Wednesday 7 August 2024

PUBLIC SPEAKING EFFECTIVENESS - LEARN HOW TO SPEAK IN THE PUBLIC

Essentials in Public Speaking

1.1Introduction to Public Speaking
Public Speaking has become a common phenomenon in our present day social

life. In our various human endeavours, addressing the public has become inevitable. How we present ourselves in our public speaking will influence the kind of image we create about ourselves in the minds of our listeners. How far we can go in our political career and in our other human endeavours depend to a great extent on ‘the person’ we present ourselves to be in the minds of our listeners.

Public speaking has been defined as the process and act of speaking or giving a lecture to a group of people in a structured, deliberate manner intended to inform, influence, or entertain a listening audience. Public speaking is commonly understood as face-to-face oral conversation or speaking between individuals and an audience for the purpose of communication.

To succeed in our public speaking, like in every other human activities and programmes, our speaking in the public must be planned, prepared for and properly executed and we must get feedbacks from our listeners. This book presents sets of guides on how to succeed in our Public Speaking.

1.2 Preparation for Public Speaking
Making initial preparation for public speaking is essential for achieving success in our public speaking. Having good preparation before embarking on public speaking enables one to overcome the problem of nervousness that is usually associated with public speaking. As part of your preparation, you should consider the following:

(1)The Audience: Who are your audience? How many are they? What are their level of education and how will they compare with you educationally and intelligently? What do they know about the subject matter of your discussion? What will be their attitude towards you? There is the need for you to know your audience and then plan based on your knowledge about them.

Get information about who will be attending your presentation. Are all participants experts at the topic or will there be novice,s present? Is there a mixed group of people representing different backgrounds or is everyone on the same page regarding technic- alities? Depending on the audience, you will have to spend some time giving varying degrees of background on the material and explaining certain concepts.

(2)The Purpose: You should also consider the purpose of discussion. Are you there to put forward an idea or what your view is about on an issue? Do you intend to inform them or educate them about an issue? Do you want to convince them to buy into your own ideas or view point or are you there just to supply detailed information about something or to teach them a skill or to introduce new policy. You should have the purpose of your discussion at the back of your mind at every stage of your public speaking.

(3)Information gathering: As part of your preparation for the public speaking, you should gather as much materials and information as possible, possibly from your previous discussions with others, from your past experience or knowledge, from journals, documents, and other reference works produced by others in the past. After these materials have been assembled, you should embark on organizing them. In organizing the flow of your speaking, you should take cognizance of the beginning and the endings of your public talk. Your beginning must arouse interest of your listeners in your material or enlist sympathetic attention to your viewpoint.
Let us consider this extract from Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare of Anthonio’s response to Brutus oration at Caesar’s Funeral:

“Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him;
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar;
The noble Brutus had told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault.
And grievously hath Caesar answer’d it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest;
For Brutus is an honourable man;
Come I to speak in Caesar’s funeral;
He was my friend, faithful and just to me;
But Brutus says, he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He had brought many captives home to Rome,
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill
Did this in Caesar seen ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff;
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal,
I thrice presented him a Kingly Crown.
Which he did thrice refuse; was this ambitious?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke;
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause;
What cause withholds you then not to mourn for him?
O Judgment| thou art fled to Brutish beasts?
And men have lost their reason.
Bear with me; My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar;
And I must pause till it come back to me.”

This is an extract from Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare. For those who are familiar with the story of Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare, we all know the aftermath of Anthonio’s speech and how he was able to arouse the attention of his audience and enlisted their sympathetic attention to his view point and how they went on rampage after listening to him, to arrest Brutus and all those that were involved in the assassination of Julius Caesar. Just similar to what Anthonio did in the above extract, you should allow enthusiasm show even at the beginning of your public speech. You should properly think out about the ending of your public speaking. You should not prolong your speech to avoid unintended errors and mistakes. What you said during your conclusion will be enduring in the minds of your audience and it is this that will leave impression about you in the minds of your listeners. You can end your speech by summarizing the key-points of your discussions or what you want your audience to have at the back of their mind about your speech. Repetition is an essential part of good spoken words.

(4)Frame your story:
There’s no way you can give a good talk unless you have something worth talking about. Conceptualizing and framing what you want to say is the most vital part of preparation. We all know that stories are a powerful tool for communication and therefore, metaphors which abound the narrative structures work best to engage people. You can adopt the following approaching in framing your story and to make it interesting to listen to:

Approach 1:
Consider it as planning a journey where the biggest decisions are where to start and where to end. To find the right place to start, consider what people in the audience already know about your subject – and how much they care about it. If you assume they have more knowledge or interest than they in fact do, or if you start using jargon or get too technical, you’ll lose them. The most engaging speakers do a superb job of very quickly introducing the topic, explaining why they care so deeply about it, and convincing the audience members that they should, too.

Approach 2:
Have a narrative structure that loosely follows a detective story with which to introduce your speech. The speaker starts out by presenting a problem and then describes the search for a solution. There is an “aha” moment, and the audience’s perspective shifts in a meaningful way. As a general rule, people are not very interested in talks about organizations or institutions. Ideas and stories fascinate us; organizations bore us – they’re much harder to relate to.

(5)Summarize your message
What is the centre point of your message that you want your listeners to take home after listening to you? Focus on that message. Start out with this summary statement in mind and gradually build your presentation around it as your presentation progresses. Don’t lose concentration on this central message as your progress in your presentation.

(6)Plan your delivery
Before getting on with your speech delivery, there is the need for you to plan your delivery. There are three main ways to deliver a speech. You can read it directly off a script. You can develop a set of bullet points that map out what you’re going to say in each section rather than scripting the whole thing word for word. Or you can memorize your speech, which entails rehearsing it to the point where you internalize every word. Don't do number one as reading a speech is the most boring thing for everyone! For me bullet points proved to be the most reasonable system as remembering the entire speech by heart might prove too stressful or time-consuming. Don't write out the material word-by-word and don't plan on reading text even if you do have it all written down. Having the text written out and parts of it memorized will constrain you. Memorize the structure of the talk and the outline but not every word.

(7)Timing your Speech
There should be appropriate timing for your speech delivery. People rarely want to listen to someone for longer than the allotted time. Most people become bored after listening to the same story for a long time. Few people are such amazing speakers that an audience c an't get enough of them. Do not assume you are one of those few. Wrap up your talk on time. To achieve this goal, ask someone to give you time cues by indicating when you have five minutes left, two minutes and when youhave run out of time. Once you get the last notice, you should stop talking.

Thursday 18 April 2024

DANIKING BUSINESS SCHOOL ORGANIZES SERIES OF TRAINING PROGRAMMES

DANIKING BUSINESS SCHOOL 

𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦

𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗙𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗗𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗢𝗣𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗠:
Acquire that international profile and CV now to remain competitive. Keep that job and easily get employers' attention. 

𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Participate in these knowledge packed and skill acquisition programmes in:-

(𝟭) Financial Analysis For Future Professionals.

September 21st | 3pm-6pm (Whatsapp)

This training programme is aimed at exposing to the participants the techniques in Financial Analysis. Trainees shall be bequeathed with the fundamentals of financial Analysis using appropriate ratios and accounting tools. This training will equip the participants with skills that will make them "hot cakes" and in high demand by Employers.

𝗧𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀: 

https://chat.whatsapp.com/GWdsZG0T6R7DcgV3aNgRbb

𝗢𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄: 

23408028177177

(𝟮) Feasibility Report Writing Techniques for Business Men and Women.
September 28th | 3pm-6pm

This training programme adopts easy to understand and comprehend teaching methodology to communicate to participants techniques and skills they need to prepare world-class feasibility report. A case study will be carried out and report submitted at the end of the training programme by all participants to assess the extent of learning that took place and the extent to which the participants were able assimilate and understand the information conveyed to them during the training programme.

𝗧𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀: 

https://chat.whatsapp.com/GWdsZG0T6R7DcgV3aNgRbb

𝗢𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄: 23408028177177

(𝟯) TRAINING PROGRAMME ON BUSINESS ANALYSIS AND BUSINESS MODEL BUILDING FOR PROFESSIONALS

September 5th and 12th, 2024 | 3pm-6pm (Whatsapp)

In today's dynamic business environment, there are some essential business analytical skills are needed to scale through the wave of changes that are ravaging the entire business world. Managers are not magicians. They need some essential tools to excel. This training shall provide participants with these essential skills and knowledge. At the end of the training programme, participants shall be equipped with Business Analytical and Business Model Building skills that will make them in high demand among employers.

𝗧𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀: 

https://chat.whatsapp.com/GWdsZG0T6R7DcgV3aNgRbb

𝗢𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗮𝗽𝗽 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄: 234-08028177177

With an ever contracting economy, only those who consistently upgrade & update academically would stay ahead. These course would make your employers take you serious and open doors for job seekers. 

Learn more about DANIKING BUSINESS SCHOOL.

DANIKING BUSINESS SCHOOL is a Human Resource Management and Management Consultant and a Professional Chartered Accountant firm that specializes in manpower training and development. We are a member of Nigeria Institute of Training and Development, (NITAD). Our Facilitators are professionals that have varied experiences and have distinguished themselves in their various professional callings.

DANIKING BUSINESS SCHOOL 

ORGANIZES 2 DAYS TRAINING PROGRAMMES IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS:

1. FINANCIAL ANALYSIS FOR FUTURE PROFESSIONALS 
Dates 21st & September 2024
Training Fee: N15,000.00 per Participant.

2. FEASIBILITY STUDY AND REPORT WRITING FOR BUSINESS MEN AND WOMEN.
Date: 28th & September 2024.
Training Fee: N15,000 per 
Participant.

3. TRAINING PROGRAMME ON BUSINESS ANALYSIS AND BUSINESS MODEL BUILDING FOR PROFESSIONALS.
Date: 5th and 12th & September 2024.

Training Fee: N20,000 Per Participant.

Payment should be paid in favour of: 

DANIKING CONSULTING 
ACCOUNT NO: 2031846367
FIRST BANK 

Payment slip should be sent to WhatsApp number 234-08028177177

Monday 26 June 2023

FREE ONLINE ENGLISH LANGAUAGE LESSION


Equip yourself with modern English language skills that could enable you to enhance your career prospects and potentials in your office and in your business area at no extra cost to you. We shall be providing free english language lessons with which you can enhance your communication skills. Visit us at
www.english-doctor.blogspot.com

IMPROVING YOUR PUBLIC SPEAKING EFFECTIVENESS



CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Essentials in Public Speaking

Public Speaking has become a common phenomenon in our present day social life. In our various human endeavours, addressing the public has become inevitable. How we present ourselves in our public speaking will influence the kind of image we create about ourselves in the minds of our listeners. How far we can go in our political career and in our other human endeavours depend to a great extent on ‘the person’ we present ourselves to be in the minds of our listeners.

Public speaking has been defined as the process and act of speaking or giving a lecture to a group of people in a structured, deliberate manner intended to inform, influence, or entertain a listening audience. Public speaking is commonly understood as face-to-face oral conversation or speaking between individuals and an audience for the purpose of communication.

To succeed in our public speaking, like in every other human activities and programmes, our speaking in the public must be planned, prepared for and properly executed and we must get feedbacks from our listeners. This book presents sets of guides on how to succeed in our Public Speaking.

1.2 Preparation for Public Speaking
Making initial preparation for public speaking is essential for achieving success in our public speaking. Having good preparation before embarking on public speaking enables one to overcome the problem of nervousness that is usually associated with public speaking. As part of your preparation, you should consider the following:

(1) The Audience:
Who are your audience? How many are they? What are their level of education and how will they compare with you educationally and intelligently? What do they know about the subject matter of your discussion? What will be their attitude towards you? There is the need for you to know your audience and then plan based on your knowledge about them.

Get information about who will be attending your presentation. Are all participants experts at the topic or will there be novices present? Is there a mixed group of people representing different backgrounds or is everyone on the same page regarding technic- alities? Depending on the audience, you will have to spend some time giving varying degrees of background on the material and explaining certain concepts.

(2) The Purpose:
You should also consider the purpose of discussion. Are you there to put forward an idea or what your view is about on an issue? Do you intend to inform them or educate them about an issue? Do you want to convince them to buy into your own ideas or view point or are you there just to supply detailed information about something or to teach them a skill or to introduce new policy. You should have the purpose of your discussion at the back of your mind at every stage of your public speaking.

(3) Information gathering:
As part of your preparation for the public speaking, you should gather as much materials and information as possible, possibly from your previous discussions with others, from your past experience or knowledge, from journals, documents, and other reference works produced by others in the past. After these materials have been assembled, you should embark on organizing them. In organizing the flow of your speaking, you should take cognizance of the beginning and the endings of your public talk.
Your beginning must arouse interest of your listeners in your material or enlist sympathetic attention to your viewpoint. Let us consider this extract from Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare of Anthonio’s response to Brutus oration at Caesar’s Funeral:

“Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him;
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar;
The noble Brutus had told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault.
And grievously hath Caesar answer’d it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest;
For Brutus is an honourable man;
Come I to speak in Caesar’s funeral;
He was my friend, faithful and just to me;
But Brutus says, he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He had brought many captives home to Rome,
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill;
Did this in Caesar seen ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff;
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal,
I thrice presented him a Kingly Crown.
Which he did thrice refuse; was this ambitious?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke;
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause;
What cause withholds you then not to mourn for him?
O Judgment| thou art fled to Brutish beasts?
And men have lost their reason.
Bear with me; My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar;
And I must pause till it come back to me.”
This is an extract from Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare. For those who are familiar with the story of Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare, we all know the aftermath of Anthonio’s speech and how he was able to arouse the attention of his audience and enlisted their sympathetic attention to his view point and how they went on rampage after listening to him, to arrest Brutus and all those that were involved in the assassination of Julius Caesar. Just similar to what Anthonio did in the above extract, you should allow enthusiasm show even at the beginning of your public speech. You should properly think out about the ending of your public speaking. You should not prolong your speech to avoid unintended errors and mistakes. What you said during your conclusion will be enduring in the minds of your audience and it is this that will leave impression about you in the minds of your listeners. You can end your speech by summarizing the key-points of your discussions or what you want your audience to have at the back of their mind about your speech. Repetition is an essential part of good spoken words. (4) Frame your story:
There’s no way you can give a good talk unless you have something worth talking about. Conceptualizing and framing what you want to say is the most vital part of preparation. We all know that stories are a powerful tool for communication and therefore, metaphors which abound the narrative structures work best to engage people. You can adopt the following approaching in framing your story and to make it interesting to listen to:

Approach 1: Consider it as planning a journey where the biggest decisions are where to start and where to end. To find the right place to start, consider what people in the audience already know about your subject – and how much they care about it. If you assume they have more knowledge or interest than they in fact do, or if you start using jargon or get too technical, you’ll lose them. The most engaging speakers do a superb job of very quickly introducing the topic, explaining why they care so deeply about it, and convincing the audience members that they should, too.

Approach 2: Have a narrative structure that loosely follows a detective story with which to introduce your speech. The speaker starts out by presenting a problem and then describes the search for a solution. There is an “aha” moment, and the audience’s perspective shifts in a meaningful way. As a general rule, people are not very interested in talks about organizations or institutions. Ideas and stories fascinate us; organizations bore us – they’re much harder to relate to.

(5) Summarize your message
What is the centre point of your message that you want your listeners to take home after listening to you? Focus on that message. Start out with this summary statement in mind and gradually build your presentation around it as your presentation progresses. Don’t lose concentration on this central message as your progress in your presentation.

(6) Plan your delivery
Before getting on with your speech delivery, there is the need for you to plan your delivery. There are three main ways to deliver a speech. You can read it directly off a script. You can develop a set of bullet points that map out what you’re going to say in each section rather than scripting the whole thing word for word. Or you can memorize your speech, which entails rehearsing it to the point where you internalize every word. Don't do number one as reading a speech is the most boring thing for everyone! For me bullet points proved to be the most reasonable system as remembering the entire speech by heart might prove too stressful or time-consuming. Don't write out the material word-by-word and don't plan on reading text even if you do have it all written down. Having the text written out and parts of it memorized will constrain you. Memorize the structure of the talk and the outline but not every word.

(7) Timing your Speech

There should be appropriate timing for your speech delivery. People rarely want to listen to someone for longer than the allotted time. Most people become bored after listening to the same story for a long time. Few people are such amazing speakers that an audience c an't get enough of them. Do not assume you are one of those few. Wrap up your talk on time. To achieve this goal, ask someone to give you time cues by indicating when you have five minutes left, two minutes and when youhave run out of time. Once you get the last notice, you should stop talking.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Mr. Benjamin Ibe holds B.SC Business Administration, MBA (Human Resources Management) and MSC in Management from University of Lagos. He is an Associate member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN). Mr. Ibe has over twenty years professional work experience mostly in telecommunication, Information Technology and Educational Institution during which he worked as Office Manager, Accountant, Administration Manager and Human Resources Manager. Before joining Daniking Consulting Nigeria, as the Chief Consultant and Managing Partner,

Mr. Ibe has been a resource person for Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) Alternative Examination Solution Provider for so many years at ATS and Professional levels. Mr. Ibe has also been a Visiting Lecturer at ICAN/CRS Study Centre, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria, ICAN for so many years.

He has attended so many seminars both locally and internationally including Training the Trainers Programme organised by CIMA for CIMA Global of the United Kingdom. Mr. Ibe was also a visiting lecturer at Lagos State University, Isolo and Festac Town Campuses and also Lagos State Polytechnic Oshodi Campus. Mr. Ibe has written so many books among which include Enhancing Advertising Campaign Effectiveness to Achieve Marketing Objectives; Idol Worshipping in Africa, A Story My Father Told Me and many more books

Mr Ibe Could be reached through 234-08028177177 or email benjyibe@gmail.com

Wednesday 7 June 2023

SERIES 2: PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

2.1 Introduction:
To enable the speaker in public speaking, to achieve the intended purpose in the speech delivery, the speaker must understand the elements of effective communication and observe the following principles of communication. Without observing these principles, it will be very difficult to achieve the objectives of the public speaking. In this chapter, we shall examine the principles of effective communication which include the elements of effective communication.

2.2 The Elements of Effective Communication:
For us to be able to achieve our intended objectives in every communication, including public speaking, we must observe the following factors that are essential in communication process. These include the following:

a. The Source: Source denotes the originator of the message that is to be conveyed to the listener. It is the source that encodes the message in the form that the receiver will receive it. The source denotes the writer or speaker, the originator or the deliverer of the speech.

b. The Message: The message is the idea, the information that is to being conveyed or delivered to the audience. It is the news, the story, the speech or the ideas you want to convey to your audience.

c. The Channel – Channel is the pathway through wich the message is being passed to the audience. It represents the medium of communication. In public speaking, the medium is usually on face-to-face oral communication through which the message is conveyed to the audience.

d. The Receiver: The receiver is the person or the audience that they message is intended for. They are the audience who are being targeted during the delivery of the message. The receiver is the intended audience for your message, the listeners to your speech in public speaking.

e. The Feedback: Feedback is the information that flow from the receivers or the audience to the source in a communication process. It is the reactions from the receivers of the message during or after your communication.

These five elements are explained in details below.

A Source:
The source denotes the person that creates or originates the message being conveyed to the receivers or to the audience. This represents the originator of the message that are to be communicated to the receivers during the communication process. Before you embark on any communication, there must be purpose for communication and a message to communicate. The source encodes the message to be transmitted to the receivers into the form that the receiver will be able to receive them. There are four factors within the source which can increase the effectiveness of the communication. These factors include the following:

i. The communication skill of the communicator (i.e. the source of the message).
ii. His attitude,
iii. His knowledge, and
iv. His position within his socio-cultural group.
Communication Skill:

The communication skill possessed by the source will determine the quality of the message being delivered as well as the achievement of the purpose of the communication. Lack of good communication skill will definitely mar the communication effectiveness. According to Nwosu and Idemili (1992), to send a message that expresses the purpose of our communication, we must possess the necessary skill. If we are to write our message before the speech proper, we must have enough vocabulary adequate to express our ideas to others. We should avoid using words that are hard to understand or highly technical words and languages or words that are peculiar to a particular profession We should use words that expresses our ideas more clearly and that can be easily understood. The linguistic facility of communication source is an essential factor in the communication process, that is, how effective we are in our communication, depends to a great extent on our command of the language of communication. As sources of communication, we are limited in our ability to express our purpose, if we do not possess the communication skill, especially in the subject-matter being discussed.

Attitudes:
This is another factor that determines whether communication will be effective or not. In almost all human endeavours, right attitude is very imperative to achieve our intended objectives. The attitude of a communication source affects the way in which he communicates. Our attitude can make or mar the effectiveness of the communication. The source’s attitude affect communication in three different ways which include the following: -
1. Firstly, his attitude towards himself. The source attitude towards himself could be positive or negative. If a source has a negative attitude towards himself, and if he lacks self-confidence, that will affect his communication. His ability to convey his ideas to the audience will be inhibited. He will become jittery and non-coordinated in presentation of his speech. For a writer or a communicator to gain self-confidence, he must do a lot of writing and speaking before the delivery of the speech.

2. Attitude towards the subject matter: In every communication, there must be a subject matter of communication. This focuses on the content or the idea of the message you want to communicate. If the writer or communicator has a negative attitude towards his subject matter, if he does not like the subject matter, his attitudes will come through in his writing and presentation. His message will not be convincing enough. For example, if the subject-matter of discussion is legalization of abortion and the speaker has a negative attitude towards the legalization of abortion, he will be so critical about this subject matter. The major causes of negative attitude towards a subject-matter is when the writer or speaker does not share the same ideology or believe in the value of the subject matter or has a contrary view about the subject matter. Consequently, his presentation of the subject matter will in most cases be done shabbily and without any interest or motivation.

3. Attitudes towards the audience: The source’s attitude towards his audience – his listeners or readers, that is, his dispositions, his feelings, his love and hatred towards the audience, will affect his communication behaviour. The attitude of the source towards the audience could be positive or negative. When the attitude of the source towards the audience is positive and the listeners or readers realize that the speaker or writer really likes them, they are likely to be less much critical of his message, and are much more likely to accept what he says or writes. On the other hand, when the audience realize that the attitude of the source towards them is negative, they are more prone to being critical to all that the source may do during the communication process. This is a very key point that every writer or speaker must bear in mind when writing or speaking. You must not disparage, talk down or ridicule your audience or your listeners or readers or regard them as below your own social status or economic level. You must not alienate your audience or your readers just because you are privileged and in charge of the public speech because this will militate against effective communication with them.

Knowledge level:
The level of knowledge the source has about the subject matter will affect his message and the quality of his speech delivery. What you can communicate depends on what you know. You cannot communicate what you do not know. You cannot also communicate with maximum and well researched content material that you do not know about or does not understand. On the other hand, if the source knows “too much” about the subject matter of discuss, or if he is over-specialized in the subject matter of discuss, he might err in that his particular communication skills if he resorts to employing highly technical concepts in a manner that his receives cannot understand him. To be able to convey your messages and ideas to your audience, you should use simple and easy to understand languages and avoid the use of vague and superfluous words that will confuse the audience the more.

Knowledge of the communication process itself also affects source behaviour (Nwosu and Idemili 1992). What and how the source communicates depends on his ability to conduct a kind of analysis we have be explaining here. In other words, his communication behaviour is affected by how much he knows about his own attitude both to himself, his audience and the subject matter of discuss, the characteristics of his receivers, the way in which he can produce or treat messages – the kind of choices he can make about communication channels. Knowledge of communication process affects communication behaviour, (Nwosu and Idemili 1992).

Social-Cultural System
No source communicates as a free agent without being influenced by his position in the social-cultural system, (Nwosu and Idemili 1992). A source needs to know the kind of social system in which he is operating. We need to know where he fits in that social system, the roles he fulfils, the functions he is required to perform, the prestige that he and other people attached to him. We need to know also the cultural context in which he communicates, the cultural beliefs and values that are dominant for him, the accepted forms of behaviour that are acceptable and that are not acceptable, required or not required in his culture. We need to know about his own expectations and the expectations others have about him.

People in different social classes communicate differently. People from different cultural backgrounds communicate differently. Social and cultural systems determine the word choices which people make, the purposes they have for communicating, the meanings they attach to certain words, their choice of audiences, the channels they use for their messages.

The Message
A message is the actual physical product of the source. When we speak, the speech is the message. When we write, the writing is the message. When we paint, the picture is the message. When we gesture, the movements of our arms, the expressions on our faces are the message. To achieve effective communication, the following points should be taken into consideration: -
1. The message must be so designed and delivered by the source to gain attention of the intended receiver.
2. The message must be tailored to subsist the style requirements of the channel and the source wants to use.
3. The message must employ the language of reference which refer to the experience common to the source and his receiver (audience), so as to “get the meaning across”.
4. The message must arouse personality needs of in the receiver and suggest some ways to meet those needs.
5. As communicators, in handling our message, we must always keep the receiver in mind at all times. We must choose the language our receiver can understand. We should use words that will appeal to him and that are easy for him to understand. We should choose message content that will be convincing to the receiver, and that will be pertinent to his interest and needs.

Finally, we should treat the message in a way to achieve the maximum possible effect to accomplish our purpose. By message treatment, we mean the decisions the source makes as to how he should deliver his message – the choices he should make with respect to both the language and content of the message. The personality and other characteristics of the source determine the treatment he will give a massage (Nwosu and Idemili 1992).

The Channel
The channel is the medium that is used to convey the message to the receiver from the source. Mass media of communication include newspapers, magazines and other print media, electronic media such as radio, television, film and other audio-visual media. Channels of communication available to communicators include the following: -

1. face-to-face communication,
2. newspapers, newsletters, magazines,
3. press releases,
4. Films, slides, and
5. Audio-visual medium, closed-circuit television and video cassettes, etc.
6. Until recently, we can now talk of the internet and companies’ websites.

The choice of channels of communication is an important factor in the effectiveness of communication. So many things determine channel selection. These include:
a. what is available,
b. how much money can be spent in communicating the message,
c. which channels have the most impact,
d. which channels are most adaptable to the kind of purpose which the source has, and
e. which channels are most adaptable to the content of the message.
The fact is that we usually do not pick one channel over another for any good reason. To guide our decision in channel selection, we may need to ask some basic questions including:
1. What kinds of message should be transmitted?
2. What kinds of messages should be transmitted visually, through newspapers, magazines, newsletters and through pictures?
3. What kinds of messages should be transmitted audio-visually through slides, video cassettes, films etc.?
4. What kinds of messages should be transmitted physically, through touch, by having the audience actually perform certain objects and so?
These are all channel questions. We cannot make decisions about the selection of channels independently of our decision on message. The content, the language, and the treatment of message are still related to our choice of channels. Can the receiver understand better by ear, by eye or by touch?
Finally, the source himself is related to the channel he selects. Is the source a better communicator when he speaks, when he writes, when he demonstrates something physically? It is needful to point out that face-to-face communication gives the audience the opportunity to participate. Participation is a significant factor in effective communication because it tends to create a sense of involvement, a group bond, a circular pattern of influence and decision making (Nwosu and Idemili 1992).

The Receiver (Audience)
The receiver or the audience is the individual or the persons that the message is being sent to. To receive the message effectively, just like the source, the receiver should have some skills. If the receiver do not have the ability to listen, to read, to think, he will not be able to receive and understand the message that the source has communicated. We can talk about the receiver in terms of his attitudes. How he understands a message is in part determined by his attitudes towards himself, towards the content of the message. All the things that we said about the attitude of the source apply to the receiver as well.

We can talk about the receiver in terms of his knowledge level. If he does not know the language, he cannot understand the message. If he does not know anything about the content of a message, he probably cannot understand it either, (Nwosu and Idemili 1992).
We can also talk about the receiver in terms of his culture and his position in a social system. His own social status, his group memberships and his customary modes of behaviour affect the ways in which he receives and interprets messages.
Finally, we should note that the receiver is the most important factor in the communication process. If the communicator does not reach his audience with his message, he might as well have talked to himself. We should understand these about the receiver’s behaviour:
1. The receiver will interpret the message in terms of his stored experience consisting in part of ego-related beliefs and values, and in part his beliefs and values of the group to which he belongs (family, job, social and other groups). A message which challenges these beliefs and values may be rejected, distorted or misinterpreted.

In case where beliefs are finally fixed, the communicator should know that it is more effective to redirect existing attitudes slightly than to meet them head on.
2. When a receiver is confronted with an over-supply of messages, he turns to those which are easy to understand. He merely notes those which contrast with typical messages, stressing something different from his own setting. He considers those which benefits him, his family, his business, and his religion, (Nwosu and Idemili 1992).

Feedback
Feedback is essential in effective communication. Feedback is the reaction which take place along the communication process and which are transmitted backwards by members of the audience, to the communicator and by different persons in the audience to each other. Feedback provides the source with information about the success or failure in accomplishing his objectives. It allows the source or receiver to check upon himself to determine how well he is doing in accomplishing his purpose. Feedback also affects subsequent communicator’s behaviour, if the source and receiver are sensitive to it.

When the source receives feedback that is rewarding, he continues to produce the same kind of message. When he gets non-rewarding feedback, he eventually will change his message. In responding to a message, the receiver exerts control over the source. The kind of feedback he provides determines in part the next set of behaviour of the source. Speakers and audience, actors and theater goers, sources and receivers can in fact be interdependent through the mutual effects of their reactions on others.
THE AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK



MR BENJAMIN I. IBE
Mr. Benjamin Ibe holds B.SC Business Administration, MBA (Human Resources Management) and MSC in Management from University of Lagos. He is an Associate member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN). Mr. Ibe has over twenty years professional work experience mostly in telecommunication, Information Technology and Educational Institution during which he worked as Office Manager, Accountant, Administration Manager and Human Resources Manager. Before joining Daniking Consulting Nigeria, as the Chief Consultant and Managing Partner,

Mr. Ibe has been a resource person for Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) Alternative Examination Solution Provider for so many years at ATS and Professional levels. Mr. Ibe has also been a Visiting Lecturer at ICAN/CRS Study Centre, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria, ICAN for so many years.

He has attended so many seminars both locally and internationally including Training the Trainers Programme organised by CIMA for CIMA Global of the United Kingdom. Mr. Ibe was also a visiting lecturer at Lagos State University, Isolo and Festac Town Campuses and also Lagos State Polytechnic Oshodi Campus. Mr. Ibe has written so many books among which include Enhancing Advertising Campaign Effectiveness to Achieve Marketing Objectives; Idol Worshipping in Africa, A Story My Father Told Me and many more books

THE AUTHOR CAN BE CONTACTED VIA 234-08028177177 or email; benjyibe@gmail.com

Monday 11 April 2022

Master English Language for Free: Lession One: Sentence Structure









































PART ONE   GRAMMER
LESSION ONE:        SENTENCE STRUCTURE
Meaning: Sentence is a group of words that begins with a capital letter and ends with a full stop. Every sentence must have a Subject and a Verb and it must express a complete thought.
Types of Sentences
(i)                 Declarative sentences
(ii)               Imperative sentences\
(iii)             Exclamatory sentences
(iv)             Conditional sentences

(i)                 Declarative sentence
As the name suggest, this sentence states something outright or states a fact. We use this sometimes in our essay and letter writing.

Examples
1.      George bought a black shoe

(Subject)  (Verb)

2.      That Tortoise is over 100 years old   

    (Subject)      (Verb)

Declarative sentences can be positive or negative.
Example
1.      That boy is responsible (positive).
2.      That boy is not responsible (negative).
(2) Imperative sentence
Imperative sentences also end with a full stop. While the declarative sentence displays the subject and the verb, the Imperative sentence usually begins with the imperative verb and the subject (you) is implied, not stated.

Example:
1.      Respect yourself
Verb

2.      Go out from here.
Verb


 
 . 

Sit down here 
Verb

Imperative sentences usually express order or command, advice, invitation, request and instruction. Also they can be in a negative form.
We can equally use Imperative with please especially when making a request.

Example
1.      Please sign the cheque immediately.


                   Imperative verb

2.      Give me the book please.

(Imperative verb)





(3) Exclamatory sentences
Exclamatory sentences convey emotions and end in an exclamation mark (!).
Some of the emotions expressed include enthusiasm, happiness, frustration, alarm and confusion.
Note that an exclamation sentence can be made from a declarative sentence when we do the following:-

1.      Fill it with emotion through intonation;
2.      End it with an exclamation.

For example
1.      The Lander brothers landed on the moon!
2.      Great! He has gotten admission into a university.

Also note that the imperative sentences can be made exclamatory.

For example:-
1.      Sit down immediately!
        (Imperative verb) 

2.      Shut up! 
 (Imperative verb)

Exclamatory sentences should be used with caution. Avoid using many in your writing. You need them only to emphasis a few points. Many exclamatory sentences begin with “wh” expressions: what and how.

For example:-
1.      What a good news!
2.      How magnificent a how!

Note that it is wrong to use two exclamation marks in a sentence.

It is wrong to say:       Oh! it is marvelous!

It is better to say:        Oh, it is marvelous!
                                          
                                  (Comma)    (Exclamation mark)

Some exclamatory words can stand alone. For example, we can have:

Great!
Splendid!
Marvelous!

4. Conditional sentence
This is also known as the “if clause” or the “conditional clause”. The conditional sentence describes the relationship between two events or activities. In this sentence, the relationship between the action in the main clause and that of the subordinate clause depend on each other.

Note:- A main clause is a full sentence that can stand on its own while the subordinate clause cannot.

Example
1.      If it rains today, the road will be bad






 
                     Situation 1   Situation 2

In the sentence above, situation 1 must occur before situation 2 can occur. We can therefore say that the if (subordinate) clause shown the possibility while the second (main)  clause conveys the result.

Remember that the subordinate clause can be in the beginning or the second part of the complex sentence. It must be separated by a comma if it begins a complex sentence.
                                                            END
Readers can send their questions via email : english-doctor@yahoo.com or send sms via 08028177177

PUBLIC SPEAKING EFFECTIVENESS - LEARN HOW TO SPEAK IN THE PUBLIC

Essentials in Public Speaking 1.1Introduction to Public Speaking Public Speaking has become a common phenomenon in our present day socia...