Skills of Learning, Reading, Thinking, Writing and Communicating.

This article is continued from the Previous post of “Improve Your Skills Part I” which can be found here

Thinking

The question which I would like to ask at the begining is ‘how confident are you of the effectivity your thinking process?’ Sadly, it is never a full 100 percent, as this is a process which can always be improved and refined. Thinking processes depends on problem solving, issue resolution, finding an easier approach to a a solution, finding alternate approaches, and crucial weighted management decisions.

Childhood is always a great time to start the development or on begining of the thinking process. Logical questions, puzzles and solve it yourself-s stimulates the grey cells of the brain and imvibes in a child the process of thinking. The concepts of out-of-the-box thinking or lateral-thinking can also be pushed objectively into the thought process of a child or an individual.
In order to enhance your thinking process the core quality or trait would probably be to stay focused, keep an open mind which is receptive of new ideas, and use your logic as it is valuable in most conditions. You can list possible events which can occur based on a certain stage of development. Carve out simple plan with relative likelihoods.

Thinking process can be set for long term, short term or the immediate future. It is governed by needs and risks. It is created upon the availability of resources and shortage of time. It may be that I need to figure out a solution for a business hazard within the coming week. It can be that I need to develop a long term goal for my business thinking of the competition, market trends, demand and economy. In each case one needs at first to analyze the requirements/problem at hand. Once Analysis of the issue, problem or requirement is done, one would switch to creating alternate methods of applying remedial measures. Finally comes the decision making phase. This is the phase which takes into consideration all angles of the solution. The executive/ decision maker weighs the pro’s and the con’s, the risks, probabilities of success and the tentative outcomes.After a thorough review of the alternate solution he ultimately reaches a decision with his thinking process. All these process and its application are known collectively as the thinking process. thus the thinking process can be termed as highly cohesive but modular in nature. If you are not able to understand the problem or the requirement at the earliest, it would not help in your solution and so decision making would probably go wrong. The more one is able to apply oneself effectively at every stage of the process, the better it is for knowledge gaining, and value creation with a higher probability of success.

Along with the application of your thougts and strategies, think laterally. Lateral thinking is the process of bein able to come up with as many differen solutions or improvements as possible. Never accept the impossible, it does not have any meaning.

The last suggestion I have for you is to follow your intuition. In most cases it leads to something which is submerged in the 96% of your unknown or subconscious brain. It picks up information

Writing

With the advent of audio visual medium, the importance of writing has been pushed a little aside. It was not ver long ago, that people used to draft longletters and type it over a typewriter to be sent through courier or post. But with the advent of techniology, time, efforts and costs have been highly decreased with email, video conferences and audio networks. But still, a good knowledge of writing skills is always handy to the individual. Though no job really advertises writing skills as a basic condition it always expects you to. It will expect you to be able to write to your boss, customers and colleagues effectively. It would expect that you are able to present your idea, in a non redundant way which does not waste valuable time for your reader. My advice would be to use simple words, less jargob, effective punctuation and finally proof reading before you send the write up or the email. Good vocabulary and comprehension styles are important as are language skills and order of the facts of your write up. Stay close to these tips and you will land up with a nice little report.
Always try to use shorter sentences rather than longer ones. It adds poise and drama. Follow your writ up from thought to thought and from paragraph to paragraph with your ideas which slowly develops. Also while writing, try to visualize that you are reading it out in front of an audience. Thus once complete , its better to read out the product to effectively edit it.
Interested to learn more on this? Here is a George Orwell article.

Communication

Finally I come to the topic of communicating with your fellow mates.Finally I come to the topic of communication. This is the most sought after skill in this busy world of today. Communication is the art of transferring your knowledge, values, ideas, feelings and beliefs to another. It builds relationships, partnerships, camaraderie and boosts your presence and builds healthy personal and work relationships. It is a measure of your assertiveness and sincereity. The verbal communication depends on the way you speak, the usage of words, the pause in between for the emphasis and the control of your voice. A slower dialogue technique also helps in building faith and credibility to your image.

Now what you must also keep in mind is the role played by non-verbal communication. This is the communication process which is a mixture of bosy language, voice modulation and control.The fact is all of us are communicating every moment of our life. Though we consciously try to restrict it within the realm of speaking and conscious gestures, a lot of it is propagated by signs and the subconscious . This can be the silent language of leadership, emotion, sincerity, and success for all of you. Understanding the signals, reading them can lead you to be a better communicator and also lesson your dependence on the spoken word. Take the cue from Actors. Actors who are able to master this style of communication are always successful. John Wayne used it proactively to bolster the macho image for example. There can a horde of other examples to follow. Political leaders have to be good at this. They speak in front of the masses, and communication is their most important weapon. Lawyers and Sales people also depend a lot on this. It builds their career.
Communication can also be a measure of not only how you ‘talk’ but also how you ‘listen’. A person who is an attentive listener would be more welcomed by his friends and family. It does satisfy the need in reverse. It satisfies the speakers need to communicate.
Communication helps in building trust and rapport in a relationship. It bridges the unseen gap between two living souls . Do not only listen but pay attention to the language of the speakers body. And the golden rule is to always Smile.
An incident worth mentioning is the 1960 debate betweeen JFK and Nixon. Listeners to the program were equally enthralled, but viewers to the television programme were captivated by JFK’s charm, smile and body language.
So now you know the difference.