Overlapping Styles
How do you think overlapping styles of communication assist you in connecting with your students and colleagues? Hinder you?
I agree with you Judie. As long as your flexible in your approach, you should have no major issue when communicating. While this class gives you a generalization of what to expect from each generation, certain individuals adapt to the times while others are stuck in their ways and others are in between. Be a good listen, observe what works best and communication will be a seamless process.
Overlapping styles of communication help me connect with student and colleagues by allowing me multiple methods of communication. As long as we are open to change when communicating and understand that we need to adapt to both internal and external customers whenever possible, this really should never be a hindrance.
I think you have made some great points in your post. Diverse styles certainly fosters partnerships between leaders and regular employees who are also leaders. It is a shame to see needless tug-of-war relationships in work places today among the various generations.
Juan Wilkerson
I find that my overlapping style of communicating helps me to be more diverse and flexible. I am not hindered at all. That fact is significant for me given my long history in the military. Moreover, I was forced to change my style over the years in order to mentor and lead those that were very different from me and were yet charged with accomplishing the same goals/missions. The melting pot of the military and now the private sector requires diverse styles. Diversity facilitates inclusion and eliminates exclusion.
Juan Wilkerson
Overlapping styles of communications has made me more flexible and opened my mind. I had a conversation with Gen-X'ers today that was having issues dealing with our Millennials lack of self direction. It was empowering to have the new-to-me tools to get cooperation.
Being a boomer, I have had to learn to deal with helicopter parents who still try to control from home and that you can have an entire conversation by text with a millennial.
The more ways you can communicate effectively, of course, the better. All administrators should be able to do whatever it takes to effectively communicate with students in their best interest. The only hindrance, I can see, is if an administrator cannot effectively communicate with the students, both suffer from the lack of the administrator's competence in communicating. That administrator wouldn't be the person for students and colleagues to deal with.
Grace, Thank you for these thoughts; how can overlapping styles hinder you?
Dr. Jean Norris
Victoria, Great insight! Generational preferences can be rooted deep, but it doesn't mean that people aren't changing and adapting.
Dr. Jean Norris
Diversity is called for in every arena, so it makes sense to have the skills to appeal to different stakeholders. Who doesn't tweet these days or facebook or Skype or Tango or IM or email? Big political figures and celebrities do have personal assistants and proxies to be able to increase their communication with the people or bridge the communication gap there exist between them and the people.
Leaders and managers, in my opinion, should see that the ability to communicate to all different age groups, along with what we say and how we say it,is a tool to master in order to run a business. The law of buy-in also asserts, often times, customers and followers choose to buy or follow because they like their perception of you, present or absent complete understanding of what you stand for.If as a leader and manager,you are able to accomodate to more than one interest group, then you can yield more positive results. It is noteworthy that politician wannabes possess the skill of using and embracing overlapping styles of communication, so that they can TRULY win the hearts of people and not just hold the titular position of being government leaders. And on this note, I will end this because I am inclined now to talk more about politicians being insouciant of their styles of communication.
We are in the middle of 2014!! We do not really know who is high tech, conservative, or wants an immediate old fashion answers over the phone. We have to be ready for anything; I have had Tradionals on Twitter, Millenials hand writing letters from Argentina and Boomers wanting everything over the phone even if it is Long Distance. Communication is very important in our field of work, we need to learn that overlapping styles is needed to be able to assist our future students with their education questions.
timothy, It's important to try different styles to communicate with other groups. It sounds like you are up for trying that. What is one style you would like to work on trying, and how will you do it?
Dr. Jean Norris
as it relates directly to me..... I am doing the shoe leather way. I have a dumb phone, but with no texting/email/internet function available to me. I am blind to the info flows they provide. So the pop-in before, during, and after work is my M.O. From there it is face to face and networking thru my new contact.... when they physically move, even a room over I sometimes lose tract of them. So these overlapping styles of communication are moot. It is 85% shoe leather.
Janet,
Awareness and flexibility are key.
Dr. Jean Norris
Overlapping styles of communication facilitates better understanding of types of communication and promotes flexibility when approaching different populations. That is possible as we get experience and learn to recognize the generations' style in verbal and non-verbal communication.
Kathryn,
I love your enthusiasm! It's contagious. Do you think any of your learning styles hinder you in any way? How can adjust this?
Dr. Jean Norris
I'm a gen Xer who learns like a baby boomer, loves humor in my lessons, so I provide this to the other Xers, and am learning social networking, but really invite thoughts, discussion, and tons of team activities which the milennials like, I have a great job!
So true! The more tools we have the easier it is to shift when one 'tool' isn't working.
Dr. Jean Norris
