Secrets to Successful Communication

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Etiquette expert Barbara Pachter offers advice on saying the right thing at work. THE SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL COMMUNICATION BROUGHT TO YOU BY

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Etiquette expert and author Barbara Pachter offers advice on how to say the right things at work. Connect: Professional Women’s Network is online community with more than 360,000 members that discusses issues relevant to women and their success. The free LinkedIn group powered by Citi also features videos interviews with influential businesswomen, live Q&As with experts and slideshows with career advice. To learn more and join the conversation in the largest women's group on LinkedIn, visit http://www.linkedin.com/womenconnect.

Transcript of Secrets to Successful Communication

Page 1: Secrets to Successful Communication

Etiquette expert Barbara Pachter offers advice on saying the right thing at work.

THE SECRETS OF ������

SUCCESSFUL COMMUNICATION

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

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Barbara Pachter is a speaker, coach and author of 10 business books, including the new Essentials of

Business Etiquette: How to Greet, Eat, and Tweet Your Way to Success.

Her goal is to help professionals communicate more effectively and

enhance their professional presence. She has delivered more than 2,500

seminars throughout the world, including the first-ever seminar for

businesswomen in Kuwait.

MEET BARBARA PACHTER!

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Barbara recently answered questions from members of Connect: Professional

Women’s Network. Here’s some of her most popular advice on how to

communicate effectively at work.

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What tips do you have for tactfully resolving disagreements at work, especially via emails or instant messaging? I encourage not using these methods when there are difficult topics to discuss. It’s very easy to have a harsh tone in email or text. If you can, go see the person, or call him or her.

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What rules should professional organizations follow when they want to encourage or discourage social-media activity? People need to remember that what they post and tweet can (and will) come back to haunt. Companies also need to have a social-media policy in place.

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Within an organization, what method do you recommend for encouraging professional communication and etiquette? Management needs to role model how they want employees to communicate and interact with one another. Having employees participate in communication or etiquette training can also send a message that the organization values effective communication.

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What’s your take on cursing in the workplace? It comes from the top down in my organization and spreads like wildfire. There can be two types of cursing. One is cursing at someone, which is never OK. The other is the occasional slip of the tongue. It’s better not to do this, but no one is perfect and it can occasionally happen.

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How can you help remote employees feel a part of the community? There are many things to try, depending on your budget. If you have the funds, you could hold an annual company retreat. Less expensive options would be to send regular e-newsletters to all employees or to hold some meetings via Skype or WebEx so people can see each other.

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What advice do you have for repairing communication channels after something has damaged the trust? Mistakes happen, and sometimes things go wrong through no fault of your own, and it weakens relationships. Trust is very important—and difficult—to reinstate. I come from the “school of no excuses.” I suggest that people be honest, admit their mistakes, and explain what they are going to do to make sure it doesn’t happen again. And then do it.

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What’s a polite way to request referrals and encourage business acquaintances to send you leads? You could use a simple line, such as “And if you know people who could use my services, please let them know.” But I’ve always found that the best way to get business is to get out there—go to meetings, meet people, offer to help them, develop an area of expertise and blog or post about it.

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When you’ve been asked for an estimate for a job but don’t land the project, is it appropriate to ask why? If you ask a number of questions, you may overwhelm the potential client. I would ask only one general question, such as “Is there any information you can give me that would have made me a better candidate for you?”

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When colleagues are waiting for guidance from you, but you can’t respond because you haven’t been given leave to discuss it, how can you best communicate with them? Be as honest as possible. Explain that you (or the committee, organization, etc.) are working out the final details and that once everything is approved, you’ll let them know.

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I’m a first-time author and will need to do speaking engagements, radio interviews, and television segments to promote my book. Any advice on how to feel comfortable with these? A few ideas: join Toastmasters, take a public-speaking class at a community college or adult-education school, or hire a coach who can teach you public-speaking techniques and strategies.

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©2014 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION! LinkedIn and Citi’s Connect: Professional Women’s Network is an online community with more than 360,000 members that helps women achieve the careers they want and discuss the issues relevant to their success. Visit linkedin.com/womenconnect for more information and to join the group!

For more great insights on implementing change in the workplace, check out Barbara Pachter’s live discussion in Connect.

1: Iliveinoctober/Shutterstock 2: Photo courtesy of Barbara Pachter; Photology1971/Shutterstock 3. Victoria Kalinina/Shutterstock 4: Stuart Jenner/Shutterstock 5: patpitchaya/Shutterstock 6: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock 7: Minerva Studio/Shutterstock

8: TED Conference/Flickr 9: LoloStock/Shutterstock 10: Rawpixel/Shutterstock 11: bahri altay/Shutterstock 12. Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock 13: International Monetary Fund/ Flickr

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CONNECT: PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S NETWORK ©2014 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved. 15