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Public Speaking Spr2010 S04

Questions from last time: PublicSpeakingSpr2010S02a

In class assignment

Try to take notes today by drawing a picture like this:

• Its called a mind map. For reference, the two key ideas today are:
  1. Critical Thinking
  2. Listening

Critical Thinking and Public Speaking and Listening

• We are generally more effective as
  • speakers, when think about what we're going to say in advance
  • listeners, when we think carefully about what the other person has to say.
• Critical thinking is a key skill for both
  • About making judgments
  • Whenever we make make judgments we have choices as summarized in the variation on Bloom's taxonomy:
    1. We can go along with others
       • Let someone else decide
       • This can be convenient, especially in social settings
       • But you don't lose responsibility for the decision
         • You just can't defend it based on having thought it through
       • When your mother asked "If your friends jumped off a cliff would you follow them?" she was asking you to think critically
    2. We can do what we've done before
       • a variant of what Bloom calls Recall
       • what a musician calls having the music in your fingers
       • and what the Elaboration Likelihood Model calls the "Peripheral Path"
       • This can be convenient and quick, especially if you have given the matter thought before
       • But every situation is different, and old judgments may not apply
    3. We can recognize ways in which old judgments might not work and at least be prepared to adapt if the old judgment doesn't work
    4. We can apply our knowledge of the situation to adapting our judgment to the current circumstance
       • This is somewhat adaptive and will often work
       • The solution is especially useful when we don't have time to do a detailed analysis
    5. We can analyze the situation
       • Analyze the information we have
       • Identify the facts
       • Recognize the conjectures about the future and the inferences about things not in evidence
       • This, of course, takes time
    6. We can fully synthesize our alternatives
       • Establish our alternatives
       • Assess purpose (both yours and those who have provided information)
       • Make a plan that is likely to succeed
    7. We can evaluate the evidence and try to reach the best possible judgment
       • Make judgments about the value of evidence
       • Make judgments about the prospects of alternatives
       • Select the most workable alternative among those you have examined.
       • This is the core of what the Elaboration Likelihood Model calls the central path
• These increments are both
  • a taxonomy that runs from lazy to critical decision making
  • a stepwise process in which you can move towards better decisions as time allows
• The key, in critical thinking, is taking the time
  • to think
  • to check your ideas with others
  • to interrogate yourself and avoid wishful thinking
• We will see these kinds of activities recommended repeatedly in coming chapters
  • as you work to build better presentations
  • and today, as we discuss the path to better listening
• It is also a core activity in the index card assignments you're doing right now.

Effective Listening = Stop, Tend, Organize, and Respond

• Listening is a critical skill
  • in business
  • at home
  • in groups
  • in organizations and your community
• We aren't very good at listening
  • Most people can only remember half of what they hear immediately after they hear it
  • They are unlikely to remember more than a quarter the next day
• We can learn to listen better by paying attention to two sets of things:
  1. The factors that impair good listening
     • Thinking faster than we talk
       • We typically read (300wpm) twice as fast as we talk (150wpm)
       • With training we can read even faster (600 words per minute plus)
       • Some set the "speed of thought" at about 600 WPM
       • This leads us to think about other things
         • instead of giving full attention to the speaker
     • Focusing on facts rather than ideas
       • Facts are usually meant to illustrate ideas
       • If we focus on the facts, we can easily miss the point.
       • This is a real risk in note-taking.
     • Listening with our emotions
       • We give in to our feelings rather than focusing on what is said
       • We often hear what we want to hear and miss other things
  2. The factors that enable good listening
     • Use the speed of thought as a tool
       1. Try to anticipate where the speaker may be going
       2. Focus on and weigh the points the speaker makes. Are there alternatives? Is this valid?
       3. Periodically review and summarize what the speaker has said
       4. Look for what is between the lines
     • Look for the big ideas
       • Focus on ideas rather than the evidence
     • Work to counter emotions
       • Withhold evaluation
       • Look for the evidence that doesn't make immediate sense to you. Think about it.
• Here's a four step process that can help you listen more effectively
  • Stop, Tend, Organize, and Respond: the Storage Listening Process
  1. Stop:
     • Get rid of distractions
       • Find a distraction neutral location
       • If you have something on your mind, write it down first so you can put it away
       • Keep a piece of paper around you can jot down any distractions on
     • This corresponds to what the book calls "receiving"
  2. Tend (attend, pay attention):
     • Focus on the speaker
     • Use non-verbal communication to look like you are looking at the speaker
       • A wonderful side-effect is that this is often a self-fulfilling action
     • This corresponds to what the book calls "understanding"
  3. Organize:
     • Look for the ideas the facts and message details illustrate
     • Look for inconsistencies
     • Try to understand the others agenda
     • Create a mental summary of what the other is saying
     • Look for themes that tie things together
     • Note key words rather than sentences or phrases
     • If you take notes, try drawing a picture instead of making a list
       • A mind map:
     • Note that this step involves invoking critical thinking skills
     • This corresponds to what the book calls "remembering" and "evaluating"
  4. Respond:
     • Provide appropriate and timely feedback
     • Think about what the other person needs
       • Ask questions
       • Provide useful information
     • Reflect content by paraphrasing
       • In your own words
     • Be descriptive rather than evaluative
       • Put yourself in the others shoes: How would you feel
     • Two fundamental values in responding
       • Saying it reinforces the ideas
       • Hearing your paraphrase gives the speaker a chance to catch missing ideas.
     • This corresponds to what the book calls "responding"
• If you listen this way you may STORe what you hear more effectively
• Some reasons to listen
  • It is an effective management tool
    • Human relations approaches are right: people are more productive when they feel valued
    • Human resources approaches are right: people have good ideas and should be valued for those ideas
  • It is an effective sales tool
    • The best way to sell is to understand what the customer wants
  • It is an effective meeting tool
    • It helps keep the meeting on topic
    • It helps the meeting to proceed more effectively
    • It increases participation
  • It is an effective organizational tool
    • Large organizations don't have time to endlessly repeat themselves.
    • When they do so, there should be a better reason than not listening.

Talk about note taking think assignment

Review UsingMindMaps

• There are three ways to present a speech
  1. Informally or off the cuff
     • No notes
  2. Extemporaneously
     • From notes
  3. • From a fully written out text
  • All speeches in this class will be extemporaneous
    • So let's talk a look at the kind of notes you should use

• Taking notes for a speech
  • Prepare three "outlines" (sets of speaking notes)
    1. A working outline
       • This is your research
         • or at least a research deliverable
       • It should have far more information than you'll use
       • Best prepared in a way that gives you freedom to reorganize
         • Cards
         • Mind Maps
    2. A formal outline
       • Comparable to the outline of an essay or paper
       • Should contain the essentials of the speech you are delivering
         • In outline form
       • And your reference list
         • Your sources
         • In a commonly accepted format
       • Correct formatting and typefaces
    3. A presentation outline
       • The materials you will present from.
       • Focus should be on being
         1. As minimal as possible
            • You want to engage your audience rather than your notes
         2. Easy to use, read, and keep track of
            • Large text
            • Oversize fonts
  • Use the working outline to prepare
  • Use the formal outline to review
  • Use the presentation outline to present