Career skills. Учебное пособие

good speakers and poor speakers? Clarity (being clear), tone, speed, loudness, and pronunciation are some things to listen for.

Being Clear. Cluttered messages are like cluttered closets. Everything is mixed up. The ideas get lost. Getting your ideas across can depend on how clear and easy to understand the message is. There are several things you can do.

Use simple words. Save your fancy words for another time. Hard words make messages harder to understand. For example, why say, "Increased utility justified additional computer expenditures," when you can say, "We spent more money on computers in order to make them more useful"?

Make one point at a time. Avoid putting too many ideas in a sentence. Of the following statements, which is easier to follow?

"In addition to being cost effective, the new plan should work well since it is easy to set up and takes people into account, as well as saving money for the company." "The new plan should work well. First, it is easy to set up. Second, it takes people into account. Third, it will save money for the company."

Tone, Speed, and Loudness. Vary your tone as you talk. Have you ever listened to yourself talk? What do you sound like? Does the tone of your voice go up and down?

People who speak in the same tone speak in a monotone. "Mono" means one, and monotone means one tone or level. People who are monotones have a hard time holding others attention. You can vary your tone the way a singer does with a song by adding low and high notes. Don't change your tone too much, however, or you won't sound natural.

It's best to speak at an even speed. If you speak too fast, people will miss what you are saying. If you speak too slowly, people will get bored. Somewhere in between is better.

Make sure you talk loudly enough, but not too loudly. Have you ever pulled back when someone used a loud voice? The reverse happens when someone speaks in a whisper. You bend toward the person and strain to hear. If listening is too much work, you may even give up entirely.

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Pronunciation. Pronunciation is the way you say words. People with lazy speech habits are hard to understand. Try to pronounce words clearly.

Have you heard people say: "b'lee me," "plennee a time," "jemman," "ast," "work" when they mean "believe me," "plenty of time," "gentlemen," "asked," "world"? Their close friends may understand them, but their friends may not be able to hire them for jobs. They must be sure everyone can understand what they have to say.

You can improve the way you pronounce words. If you are having a hard time saying a word, ask a teacher to pronounce it for you. Listen to the way people who speak correctly say their words. Watching educational television shows can be a good way to hear correct pronunciation. Repeat the words several times after you hear them. Ask others to listen to you say the words correctly.

Listening

Most people have poor listening skills. They think about what they are going to say next, while the other person is still talking. What happens? They don't really hear what is said. Most people want to say the right things themselves, but how can they if they don't hear the rest of the conversation?

Good listening means that you hear and understand what someone says. Good listeners make fewer mistakes than poor listeners. Good listeners also make better impressions on others. You know how good you feel when someone wants to hear what you have to say.

Some people think listening is just being quiet when someone talks. But it's more than that. You can be a better listener. Here's how.

Pay attention. This means stopping whatever you're doing while the person talks. Don't write. Don't doodle. Don’t think about what you are going to do next week. Pretend the person speaking is the only other person in the world at that moment.

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Don't interrupt. Wait until the speaker has finished before you say anything. Smiling or nodding your head as you listen tells the speaker you understand him or her.

Ask the speaker to repeat the information if you don't understand. Ask questions. Ask the speaker to give an example to make a point clearer.

Check what you hear. Repeat in your own words what you think you heard. For example, you can ask, "Did I hear you say . . . ?" Then the other person can tell you if you did or did not hear correctly.

It doesn't take a lot of work to be a good listener. It does take practice.

Writing

Sometimes job ads ask you to write a letter in reply. How well you write may decide whether or not you get an interview.

In business you often have to send out memos, letters, directions, and announcements. Writing skills can help you get ahead on the job.

The best way to learn to write is to practice. Have a teacher or someone who writes well read what you have written. Ask for ideas about how to improve. You may even want to take a business English class at a local school.

Good writers follow these basic guidelines:

Consider the audience. Direct your words to the people who will be reading what you write. One group of people may be able to understand one kind of message but not another. What causes this difference? There are many factors. However, most important are the experience and background of the readers. Keep in mind what they already know about your topic. Think about what additional information they may need in order to understand your message.

Outline what you are going to say. Think about what you want to say. Then arrange the points you want to make in order: first, second, third, and so on. Follow the outline when you write. Your writing will be better organized

State the most important point first. Then give the details—the what, how, or why. Then go to the second item and give details, and so on.

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Stick to the point. As you write, be sure to follow your outline. If you write about ideas not in the outline, you have not thought things through carefully enough.

Be brief. People have limited time. They appreciate getting the facts fast.

Be clear. Use simple words. Reread what you have written. Does it say what you want it to say?

Reading

At work you will need to read directions and memos. Depending on your job, you may have to read complaints, reports, newspapers, or books. It is very hard to get a job or to work your way up in a job if you can't read well.

If you are having trouble reading, do something about it now. Save yourself the embarrassment of not being able to read well later when you are an adult. Take a class in reading skills. Or find a reading teacher who is willing to help you. Practice reading—books, magazines, Internet articles anything that interests you.

Good readers use different styles for different types of reading. For example, if you have to remember what you are reading, read slowly. Detailed reports and instructions should be read slowly. If you need only to get the general idea of something, read more quickly.

Here are some ways to improve your reading skills:

Look over the material first. Read the first paragraph, the headings, and the last paragraph. This will give you a general idea of what you'll be reading. Then go back and read all the material.

Do not say the words out loud. Reading aloud keeps you from moving

ahead.

Avoid rereading lines. Rereading is a bad habit to get into. It slows you down. Even if you are having trouble with some sentences, keep on reading until you've finished a paragraph. By then you will get the general meaning. Then, if you have to, go back.

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Recall what you read. Right after reading a section of material, stop and tell yourself what you just read. It works! You will remember what you read for a longer time.

Try to figure out the meaning of new words from the words around them. Sometimes the other words will give you an idea of what the unknown word means. See if you can guess what "expedite" means in the next sentence. "Expedite the order because they need it in a hurry." If you guessed that "expedite" means "speed up," you are right.

Wait to look up the meaning of a word. Write it down and look it up later, so you do not break the flow of reading. Of course, sometimes nothing makes sense unless you know what a word means. Then you must look it up right away.

Write new words on cards. Put down the meaning. Add a sentence using the word. Review the cards often. You have to use a word about 25 times before it becomes part of your vocabulary. Can you think of other ways to help yourself become a better reader?

Mathematics Skills

Mathematics is one of the most important tools we use today. We live in the age of science. Almost all science depends in some way on math. Computers, space shuttles, even special effects in the movies, could not exist if it were not for math.

If math has been hard for you, you may not like it much. But if you help yourself get better at it, you may like it a lot more. Either way, math is here to stay. It's best to try to like it.

You may think that today machines can do all of your math for you. Unfortunately, this is not true. People use math every day to

understand paychecks

write bills

understand contracts

make change

check the change they receive

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figure income tax

weigh items

measure things

check inventories

It's best to learn enough basic maths to help you do your job without making mistakes. Or you may need math to help you see someone else's mistake like the wrong amount on your paycheck!

Also, keep in mind that math develops good thinking habits. It helps you learn to put things in order, to take one step at a time.

If you want to improve your math skills try the following suggestions. Even if you are good at math, you may find ways to increase your interest.

Ask your math teacher for special help. Maybe all you need is practice. Or maybe you became "stuck" at one point in learning about math. What you did not learn then affected all your work later on. For example, if you did not memorize your multiplication tables properly, you probably have trouble with long division, too. Your teacher may be able to help you get "unstuck," and the rest will take care of itself.

Ask at your school or public library for books on improving math skills. Then use the books!

Check your TV listings for public television programs on math skills. Don't be embarrassed if the programs are designed for children. You would not turn down a gift of a new iPad just because someone wrapped it in children's paper, would you?

If your school allows you to use a calculator in math class, leave yours at home. Or do the problems first by yourself, then check them with the calculator. The more you work with numbers, the easier it gets.

Try the "buddy" system. If you have a friend who also has trouble with math, improve your skills together. For example, Joe designed three multiplications problems for Nirad each day, and Nirad designed three longdivision problems for Joe. Each was given his problems in the morning and had all day to work them out. Then after school, the two friends checked each other's work. If they were unsure of

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answers, they asked a teacher. They made a game of it, and after two weeks the loser

had to buy the winner's lunch!

A plan like this works even better if you and your friend have trouble in different areas. If you are good in English and your friend is good in math, you can trade your knowledge. And if you can't find a close friend who is interested, ask someone else you know if that person would be willing to be a "tutor." Maybe you can work out a similar trade.

Play math games whenever you have a few minutes to spare. While you are waiting for a bus, say your multiplication tables from two to twelve. Or write them on a scrap of paper while you ride to school. If you are watching TV and a commercial comes on, try to guess what the product costs. Then figure the sales tax on it. Use another interest to help you build an interest in math. For example, if you like horses make up math problems for yourself based on that. How long is a race track? How long is half of that? A third? Horses are measured in hands. How long is a hand? If a horse measures sixteen hands, how tall is the horse in feet and inches?

Do you like rock music? Did you know that music was based on math? A musical tone is made by vibration. If you stretch a string and then pluck it, the string produces a tone. The tone produced depends on how many times the string vibrates each second. If you make a string vibrate 256 times per second, you will produce the tone of C on the scale. If you cut the string in half, it vibrates twice as fast—512 times per second. The note it produces is still C, but it is higher on the scale. Maybe your math teacher will let you make a report to the class on math and music. If it's a good report, you may even get extra credit.

At the end of this chapter are some simple math problems for your review. Use them to start your practice.

Attitude

Your attitude is your general outlook on life. It's the way you react to people and situations. Your attitude varies from day to day depending on your mood and

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how things are going. In general, however, you probably have either a positive or negative attitude.

If you want to be happy and successful in your work, you must have a positive attitude. Do you know what it means to have a positive attitude? A positive attitude is a general way of looking at the world that makes life more enjoyable for you and everyone around you. If you have a positive attitude, you make the best of a bad situation. You try to help yourself and others. You are usually happy and enthusiastic.

Employers want to hire workers with positive attitudes. They don't want workers who have negative attitudes. People with negative attitudes complain a lot and make other people unhappy. No one likes to work with people who have negative attitudes. Most of the people who lose their jobs lose them because of their poor attitude—not because they can't do the work.

REVIEW

What Have You Read?

In this chapter you learned that employers want to hire workers with basic communication and math skills. They also want to hire workers who have positive attitudes. You learned several ways to improve your basic communication skills, which include speaking, listening, writing, and reading. You also read about some of the things you can do to improve your math skills. Equally important will be your attitude. If you follow the suggestions in the chapter and work to maintain a positive attitude, you will greatly increase your chances for success.

What Will You Do?

Read the chapter summary above. Now think about the things you can do to learn more about the important ideas in this chapter. What new skills should you develop? Below are some suggestions.

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Write

1.A one-page newspaper or magazine article about building a positive attitude. Include advice helpful to people your age.

2.A summary of how well you use the basic communication skills in this

chapter.

Speak

1.About the things that "turn you off" when others talk to you. Ask other class members what they consider a "turn off" when people talk.

2.To your class for two minutes about the person you believe has the best attitude of anyone you've met. Describe the way this person relates to other people. How do others respond to him or her?

Define

1.communicate

2.pronunciation

3.positive attitude

4.negative attitude

What Do You Think?

Think about your feelings and attitude toward the key ideas in this chapter. Then answer the questions below.

1.What are your strengths in each of the basic communication skills? In what areas would you like to improve?

2.Who do you know who display good listening and speaking skills? What do they say and do that makes them stand out?

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3. Do most of the people you know have good or poor attitudes? What do you

think determines a person's attitude?

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