{"id":145,"date":"2018-08-29T12:07:13","date_gmt":"2018-08-29T16:07:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/cmn279\/chapter\/10-1-verbal-communication-and-conversation\/"},"modified":"2023-12-19T21:15:29","modified_gmt":"2023-12-20T02:15:29","slug":"10-1-verbal-communication-and-conversation","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/cmn279\/chapter\/10-1-verbal-communication-and-conversation\/","title":{"raw":"10.1: Verbal Communication and Conversation","rendered":"10.1: Verbal Communication and Conversation"},"content":{"raw":"
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Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\n1. Explain how to use your voice effectively in professional situations.\r\n\r\n2. Identify the five stages of a conversation and general strategies for improving conversation skills.\r\n\r\n3. Communicate effectively by telephone in a professional manner.\r\n\r\n4. Plan and deliver short, organized spoken messages and oral reports tailored to specific audiences and purposes.\r\n

i. Use effective and engaging language and non-verbal behaviours.\r\nii. Use verbal and nonverbal techniques to enhance spoken messages.\r\niii. Communicate via voice messaging.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nYour professional success depends on having advanced people (a.k.a. \u201csoft\u201d) skills because most jobs require you to talk to people. Key among these is skill in speaking to and conversing with others in person. Retail sales, for instance, requires the ability to listen carefully to what a customer says they want and \u201cread\u201d their nonverbals to determine what exactly to say and how to say it in order to close the deal with a purchase. Aside from a handful of jobs with minimal human interaction (Gillett, 2016)<\/a>, the vast majority require advanced soft skills to deal effectively with customers or clients, coworkers, managers, and other stakeholders. Though we\u2019re not born with them, everyone has the capacity to learn, develop, practise, and apply verbal and nonverbal skills to benefit those audiences, their company as a whole, and themselves.\r\n\r\nYou\u2019ve certainly participated in countless conversations throughout your life, and the process of how to conduct a conversation may seem so obvious that it needs no explanation. Still, you can tell that some are better than others at conversation and some argue that technology is preventing many from developing these skills, so it\u2019s worth breaking down how an effective communicator approaches the art of conversation. A skilled professional knows when to speak, when to go silent and listen, as well as when stop speaking before the audience stops listening. Further, understanding conversation provides a solid foundation for this guide\u2019s crucial advice on job interviews (see \u00a710.3<\/a> below), which follow similar ritual patterns and have their own set of expectations. Though these expectations may differ depending on the field, level, knowledge, and experience, they generally follow the five steps of a basic conversation discussed in this section. First, however, it\u2019s worth examining the voice as the pre-eminent communication channel, how to refine our interpersonal skills in the face of the stunting effects of problem technology use, and how to use voice-only technology effectively.<\/b>\r\n

<\/a>Verbal Communication and Conversation Topics<\/h2>\r\n