CNS 360: Communicating for Impact

1) Communicating for Impact:

Communication skills are one of the highly-valued transferable skills that liberal arts students bring to the professional world. In CNS 360, we want to refine communication skills by focusing on Communicating for Impact. Communication is the ability to present, write and express ideas effectively, one of the most visible forms of communication in the workplace is verbal communication Students must master the opportunity to present evidence they have mastered certain competencies during their time at Wake Forest. Your e-portfolio provides one kind of evidence; verbal communication provides another We will focus on specific communication skills when presenting verbal evidence (see below) Students will offer structured, strengths-based feedback to refine communication skills; this experience will help us reach our course objectives and prepare you for life after Wake Forest.

Williams, Robinson 2013

Communicating for Impact:

Evidence Concise:
demonstrates clarity I understand why this person chose this project/topic and why it matters polished delivery I see this person thought about what they would say, prepared to say it, delivered message smoothly and with skill non-verbal body language This persons body language and eye contact communicate they are comfortable sharing this information vocal skills I can hear inflection, emphasis on key aspects, appropriate emotion and energy.

Sharing Evidence & Information Strengths and Emerging Strengths -More direct to the point than previous interview -Referenced more specific examples of work and how to impacted me

Examples for Growth -Keep more direct eye contact -Avoid ums and likes more

Competent

demonstrates evidence of professional competence in areas important to employers This person provided a concrete example that

-Referenced specific examples of ways that I struggled and solved problems helps prove he/she has skills and experience -Referenced how related to professional competencies: communication, technical literacy, professional or this was relevant to major/career personal management, critical thinking/problemsolving or innovation/creativity

-Could have referenced specific tasks or skills more to relate my experience to the audience better

Connected

demonstrates competence in critical areas for students target industry, interest, job function
I can tell this person has thought about how this example/answer meets a need in an organization and has tailored her/his communication to the audience

-Tried to break down experiences into both relational and organizational so it appealed to numerous audiences

-Could go into more detail about what I liked most about working with a nonprofit and how I want to continue this in the future

Compelling

demonstrates likeability, relateability, illustrative story

I felt drawn to the explanation of the material and the information shared.

-Smile more! -Seemed nervous

Williams, Robinson 2013

Communicating with Impact Action Steps: 1) PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE: work on reducing likes and ums and appear more confident. I plan on doing this by practicing with more recordings or even presenting thoughts and ideas to friends or roommates and receiving feedback. Other than class presentations, I do not present often so I believe that repetition could be of great reward to my presentation improvement. 2) Plan well ahead of time: to avoid ranting or getting off topic, I will try to plan out a written breakdown of what I want to say and how I want to say it ahead of time. I often forget certain key points when put under pressure. With more preparation, I hope to fix this.

Williams, Robinson 2013