(Published in the Job Market-Working People section of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, December 2, 2007, Sunday)
By Roel Andag
Contributor
NUMBERS HELP PEOPLE understand what is happening around them. Numbers help express and execute ideas better. Numbers can help measure experiences. Here are numbers from different disciplines that can help you excel in the world of work.
Communication
Effective communication is a key leadership skill. You may be gifted with verbal precision – using the right words at the right time – but this gift is squandered when your speech and body language are not in harmony with each other. While voice tonality accounts for 38 percent of your communication, body language represents an astounding 55 percent. Your choice of words adds in a mere seven percent. Communicate with impact by synchronizing your speech with tone and body language.
Presentations and conversations become dull after 20 minutes – that is the maximum length of time a person can stay focused. Rapid talking is not advisable though. We comfortably hear from 150 to 160 words per minute. Pace yourself well. After two days, your audience will retain only 20 percent of what they heard. Aid memory retention by making your every utterance count: use keywords, visual aids and exercises.
Time management
Only 20 percent of your activities account for 80 percent of your productivity. Inversely, 80 percent of your activities contribute only 20 percent to your productivity. The unproductive bulk is spent on time wasters such as gossip, YouTube, Friendster and other distractions. Stop wasting time by setting goals and planning ahead. If you resolve to always come early to the office remember that it takes all of 21 days of daily practice to form a new habit pattern.
First impressions
Thirty seconds is all it takes to establish your first impression. Within those precious seconds, 13 judgments about you are made. Poor image can kill your career. Impressions management is indeed important.
An impressed supervisor will probably tell his superiors and colleagues about your outstanding performance. A disappointed boss will certainly relay his frustration to as many persons he can reach. In customer care, it is estimated that bad service reports outnumber good service reports by as many as 5:1. Translated to impressions, these could be termed ‘criticisms versus praises.’ With the help of technology, bad news travels at the speed of light.
In consumer behavior, personal recommendations remain the most trusted information.
Good or bad, others are bound to know about you. Through word of mouth, it will take only three personality types to spread your reputation. They are, as described in Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point" -- the connector who is respected in broad networks, the maven who analyzes information and shares his knowledge with other people for better decisionmaking, and the salesman who has excellent people skills. Reaching enough number of people, these three movers will be able to build a tipping point that will decide the fate of your career.
Lifelong employability
Good reviews are not an assurance of your staying power. For more than a hundred reasons including outsourcing, redundancy and obsolescence of competency, 100 percent of jobs are mortal. What is important is lifelong employability not lifetime employment. A lifetime of professional desirability will be attained with continuous retooling. Of course, attitude – towards yourself, towards others and towards your work – makes 100.
Communication
Effective communication is a key leadership skill. You may be gifted with verbal precision – using the right words at the right time – but this gift is squandered when your speech and body language are not in harmony with each other. While voice tonality accounts for 38 percent of your communication, body language represents an astounding 55 percent. Your choice of words adds in a mere seven percent. Communicate with impact by synchronizing your speech with tone and body language.
Presentations and conversations become dull after 20 minutes – that is the maximum length of time a person can stay focused. Rapid talking is not advisable though. We comfortably hear from 150 to 160 words per minute. Pace yourself well. After two days, your audience will retain only 20 percent of what they heard. Aid memory retention by making your every utterance count: use keywords, visual aids and exercises.
Time management
Only 20 percent of your activities account for 80 percent of your productivity. Inversely, 80 percent of your activities contribute only 20 percent to your productivity. The unproductive bulk is spent on time wasters such as gossip, YouTube, Friendster and other distractions. Stop wasting time by setting goals and planning ahead. If you resolve to always come early to the office remember that it takes all of 21 days of daily practice to form a new habit pattern.
First impressions
Thirty seconds is all it takes to establish your first impression. Within those precious seconds, 13 judgments about you are made. Poor image can kill your career. Impressions management is indeed important.
An impressed supervisor will probably tell his superiors and colleagues about your outstanding performance. A disappointed boss will certainly relay his frustration to as many persons he can reach. In customer care, it is estimated that bad service reports outnumber good service reports by as many as 5:1. Translated to impressions, these could be termed ‘criticisms versus praises.’ With the help of technology, bad news travels at the speed of light.
In consumer behavior, personal recommendations remain the most trusted information.
Good or bad, others are bound to know about you. Through word of mouth, it will take only three personality types to spread your reputation. They are, as described in Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point" -- the connector who is respected in broad networks, the maven who analyzes information and shares his knowledge with other people for better decisionmaking, and the salesman who has excellent people skills. Reaching enough number of people, these three movers will be able to build a tipping point that will decide the fate of your career.
Lifelong employability
Good reviews are not an assurance of your staying power. For more than a hundred reasons including outsourcing, redundancy and obsolescence of competency, 100 percent of jobs are mortal. What is important is lifelong employability not lifetime employment. A lifetime of professional desirability will be attained with continuous retooling. Of course, attitude – towards yourself, towards others and towards your work – makes 100.
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