Through the Course of IPBC
I did a lot of work, tasks, team projects, and blog posts through IPBC class. Looking back this semester, I will share what I have learned. IPBC stands for Interpersonal Business Communication. So I think ‘people’ and ‘communication’ were key points of this class. It created lots of communication situations. So despite it being an intact class, we could talk, communicate, and had an opportunity to get to know classmates. So I had a chance to think about relationships. I needed to read the book ‘PEOPLE SKILLS’. It particularly helped me to adjust to this class and conflict situations. Let us see how exactly it helped me learn people skills.
Lessons through Team Projects
It is very lucky to have good teammates. And I think I am lucky this semester. I met nice, gentle, and passionate teammates so that I could learn from them. One of our teammates is a very responsive person. He always answers fast and leaves some comments and feelings to messages. Our team’s atmosphere got more lively thanks to him. I found timely responses are positive to teamwork. ‘when we do not get right back to our people when they email or call, they feel disrespected. Trust and rapport diminish and ultimately communication declines and opportunities for growth and innovation are missed.’(John Keyser, 2019) After reading this, his timely responses made us feel respected, and therefore we could trust each other more.
One of our teammates showed enthusiasm for our projects. She always did her best and took hard things voluntarily. For example, no one wanted to be the one person in the team who should convey results in real-time class. She willingly took the role. I felt very thankful and following her passion, I became more passionate.
I’ve never thought about team projects’ efficiency. At the start of the permanent team projects, the Professor taught us the setting team’s rules and the importance of timing. So we made our own rules and each teammate’s roles. I took the part called ‘pre-assignment. I wrote many messages to make an appointment and made an appointment schedule which has a notify function for our teammates. Another teammate took part in ‘making a meeting room’ So he gave us a meeting address before our meeting. I found these rules and roles improved the team’s efficiency so I adjusted this to other team projects.
Lessons from book ‘PEOPLE SKILLS’
As Korean, at first, I hesitated to read a book in another language. But, while reading it, I found it is not that difficult. This book was very helpful to think about relationships logically. My usual opinion is that listening is important and I tried to listen carefully. But after reading it I realized that I am missing the assertion. I sometimes become too passive unintentionally. And I had an opportunity to give my opinion to teammates assertively. And I think it succeeded.
How can I Adjust People Skills to Workplace?
‘Researchers and theorists in the behavioral sciences claim there are three key qualities that foster improved communication: genuineness, nonpossessive love, and empathy.’(Bolton, 1986) I learned to be a genuine person using assertion. When I work, I will be a more honest person. Also, I will be more accepting, respecting, and supporting another person the way I want to be treated.
Also, I will be more passionate and lead the people with passion. I’ve experienced this effect through this course. It made our team alive. To cite this:
Building a team that is passionate and motivated results in better customer service, lower turnover rates, and higher profits. It may take time, and you may need to hire new staff members or change ingrained policies, but the results are worth it. (Larry Struckman, 2017)
To end this post, I want to thank my professor who taught me useful communication skills. And I had an inspiration about being ‘different. He told us that to be different is a good thing. I think my life has positively changed a little through this course.
References
John Keyser. (2019). THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR TIMELY RESPONSES. Common Sense Leadership
https://www.commonsenseleadership.com/the-importance-of-our-timely-responses/
Larry Struckman. (2017). The Importance of Passion in the Workplace. ShiftNote
https://blog.shiftnote.com/the-importance-of-passion-in-the-workplace
Bolton, R. (1986). People skills: how to assert yourself, listen to others, and resolve conflicts.
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