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Small talk is a really challenging thing for Finnish people. We always like to talk about the weather or just be quiet. Maybe it's easier to be in an actual networking event (such as fair) where you get to meet people with similar background and interest and you can talk about your surroundings. Small talk and other social skills can be developed; the more you use them, the better you get :)

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Business letters: Complaint and adjustment

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Business letters: Complaint and adjustment

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Attached you'll find my complaint, and the adjustment is made by Elina Seppä

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I watched all of the pitches on Moodle (and a few other too, I got a bit distracted on Youtube..) and I was a bit surprised that all of the "good" pitches were at least 2 minutes ?! I have always been taught that a pitch should be a minute long speech, 1min30sec max. I found the "CupAd" video where Josh Light is talking (you can find it here) the best, the only con was that Josh was speaking way too fast. I think this is the most common mistake that people do while preparing pitches: they are trying to get too much information on a too small package. You should really think what is important and what the listener wants to hear and leave space also for questions. Try to pique their interest. But the greatest part on Josh's pitch is that he's really making contact with the audience and speaking to them. And he's smiling! He seems really self-confident.

The other one that I liked was this Vizify-pitch. It was longer than a pitch usually is but this man spoke calmly and understandably. With visualizing his presentation and asking rhetorical questions he's keeping the audience interested.

When I was doing my own pitch for this course, I noticed that pitching isn't easy. You need to practice, practice and practice to remember what you have to say in an understandable manner and pay attention to your body language and of course to your audience. I find it hard to speak "to myself" in front of camera. Especially this pitch task was a bit difficult because we didn't have a specific subject to pitch about. I hope it was good enough...

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It's good that nowadays there's an easy access to all kinds of articles and blogs that tell people how to be an effective communicator and you can test yourself with these little quizzes. But in the end it doesn't matter how many self-help guides and instructions you're going to read, you have to put all of your learnings into action. That's the only way you truly learn and develope yourself.

I got a score of 48 points on the quiz and it says that I'm a cabable communicator. I agree. Always before sending a message I try to think what is the easiest way for the receiver to decode the information and what they need to know. I always try to be nice and co-operative. Of course you can always be better :)

You'll find the article and the quiz here: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCS_99.htm

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Business Communcation, Book 1 and Book 2 & Quizzes

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Business Communcation, Book 1 and Book 2 & Quizzes

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Now I have read both "books" and done the quizzes. On the spring term I was on a course called "Intercultural communication" and there was a lots of similar information so the quizzes were pretty easy for me. I didn't mind reading the books because I'm really interested about different cultures and especially about people's behaviours for example in negotiating situations. I'm now reading a book where it is told how Russian people communicate in business life and it's really interesting.

I also think that these quizzes or "exams" are a good way to make sure that people really read the material and the students and the teacher can make sure if we have really understood what we have read.

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I agree with the fact that if you want to influence people you need to be polite and listen to them. I think that it's a self-evident truth that needs to take action in every day life, not only when you need something from someone.

In the article they wrote about three different kinds of influencing tactics: logical, emotional and co-operative. If you are a talented influencer, you can use every one of them at once without actually thinking or separating them. I think that for Finnish people the reason - the logical influencing - is the most important. Also emotional influencing is in a huge part when working with people because Finns are quite loyal to their employer and company.

In the blog article it's pointed out that you have to make friends before you can truly influence them. If you aren't their friend, it's just taking advantage of the other party. I disagree with this. It makes no difference if you're friends with them or not, if you want someone to do something for you, it's still taking advantage of someone. To avoid this, you need to return the favour at some point. Also, Finnish people like to keep their work life separated from personal life so this "making friends" thing might not always work.

Sources:
Harold Scharlatt, How to influence when you don't have authority https://www.forbes.com/2011/01/03/influence-persuasion-cooperation-leadership-managing-ccl.html
Jeff Goins, How to influence people: the most overlooked secret https://goinswriter.com/influence-people/

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Top 10 trends in business communication (2015)

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Top 10 trends in business communication (2015)

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This article was surprisingly up to date even though it was written in 2015. The cloud services are really helpful and easy to use. Mobility and easy access have also a less brighter side: people might expect you will be available at all times. This might lead to a information overload and at worst cases to a some kind of burn out. People need to learn how to cross a line between working hours and free time. It's good to be "offline" a few hours every now and then.

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I got a score of 39 points. The score table says the following:
"You're doing an OK job of recognizing your skills, and believing in your abilities. But perhaps you’re a little too hard on yourself, and this may stop you from getting the full benefit of your mastery experiences."

The test got it absolutely right. I know I'm a little hard on myself sometimes but I think it's the only way I can do my best. I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I'm trying to use my energy on things that feel important and really matter to me and on the things that I find that might be useful for the future. I usually know what I'm cabable of and what not but still sometimes I bite off more than I can chew. I think it's also a part of the Finnish state of mind to underrate ourselves and be a little too humble sometimes.