2. Life Skills?
 WHO defines Life Skills as
“ Abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that
enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands
and challenges of everyday life”.
 These are psychosocial competencies and are loosely
grouped into 3 categories –
1.Cognitive skills for analyzing and using information
2.Personal skills for developing and managing oneself
3.Inter-personal skills for communicating and
interacting effectively with others

3. List of life skills
Some of the important life skills identified by WHO are –
 Decision making
 Problem solving
 Creative thinking
 Critical thinking
 Effective communication
 Self awareness
 Assertiveness
 Empathy
 Equanimity
 Interpersonal relationships
 Stress Management
 Resilience

4. Communication
What is communication?
 Communication is the sharing of meaningful
information between 2 or more people.
 It consists of the following :
1.The Sender
2.The Encoding process
3.The channel
4.The Decoding process
5.The Receiver

5. Communication Process
 Sender is the source of the message
 Encoding is the conversion of the idea of the sender
into a suitable language or code.
 Channel of communication includes face-to-face
meetings , letters, emails, telephonic conversation,
video conferencing etc.
 Decoding is the process of converting the message into
information that the receiver can decipher and
understand
 Receiver is the person(s) who receives the message

6. Communication Skills
Communication skills comprise the following
1. Speaking skills
2. Listening skills
3. Non-verbal communication, body language etc.

7. Effective Communication
 Effective communication is a 2-way street
 Communication is effective only when whatever was
sent is received completely and understood exactly in
the sense intended originally.
 So effective communication is equally about
articulation and listening

8. Need for Effective Communication
 A few decades ago, technical skills and knowledge were the
essential (only )qualities looked for by most employers in a
prospective employee.
 Today any employer looks for soft skills as well as technical
knowledge.
 We have become part of a complex web of interdependency
as evidenced by collaborative projects, social media, trade
transactions that transcends boundaries and the
availability of information at one’s fingertips
 So effective communication skills are indispensible in
today’s world

9. Need for Effective Communication
In a Social context
 Maintaining the social order
 Interaction among members of a community as well
as between communities
 Ensuring flow of knowledge from one generation to
next and the continuance of culture
 Sharing and dissemination of knowledge especially in
science and technology, that has a major impact on
human standard of living
 Fostering family and other social relationships

10. Need for Effective Communication
In a business context
 Facilitating flow of information up and down the
chain of command
 Ensuring clarity in specifications, procedures,
proposals, standards, orders etc.
 Avoiding repetition of work
 Understanding customer needs and responding
appropriately
 Maintaining organizational harmony

11. Levels of communication
There are 5 levels of communication. These are-
1.Intrapersonal communication
2.Interpersonal communication
3.Group communication
4.Public communication
5.Mass communication

12. 1.Intrapersonal Communication
 Communication within oneself
 Maybe triggered by internal or external stimulus
 Usually happens when a person is trying to make a
decision by reflection, to introspect, to analyze a
situation or to make oneself comfortable with a
situation

13. 2.Interpersonal Communication
 One-to-one communication between 2 people
 Usually carried out to build an understanding or to
influence each other’s thoughts and actions.
 The effectiveness of such a communication depends
on the understanding between the 2 parties and the
articulation of the message.
Eg. Interaction between a couple, employer and
employee etc.

14. 3.Group Communication
 Communication between 3 or more people in a group
 Usually carried out to discuss and finalize some
outcome based on shared objectives
Eg. A team discussion to identify solution to problem

15. 4.Public Communication
 Involves a sender broadcasting a message to a select
audience
 There may or may not be a feedback from the audience
Eg. Political leader addressing an election rally
Professor lecturing an entire class

16. 5.Mass Communication
 Transmission of message to larger audience through
print or visual media
 Differs from all other communications in that there is
no personal connection between the sender and
receivers
 No feedback
Eg. Newspapers, Radio, Television, Blogs etc.

17. Flow of Communication
In general, flow of communication can be (i) One
way and (ii) Two way
1.One way communication –
 Refers to messages originating from one end only
 Receiver(s) has no role to respond
Eg. News broadcast, monologues by an instructor etc.

18. Flow of Communication
2.Two way communication
 Involves two or more parties
 Constant flow of information back and forth between
involved parties
 Can be further classified into
(i) One to One Communication
(ii) One to Many Communication
(iii) Many to One Communication

19. Flow of Communication
In an organizational context, flow of communication
can be
(1) Upward
(2) Downward
(3) Horizontal

20. 1.Upward Communication
 Flow of information from a lower level to a higher level
in an organization
 Usually involves suggestion for improvement,
feedback , grievances and complaints, reporting of
problems, performance reports etc.
 Can be through emails, letters to suggestion box, face-
to-face etc.

21. 2.Downward communication
 Flow of information from a higher level to a lower level
in an organization
 Usually involves instructions to subordinates,
assignment of goals and objectives, plans or change of
plans, priorities to be followed, policies and
procedures, problems that need o be addressed etc.
 Can be through emails, memos, phone call, face-to-
face, via an intermediary etc.

22. 3.Horizontal Communication
 Flow of information among people at the same level
in a organization
 Usually involves giving or taking tips, advice or help,
seeking or giving information, data sharing for
coordination of activities etc.
 Can be through face-to-face, emails, notes, instant
messages, phone calls, group discussions etc.

23. Use of Language in Communication
 Language is a system of human communication
 Although sign language, body language, pictorial
language etc. are also considered languages, the
common usage of the word language means verbal
expressions- either spoken or written
 For effective communication, both sender and receiver
must understand the same language

24. Use of Language in Communication
 How you tell something is almost as important as what
you tell in effective communication
 Some easy ways to make language effective-
1.Short and simple
2.Concrete and specific language
3.Precise and clear messages
4.Positive attitude
5.Appropriate level of familiarity / intimacy

25. Communication Networks
 Communication network is the pattern of interaction
between different members of an organization
 Some popular communication networks include
Vertical network
Chain network
Wheel network
Circular network
Y network
All channel network

27. Significance of Technical
Communication
 Technical communication is the conveying of
scientific, engineering or other technical information
using appropriate vocabulary / diagram.
 Technical communication should be
1. Clear and matter-of –fact
2.Employ technical terms
3.Give importance to reasoning and logical
thinking rather than aesthetics

28. Technical Communication
Some examples of technical communication include –
 Collaboration between engineers of various
specialization in the development of a product
 Engineering drawings depicting design of a product
 Technical documents like service manuals, product
manuals etc
 Annual reports of companies
 Training materials for students and practising
engineers

29. Types of Barriers to
Communication
1. Physical Barriers involve objects obstructing view
or eye-contact or transmission of sound waves
2. Semantic Barriers involve misunderstanding or
confusion with the meaning of a message or the
feelings behind a message
3. Psychological and Emotional Barriers create
mental blocks that prevent people from opening up
and interpreting the message in its true sense
This may involve listeners perception of speaker and
vice versa, emotional states of both, lack of trust etc.

30. Types of Barriers to
Communication
4.Cultural Barriers - Different cultures attribute
different meanings to the same words, gestures,
signs, symbols etc. So language , mannerisms, body
language etc. can create confusion in cross cultural
communications common in today’s workplace
5.Gender Barriers : Thinking and communication
styles of men and women are different. This can
often affect communication where men and women
have to work together

31. Miscommunication
 It is the failure to communicate adequately.
 Can occur due to –
1.Lack of clarity in message
2.Sloppy language habits like using slang, acronyms,
buzzwords, jargons etc.
3. Assumptions of prior knowledge
4.Trying to convey a lot of information in a short span
5.High noise levels and distractions
6.Language incompatibility etc.

32. Noise
 Noise is a hindrance to communication
 Noise can by physical or psychological
 Physical noise consists of ambient noise such as
wind, people talking, sound of machinery, signal
noises affecting clear transmission etc.
 Psychological noise consists of those related to
thoughts , emotions etc. and pertaining to semantics
that interfere with the interpretation of a message

33. How to overcome noise
1. Detect the source of noise and eliminate or bring
down the noise
2. Raise the volume of speaking
3. Use of clear and easily understandable words will
help to better understand the message even in the
midst of noise
4. Listen actively
5. Repeat keywords