Develop Self: CE1 - Communicate Effectively

In a nutshell, this module teaches us how to communicate effectively, lead team decision-making, and develop & maintain professional competence.

For the first day in class, we were asked to introduce ourselves, tell the class what we do (I'm an online writer in an MNC), and share who is the leader that we admire.

I mentioned Friedrich Nietzsche (above), who was a German philologist, philosopher, cultural critic, and poet. Many may not know him, but one of his quotes proved to be popular among us, which is “that which does not kill us makes us stronger” (I didn’t know this quote was by him, until today). However, the quote that made me idolizes this man was, “Morality is just a fiction used by the herd of inferior human beings to hold back the few superior men”.

There are many quotes by him which are rather, unconventional, but he is way ahead of his time and humanity can benefit from his belief.

I digress..

The first unit of this module is Communicate Effectively, which we were taught on how to adapt communication style, communicate ideas, and address barriers in communication.

I will just address the approaches to communications in this post with examples (if you want to know more, sign-up for this course with SENSE Mendaki!). There are three models of communication that we need to be aware of, namely Action Model, Reaction Model, and Transaction Model.

Action Model

Action Model is a one-way communication model, where the sender only communicates their messages without getting feedback from the receiver.

I write newsletter and create flyers for my clients, and these two are an example of the Action Model. Even though the receiver should understand the content of the newsletter and flyer by themselves, it is my responsibility to make sure that the content is accurate.

Reaction Model

Reaction Model is a two-way process, where the sender and receiver both exchange messages. For example, when I’m in a meeting with my bosses, we will discuss about the performance of the company and exchange ideas on how to improve further. There may be some internal noise affecting the discussion, which includes daydreaming, being tired (I’m guilty of this), and one’s emotional state. A productive discussion cannot be achieved if one is not paying attention. I used to have a colleague who was not paying attention during meetings. The result was catastrophic (I'm exaggerating, but this might be the case if we were handling a huge account).

Transaction Model

This is a model that both sender and receiver are sending and receiving at the same time. No one took a specific role, which makes him or her both the sender and receiver. This is common between two arguing individuals, where both will refused to listen and try to make their points. I can imagine the victims of Mobile Air @ Sim Lim Square having this model of communication to get their refunds.