Continuing and Distance Education
The challenge of communication has always been with us. Communication
difficulties are among the largest problems people face daily. A women
does not get a job because she cannot made an effective sales presentation.
Employees go on strike because their manager does not listen to their
needs and build a team environment. The boy next-door is too shy to ask
for a date and sits home alone. The globalization of society and the increased
usage of electronic communication have made this situation even more challenging.
Intercultural communication and the use of electronic communication is
entering the communications arena for everyone. Success in communication
in our society now requires understanding and skills in three areas:
Face-to-Face
Communication
Communication is key to our existence in this world. Even the
most solitary existence, requires some type of effective communication
with the environment and its various creatures. Human communication has
always been a challenge with some people being more effective than other,
but even the most effective communicators need to be continually proactive
and work on their communication skills. Many people suffer difficulties
in communicating. The typical problem leaves some people having difficulty
just correctly expressing themselves. Others feel uncomfortable in various
social situations. It may be that others are just too shy to initiate
a conversation, and unfortunately some do not know how or when to end
a conversation.
I have been active in Toastmasters International for the past several being the President of several clubs and Area Governor in Southeast Texas and Louisiana. I helped with the founding of the Trojan Orators, The Lumber River Toastmasters, and the Lamar University Toastmasters. I can honestly say that joining Toastmasters will be one of the best steps you take to develop and maintain your skills in communication and leadership.
Electronic
communication
Every day the Internet becomes a more pervasive portion of our
lives. Each day thousands of new Internet users throughout the world enter
the world of electronic communication unprepared for many of the new challenges
email, discussion board, and other forms of electronic communication provide.
Communication and speech experts say that 70 to 90 percent of our human
communication comes from nonverbal cues. Yet with email, we find that
we rely 100 percent on that verbal communication. This opens a new range
of communication challenges to use whether we are in business, the classroom
or just sending email to our friends.
Intercultural
communication
The globalization process is forcing organizations to rethink
their strategies. Intercultural communication, skills assume an ever larger
role in global marketing strategies. Consequently, language programs need
to respond to these changes. Future managers must acquire effective intercultural
competence. The "one world" market has forced organizations
to think global, act local, and integrate. Intercultural communication
serves a vital role in that it can forestall miscommunication, prevent
misunderstandings, and avert mistakes.
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