Archive for January, 2009
How to Communicate with Children : The Importance of Being Clear as a Parent
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Be transparent and clear when talking to your kids. Learn how to better communicate with children with these video instructions on psychology.
Duration : 0:1:32
JWA Video: Communication Skills That Build Winning Relations
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Are underdeveloped communication skills holding YOU back?
One of the biggest mistakes we make each day at work and in our homes is to under estimate the power of communication. We simply take for granted that communication really is a tool, and that it can help “make or break” us. This training program shows us how our daily communication skills can dramatically propel us to new levels of success. You’ll get an inside-out look at the two basic categories of communication: Internal – the voice within, and Interpersonal – listening and dealing with others. Each category is explored in detail to help advance your understanding of how to create effective communication.
Duration : 0:2:14
Improving Interpersonal Perception : Verifying Perception With Direct Communication
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Verifying perception with direct communication is important for improving communication and relationships. Learn about using direct communication to check perceptions in this free communication skills video.
Duration : 0:1:20
Improving your Communication Skills
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Learn a simple but vital principle in effective verbal communication. For more FREE lessons, visit: www.benchmarkedu.com
Duration : 0:1:49
Nonviolent Communication Skills Role Play NVC or Active Listening
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Role Play of Nonviolent Communication Skills ( NVC or Active listening ) founded by Dr. Marshall Rosenberg. Nonviolent communication skills is modeled in a role play with Mel Sears and Rick Goodfriend from the Compassionate Connection TV Show in Santa Barbara, California. !@#$
Help celebrate World Empathy Day every Weds and bring peace into your world. See www.empathyday.com . Nonviolent Communication ( NVC ) ia also known as Compassionate Communication. !@#$
Duration : 0:7:33
Why Business Audiobooks Are Ideal Business Mentors
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Are you looking for a business mentor to inspire and motivate you to success but can’t find or afford one? Business audiobooks may just be the ideal business mentoring solution you are looking for to help you grow and succeed.
Statistics show that ninety-seven million Americans drive alone to work everyday — and that doesn’t even include those who commute by bus, train or car pool! With the average commute to and from work now reaching over an hour each way, that’s almost two months of your life each year spent in transit or sitting in traffic. Just think how much you could improve your business or advance your professional career simply by listening to spoken audio recordings containing excellent information on how to improve your sales approach, communication and people skills, how to market your business better, ways to improve your customer service, etc. during this time.
With the rising popularity of MP3 players and iPods, and more new cars being fitted with built-in MP3 players (as of this year, almost all new cars are now capable of playing digital audio files), more business people are discovering that music or the news is not the only thing they can listen to while going about their busy day. Now, people can “listen” to business books, business seminars, sales and marketing lectures and podcasts from successful business people while they’re on-the-go — and when they don’t have time to read. Hence, the huge emerging popularity of audio books with commuters and business owners.
Today’s mobile and “time-starved” business owners, sales managers and sales professionals are discovering that they can download an unlimited amount of information into their brain, learn a foreign language or new skill that will improve their business, and get that competitive business edge while driving in their cars, commuting in trains and buses, or even while standing around in queues.
Most business people love to improve their business acumen via reading and taking courses, but lack the time to do so. This is where spoken audio recordings can play an important role in their professional lives.
Business audio books narrated by successful business people can act as an ideal mentoring tool for business owners (one specific title that comes immediately to mind is the audiobook version of Michael E. Gerber’s business classic “The E-Myth: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work And What To Do About It” read by the author himself!). Imagine all the money you can save on consulting fees and the knowledge you will gain, just by listening to an audio book written and narrated by a business expert while driving, or commuting to work on a bus or train.
Not only will you get mentored by some of the best business minds in the world and gain a competitive business edge by acquiring the latest business information listening to spoken audio recordings on business-related topics, you will also get yourself into the right “state of mind” for doing business successfully.
Just think about it! You arrive at work or at a sales presentation after having been “coached” by a successful business owner while driving or commuting, your mind is immersed in business thoughts and you’re most likely inspired by a great business idea or tip you’ve just heard. You walk into a meeting and you are focused. Your mind is sharp. Your energy is positive and you look vibrant. Your brain is filled with new business strategies and ideas and working subconsciously with these to help you achieve the best results and outcomes no matter what daunting tasks, projects or challenges may lie ahead for you in your busy day.
As a business person, you can now use the amazing value inherent in listening to audio books to gain a competitive business edge over others. You won’t have to worry about not having the time or will to flip through the pages of a book. You can now “listen” to business books when preparing to go to work in the morning, when commuting to and from work, etc.
Currently, there are thousands of best-selling business audiobook titles available. If you are at a loss for specific business audio books to get started, here are 5 of some of the best that any business person should listen to:
1. “How To Win Friends And Influence People” – by Dale Carnegie
One of the most important aspects of any business is the fact that PEOPLE are a crucial part of its success. This is true in almost every aspect of human activity, and especially in business. We need people to keep our businesses going and growing. Not just the people that bring us new sales and new customers, but also the people that make the sales possible, the people who deliver our products, handle complaints, run the administrative aspects of the business, and so on. To be able to succeed in business and other areas of life, we all need to know “how to win friends and influence people”. That’s why this incredible book by Dale Carnegie is a “must have” for any person in business. With the power of the information contained in this classic book, you can learn not just how to influence people so that they bring in more sales for your business, but most importantly how to win staff, suppliers, customers and prospects over as friends to help you make future sales possible. This book is available in audio book format, so you can enjoy listening to it in the comfort of your car while driving or commuting.
2. “E-Myth Mastery” – By Michael E. Gerber
Michael E. Gerber is the world’s leading small business guru and bestselling author of the phenomenally successful “The E-Myth Revisited”. In this audiobook version of his follow up book, “E-Myth Mastery”, Michael Gerber presents the next big step in entrepreneurial management and leadership. This audiobook presents a practical, real-world program that can be implemented in real-time in your business. The E-Myth credo — Don’t work IN your business, work ON it — is spelled out here in the seven essential disciplines followed by every leader of a world-class enterprise. Each discipline provides the leadership keys for unlocking success in the critical areas of business development: Leadership, Marketing, Finance, Money, Management, Client Fulfillment, Lead Conversion and Lead Generation. E-Myth Mastery is the ultimate business development program that will help you recover your passion and turn your company into a world-class operation — a turn-key machine for the money and satisfaction that only a successful entrepreneur can enjoy.
3. “Zig Ziglar’s Secrets Of Closing The Sale” – By Zig Ziglar
All of us are involved in selling every day. Whenever we present a product or a principle, inform a client, or instruct a child, we are engaging in the art of effective persuasion. Zig Ziglar is America’s master of the art of selling and in this audiobook, he explains proven, practical sales techniques all of us can use every day. He also provides vital strategies for specific closes, hundred of sales questions, and dozens of persuasion procedures to help everyone sell their ideas, or themselves. No matter what your age, gender, occupation, or lifestyle, these proven techniques from America’s selling sensation can work for you.
4. “Jack: Straight from the Gut” – by Jack Welch
Jack Welch is unquestionably one of the world’s most successful CEOs ever. In this powerful and thought-provoking audio book, Jack tells his own story, detailing how you can follow his steps to become one of the most successful persons in your career today.
5. “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make The Leap” – by Jim Collins
You can’t argue with the fact that “without the techniques and strategies, no company or business can excel beyond a few days, weeks or even months”. Businesses and companies that have stood the test of time for many years know what to do and they have done it right. Jim Collins took the time to conduct extensive researches into how and what companies did to maintain success for many long years, while their counterparts failed within a few months or years of starting up. The power of the information contained within this audio book can help any business person to succeed.
These 5 audio books can truly help you improve your business, your career and your life, if you will simply take the time to listen to them and apply what you will learn. Before your next sales presentation, job interview, or important business meeting, take some time to go online and browse through an audiobook store for a downloadable business audiobook that you can burn to CD, or upload to your iPod or MP3 player. It will not only empower you to achieve better business results and improve your life, it will also give you a competitive edge over those who are spending their drive or commute time engaging in less productive activities.
For more articles and information about the benefits of audiobooks, visit http://www.audiobookone.com .
What Business Coaches Do
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Business coaching is a practice of developing and honing business skills, to achieve substantial results in the organizational structure of a business. It helps you to improve and achieve the desired success. It enables a business owner to create a unique business plan that would reflect his identity. A business coach emphasizes on the importance of interpersonal commcommunication skill> in accomplishing an assignment or a project. He helps to deal with the practical problems and identify realistic solutions to them.
The basic responsibilities of a business coach are as follows:
A business coach enables you to develop the basic qualities required by a self-employed person and helps you to focus on your goals, make concrete plans and work towards executing them in an effective manner. The basic responsibilities of a business coach are as follows:
a) A business coach works towards strengthening the morale of the student, so that he can take charge of the responsibilities assigned. It will make the student accountable of his actions, as well as the likely consequences. In a way, it helps him to keep an open mind and analyze every situation critically, with respect to the available information.
b) It is very important to help a student identify the right direction and move forward, to achieve the desired results. However, it requires a considerable amount of planning and development of strategies. A business coach reviews the plans and strategies and makes suggestions, to ensure development consistency.
c) A business coach helps the student to realize the significance of openness in communication. It forms the basis of a successful business, as it minimizes confusion and clears doubts. It often leads to self-correction and an understanding that is required to focus on performance base issues and behavior.
d) A business coach enables students to inculcate leadership qualities and teaches them to be leader in their chosen fields. He leads the team by being a part of it.
e) An experienced business coach believes in sharing views and not dictating them. In case of a conflict, he tries to find a middle path. This path often helps the person to make a profitable decision.
f) He challenges the student, to widen his horizon and search for options even when there seems no possibility. This boosts his level of confidence.
g) The coaches teach you to relate to people in an effective manner. This in turn, builds and strengthens partnerships based on mutual appreciation and respect. Eventually, it helps the executives to understand, analyze and find solutions to their problems, with the timely assistance of the business coach.
h) Business coaches help people understand their strengths and weaknesses in a better way, so that they become aware of their hidden potential and work on their weaknesses.
i) A business coach acts as a guiding factor in motivating the students. Motivation forms the key to success, for an individual as well as the organization. A business coach helps executives understand the value of motivation, by recognizing employees, privately and publicly. This offers positive reinforcement to the employees, thereby motivating the executives to work harder.
A business coach brings about an understanding of business principles among the employees and helps them develop, unleash and maximize the potential within.
Cultural Differences And International Business Communication
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In the international scene, knowing and identifying cultural differences can make a big difference between successful business negotiations and mortifying rejections. International business communication plays a major role in this, as knowing how to communicate through their point of view is a great advantage.
Each country has their own way of saying things, what may not be offending to you may be offending to them. International business communication is all about knowing the important thing that lies behind peoples words in the international arena.
International business communication is communicating across cultures and the first thing you must always put in mind is the basic understanding that one size doesnt fit all. Always putting in mind that the cultural practices or habits you have does not mean that everyone else around the globe does. As they say, When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
The most important and worrying variables in the international scene of business are the cultural differences that most international business executives fail to comprehend resulting in most international business slip-ups. The failure to identify and adapt to these differences through effective international business communication can mean the difference between a closed deal and a faceless failure. Assuming cultures affect the way people communicate with each other and language above all else, is the core of culture.
Culture is the different ways in which people behave, act, or think towards themselves, families, and other people in the society. It includes customs connected with social, political, family, and religious values. Different cultures have deviating values for time and its use, for personal space, and for family values and chats. These differences must be identified and recognized to bridge the gaps between cultures and for real communication to take place.
Some of the effective international business communication guidelines that may help you swing that deal are:
Listening with an open mind
Communicating across cultures is all about putting aside personal feelings and listening deeply to the person talking. Develop your listening skills and learn how to hold your tongue. Knowing your own culture and the others culture as well will give you a better chance of bridging the differences. Keeping an open mind and sensitivity to these differences is a key factor for better communication.
Non-verbal and Verbal behavior
Every language had their own linguistic preferences, and these preferences will give clues about those particular cultures behavior, manners, and thinking. The English use modesty and understatement, and are sometimes purposely unclear to avoid confrontation and very polite. Eloquence, expressiveness, and flowery of words are most common among Italians and Spaniards, Germans on the other hand are very logical in manner. Knowing what people mean when they say yes is very important; it may mean yes, I understand but not yes, I agree.
Gestures
Gestures involves sensitivity and awareness, as gestures that are not offending to you might be very offending to the other, as in the case of beckoning someone to come over, some would hold out their hand with the palm up and then move the fingers gesturing the person to come. In Asian culture however, this gesture is considered rude. To gesture someone to come in Asian culture should be done with the palm facing down and then rolling the fingers.
Learning effective international business communication is communicating across cultures, and it takes great sensitivity and awareness by studying cultures and becoming more perceptive and adaptable in communication efforts.
Why Do Most Marriages Fail?
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Roughly 50% of all marriages fail and many of those dont even make it past the first year. Understanding why these marriages fail can be key to ensuring that your own marriage does not fail. Some factors that contribute to the failure of a marriage include a lack of communication or poor communication, financial issues and even the circumstances of the marriage. All of these issues can exist in a healthy and enduring marriage but if they are not dealt with properly they can lead to the failure of the marriage.
Communication is critical to the success of a marriage. Without proper communication, conflict resolution becomes a difficult issue. If the couple lacks the communication skills necessary to resolve their problems, then even the smallest problems will become insurmountable. Communication allows a relationship to grow and thrive by giving the partners an opportunity to share their dreams, concerns, hopes and desires with each other. Without sharing in this way a couple will not grow as close together as possible. Communication also gives the couple a healthy way to resolve their arguments.
If one or both partners lack effective communications skills it becomes difficult to resolve arguments because the couple is not able to understand each others points of view.
If the marriage is already in trouble, both partners in the marriage must be dedicated to working on their communication skills in order to improve or salvage their marriage. The absence of effective communication techniques can lead to the failure of a marriage.
Love may conquer all but sometimes even love isnt enough to save a marriage when there are significant financial concerns. While financial concerns in and of themselves may not be the cause of a failed marriage the tension that financial concerns create is often the culprit in a failed marriage. Financial concerns can be a heavy burden to bear and when a couple is struggling to meet their financial obligations, there can be a tremendous amount of pressure in the relationship. This pressure may be enough to destroy an otherwise healthy marriage.
If one of the partners in the marriage becomes obsessed with the marital finances they can begin to neglect other aspects of the marriage. This neglectful behavior has the affect of making the spouse feel ignored and lonely which can be damaging to a marriage. Often one of the partners will become consumed with the financial affairs and this can be very damaging to a marriage.
Even the circumstances surrounding the marriage can lead to its failure. A marriage of convenience is often not a healthy marriage. When the decision to marry is based on something other than true love, it is likely that the marriage will fair. Some examples of marriage circumstances that often lead to failure are getting married because there is a baby on the way or because the couple is feeling pressure to get married by friends and family members. Neither of these reasons are truly valid reasons for marriage and often leads to divorce. When a couple marries for reasons other than true love the marriage is often doomed before it starts.
Marrying too young is another reason why many marriages fail. While the right age to marry varies greatly depending on the person, many people argue that the teens and early twenties are too early to get married. Getting married before you have had a chance to enjoy many of lifes experiences can result in resentfulness in the marriage and can be the cause of failure of the marriage.
Another reason why many marriages fail is that society no longer places importance on the institution of marriage. Today it is common for couples to live together and have children without being married. This degeneration of society devalues marriage and results in a higher percentage of failed marriages. With so little value placed on marriage in todays society, couples are not committed to making their marriage work and are often quick to give up on the marriage and each other.
Many marriages today are doomed before they even start. Marriage is no longer seen as a necessary step in a relationship so many couples are quick to divorce without making an honest effort to resolve their problems. Communication breakdown, financial difficulties as well as circumstances of the marriage are all problems that can cause many marriages to fail.
Urology San Antonio surgeon Kenneth J. Stallman, MD explains how he learned to speak Spanish and the importance of communicating with patients in the language with which they are most comfortable.
Duration : 0:1:16