Communication Skills Assignment # 2

Group Members:

Rabia Ahmad Sabah Afzal Hareem Naeem Sidra Hameed Hafiza Sheema
Section:

(046) (051) (027) (050) (181)

ADP 1-A
Submitted to:

Sir Rizwan Pasha

Six Key Rules of Good Writing

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Come straight to the point. Remember the KISS principle. Use active not passive voice. Use the right tone. Use modern language. Use gender neutral language.

Come straight to the point:

Come striaght to the point means getting your message across, succinctly, clearly and kindly, so that the recipient knows just what you mean and can respond with similar clarity. This cycle for smooth communication happens only when the message you relay is literally and technically Correct, Concise and Clear enough to be easily understood, Complete with factual and Concrete information, and is Considerate and Courteous to the one receiving it. These 7 C's have been proven effective in both oral and written communication. Main Points: i. ii. iii. iv. v. It is no time to read long winded documents. Come direct to the point. Save your readers time. Shorten your sentences. Your letter should be long enough to serve its purpose, but no longer.

Remember the KISS principle:

KISS is an acronym for "Keep it short and simple"as a design principle noted by the U.S. Navy in 1960. The KISS principle states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complex; therefore simplicity should be a key goal in design and unnecessary complexity should be avoided. The phrase has been associated with aircraft engineer Kelly Johnson (19101990). The term "KISS principle" was in popular use by 1970. Variations on the phrase include "keep it stupid simple", "keep it short and simple", "keep it simple sir", "keep it super simple", "keep it simple or be stupid", "keep it simple and stupid", "keep it simple and straightforward", "Keep it simple student", "keep it simple,silly" or "keep it simple and sincere." "Keep It Simple, Stupid." A term which simply indicates that the simplest solution or path should be taken in a situation. This principle can be applied to any scenario, including many business activities, such as planning, management, and development.This morning, I had a briefing with McObject, a tech vendor that specializes in embeddable databases. From cars to set-top boxes to web sites, there's a near-universal need to put data somewhere, retrieve it, and manage it. In these use cases, the simplest database

technology is the best. Their product strategy is interesting to the readers of this blog for at least a couple of reasons. First, there's an unstated assumption in many technology companies that complexity is inescapable. If you want to keep pace with your competitors, you have to keep pace with their feature set.

i.

Keeping the roadmap simple:

Pshaw. If you look carefully at McObject's roadmap, you don't see crazy amounts of new features. Instead, their product strategy focuses on the essentials. Provide logical database devices as a layer of abstraction above the actual storage (on disk, in memory, etc.). Take advantage of the performance improvements in 64-bit architectures. Give the developer an optimistic concurrency option.The acceptability parameters aren't too hard to figure out. Prevent database corruption. Don't screw up performance. Don't baffle your customer with new options they can't figure out.I'd like to think that every technology company understands these principles, but, alas, they don't. For example, I've seen product marketing materials for cloud-based data management that possess none of this customer with new options they can't figure out.I'd like to think that every technology company understands these principles, but, alas, they don't. For example, I've seen product marketing materials for cloud-based data management that possess none of this customer with new options they can't figure out.I'd like to think that every technology company understands these principles, but, alas, they don't. For example, I've seen product marketing materials for cloud-based data management that possess none of this. I've seen product marketing materials for cloud-based data management that possess none of this clarity and simplicity. In a few extreme cases, I've been unable to decipher what the vendor was claiming they could do, even though I've been working with databases and file systems for a long, long time.

ii.

Keep it simple for your customers:

Clarity in your communications starts with your own clarity about your customers. Steve Graves, the CEO of McObject, made an important observation about working with developers: they're really smart people, on average. However, they don't know everything, and they often don't understand databases. That should be no surprise to anyone who has ever worked on a development team, which, like the Dirty Dozen, is often a collection of specialists (demolitions, build scripts, sniper, Ajax...). In no small number of cases, the team may have no one who's a seasoned hand at databases, or other important domains (performance, security, etc.). Therefore, vendors like McObjects have to be ready to educate and advise, not just sling technology at them and hope for the best. Sure, we've all had a good chuckle at that guy who rampaged across the stage like an enraged mountain gorilla, screaming "Developers! Developers! Developers!" Unfortunately, we've behaved equally ridiculously, assuming that all developers are the same, or they're always willing to tinker with technology until it works, or that the differences in job function in the same development team don't have any effect on buying and adoption behaviors. Are you marketing to rank-and-file developers, or development managers? That can be as significant a question as, are you marketing your CRM system to salespeople or sales managers?

The simpler your product, the easier it is to understand its value. Doing a very good job in your niche, such as embeddable databases, is far preferable to throwing in every feature that might have value, or inventing strained explanations of why your technology is part of the latest trend.

Use active not passive voice:

Readers prefer active voice sentences, and we should try to use the active voice in most of our business writing to communicate our message most effectively. Active voice clearly identifies the action and who is performing that action. Unfortunately, much of government writing is in the passive voice, giving documents a wordy, bureaucratic tone. Over time, writing in the passive voice simply becomes a habit, one we should all work to change. What is active/passive voice? To know whether you are writing in the active or passive voice, identify the subject of the sentence and decide whether the subject is doing the action or being acted upon. Passive Voice: the subject is the receiver of the action. The tax return (subject) was completed (action) before the April 15 deadline by Mr. Doe. Active Voice: the subject does an action to an object. Mr. Doe (subject) completed (action) the tax return (object) before the April 15 deadline. When we write in the passive voice, we add some form of the helping verb "to be" (am, is, are, was, were, being, or been) to an otherwise strong verb that really did not need help. Passive: Additional information (subject) can be obtained (action) by employees from our website. Active: Employees (subject) can obtain (action) additional information (object) from our website.

Why should we use active voice?

Active voice makes documents stronger by showing responsibility or giving credit for an action. When we avoid showing responsibility, we often don't give enough information to explain the problem and how to fix it. Often, we use a form of the passive called the "cut passive" and never identify the doer of the action. This form sounds vague and abstract. Cut Passive: New requirements (subject) were introduced (action) to strengthen the banking system. Active: The Banks Act of 1985 (subject) introduced (action) new requirements (object) to strengthen the banking system. By eliminating the helping verb, the active voice sentence generally uses fewer words to communicate the same information. Passive: Mr. Doe (subject) was told (action) by the bank official that he would need to provide additional information. (16 words) Active: The bank official (subject) told (action) Mr. Doe (object) he would need to provide additional information. (13 words) Active voice more closely resembles spoken language; hopefully ideal spoken language. When we speak, we generally use the active voice without thinking. Our writing should become that automatic.

You would never say:

Passive: My car (subject) was driven (action) to work by me. Or: Passive: Breakfast (subject) was eaten (action) by me this morning.

Instead, you would say: Active: I (subject) drove (action) my car (object) to work. And Active: I (subject) ate (action) breakfast (object) this morning. Is using the passive voice appropriate in some situations? Using the cut passive form is appropriate in two situations: 1. When we do not know who performed the action. 2. When the doer of the action is unimportant. However, one caution: If adding the name of the person or organization performing the action would make the document stronger and help our readers, we should try to identify the doer of the action. How can I start writing in the active voice?

Here are a few tips:

Turn the clause or sentence around, putting the subject first: Passive: This proposed rule (subject) was published (action) by General Counsel in the Federal Register. Active: General Counsel (subject) published (action) this proposed rule (object) in the Federal Register. Change the verb to eliminate the helping verb "to be": Passive: We must consider how our resources (subject) will be used (action) to deliver quality services. Active: We (subject) must consider how to use (action) our resources (object) to deliver quality services.

Rethink the sentence:

Passive: Although Mr. Doe (subject) was found (action) to be eligible for this position; all of the positions (subject) in Boston had already been filled (action) by our personnel office prior to receiving his application. Active: Though we (subject) found (action) Mr. Doe (object) eligible for the position, our personnel office (subject) had filled (action) all positions (object) in Boston before we (subject) received (action) his application (object).

Writing in the active voice isn't difficult if you follow who-does-what sequence. Your readers can visualize the action and follow the action to the conclusion. Use the right tone:
Your communication skills training should include some notes on the effect of your voice tone on others. Voice tone relates to the musical aspects of your voice: It pertains to pitch, volume, pace, and emphasis. People respond instinctively to voice tone; either positively or negatively. There are certain people who have a warm, attractive welcoming voice quality. Their voice tone has a positive effect on others. One of the best examples of a person with a good voice tone, in

my opinion, was the actor Richard Burton. I once heard him on the radio, reading names and addresses from the phone book. When he did it, it sounded really interesting. There are others, who have a flat, monotone droning quality to their voice. They have a negative effect on others. Their voice quality switches off the mind of the listener. Let us investigate some of the qualities that make the difference between good voice and not- sogood voice. Good voice tone; 1) Speak with a deeper tone: How does a deeper voice affect the listener? Research done by Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh , USA indicates that people make instinctive judgement s of others based upon the tone of the voice of the speaker. Specifically, people judge those with deeper voices as having more authority. This is thought to be a throw back to an earlier time where status was based upon physical power and strength. Heavier, physically bigger people have deeper voices than smaller people. And bigger people were dominant, so deep voices were associated to higher status. And to a lesser degree, they still are. So a deeper voice lends more authority. Does this mean you should speak with a fake deep voice? No. Everyone has a voice range. 2) Variability of tones: A varied tone rises as falls and emphasises key words and phrases. A monotone voice has little variety, it stays at the same pitch and there is a lack of stress variation. It is important to vary your voice tone, as opposed to being monotone. When you vary your tone, you inject life and energy into your message. Emotions like enthusiasm, humour and excitement are conveyed by the tone of your voice. Think of people whom you regard as great communicators. Is it true that these people have a certain energy and dynamism in the way they use their voice? Think of the opposite. Do you know someone who has a flat, monotone, lifeless voice? When you hear that kind of voice, what effect does it have on your ability to focus on the content? If a person has a flat, monotone voice, it has a negative effect on the communication doesnt it?So the message is clear: Vary your voice tone. 3) Speak Slower: It is important to slow down, when giving a coaching or counselling session. If a person speaks slower, it has a number of positive effects on the communication: It gives the person listening enough time to digest the message. This is important because there is a distinction to be made between hearing and understanding.Hearing is simply the automatic functioning of the ears.Hearing does not take effort. Understanding is the act of focusing the mind on the meaning of what is heard. That is not automatic. It takes an effort of will to focus the mind on the meaning and to make it clear and distinct.If you speak too fast, the person will hear you, but will not understand. 4) Give enough time for your message to sink in before delivering the next one; When you, slow down you have more time to select the right words and phrases to express your

meaning exactly.As a consequence of this, people who speak slightly slower are perceived by the listener to be more thoughtful; deeper. Those who speak more quickly are perceived to be more confusing and lightweight.This is because, if you slow down, the implied message is that you are thinking before you speak. It implies that you are weighing up the evidence and giving careful consideration to your message. So, the person who pauses, and speaks at a slower pace tends to be perceived as more intelligent. Their message carries more weight. For example: Obama speaks slowly during conferences. Is that accidental? No. It is a conscious technique designed to make his message weightier and considered. So, again, the point is clear: Slow down. According to Mehrabian, the tone of voice we use is responsible for about 35-40 percent of the message we are sending. Tone involves the volume you use, the level and type of emotion that you communicate and the emphasis that you place on the words that you choose. 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book. I didnt say he borrowed my book.

Use modern language:

A modern language is any human language that is currently in use. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead classical languages such as Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, and Classical Chinese, which are studied for their cultural or linguistic value. 1) General points; 1. If the author's name is mentioned in the sentence, only cite the page number (see Author prominent citation below). 2. Font and capitalisation must match that in the reference list. 3. Long quotations (more than three lines) should be indented. 4. If you are citing more than one reference at the same point in a document, separate the references with a semicolon eg (Smith 150; Jackson 41). 5. If the work has no author use the title. 6. If you are citing two works by the same author, put a comma after the author's name and add title words. eg (Smyth, "Memories of Motherhood" 77) to distinguish between them in the in-text citation. Do this when citing each of the sources throughout the piece of writing. 7. If two authors have the same surname, use their first initial.

2) Incorrect example: The devastating effects of the prolonged dry spell are apparent in both the

Australian landscape and the people. Many Australians have described a strong sense of loss as a result of the changes in the landscape around them. This new type of sadness has led to people feeling displaced within their own homeland.

3) Explanation: Key phrases and terms from the original (highlighted) are repeated with little change making the overall 'voice' of the piece that of the original author. Even with a citation this could constitute plagiarism. 4) Correct example: Australia's terrain is not the only casualty of the enduring drought. As the environment struggles with depletion and destruction, this is echoed in the human inhabitants with a perceived distress and emotional anguish more suited to a physical uprooting from all that one knows and loves. 5) Explanation: Appropriate synonyms are used and the important point of the article is expressed in the writer's own words, not those of the original author.

Use gender neutral language:

Gender-neutral language, gender-inclusive language, inclusive language, or gender neutrality is linguistic prescriptivism that aims to eliminate reference to gender in terms that describe people. The words fireman, stewardess, and, arguably, chairman, are gender-specific; the corresponding gender-neutral terms are firefighter, flight attendant and chairperson. The pronoun he may be replaced with he or she, s/he, or they when the gender of the person referred to is unknown. Other gender-specific terms, such as actor and actress may be replaced by the originally male term."Gender-neutral language" should not be confused with genderless language, which refers to languages without grammatical gender. It has become common in academic and governmental settings to rely on gender-neutral language to convey inclusion of all sexes or genders (gender-inclusive language Various forms of gender-neutral language became a common feature in written and spoken versions of many languages in the late twentieth century. Feminists argue that previously the practice of assigning masculine gender to generic antecedents stemmed from language reflecting "the prejudices of the society in which it evolved, and English evolved through most of its history in a male-centered, patriarchal society. For husband and wife, there is spouse. For brother and sister, there is sibling. For son and daughter, there is child or, even, offspring. For (grand) mother and (grand)father, there is (grand)parent. What about for aunt and uncle or niece and nephew? Proponents of gender-neutral language argue that the use of gender-specific language often implies male superiority or reflects an unequal state of society. According to The handbook of English linguistics, generic masculine pronouns and gender-specific job titles are instances "where English linguistic convention has historicalltreated men as prototypical of the human species."Words that refer to women often devolve in meaning, frequently taking on sexual overtones. These differences in usage are criticized on two grounds: one, that they reflect a biased state of society, and two, that they help to uphold that state. Studies of children, for instance, indicate that the words children hear affect

their perceptions of the gender-appropriateness of certain careers. Other research has demonstrated that men and women apply for jobs in more equal proportions when gender-neutral language is used in the advertisement, as opposed to the generic "he" or "man". Some critics make the further claim that these differences in usage are not accidental, but have been deliberately created for the purpose of upholding a patriarchal society. Gender neutrally; Gender neutrality also known as Gender-neutralism or the Gender neutrality movement describes the idea that policies, language, and other social institutions should avoid distinguishing roles by what reproductive organs people happen to have, in order to avoid discrimination arising from the impression that there are social roles for which one gender is more suited than the other. A reason to avoid gender-bias in language is to maintain clarity and accuracy when communicating to some audiences. Using "he" to mean "a person of either gender" may be misunderstood, possibly in different ways by different people. Proponents of gender-neutral language often point to the history of the word "man" to argue that, although the word once referred to both males and females, it no longer does avoids constructions that might be interpreted by some readers as an unnecessary reinforcement of traditional stereotypes. Gender-neutral language does not inherently convey a particular viewpoint, political agenda or ideal. Words for gender neutral language:
mankind...............................humanity, people, human beings man's achievements.........human achievements man-made..........................synthetic, manufactured, machine-made common man....................average person, ordinary person man-hours..........................staff hours chairman.............................chair businessman....................business executive fireman................................firefighter mailman.............................mail carrier

Examples:
1. Mankind has preserved culture through storytelling. Human beings have preserved culture through storytelling. 2. The chairman will not be attending the meeting. The chairperson will not be attending the meeting. 3. The policemen were asked to be alert. The police were asked to be alert. 4. I feel all businessmen are dishonest. I feel all business people are dishonest. 5. The company is looking for additional salesmen. The company is looking for additional salesperson.