The Art of Listening and Communicating Flashcards
Most travel professionals spend more time listening than speaking or writing. True or False
True
Words, meaning, and tone of voice are all essential characteristics of
a. verbal communication
b. non-verbal communication
c. active listening
d. body language
a. verbal communication
Which of the following is an effective listening strategy?
a. Turn slightly away from the speaker.
b. Politely interrupt to avoid wasting time,
c. Prepare your response while the speaker is talking.
d. Provide feedback by asking questions and nodding.
d. Provide feedback by asking questions and nodding.
Part of being a good interpersonal communicator is appreciating and responding to cultural differences in communication. True of False
True
Which of the following is not an element of the basic communication process?
a. sender
b. noise
c. feedback
d. time
d. time
Nonverbal communication accounts for about what percent of the meaning we share in a normal face-to-face, two-person communication.
a. 14%
b. 38%
c. 55%
d. 76%
c. 55%
It’s generally a good idea to use travel industry terminology with your clients to demonstrate your knowledge and competence. True or False
False
Listening and hearing involve essentially the same communication processes. True or False
False
Interpersonal communication describes the messages that your brain sends to your body to achieve desired behaviors. True or False
False
Travel professionals use active listening when they
a. focus on the facts their clients discussed.
b. empathize with their clients’ feelings
c. remember what their clients say.
d. decide between two suppliers
b. empathize with their clients’ feelings.
What is the exchange of messages and meaning between two people.
Interpersonal communication
_____ is the setting in which the communication occurs.
Environment
_____ is the method in which the message, or the idea to be conveyed, is transmitted.
Channel
The ____ initiates the message by ____ the idea into a format that will be understood by the ____.
Sender, encoding, receiver
The receiver in turn ____ the message by interpreting it and assigning meaning.
decoding
Senders and receivers possess personal ____, such as attitudes, biases, beliefs, and values, which affect how a message is received.
filters
_____ refers to any physical or psychological factor that can interfere with communication.
noise
_____ is how objective data is interpreted by individuals
Perception
______ is when we see what we want to see and hear what we want to hear.
Selective perception
There is a multitude of sensory data surrounding us. We could not process all of the data our senses receive. We create a more limited but more meaningful picture of our world through _______.
Selective perception
4 steps to improving the effectiveness of your communication.
Recognize the role your communication skills play in the perceptual process.
Realize that your clients’ perceptual processes are biased.
Take your time.
Be willing to review, revise, and update your interpersonal skills.
To build lasting relationships with your clients, you must establish a level of _____ with them.
trust
Too often in business settings we are so accustomed to going through the motions of booking travel that we forget traveling is a very ______ experience for our clients.
emotional
Name the 4 communication styles
- The driver
- The expressive
- The analytic
- The amiable
The ____ communicator is decisive, intense, independent, deliberate, efficient, and achieving.
Driver
Key Behaviors of the ______ are:
Direct eye contact
Purposeful and quick movements
Forceful and fast-paced speech
Direct, bottom-line language
Driver
The ____ communicator is outgoing, humorous, enthusiastic, gregarious, persuasive, and lively.
Expressive
Key behaviors of the ______ are:
Rapid hand and arm gestures
Quick, animated speech
Wide range of facial expressions
Persuasive language
Expressive
The ____ communicator is serious, logical, well-organized, factual, systematic, and reserved.
Analytic
Key behaviors of the _____ are:
Little facial expression
Controlled movements with slow gestures
Little inflection in voice
Precise and detailed language
Analytic
The ____ communicator is cooperative, patient, friendly, relaxed, supportive, and trusting.
Amiable
Key behaviors of the _____ are:
Friendly facial expression
Frequent eye contact
Slow, soft speech with moderate inflection
Supportive and encouraging language
Amiable
Expressing oneself in words
Verbal communication
____ meanings are objective and abstract, the definitions that exist in the dictionary.
Denotative
____ meanings are subjective and emotional, the definitions that exist in the perceptions of the listener.
Connotative
A common type of ______ occurs when people use the same word or phrase but give it different meanings.
bypassing
_____ is the term that describes a specialized vocabulary used by people who share a similar profession.
Jargon
A _______ occurs when you fill the natural pauses in your speech patterns with sound.
verbalized pause
______ usually are tacked on to the end of statements and disrupt the flow from one thought to the next, you know?
Verbal disrupters
A classic communication study conducted several years ago determined that, in a normal two-person conversation, words accounted for only about _____ of the meaning of the messages exchanged.
7 %
Our nonverbal behaviors account for about _____ of the meaning, and a surprising 38 percent of the meaning we communicate in person is through our vocal qualities or tone of voice.
55 %
Our nonverbal behaviors account for about 55 percent of the meaning, and a surprising ____ of the meaning we communicate in person is through our vocal qualities or tone of voice.
38%
Over the telephone, words carry greater meaning than face to face, increasing from 7 to ______ of the meaning we communicate.
14%
Vocal cues represent _______ of the messages we send on the phone.
86%
_______, or the loudness or softness of your voice, can affect how we communicate, and even distort the meaning of your messages if not used appropriately.
Volume
_____ refers to the highness or lowness of your voice.
Pitch
_____ happens when we end our sentences in a higher pitch, as if we were asking a question.
Uptalking
_______, like the hills and valleys on a scenic road, is the up-and-down quality of your voice. If pitch describes the note at which you speak, _______ is all of the notes put together on your vocal page.
Inflection
Speak at a ____ that will keep your listener’s interest but will not impede your listener’s ability to accurately perceive your meaning.
rate
Human responses not expressed in words.
Non-verbal communication
Nonverbal communication is pervasive, perpetual, and often ______.
involuntary
______ specifically describes nonverbal body actions such as gestures, body movements, facial expressions, eye behavior, and posture.
Body language
The expression of understanding another person’s feelings.
Empathy
What facial cues would you look for to determine if someone is being honest?
Direct eye contact, normal blinking, forward glance, open posture, leaning in forward, relaxed posture.
The intimate distance for personal space is ___ to ___ inches.
0 to 18
The personal distance for personal space is ____ to ____ feet. This is the most common and comfortable workplace settings.
18 inches to 4 feet
The social distance for personal space is ____ to ___ feet. This is a more formal spacing but it makes serious conversations difficult.
4 to 12 feet.
The public distance for personal space is _____ or more. Interpersonal communication is not likely to occur.
12 feet
The best way to improve listening is through _____.
training
Of the 80 of our waking hours we spend communicating, ____ percent is spent listening.
45%
Nearly ____ percent of oral communication is either ignored or quickly forgotten.
75%
A psychological process in which meaning is assigned to what is heard.
Listening
A physical process in which sound waves are received by the eardrum.
Hearing
Name the 4 stages of listening.
- Sensing
- Interpreting
- Evaluating
- Responding
This occurs when sound waves reach our ears and we become aware that someone is trying to communicate with us
Sensing
We assign meaning and importance to the sounds we hear. This is ______.
interpreting
____ is when the listener weighs the content of the message, sorts fact from opinion, and renders a judgment of the value of the message.
Evaluating
The listening process must result in _______, helping, or otherwise taking action as a result of the message.
responding
Name the characteristics and skills of active listening.
- Be alert
- Lean forward slightly
- Face your client squarely
- Maintain an open position
- Stay in the personal distance zone
- Communicate actively
- Make eye contact
The ____ model is another name for the 4 stages of listening.
SIER
A client comes in concerned that the resort you booked for her is too family oriented. You know the hotel has traditionally catered to families, with plenty of activities for young active families. But the hotel has just started a special promotion to attract older guests and you receive bonus commission for every room you book with a senior citizen’s discount. You convince the client that she will love the resort., a decision you later regret when she sends a complaint letter upon her return.
At what stage did the listening error occur?
Evaluating
Consider the following exchange:
Client: That’s more expensive than I thought it would be.
You: Actually, it is a very good rate for that hotel.
Client: It still seems high to me.
You: The price I quoted you is the same price you will find by calling the hotel directly or from any of our competitors.
Client: who are your competitors?
At what stage did the listening error occur?
Interpreting
The agent assumed the client’s statement was an objection. Because of the assumption, the agent comes off as defensive. A better response would be “I hope that won’t be a problem. It is an excellent hotel. May I reserve the room for you?”
These listeners hear remarks only of obvious interest to them and filter out those messages that are not of instant relevance.
Selective listeners
Tips for selective listeners.
Try to relate the message you are hearing to your experiences.
Taking notes and asking questions also will help you focus on the key points of what the speaker is saying.
Tips for talking with selective listeners.
Try saying the word “you” or the listener’s name throughout your conversation to provide the personal relevance your selective listener craves.
Or, if the situation is appropriate, involve your listener by asking for feedback; remember to use close-ended questions, though, or you may lose control of the conversation.
These listeners hear only those messages that are pleasant, while blocking out messages that are negative or unpleasant.
Insulated listeners
Tips for delivering bad-news messages
- Good news/bad news: You sometimes can help soften the blow by first sharing a positive message, then following it up with the bad news.
- Bad news/good news: In this technique, you say you have some bad news, tell it, then quickly indicate there is a more pleasant side to the story. Of course, truly insulated listeners may tune you out before the good news reaches their ears.
- Sandwich: Sandwiching the negative news between two pieces of positive news is a combination of the first two techniques and often proves effective.
- Lunchtime deliveries: Knowing the best time to deliver bad news is helpful, too. The optimum time is during the process of postprandial dip. After a meal, there is a drop in blood pressure as people digest their meals. Because their energy is elsewhere, they don’t get as upset as they normally would. So aim to make all your bad-news calls after lunch!
These listeners take practically everything someone else says as a personal attack.
Defensive listeners
Tips for dealing with defensive listeners.
As a speaker, you should be sensitive to words, tone of voice, and situations that could cause defensive reactions in your listeners. When you do sense a defensive response, plan your message to bring the person out of a threatened frame of mind.
These listeners can’t wait to jump into the conversation to disagree with you.
Ambushers
These listeners take everything they hear literally and ignore the tone of voice used by the speaker.
Insensitive listeners
Name some behaviors that act as a barrier to effective listening.
Avoiding difficult or uninteresting material.
Avoiding negative information.
Reacting to words that evoke a defensive response.
Arguing with the speaker rather than listening to the message.
Listening only for facts and disregarding emotions.
Dismissing the message too quickly.
Criticizing the speaker and delivery.
Responding to biases and prejudices.
Interrupting or finishing sentences.
Daydreaming.
Providing little or no feedback.
Faking attention.
Yielding to distractions.
Not taking notes, or trying to write down everything.
Jumping to conclusions.
What are the qualities of good feedback?
- Specific, not general
- Descriptive, not evaluative
- Directed toward behaviors that the listener can change
- Solicited rather than imposed
- Well-timed
- Checked for clear understanding
___ is to say something in other words or to reword the meaning of what was said
paraphrasing
Give an appropriate paraphrase for the following statement:
“Why don’t you clean off your desk? It looks like a dump.”
“What you’re really saying is that you would like the office to appear neater, correct?”
“It sounds as if you’re frustrated by all the clutter around here, is that right?”
Give an appropriate paraphrase for the following statement:
“That was the worst flight I ever took. I’ll never fly that airline again.”
“Are you saying the airline didn’t meet your expectations?”
“It sounds like you may have had a bad experience with an employee of that airline, did you?”
____ questions attempt to evoke a complex response that draws on the knowledge and experience of the person answering
Open
___ questions imit the role of the person answering by seeking a brief answer such as “yes” or “no.”
Closed
When are the three times you should ask questions?
- To seek information
- To check an interpretation
- To clarify something
Name the type of question and the reason why you would ask this question.
How would you describe your ideal vacation?
Open, to seek information
Name the type of question and the reason why you would ask this question.
How would you define “luxury” in the vacation you’ve just described?
Open, to clarify something
Name the type of question and the reason why you would ask this question.
So you’re looking for a deluxe suite and gourmet meals, is that right?
Closed, to check interpretation
Name 6 strategies for effective listening.
Get more involved by asking questions. Use your knowledge of open and closed questioning techniques to show your interest and increase your understanding.
Give appropriate feedback. Paraphrase, ask questions, use door-openers, check for understanding, and use supportive nonverbal signals to let your clients and coworkers know you’re listening, you understand them, and you care about their message.
Listen actively. That is, listen for the emotions and feelings of speakers and respond appropriately with supportive verbal and nonverbal feedback.
Don’t allow emotional words to throw you off track. If you don’t control your emotional hot buttons, you will find it difficult to break out of the ineffective style of defensive listening.
Don’t prepare rebuttals to the speaker’s points until you have heard the entire message. In other words, don’t be an ambusher.
Listen for an organized understanding of the message. Speakers usually don’t deliver their messages to us in neat, organized packages. Keep an ongoing mental outline of the speaker’s key points to help keep you focused and on track.
What is netiquette?
The principles, i.e., rules governing the proper, professional, and polite way to communicate with people online.
On a rather slow morning in the office, a fashionably dressed woman in her late fifties approaches your desk for assistance. You say in a pleasant voice, “Good morning. How may I help you?” She quickly answers, “Yes, I’d like to go to Paris for two weeks next month.” Having some time to spend on a thorough consultation with this client, you invite her to take a seat at your desk. She refuses, saying she prefers to stand because she is in a hurry. Before you ask her specific travel dates, you try to get a feel for other needs she may have, such as additional sightseeing that may affect her travel itinerary. Tapping her fingers on your desk, she looks you directly in the eye and decisively explains that she will be staying in Paris and asks you what other information she needs to provide you so you can determine the best airfare.
Questions:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The Driver
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
Body language - tapping fingers, won’t sit down
Pacing - hurried, abrupt
Decisive, independent
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
Get the information I need to complete the transaction efficiently.
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Match her pace, be clear and direct.
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Return eye contact, stay attentive, communicate efficiency and competence through hand gestures, posture, neatness.
Maintain social distance.
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Clarify with closed questions when necessary, listen to understand, provide simple and direct feedback, paraphrase at the end for efficiency.
Just before lunch, you receive a call from a client for whom you booked a tour package to Orlando about two months ago. You remember him as a good-natured father of two teenage children who was very pleasant during all of your previous interactions. In his soft voice, he apologizes for bothering you but slowly tells you of his concern that he hasn’t yet received his travel documents with just two weeks left before he is scheduled to depart. You express your appreciation for his concern and promise to look into the matter and call him back that afternoon. He calmly assures you there is no rush and warmly thanks you for your assistance.
Questions:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The Amiable
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
Slower speech, laid back, soft voice, apologizes for calling, pleasant demeanor
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
Set his mind at ease & resolve his issue
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Show empathy, cooperation and support. Keep volume and rate of speech subdued to match his.
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Smile (this is a phone conversation. if in person, open posture, lean in, maintain personal distance)
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Active listening with empathy, friendly and supportive feedback.
The owners of your agency have decided that a newsletter is just the marketing tool needed to help attract new customers and retain existing clients. They have appointed you and one of your coworkers to design and develop the newsletter. Your coworker has been easy to work with in the past and you look forward to working with him on this joint venture. At your first planning meeting, he comes armed with article and design ideas that he shares in rapid succession, emphasizing each idea with animated arm movements and facial expressions. He seems intent on persuading you to adopt his creative ideas.
Questions:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The coworker’s primary communication style is:
The Expressive
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
rapid ideas, emphasis with animation, persuasive
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
Partner with coworker to collaborate equally on this project.
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Match his enthusiasm and pacing. Choose bold words to resist his persuasive techniques
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Lean in, use quick meaningful gestures, relax, smile, maintain direct eye contact
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
listen to understand and evaluate the new ideas, suspend judgement
You’ve been working for several months with a young woman to help her plan her honeymoon trip to Bermuda. After many consultations, you’ve finally booked a package that you believe suits all her needs. It has been difficult to determine what travel experiences really appeal to her because she never appears excited or enthusiastic about anything you mention. Her main concern all along has been the specific costs of the trip, right down to how much she can expect to pay in tips. Now, her final payment is due in full or her reservation will be canceled. You need to call her this afternoon to remind her to provide payment today.
Questions:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
The customer’s primary communication style is:
The Analytic
The verbal and nonverbal cues I read to determine communication style include:
Emphasis on details, serious demeanor, lack of display of enthusiasm
My objective of this interpersonal interaction is:
Secure final payment
The verbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
Plan conversation and information before calling, bring details (how much, when, method of payment, what is the payment for, etc) be direct, ask for the final payment.
The nonverbal skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
maintain upright posture, exhibit control and competence even on the phone.
The listening skills I will use to achieve my objective include:
listen to analyze the financial details, provide specific precise feedback.
The level of listening that requires our highest degree of involvement; listening to help others by using verbal and nonverbal responses to express empathy for the speaker; listening for feelings and emotions.
Active Listening
Ineffective listeners who cannot wait to jump into the conversation to disagree with the speaker.
Ambushers
A communication style characterized by friendliness, cooperation, and patience.
Amiable
A communication style characterized by seriousness, logic, and precision.
Analytic
Nonverbal body actions such as gestures, body movements, facial expressions, eye behavior, and posture.
Body Language
A communication error that occurs when people interpret words or phrases differently.
Bypassing
Questions that limit the role of the person answering by seeking a brief answer such as “yes” or “no.”
Closed Questions
Meaning that is subjective and emotional, like the definitions that exist in the perceptions of our listeners.
Connotative
Ineffective listeners who take practically everything someone else says as a personal attack.
Defensive Listeners
Meaning that is objective and abstract, like the definitions that exist in the dictionary.
Denotative
A communication style characterized by independence, efficiency, and decisiveness.
Driver
The ability to imagine another person’s point of view, to project yourself into another person’s situation in an effort to understand his or her thoughts and feelings.
Empathy
The third stage in the listening process, in which we weigh the content of the message, sort fact from opinion, and render a judgment of the value of the message.
Evaluating
A communication style characterized by enthusiasm, humor, and liveliness.
Expressive
All the verbal and nonverbal messages that we send out in response to our partners’ communication; any message, intentional or unintentional, sent by the listener to the speaker.
Feedback
A purely physical phenomenon in which sound waves are received by the eardrum.
Hearing
Ineffective listeners who take everything they hear literally and ignore the tone of voice used by the speaker.
Insensitive Listeners
Ineffective listeners who hear only those messages that are pleasant, while blocking out messages that are negative or unpleasant.
Insulated Listeners
The exchange of messages and meaning between two people.
Interpersonal Communication
The second stage in the listening process, in which we assign meaning and importance to the sounds that we hear.
Interpreting
A speaker-to-receiver zone from 0 to 18 inches that is typically reserved for those whom we know well.
Intimate Distance
Specialized vocabulary used by people who share a similar profession.
Jargon
A deliberate, mental process in which the physical messages are interpreted and understood by the person who receives them; psychological process in which meaning is assigned to what is heard.
Listening
Rules governing the proper, professional, and polite way to communicate with people online.
Netiquette
All the kinds of human responses not expressed in words.
Nonverbal Communication
Questions that attempt to evoke a complex response that draws on the knowledge and experience of the person answering.
Open Questions
Restating for the speaker what you believe is the essence of what has just been said; to reword the meaning of what was said.
Paraphrasing
The way in which objective data are interpreted by individuals.
Perception
A speaker-to-receiver zone of 18 inches to 4 feet that represents the most common distance for communication in the workplace.
Personal Distance
A speaker-to-receiver zone of 12 feet to limit of sight that is appropriate for public speaking situations.
Public Distance
The fourth stage in the listening process, in which we take action as a result of the message.
Responding
Ineffective listeners who hear remarks only of obvious interest to them and filter out those messages that are not of instant relevance.
Selective Listeners
The process of seeing what we want to see and hearing what we want to hear.
Selective Perception
The first stage in the listening process, which occurs when sound waves reach our ears and we become aware that someone is trying to communicate with us.
Sensing
A speaker-to-receiver zone of 4 to 12 feet that is usually used for impersonal message exchange.
Social Distance
Occurs when we end our sentences in a higher pitch, as if we are asking a question.
Uptalking
Human responses expressed in words.
Verbal Communication
Words or phrases tacked on to the end of statements that disrupt the flow from one thought to the next.
Verbal Disrupter
Occurs when you fill the natural pauses in your speech patterns with sound.
Verbalized Pause
