scdl - pgdba - finance - sem 1- business communication & executive effectiveness

Business Communication and Executive Effectiveness

Business Communication and

Executive Effectiveness


Part I

Q.1 Explain in Detail “Communication Process” and write a note on the nature of Communication.

Ans. Language defines the word communication as the “giving or exchanging of information, signals or messages by talk, gestures, or writing.” Communication is not simply sending of a message. It involves interaction between two people. For communication to be effective, both people must constantly giving and receiving information, verbally and non-verbally. And great communication can go to an entirely different level. One person can have the ability to experience what the other person is feeling at that moment and accept him or her for it. I am giving below the importance of the effective communication skills through an example.

You as a medical staff leader might take a moment to assess the mechanisms used within your staff and hospital to obtain information from staff physicians and to provide information to those physicians. You might also assess the mechanisms used to encourage discussion among physicians concerning alternative courses of action. There are six keys to effective communication:

1. Use as many means as possible to convey important messages. People learn in different ways, so a combination of written, oral, and visual, may be necessary to get your message cross.

2. Make sure medical staff communication is both ongoing and consistent.

3. Good medical staff communication requires a good communication system, not disjointed, unplanned, or random events.

4. Remember that communication is personal. A communication system that includes face-to-face interaction will almost always be more successful than any impersonal alternative.

5. Medical staff members are generally pressed for time. The means you choose to communicate with your staff should recognize that fact.

6. Find ways to highlight or draw attention to essential communication. Repetition through various means of communication will help, as will designing important announcements so they are visually captivating.

If you are a department chairperson or the president of your medical staff, it is your responsibility to see to it that all physicians within your department, or all physicians on your staff, have access to information through a variety of sources. It is also important that you design a means to solicit information from physicians concerning important issues pertaining to patient care or the overall operation of your healthcare system.

What follows are a few general suggestions. Many of these suggestions have been implemented by hospitals across the country. To be sure, some are more effective than others and none are guaranteed; yet they are all potentially effective. You would do well to consider all of them as you attempt to improve the two-way street of effective communication:


1. Physicians are pressed for time. Provide them with a mechanism to register their concerns, complaints, or suggestions that is easy, efficient, and effective. For this you might choose a medical staff hotline, a dedicated phone number for physician use. Physicians should be provided with a small card that has the hotline telephone number on it and should be encouraged to use this system to register any complaint, concern, or suggestion. The key to making this work well is that a physician has the option to remain anonymous. If a physician chooses to leave a name, he or she will get a response within a defined time period. The medical executive committee should receive a summary of all calls to the hotline. 2. A medical staff department chair might consider keeping the members informed by sending them a personal "department chair's letter" each month. Many physicians cannot find the time to attend departmental meetings, and many do not come to the institution often enough to absorb via grapevine all that is necessary. A department chair could spend five or six minutes every month dictating a report to the members of the department concerning important issues that he or she is working on, considering, or needs input on. Such letters should never be more than a page and should always allow the recipient an opportunity to respond. 3. Some physicians listen better than they read. Perhaps an audio newsletter once a quarter prepared by the chief of staff would be of interest to your medical staff members. Such an audio newsletter would be no longer than 10 or 11 minutes (suitable for playing in the car while commuting). The chief of staff and/or CEO might use this opportunity to advise the medical staff of important medical staff or institutional programs that are underway or being contemplated. Once again, be sure to provide an opportunity for physicians to respond if they would like further information or have any questions. 4. In large medical staffs it is very difficult to take the pulse of staff members during infrequent meetings or hall conversations. It is generally recommended that staffs above approximately 150 to 200 physicians routinely use a physician questionnaire, distributed and filled out by a reasonable percentage of the physicians, to solicit their opinions concerning the quality and responsiveness of the hospital to physician and patient needs. I generally recommend that such a questionnaire not be sent to any one individual more than once a year but that the questionnaires be sent to 25 percent of the staff once a quarter. Maximum return will be assured if the questionnaire is submitted in a letter from the chief of staff indicating how important it is that physicians participate in medical staff and hospital activities. 5. It is still true that many physicians congregate in the surgeons' or physicians' lounge or the medical records department. There should be a prominent bulletin board in each of these locations containing regular announcements with current important information, such as information concerning new applicants to the staff, policies or procedures that the medical executive committee is working on, or new clinical programs, as well as a place that could be used by physicians to post "gossip" that they have heard and they would like answered by the chief of staff. Another routine announcements section on this bulletin board could be used as a forum for physicians to post their "good ideas." Any physician having any idea to improve hospital performance or patient care should be encouraged to jot it down and post it on the board.

There are, of course, many other opportunities to increase communication. More recently, a few medical staffs have reported great success by operating a medical staff Web site which, if utilized, would provide significant amounts of information to physicians on staff. The communications program for your medical staff should be highly organized and directed by a physician member of the staff. You might consider


assigning the job of medical staff communications to the secretary/treasurer of the staff. This would give this individual greater exposure to medical staff issues and a job that is far more substantial than typing an annual report on the state of the medical staff budget.

Q 2. Write short notes on 1) Objectives of effective Communication2) Barriers to Effective Communication3) Types of Communication in Business Organizations

Answer.

Objectives of Effective CommunalizationCommunication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions and emotions by two or more persons.Communication is required for imparting ideas to others. In communication knowledge are transmitted – and it is done with some objectives.

1. Information: Information always affects business decisions. In the business organization information is required from every possible source. On the basis of information, change can be brought in the organization.

2. Advice: Advice is necessary to perform the specific job in desired manner. Manager devotes his major share of time for advising the various authorities in the organization.

3. Suggestion: Effective communication promotes good suggestions. Suggestions go a long way in improving the quality of work of subordinates. Improved products are the result of effective suggestions by the work manager or plant supervisor.

4. Persuasion: In daily life everybody is engaged in persuasion. The teacher is engaged in persuading his students to study. The manager is persuading his subordinates to work more and more. Persuasion means to convince.

5. Education: Education means imparting the instructions to others. Workers’ training is a part of education. It enables them to increase the knowledge and skills to perform specific job.

6. Motivation: Communication is very effective tool of motivation. Means to encourage the people who are responsible for undertaking organizational activities, motivation is one of the most important functions of the manager. Communication and motivation are the two sides of the same coin.

7. Warning: Carelessness, Chitchatting, wastage of time and valuable material are dangerous for the organization. It should be curtailed at any cost. In order to maintain the discipline in the organization memos, notice etc.

Barriers to Effective Communication


Some traditional barriers, most importantly geography, i.e., the distance between librarians or between them and their users, have become significantly less important. In spite of these advances many barriers to easy, effective communications remain. Two sections of our survey focused on barriers to communication with other librarians and with users.

Email and all electronic communications require infrastructure that is often very expensive, inadequate or missing altogether. Computer literacy is often underdeveloped and hard to improve because of inconvenient access to computers and to the Internet. This is a problem not just in underdeveloped countries; there are still university libraries in North America where not every librarian has a computer on her desk. Given the variety of levels of infrastructure and funding available to librarians, it is remarkable that email is so overwhelmingly favored in all countries as a method of communication with other librarians.

There are other barriers, which are not directly related to technology.

Scientists are used to communicating their research in English but librarians do not have that custom. Language therefore can be a significant barrier, not so much to communicating at all, but to the kind of fluent, comfortable, frequent communications that enable fruitful personal networking.

The size, type and culture of one's organization, its atmosphere, its wealth or lack thereof, the physical arrangement of the offices, can all facilitate or prevent effective communications, especially, but not exclusively, with library users. A librarian in a small observatory might have more contact with individual researchers than one in a larger library in a physically vast institute. A librarian who works in a university library which serves multiple disciplines and thousands of faculty and students is going to be more removed from the needs of individual astronomers than one who works in a specialized astronomy library in a similar university, especially if the former librarian works in a department such as collection development and has no direct contact with library users. The generalist librarian may have less contact with specialist librarians too. Individuals cannot change these things, but compensation, through special efforts to talk to researchers directly, can and must be made.

The stereotype of librarians is something to be eschewed but certainly there are some tendencies in the personalities of librarians who enjoy working in small, isolated observatory libraries. These self-reliant, introspective types may have a difficult time reaching out to astronomers and other librarians. Shyness, reticence and timidity are characteristics which may apply to many women and to some ethnic cultures. In our survey several people mentioned as a barrier their ``reserve'' or other similar aspects of their personality. The low status of women and/or librarians in some cultures may inhibit the free interchange of ideas. Although only 7.6% of the responses to the question of barriers indicated that ``low status'' was a problem, 23%, or the second most frequent response (along with their own workload), was the time and workload constraints of their users. It may be true that astronomers are too busy, but it may also be true that librarians simply assume that astronomers don't consider communicating with librarians important or of high priority.

Some countries discourage or censor foreign communications; there is not much fellow librarians can do to counteract this policy, except communicate with colleagues from these countries in the way that is most appropriate to them.

The advent of new electronic media comes at a time when staffing and financial constraints are even tighter than before. The workload of the average librarian has


increased as she/he takes on the navigation of these new electronic waters in addition to the traditional media. Time to communicate with others is therefore squeezed. ``My workload'' was the second most frequent response to the question of barriers (along with the workload of their users).

Types of Communication in Business Organizations

Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions and emotions by two or more persons.Communication is required for imparting ideas to others. In communication knowledge are transmitted – and it is done with some objectives.

Fundamentally, organizational communication occurs on 3 levels - the first level is interpersonal i.e. communication with oneself

The 2nd level is interpersonal i.e. when you communicate with another person, face to face 2 way discussion - I ask you a question, you listen and respond and vice versa. Probably half of your waking hours are spent in interpersonal communication behaviors. And thirdly, group level - either individual to group or group to group Communication may take the form of written or spoken words, gestures or even visual symbols. It involves the sending and receiving of information resulting in a degree of shared meaning between a sender and receiver.

This dynamic process presupposes a search for meaning, an attempt to understand. Meanings reside in people and not in words themselves; thus to accomplish understanding can be extremely difficult

So today, I'd like you to take a moment to think about how and where you could make at least one improvement so that you become more effective in getting your message across.


Q 5. Prepare a layout of Business Letter for a consumer Product Company.

Answer. When you write a business letter, you will follow a general format. However, your instructor or your company may have specific requirements that you must use. For instance, a company might have a particular way of presenting a salutation or may even use a specific type of letterhead.

Because a business letter is an effective way to communicate a message, its format should allow readers to quickly grasp information. Information should stand out to readers as they scan the document. Remember, a business letter reflects your professionalism.

Heading or Return Address Readers should always be able to quickly locate your contact information. This information is located at the top of the business letter in the return address or by using the company's letterhead. This includes:

Name Address Phone number Company logo or letterhead

Inside Address The inside address is your reader's full address. This includes the reader's:

Name Position Organization (as the company calls itself) Complete mailing address

If your reader has a courtesy title, such as Professor, then use it. Otherwise use Mr. or Ms., unless you know the reader prefers Miss or Mrs. These should also appear identically on the envelope.

Attention Line When you cannot address a business letter to a particular person, use an attention line:

Attention: Human Resource Manager

Use the attention line if you want an organization to respond even if the person you write to is unavailable. In this instance, put the name of the organization or division on the first line of the inside address, and the attention line immediately afterwards:


Subject Line Use a brief phrase or keywords to describe the content of the business letter

Salutation

A business letter should always include a salutation. This is to whom the letter is addressed. Salutations add a personal touch to your letter. If unsure to whom you should address a letter, always call an organization to find a contact. You should also use a colon rather than a comma because a comma is less professional.

Dear Dr. Reading: Dear Sir or Madam:

If you have no attention or subject line, put the salutation two lines below the inside address. The traditional salutation is Dear followed by the reader's courtesy title and last name.

When addressing a group of people, use one of the following salutations:

Ladies and Gentlemen:Gentlemen: (if all the readers are male)Ladies: (if all the readers are female)

BodyThe body of a business letter is typically single-spaced and has three paragraphs:

Introductory paragraph One or more body paragraphs Concluding paragraph

Like essays written for college courses, a business letter introduces one main idea and then supports this idea. At the end of the letter, always include a way for your readers to contact you.

Finally, consider how your letter looks. If you have nothing but paragraph after paragraph of text, you might use lists to draw attention to specific information. Lists are effective ways to present information because they break down large amounts of text and are visually pleasing. Lists are especially useful when you have to convey steps, phases, years, procedures, or decisions, and can be bulleted or numbered.

When creating a list, consider writing phrases, fragments or even questions and answers. By avoiding full sentences in a list, your information is concise and more likely to engage your readers.

For example, to receive a degree in engineering, you must complete the following:

Core Courses Elective Courses Senior Design

Complimentary Close and Signature Business letters should end with a closing, such as:

Sincerely,


Cordially, Best regards, Yours very truly,

Capitalize only the first word in the complimentary close, and follow all phrases with a comma.You should also remember to sign and type your name under the closing.

Reference and Enclosure Lines If someone else types your letters, the reference line identifies this person, usually by initials. It appears a few spaces below the signature line, along the left margin. The writer's initials come first, and they are capitalized. For example, if Kathy Reese wrote a letter that McKenzie Allen typed, it would appear like this:KR/ma.If the envelope contains any documents other than the letter itself, identify the number of enclosures:Enclosure orEnclosure (1), which means two documentsIn determining the number of enclosures, count only the separate items, not the number of pages.

Copy Line The copy line is used to let the reader know that other people are receiving a copy of the document. Use the following symbols:

c: for copy pc: for photocopy bc: blind copy

Follow the symbol with the names of the other recipients, listed either alphabetically or according to organizational rank. If you do not want your reader to know about the other copies, type bc on the copies only, not the original.


Q 3. Explain in detail “ Listening” and what is the advantage of “Body Language” in communication.

Answer. Listening :

In its most basic form, communicating involves a sender who takes his/her thoughts and encodes them into verbal and nonverbal messages that are sent to a receiver. The receiver then decodes the messages and attempts to understand what the sender meant to communicate. The communication process is completed when the receiver transmits verbal and nonverbal feedback to indicate his/her reception and understanding of the message.

This process takes place within a context, also known as a rhetorical situation, which includes all that affects the communication process such as the sender-receiver's culture, the sender-receiver's relationship, the circumstances surrounding the sender-receiver's interaction, and the physical environment of the interaction.

Listening is a vital skill, not only for this class but for life in general. Becoming an effective communicator starts with becoming a better listener.

The main thing to remember is that hearing does not equal listening. Hearing is a physiological process that involves the reception of vibrations by the delicate structures within our ears. Listening is a psychological process that involves the interpretation of what we hear. Hearing is passive--it takes no effort on our part, while listening is active--it takes effort and a willingness to tune in.

One of the most important parts of public speaking is learning how to listen to or read your audience. This means being able to observe and to utilize the feedback from the audience. Being a good listener also helps in the development of your speech because it allows you to gain skills in analyzing messages and retaining information.

So how do you start improving your listening skills? The key is to actively focus on your listening behavior, and to start eliminating behaviors that lead to poor listening. These negative behaviors include:

Mentally jumping to conclusions before the other person has finished speaking.

Focusing on how the person communicates rather than what is being communicated.

Starting to think of a response before the other person has finished a thought.


Being aware of such behaviors, and actively trying to eliminate them is a major step toward being a more effective communicator.

Advantage of “Body Language” in Communication:

An interesting method for selling clients on you, your company and your services is to use nonverbal communication, subtle messages conveyed without words. These include posture, facial expressions, gestures, mannerisms and your appearance. People buy based on their senses, and everything that you can do to positively affect their senses can and will affect your ability to sell to them.

Psychologists claim that the impact you make on others depends on what you say (7%), how you say it (38%), and by your body language (55%). Since how you sound also conveys a message, 93% of emotion is communicated without actual words.

It's often not what you say that influences others; it's what you don't say. The signals that you send nonverbally suggest attitude, understanding, empathy and ethics.

The moment you meet a prospective client, they judge you by what they see and feel. The process takes less than 10 seconds but the impression is permanent. Whether you make or break a sale can literally depend on the silent signals that you send during this first contact.

However, some nonverbal signals have several meanings. Crossed arms can indicate defensiveness, or simply a comfortable position. Touching the nose can suggest doubt in what the person is hearing. Or it could be a response to an itch or soreness from a recent cold. Likewise, an unbuttoned jacket can signify openness and cooperation. It could also be an overweight person trying to fit into an old jacket. The hitchhiking pose, arm extended with thumb pointed up, can give a negative message in other cultures.

The key is that a nonverbal signal is not a complete message. Watch for a pattern of signals that all have the same meaning. The body language should match the verbal expressions. It should also match the context of the situation. So look for body language in clusters of signals with common meanings. Once you understand body language, you can use your own voice and body to help make a sale.

Take the handshake for example. A handshake can be soft, firm, brief, long, or even painful. The way you shake hands provides clues to your personality. Aggressive people have firm handshakes. People with low self esteem often have a limp handshake. Politicians typically shake your hand with their other hand covering the shake or holding your elbow. Domineering men often squeeze the hand of women during a greeting. The clever woman moves her index and little finger in toward her palm preventing a crushing handshake. This negates his dominant act and keeps her in equal control. So adopt a handshake that is firm, yet not crushing. Convey confidence and professionalism, not dominance.

Posture is another aspect of body language. A slouch can suggest lack of interest or enthusiasm. Standing straight with your weight balanced on each foot makes you look confident and relaxed. Try to stand or sit up straight; don't slouch.

Rather than saying “Trust me”, subtle actions can convey the message “I can be trusted”. The mannerisms of honest people produce belief. Even animals sense this.


One particular mannerism involves the way palms are shown. Holding a hand out to a dog with the palm down sends a dominant message to the dog. It may snap at you if you're a stranger. Shaking hands with your palm down conveys the same message. Showing an open hand with palm up suggests honesty and sincerity. To an animal it conveys trust. Hands pushed into pockets convey hidden agendas or secretiveness. Show your palms, and help build trust.

Open hands with your palms visible should be accompanied by an open posture and a sincere facial expression. Your arms should be unfolded, not crossed. And your eyes should be focused on your client. Darting eyes suggest deceit. Looking left as you speak can suggest truth. Looking right when you speak may transmit dishonesty. Looking down when speaking conveys low self-esteem.

And get rid of the sunglasses. Dark glasses prevent a client from seeing your eyes and “reading your soul.” It's been said that a person's eyes cannot hide a dishonest intent.

When you meet a client, use honest, open gestures. Outward and upward movements of your hands are positive actions. Putting the finger tips of one hand against the finger tips of the other is a form of “steepling” that conveys confidence. But clasping your hands behind your head as you lean back in a chair can suggest arrogant confidence and turn prospects away. Placing your hands on each side of your waist is called “standing at the ready”. This pose shows confidence and attracts others. Many catalog-clothing models are photographed standing in this pose.

Unbuttoning a suit jacket in front of a prospect will signify an open attitude that you're willing to talk, to negotiate. Taking off your jacket is really powerful. And rolling your shirtsleeves up suggests that you're ready to get down to the final price.

As you talk with a prospect, watch their body language. If they cross their arms, use positive signals and statements that will cause them to unfold their arms and open up to your sales approach. When their arms and legs are uncrossed and their hands are open, a sale is possible. When you notice them “mirroring” your movements and gestures, you've got them locked on to your sales presentation. Mirroring indicates maximum communication with the other person. If you move your arms apart opening your palms, and they do the same, you are both in synch. The messages and the words of the sale are being received and accepted by the other.

Avoid fidgeting or appearing nervous. Even if this is the first serious prospect in a week, you must act as though your business plate is relatively full. If they appear defensive or hostile, don't react in like manner. Use all positive signals. Lean slightly forward to put energy into the conversation. Spread your arms, and open your hands with your palms up.

Visualize your customer wearing a traffic signal. Positive nonverbal messages signal “ green” to go ahead and approach a close on the sale. If the client's body language changes from positive to defensive or non–believing, the signal is “yellow” and caution must be observed. Slow down and advance carefully. Try to get them to exhibit openness. A defiant, arms and legs “double-cross” with a scowl on their face is a definite “red” signal. You cannot close a sales unless you have a “green” light. If you can get your prospect to mirror your movements they'll be in synch with your presentation and receptive to the sale.

Use your body in the selling process and keep upbeat. If you believe in your services and the quality of your work, others will too. A positive, honest message conveyed by


your nonverbal communication will generate far more opportunities than you think. Nonverbal messages can move prospects from suspicion to openness and receptiveness. They can sway “fence –sitters” into buying. You can also use body language to calm hostile or dissatisfied clients.

Dishonest entrepreneurs will be exposed when buyer's become aware and use body language to read the insincere service provider like a book. Then these prospects will turn to you, the honest professional, for their business solutions.

Q 4. Visualize the types of written communication in the Business Organization

1. Notices 2. Reports 3. Letters4. Minutes of meeting 5. Brochures 6. House Journals

Answer.

Notices –

Notices are methods used to keep the workforce as a whole up to date with what is going on. There are impersonal methods of communication i.e. the same communication is sent to all the workers. Notices may relate to vacant posts, holiday arrangements, union matters or social events and are likely to be displayed on a notice board. Sometimes important notices are included with wage or salary slips. They keep workers informed and attempt to make them feel a part of a large company. The advantages of this method are:

It can contain diagrams as well as written information. A written record of the message is kept. They can be created in such a way as to attract attention. Employees tend to look at notice boards in their breaks.

The disadvantages to this method are:

The message isn’t clearly sent across, as not a lot of detail can be included in the notice.

The notice can easily be taken down to be read by an employee or covered up by another notice.

It can time to distribute the notices around the organisation. If they don’t look attractive, people tend not to look at them as they may think

from their first impressions that it doesn’t seem very interesting.


Letters -

Millions of us write letters as part of our work but few of us know the keys to an effective business letter. Too many business letters are impersonal, longwinded and difficult or tedious to read.

Most writers hide behind tired phrases and an over-formal approach when writing business letters.

Part II

Q. 1 Fill in the blanks

1) The greater the vision, the greater the potential it gives.

2) Goals provide a valuable means of evaluating your progress.

3) The single greatest resource that each of us has to increase our productivity is other people.

4) Stress becomes strain when it is continuous.

5) Meet each person with positive anticipation, and expect every encounter to yield positive results.

Q.2 What do you understand by the word – vision? How it is useful for achievement of your goals?

Ans. The people make things happen are people who have vision. Actually vision means something supposedly seen by other than normal sight, the ability to perceive something not actually visible, as through mental acuteness, keen foresight…force or power of imagination”. It is basically a mental picture in a person, which he strives to make it happen.

A person without vision sees only what is immediate, what he can put his hands on and what is convenient. Someone with vision, on the other hand, has the whole world open to him. A person’s occupation doesn’t determine his vision. Vision brings great benefits and opens incredible doors of opportunity. It increases a person’s potential. The greater the vision, the greater the potential it gives.


Achievements make life more enjoyable. Vision gives you a sense of accomplishment. It is fun, when those small accomplishments are part of a larger purpose – as they are when they are part of bringing a vision to fruition – the excitement increases. Each task becomes an important building block in that bigger picture.

Usefulness of Vision for achievement of our goals -

1. It adds value to our work: When our wok is part of the achievement of our vision, each task has value. Even the most mundane task, can give you a sense of satisfaction, because you can see a greater purpose being accomplished.

2. It predicts your future: When you have a vision you work hard to accomplish it, your future is more likely to become a fulfillment of that vision. One can increase his chances for success tremendously if he is having a vision. And those people who lack vision can be terribly surprised by the future that awaits them.

3. You do not need to be born with the ability to see opportunities and visualize a positive future. Vision is a quality that can be cultivated. It is also a quality that can be suppressed. Hence, one should realize the vision to achieve/accomplish goals.

a) If you wish to become successful, you must define the vision you have for your life.

b) Making your vision become a reality would not be instantaneous. It will be a process, much like taking a journey. When you decide to take a journey, one of the first things, you do is identify your starting point. Without that information, you will never be able to plot a course to your destination.

c) All dreams have a price. One of the sacrifices that you will have to make in order to fulfill your vision comes in the area of options. You cannot pursue your dream and keep all of you options open at the same time.

d) Part of realizing your vision involves the journey of personal growth that you must take in order to get there. Positive changes in a person’s life always require personal growth.

e) Realizing your vision will require you to preserves and to build as much momentum as you can.

f) Do not surprised when opposition comes. Instead, be prepared. Have an unsinkable positive attitude.

g) Keep your focus fixed on your vision, but remain flexible about the road you will take to get there.

h) It takes dedication and continued effort. It is one of the prices you must pay for success.

i) Always analyze what talents, gifts and resources do I possess that I am not currently utilising? what opportunities do I have that are a result of my answer to the previous question;

Without vision, there is nothing to shoot for, no target, no greater task to give you purpose and hope. Vision provides the creative spark that makes great achievements possible.


Q.3 Define “Goals” and explain in details pyramid.

Ans. The whole concept of achieving success begins with you, with how you think. It begins with a positive mental attitude. Closely related to that concept is a determination to overcome failures. Those attitudes, in turn, lead to the ability to see nearly limitless possibilities and opportunities in everything around you. In time, you are able to develop not only the vision, which empowers you in your day-to-day activities, but you are eventually able to develop a more specific, all encompassing vision for your life. Right thinking creates a solid foundation for success. But it is only the first part of the strategies for success. Once you have formed that foundation, you are ready to begin building on it. In order to achieve success, you need to develop goals.

Success varies from person to person. To one it may be earning a lot of money and to other it may be to acquire power which he thought of and some other will say success means to keep the profession and personal in balance like this you will find different answers about the success. One of the best definitions of the success is the progressive realization of a worthwhile, predetermined goal. This definition works for anyone, no matter what his focus is in life. With out defined goals success is unattainable, because success is actually the attainment of those goals. Rather goals are measurable milestones along the road to success.

Once you have identified some of your goals, you can begin to build a strategy for your success.

Think of your goals forming a pyramid. Above that pyramid is your statement of purpose. Every goal you set, and all that you do to accomplish those goals must point to your statement of purpose.

The pyramid itself is made up of five sections. The top most section is the smallest, the most focused. It contains your life-long goals. Each of the sections beneath it contains all of the smaller goals necessary for the accomplishment of the larger goals above them. Here is an overview of each of the five sections:

Pyramid Diagram

Regular Disciplines

Short Term Goals

Intermediate Goals

Long Term Goals

1. Life long goals – These are the approximately two to five goals that you hope to accomplish in your life time. If you are able to achieve them or come close to achieving them, you will have fulfilled to the best of your ability what you believe to be your purpose in life.

2. Long-term goals – These are the goals that you have to set to help you reach each of your life-long goals. In general, these are things you hope to accomplish in about two years.


It usually is not time spent wisely. The farther away goals are, the less specific they are, and the more subject to change they become. But setting long-term goals is important. Without long-term goals you are likely to experience short-term frustrations.

3. Intermediate Goals - These are goals you have set to help you reach each of your long term goals. In general, these are things you desire to accomplish in five to ten years.

4. Short-term Goals - These are goals you have set to help you reach of your intermediate goals. They take from one to five years to accomplish.

5. Regular Disciplines - These are the tasks you will be completing on a daily, weekly and monthly basis in order to accomplish, your short-term goals. These are governed by the way you manage your time.


Q.4 What is meant by “STRESS”? What are the ways to reduce stress?Ans. Stress is a term used to describe the body and mind's reaction to everyday tensions and pressures. Too much stress can increase pain, and can make a person more prone to illnesses such as heart disease or mental problems. Stress is the "wear and tear" our bodies experience as we adjust to our continually changing environment; it has physical and emotional effects on us and can create positive or negative feelings. As a positive influence, stress can help compel us to action; it can result in a new awareness and an exciting new perspective. As a negative influence, it can result in feelings of distrust, rejection, anger, and depression, which in turn can lead to health problems such as headaches, upset stomach, rashes, insomnia, ulcers, high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. With the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion, or a new relationship, we experience stress as we readjust our lives. In so adjusting to different circumstances, stress will help or hinder us depending on how we react to it.

The strategies to help to handle stress successfully:

1. Develop a proper perspective: One common characteristic of people who are able to avoid much of the stress that others experience is that they are able to maintain a proper perspective regardless of life’s circumstances. Earle Wilson called perspective. “The ability to see the present moment and immediate events against the background of a larger reference”. There is no substitute for perspective. If you feel stress because of minor difficulties, try to remember the bigger picture. It will help you to see things as they really are instead of what you are afraid they might become.

2. Stop Running from Risks: Fear of risk remains a major cause of stress and a potential obstacle to success. Once while going to District Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh I saw one saying “You will not get more than what is written in your fate and also not before time” and some say this is only the thought but mostly say it is the fate but both are unknown then what is to think what is to cry. Just like this risk is also a future tense which may happen and may not then why to cry or why to happy today be calm and lead a peaceful life and this is happen only when you expect the worst, and that is what you will get every time. Expect the best, and that is what you will most often get.

3. Work in your areas of strength: Persons who work in their areas of strength are less like to become victims of stress, even when they make mistakes. If you are not sure where your areas of strength are, here is something that will help you to identify them. If you make mistakes, and they challenge you instead of causing you to experience stress, them you are probably working an area of strength. If your mistakes make you feel threatened and tense, you are probably working in an area of weakness. As you get older, try to work more and more in your areas of strength. If you do, you are more likely to avoid stress and find success.

4. Avoid Rat Race: Now a days, in this competent world it has become common. Everybody competes fiercely against one another, with them often “keeping score” in terms of the amount of personal gain and wealth they acquire. Even a person wins in this rat race he is still a rat. When a person enters the rat race of competition instead of working toward his goals in order to achieve his vision, he is subjecting himself to unnecessary stress. No matter how hard that person works, he will not be able to receive a sense


of satisfaction, because he is competing in too many areas. And he will never “win” because anyone who is driven solely by the desire for personal gain will never acquire enough to be satisfied. Work hard. Strive to achieve your goals. But do not do it to the detriment of your family, your health, or your fellow man. Nothing is worth that kind of sacrifice or the stress that comes with it.

5. Get off the Road of Overload: Usually we keep taking on more and more responsibilities until we cannot possibly fulfill them all competently. And that causes stress. Sometimes we need to stop taking on more work and get off the road of overload. If you are one of those people who love to try new things and keep taking on more, stop periodically and remind yourself that you cannot do everything and still do what is importantly more effective. Sometimes you have to give up what is merely good in order to do what is best.

6. Develop strong Convictions: Lack of purpose and direction seems to be epidemic in the 20th century. People no longer know what they believe. Many have replaced values with doubts – conviction with apathy. Convictions enable a person to face nearly any situation in life with courage and dignity. The deeper the convictions, the stronger a person is. And the less likely he or she is to experience stress in the face of adversity.

7. Give up your rights: You wont always be able to get everything want, no matter how hard you try, to help avoid or minimize interruptions. Everyone has probably heard the statement. “It is better to give than to receive”. Any one who has ever given a gift to a child knows that statement is true. The same can be true when it comes to your rights. It is possible to find peace in not always demanding to have your way, in giving up your rights. Giving can bring great joy and it can greatly reduce stress.

8. Reprogram your Mind: Stress we experience is directly related to our way of thinking. And our way of thinking is the direct result of what we put into our minds. Be aware that your mind is constantly undergoing programming. And you are the only person who can choose what your mind will receive. Stay away from things that are negative and that build stress. Always think positive, see positive, try to hear positive, think about the good things, always think of love results in generating positive energy in you and which will helps you to decrease stress in you.

9. Turn your focus outward: The people who focus too much on themselves are often discouraged. As a result they experience stress. If you find yourself becoming preoccupied with your own concerns, spend time helping others. In helping other, we often heal ourselves.

10. Has someone to talk to: Much of the stress that we experience often occurs because we bottle up our feelings instead of sharing them with others. Hence, it is better you open up and tells all your feelings & talk everything whatever is inside your mind with the person to whom you can trust a most and who will never use what you say against you.

11. Find a fun way to release stress: Use fun ways to release stress. For example I reduce stress is to play a cricket. I put the name of a person whose causing me a lot of stress on the ball and I hit that ball as far as I can.


Stress usually does not result from doing too much. It most often results from the way you think about the things you are doing and that are happening to you. Whether or not you are able to survive stress is a result of how you handle it. Begin to change your thinking and your habits. Avoid it when you can. Use healthy strategies to handle it when you cannot avoid it. Do not allow stress to be the unexpected punch that knocks you out and prevents you from achieving success.

scdl - pgdba - finance - sem 1- business communication & executive effectiveness

Documents