek first to understand • remove all prejudices

and then to be
understood
• overcome any
distractions
• empathize with other
people • reduce length of
• values, beliefs, needs & communication
sentiments
• use a common language
• clarify ideas before
communicating
 Features of Effective
Communication
• Active Listening

• Eye contact

• Posture

• Simple language

• Questioning skills
Other helpful techniques to foster
communication
(both verbal and non-verbal)
Repeat the last
Nod Your Head word or two of the
prior speaker

Maintain eye Keep an open

contact body position

Make encouraging Repeat a sentence

statements or part of one
Conversion into positive communication
1. You never call me. 1. I wish you would call me more often.
2. You don’t listen to me! 2. Sometimes I feel I am not being listened to.
3. Everyone here hates me! 3. I sometimes feel people dislike me.
4. That’s a dumb idea. 4. Maybe we could try a different idea.
5. No one does anything here. 5. Let’s everyone work hard together.
6. Leave me alone! 6.
I need some time to myself right now.
7. You lied to me. 7.
I don’t think that I was told the complete truth.
8. Who invited you! 8.
I didn’t know you were coming.
9. You did a horrible job. 9.
I think you can do a little better.
10. You make me so mad. 10.
I get angry at you sometimes when you…
11. You are so inconsiderate! 11.
Sometimes I think you don’t consider
how I feel.
Don’t Underestimate the power of your voice, HBR 2022
• Voice greatly impacts our impressions
• Voice awakes the senses and lead others to act, close deals, or land us
successful job interviews - vocal presence
• Through our voice we create nuances of meaning, convey emotions, and
communicate our executive presence
• Exudes confidence
• Study of VOCALICS- nonverbal qualities of our voice
• 3 elements of VOCALICS
• 1. Stress (volume)
• 2 Intonation (rise and fall of tone)
• 3 Rhythm (pacing)
Don’t Underestimate the power of your voice, HBR 2022
A. Dial up the vocal volume to supercharge your messages
• Power of pitch or vocal resonance, ie, using volume to convey intention in
meaningful/strategic ways
• Place volume on certain words/ accentuating: shows emphasis,
information focus, used to change conversation coarse/ direction, shift
meaning of sentences and eventually the outcome
• We will have TWO tests next week or We will have two tests next WEEK
B. Spell strong executive presence using a powerful tone
• Purposeful tone
• Paralanguage-subtle vocal cues that we use to enhance the meaning of our words
• Melody of your voice, intonation: conveys meaning, emotion, attitude, helps to exude confidence/ authority
• Forward looking statements
• Contributors to powerless speech- intonation, filler words, hesitations, ADD EXAMPLES
• Hesitation speech type can end up others questioning your credibility, confidence, authority
• HOWEEVER, to soften statements, creating comfortable environment, inviting people to contribute, compassionate,
they are useful

C. Calibrate your vocal rhythm with the right melody

• Varying pacing
• Compelling paused, voiced punctuation
• Paced grouping of short phrases
• AUDIO EXAMPLE - creating anticipation to the listener
 How to give a killer presentation – ppt/public speaking
• 1. Frame your story
• Worth
• Conceptualizing & framing most crucial
• We are wired to listen to stories, most engaging
• Successful talk can change the way people think
• If you frame talk as a journey, decide where to start and end
• To start, consider what the audience already know about your subject and how
much they care about it
• If we assume they know more, than they do, technical jargons can disengage them
• SUPER speaker- quickly introduce the topic, explain why they care about it,
convincing the audience members they should too
• Don’t try to cover a lot of ground or over-explain
• 2. Plan your delivery
• Delivery can be read out, use bullets or memorize completely,
• Read out- audience can feel distant, and then be disengaged, can feel
formal, lack of connect with audience
• Memorize- lots of practice, rehearsals
• Bullet points- understand how you will transition
• have a conversational tone
• 3. Develop stage presence
• Content and substance is most important
• Stage presence can be developed
• Hand gestures, movement o n stage (should be natural)
• Eye contact
• Power posing
• Breathe deeply
• Nervous energy can help with lkeeping mind sharp and improve
performance
• Vulnerability, can create engagement, eg susan ted talk
 Mix of data and narrative
• Layer information and story
• Research findings- limit presentation to key takeaways
• Financial presentation- facts, add thread of narrative to appeal to
emotional side, visuals
• Product launch- focus on value that the product brings to the world, tell
stories and how it will change lives for real
• VC pitch- crisp well-structured story that conveys your idea in 10 min or
less, then let Q&A drive the rest
• Keynote address- high impact opportunity for audience to go on
transformative journey, use clear story framework and engage emotionally
• 4. Plan multimedia
• Don’t read it out
• Keep it simple
• Photos/videos can enhance
• Interesting multimedia can boost the visual punch of the talk
• Can help frame and pace the talk
• Avoid very abstract language
• NO ego trips
• 10 WAYS TO RUIN IT – long explanation at beginning, speaking v
slowly, talk about own importance, numerous text in various fonts, lots of
technical jargon, not rehearsing talk time, not focusing on non verbals
• 5. Putting it together
• Practice with self and others!
• Helps you get feedback

• QUALITY OF IDEA
• NARRATIVE
• PASSION OF THE SPEAKER
 General Guidelines

• Purpose
• You need to define your purpose for giving the
presentation
• Often your goal is a high level overview, even for a
technical presentation
• Don’t tell them everything you did, you’ll bore them
• Organization
• Always have an outline
• Tell them what you’re going to tell them, then tell
them, what you told them
• Hint: I am doing this for this presentation
• Problem then solution
• Not just “data then solution” or “solution then problem”
General Guidelines
• Preparation
• An unprepared presenter loses the audience before
even starting
• Practice makes perfect and builds confidence
• Arrive early, make sure everything is set up
• Dress appropriately
• Slides should be done well in advance
General Guidelines
• Time
• Be sure you know how much time you have while preparing
the presentation
• Not 5 minutes before you start
• It is better to end early than to go over
• Always have a watch or clock in view
• You’ll never have enough time to tell everything so stick to
the most important
 General Guidelines
• Audience
• Be sure you know your audience well
• Tailor presentation to your audience
• Failure to do this is probably the biggest mistake people make
• Are there multiple audiences?
• If so, direct different slides to different audiences
• Watch the audience for clues
 Making good PPTs
• Slides are just something you layer over it to enhance the listener experience.

• Standardize position, colors, and styles and keep in mind the audience size.

• Limit the information to essentials.

• Explore option of one idea per slide.

• Keep audience in mind.

• Content should be self-evident.

• Use transition slides.

 Making good PPTs
• Use colors that contrast and compliment.

• Be conscious of usage of effects.

• Spell-check.

• Keep the background consistent and subtle.

• Use legend for tables, graphs.

• Give source of data, quotes, etc.

One idea per slide
Limit the information to essentials
TYPES OF COMMUNNICATION

One-way communication

Two-way communication

One to many
Use limited text
Use limited font size and styles, consistently!
Use colors and contrast
Summarize
 Persuasion
• Effective persuasion involves careful preparation, proper framing of arguments, evidence for support,
efforts to find emotional match with your audience
• Persuasion involves, enthusiasm, passion, thoroughness, expertise, active listening
• Before the process, effective persuaders learn about audience opinions, concerns and perspectives
• Effective persuaders invite people to discuss, give feedback and suggest alternative solutions
• Effective persuaders only listen to others but incorporate their perspectives into shared solution
• When people see persuader is willing to listen to their views and is willing to make changes in response
to their needs, then people also respond positively
• Credibility helps with persuasion
• Expertise - People with expertise have history of sound judgement, proven themselves to be
knowledgeable, well informed about their proposals, hence build credibility
• Relationships- People with good relationships have shown they can be trusted to listen and work in best
interest of others
Have a presence, If you want to lead master this skill, HBR 2021

• Rely on feedback
• Balance of warmth and competence
• Eye contact
• Project your voice
• Dress up for effective communication
• Influential people- balance of warmth and competence (warmth signals your intention are good and competence
supports you acting on those intentions)
• Before important meeting, focus and visualize how you want to show up
• To have a presence be present
• Be in tune with content and people in the room
• Experiment with new behaviours
 How to sell your ideas up the chain of command, Ethan Burris, HBR, 2022

Key is to be confident in making your suggestion and knowing how to frame it to get the best reception.

1. Understand mangers’ insecurities

• Establish trust & goodwill
• Give positive feedback which is genuine and specific
• Help others as managers notice it and know you are invested in growth of the team and the organization
• Negative feedback- the feedback has to be given in private, the tone and framing has to be tactful…I
WANT BEST FOR YOU
• Framing of ideas- should be linked to company’s goals

2. Avoid mixed messages

• Don’t mix opportunity and threat in the same message, it can be confusing, it increases time to process
and overall cognitive load
• Frame proposal based on PROMOTION FOCUS (play to win, aspirational, future based) or PREVENTION
FOCUS (vigilant, risk averse, safe), give ideas accordingly tailor made to manager’s personality.
3. Make implementation easy
• Think of potential obstacles
• What are the financial, HR etc resources required, is it worth devoting one’s time and efforts and resources
• How can these potential obstacles be managed
• Talk about company’s values while selling the idea

4. Leverage colleagues
• Allies help in getting leader on board, diffuse anger
• Before going to a leader run it by peers, friends, co-workers for counsel, See if you can get their support
while presenting the ideas
• Someone Superior and who has a good relationship with the boss is helpful in persuasion

5. Pitch to the right person

• Identify right person
• Sometimes may need to use formal grievance process or digital suggestion box
• Making the boss a collaborator will help in support and also in crafting arguments that will resonate with
seniors.
Appreciation
• In a world utterly reshaped by technology, people are hungrier than ever before for a deeper and more authentic
sense of humanity (Bill Taylor, HBR, 2020)
• Timely
• Genuine/authentic
• Generous
• Small gestures-thank you notes
• Mails
• Giving credit
• Praise in public
• Quick message of appreciation
• Important in motivating, recognizing, connecting with people
 Giving feedback
• INTENT – Do you genuinely want to help?

• AUTHENTICITY- See it as an opportunity to connect through conversation, kindness & compassion

• TONE- Positive, open, and supportive feedback style, establishes trust

• CONTENT- specific meaning feedback which is not sandwiched between empty or vague compliments

• TIMELY – timely feedback is better received and gives scope to the receiver to improve before next assessment
•
• QUESTION- a question can help the recipient to reflect

• ACTIVE LISTENING

• NON-VERBALS- Facial expressions, body language, eye contact, tone of voice

• POSITIVE- specific, meaningful, genuine, sincere

• CRITICAL - genuine, explain the intent, factual, unthreatening, confidential, bigger picture, ask for solution and
draft it together

• Don’t give feedback in heat of the moment!

 The right way to take feedback, HBR, 2022

• Intent – current performance, scope to improve, validation.

• Consider feedback provider’s motives, position, intent. Do they genuinely want to help? Do you trust
them?

• Taking feedback in the right spirit is critical.

• Processing feedback involves continuous reflection, conversation and practice.

• Hold feedback with neutrality, grace the moment you receive it, it allows to be better listener and not take
it as personal attack.

• If you disagree, no need to react immediately, try reflective mirroring- where you can restate what the
feedback provider said but in a slightly different way.
 How to Signal Receptiveness in a Disagreement

I HEAR you..

1. Hedge you claims – “ I think its possible that…”; “This might happen because..”; “Some people tend to think”;
2. Emphasize agreement – “I think we both want to”; “I agree with some of the what you are saying..”; “We are both concerned with..”
3. Acknowledge other perspectives – “I understand that…”; “I see your point..”; “What I think you are saying is..”
4. Reframe in positive terms – “I think its great when…”; “I really appreciate it when…”, “It would be so wonderful if..”
 The Gentle Art of Saying No
• We often do not look at saying “no” as a skill or something that is essential to success and happiness
• What’s so hard about saying no?
• Well, to start with, it can hurt, anger, or disappoint the person you’re saying “no” to
• It is even more difficult in close relationships or to seniors at the workplace
• We don’t want to offend people
• We want to come across as a nice person
• We want to be thought of as a team player by our peers in the workplace
• FOMO.
• Desire to help others
• We are afraid to say no, to let people down and ultimately, to avoid confrontation/ confrontation of people’s request/ expectation.
• The stress of saying no often makes us say yes automatically. When we say yes reluctantly, we complain or blame ourselves, “why
couldn’t I just say no?”

• What’s the issue if you don’t say no?

• If you spread yourself too thin, you will not be able to get anything done, at least not well or on time.
• Research from the University of California in San Francisco shows that the more difficulty you have saying no, the more likely you
are to experience stress, burnout, and even depression.

• Are non-verbals important?

• Eye contact, soft facial expressions, body language.
• Be mindful of tone- people may forget your “NO”, but they will never forget how you said it.
• What can help?

• Value your time- know your commitments, the time they will require.

• Know your priorities – even if there is some spare time, is this how you want to spend it?

• Set your boundaries- When you make it easy for people to grab your time they will continue to do it. However, if you set boundaries, they will look for
easier targets.

• When you say no, realize that you have nothing to feel bad about.

• You have every right to ensure you have time for the things that are important to you.

• Stop wanting to be nice all the time, at the cost of your own well-being and the ones important to you.

• Looping in the boss- explain to your boss that by taking on too many commitments, you are weakening your productivity and jeopardizing your existing
commitments.

• Find your yes- Before you can become good at saying no, you have to know what you're saying yes to when you're saying no. You see every opportunity
that you pass with a no is really saying yes to something else − something that you'd prefer to do or something more important to you in the long run.

• See if there is anything else you can say YES to- this helps to make the no more palatable.

• Being genuine, honest and having a positive approach is helpful. Ensure one is polite, but assertive. One doesn’t have to apologize or appear weak.

• Frame your reasons/ arguments in support of why you are saying no.

• The indirect no- Don’t say no immediately, rudely, curtly, or abruptly.

• What phrases can be useful?
• “I would love to work with you/ on this project/ etc but my plate is already overloaded as is.”
• “While this is an exciting opportunity, I don’t want to overcommit and under-deliver.”

• Instead of providing an answer then and there, it’s often better to tell the person you’ll give their request some
thought and get back to them. This will allow you to give it some consideration and check your commitments and
priorities. Then, if you can’t take on the request, try saying no this way:
• “After giving this some thought, and checking my commitments, I won’t be able to accommodate the request at this
time.” Atleast you gave it some consideration.
• Maybe later- “This sounds like an interesting opportunity, but I just don’t have the time at the moment. Perhaps you
could check back with me in [give a time frame].” or “I just have to look at my calendar, let me get back to you
about that.”

• It’s not you, it’s me- If you feel the project or idea or work opportunity is good, you can compliment the idea, the
project, the person, the organization—but say that it’s not the right fit, or it’s not what you’re looking for at this time.

• Telling what you are going to do instead of what is asked is much better than direct no, as not many people are
good in handling NO.

• Instead of outright NO, you may ask to suggest an alternative medium to seek help/guidance since you are occupied
with your work or you have someone better in mind, who would be better to ask for help.
• Make sure you are actually saying no, and not giving ambiguous sentences that can easily lead to
miscommunication-- Avoid phrases like “I don’t think I can” or “I’m not certain.” Using limp phrases instead of
saying no will often be considered a yes. Direct yet respectful no is much better than giving response that send mixed
signal to requester.

• The conditional yes- When your boss asks you to collect information before the end of the day, you cannot say
no to that. What we can do is to force our boss to prioritize. If you work in sales, for example, you can say, “I can
give you the information, but that means that I cannot make the ten calls we agreed on today. Is that all right?” With
this conditional yes, we force people to prioritize. It shows that you have other things on your plate.

• If you don’t have time to take on the task or the proper resources to get it done, then the right answer (for everyone) is
“no.” A skillful way to do this is to sit down with the person and talk through their request and walk them through the
position it puts you in if you were to say yes.

• Remember that when you learn to say no, isn’t about being mean. It’s about taking care of your time, energy, and
sanity. Once you learn how to say no in a good way, people will respect your willingness to practice self-care and
prioritization.
 First Impressions

Always be prepared to look and sound your best.

Know that people will look at your face and neck first. Good grooming is essential.

People will glance at your feet next. Make sure that your shoes are well maintained and appropriate.

Focus on the other person. Use the person’s name immediately in conversation.

This sends a message that you are interested in them and pay attention to details.

Express some form of appreciation within the first few words. Say “thank you” to others for their time
and effort in meeting with you .

Smile and make eye contact. You will make other people feel good about themselves and about you.
 Handling Introduction

• Introducing Yourself

Make sure to look people in the eyes and smile in order to

seem confident and approachable.

If you are seated while being introduced to someone, stand to

greet that person and shake his or her hand.

Have a firm handshake, but avoid death grips.

 Small talk in Social Situations
Try not to interrupt people in the middle of a story.

If you must interrupt, always excuse yourself and try to get back to what the other person was saying as soon as possible.

Don't talk too loudly or for too long; these actions might make you seem self-centered.
Stay away from negative conversation

Never tell rumors or point out major faults in others.

If the conversation gets sour, switch the tone as soon as possible.

Close the negative topic and ask a question to redirect the conversation.

If all else fails, talk about the weather, but keep the conversation positive.
If you have problem in starting a conversation, equip yourself with easy conversation starters.

Try watching the news or reading an interesting article.

Asking people questions is always a great way to keep a conversation going as well: People love to talk about themselves or a
topic about which they know a lot.
Topics such as age, marital status, income, property, religion, etc. are considered aspects of privacy. Avoid using them. Safe
topics that cause no offense would be weather, sports, jobs, hobbies, holidays and other forms of relaxation.