Module 25

Module 25 was about using visuals. Here the author teaches us how to identify stories for business visuals, select visuals for stories, apply principles for good design, and how to apply principles for effective color and clip art use. He also explains how to apply principles for accurate and ethical visuals, synthesize visuals with text, and prepare print visuals for use in presentations. In your rough draft, you should use visuals to see that ideas are presented completely and to find relationships. In the final presentation or document, use visuals to make points vivid, to emphasize material, to present materials more compactly and with less repetition, and to focus on information that decision makers need. Typical design conventions that you should follow include tables, pie charts, bar charts, and line graphs.

Module 3

The topic of Module 3 is Communicating Across Cultures. Here the author explains how to define culture through context, compare and contrast dimensions of culture, and apply strategies for international communication success. He also goes in depth about how to identify differences among generations, apply strategies for workplace discrimination solutions, and lastly how to apply strategies for bias-free documents. There are two different types of cultures, one of high-context and one of low-context. In high-context cultures, most of the information is inferred from the context of the message. In low-context cultures, context is less important; most of the information in explicitly spelled out. In order to make your documents bias-free, you must make language nonsexist, non-racist, and non-ageist. You must also be careful when talking about people with disabilities and diseases as well as choosing bias-free photos and illustrations. Culture affects business communication in the following ways: Values, beliefs, and practices; nonverbal communication; body language; space; time; oral communication; and in writing to international audiences.

Module 24

This chapter talks about Long Reports. The author goes in depth about organizing time for report writing, applying strategies for report section writing, and lastly comparing and contrasting formats and styles for long reports. When writing a long report, write parts as soon as you can and spend most of your time on sections that support your recommendations. There are several parts to a long report including a title page, letter or memo of transmittal, table of contents, list of illistrations, executive summary, introduction, background or history, and lastly conclusions and recommendations. Conclusions summarize points made in the body of the report; recommendations are action items that would solve or partially solve the problem.

Module 23

In Module 23, the author talks about Short Reports. In this chapter you will learn how to select patterns for short business report organization, apply strategies for short business report organization, apply principles for good business report style, and lastly apply stratregies for specific and polite question use. Different kind of reports use different patterns of organization. For example, an informative or closure report summarizes work or research that does not result in action or recommendation. Feasability reports evaluate several alternatives and commend one of them. Lastly, justification reports recommend or justify a purchase, investment, hiring, or change in policy. There are also basic strategies for organizing information, seven basic patterns are: Comparison/Contrast; Problem-solution; Elimination of alternatives; General to particular or particular to general; geographic or spatial; functional; and chronological. Lastly, there are three main points to apply to any kind of writing, but particular to reports, being say what you mean, tighten your writing, and use blueprints, transititions, topic sentences, and heading to make your organization clear to your reader.

Module 27 & 28

Module 27 goes into talking about Resumes for potential jobs. In this chapter, the author demonstrates reasons for employers to read your resume, applys principles for resume design with computers, selects resumes for different situations, and contrasts differences among resumer features. He also talks about how to compare similarities among resume features, apply principles for appropriate resume length, apply principles for electronic resume design, and lastly to apply principles for video resume design.

Module 28 dives into job application letters. Here the author talks about how to select job application letters for different situations, contrast differences among job application letters, compare similarities among job application letters, and examine methods for specific company targeting. He also describes how to apply principles for T-letters, apply principles for appropriate job application letter length, apply principles for good job application letter tone, and lastly apply principles for e-mail job application letters.

Module 21

Module 21 was about Proposals and Progress Reports. In this chapter, the author explains how to define reports in the workplace, estimate time for business proposal writing, identify sections for business proposal organization, identify "hot buttons" for business proposal strategies and beyond, and lastly identify sections for progress report organization. There are three levels of reports. Information only reports include sales reports and quarterly reports. Information plus analysis reports include annual reports, audit reports, and make-good or pay-back reports. Information plus analysis plus a recommendation reports inculde feasibility reports, justification reports, and problem-solving reports. When creating a proposal for a class project, there are nine different steps to take in order to create an effective proposal: Summarize the topic and your purpose; what problem exists; feasibility of the problem; who your audience is; topics to investigate; methods/procedure; qualifications/facilities/resources; work schedule; and lastly a call to action. Other types of proposals include proposal for funding, sales proposals, and figuring the budget and costs. Lastly, items you should include in a progress report need to be things that will enhance your image, float trial balloons, and minimize potential problems.

Module 17 and 18

Module 17 consists of Listening. In this chapter the author tells how to explain good listening strategies for the workplace, apply strategies for active listening, apply techniques for acknowledgement responses, recognize value in leadership through listening, and lastly recognize value in active listening during disagreements. Good listeners consciously follow four practices: Pay Attention, Focus on the Other Speaker(s) in a Generous Way, Avoid Making Assumptions, and Listen for Feelings as Well as Facts.

Module 18 has to do with Working and Writing in Teams. Here the author writes about to identify message types for the group’s attention, classify roles for group members, apply strategies for leadership without arrogance, apply strategies for conflict resolutions, and lastly apply strategies for co-authorship of documents. Different messages are appropriate at different points in a group’s development. Informational messages focus on content, procedural messages focus on method and process. And interpersonal messages focus on people, promoting friendliness, and group loyalty.

Module 15 and 16

Module 15 covers material concerning about choosing the right word. Here you will recognize value in using the right words, apply strategies for critical thinking in reading, writing, and beyond. You will also explain principles for word definition, distinguish acceptable jargon from other types, and lastly define words with similar sounds but different meanings. When trying to use the right word, it all depends on your situation, either by getting your meaning across, or by getting the response you want.

Module 16's topic is revising sentences and paragraphs. The author talks about how to define good style in business messages, demonstrate appropriate tone in business messages, and how to differentiate rules from writing habits and conventions. There are also ways to apply strategies for sentence revision, apply strategies for paragraph revision, and lastly to synthesize style with organizational culture. There are different levels of style to choose from when you are writing. These styles feature formality, use of contractions, pronouns, level of friendliness, how personal, word choice, sentence and paragraph length, grammar, and visual impact.

Module 8 & 13

Module 8 inlcudes the topic of discussing reader benefits. The author writes how to explain functions of reader benefits, indentify reader benefits for messages, apply strategies for reader benefits creation, select reader benefits for messages, apply strategies for reader benefits and audience harmony, and lastly to support reader benfits with you-attitude. When deciding which benefits to use, there are three principles to guide you: Use at least one benefit for each part of your audience, use intrinsicc benefits, and use the benefits you can develop most fully.

Module 13 is the topic of e-mail messages and web writing. Here to author points out how to apply strategies for e-mail message organization, create subject lines for e-mail messages, apply strategies for e-mail message style and content, and to apply strategies for time management with e-mail and other tasks. Also, they show us how to identify rules for "netiquette," apply strategies for e-mail attachment use, apply strategies for writing on the Web, and recognize other technologies for the Web. With subject lines for e-mails, it is important to the specific, concise, and catchy. Of course, there are different subject lines to use when trying to talk about different subjects. There are subject lines for informative and positive e-mail messages, for negative e-mail messages, and even persuasive e-mail messages.

Bad News Letter

I am posting this to my blog because right now my mother and sister are in the middle of moving to Charlotte, North Carolina, so I do not have access to a printer or scanner, let alone any internet. Also, being only a visitor for the summer at U of L, I have no idea how to print anything off at the library. With that being said, here is my letter:

Louisville Slugger Baseball

800 West Main Street

Louisville, KY 40202

(502)-588-7228

Concerning Your Recently Purchased

Composite Barrel Baseball Bat

Dear Customer:

Due to the recent rule changes in regard to Little League Baseball’s baseball bat requirements, the bat you purchased will no longer be allowed in play effective January 1^st, 2012. Unfortunately, we will not be replacing any bats that have already been unwrapped and used, therefore we cannot issue you a refund for your bat.

Since we are receiving many inquires for a replacement bat that will be permitted for use in 2012 with the appropriate BBCOR standard, we have started the process of selling these new bats at a lower price. This can only be accomplished if you send in your current BESR model, which we will follow up by sending you our newest BBCOR model baseball bat with a 33% discount off its original price.

Though please remember, we are currently still making these new bats, and the inquiries we are receiving are so far outnumbering the production of bats we can make. With that in mind, please be aware that it will take 2-3 months before you will receive your new bat. We are sorry for this inconvenience.

We do hope that you accept the previous offer, we believe that it is the best deal that you will find going into play next year. Good luck with the rest of your season, and we look forward to doing future business with you.

Sincerely,

John A. Hillerich III

Module 11 and 12

In Module 11, the author talks about negative messages, and how to write them well and effective. The chapter talks about creating subject lines for negative messages, applying strategies for informative and positive message organization, assessing legal implications with messages, especially negative ones. You also identify situations for buffer use, list common kinds of negative messages, and apply strategies for negative analysis with PAIBOC. When gibing bad news to superiors you must describe the problem, tell how it happened, describe the options for fixing, and finally recommend a solution and ask for action.

            Module 12 explains the perspective of persuasive messages. The author shows the reader how to compare strategies for persuasive messages, create subject lines for persuasive messages, apply strategies for persuasive messages, and identify solutions for objections. Other objectives include recognizing techniques for more persuasive messages, applying strategies for common ground solutions, how to list common kinds of persuasive messages, and lastly how to apply strategies for persuasive message analysis with PAIBOC. The best persuasive strategy depends on how much and what kinds of resistance you expect. You can use the direct request pattern when your audience is busy and may not receive all messages, prefer direct requests, etc. On the other hand, the problem-solving pattern is used best when you need action from everyone, when you expect the audience to appeal to logic rather than emotion, etc.

Website Analysis

For this assignment, we are supposed to choose between two websites that offer the relatively same product to customers. I chose ESPN and CBS Sportsline for my two topics. Both of these websites offer a full range of items such as fantasy sports, gametrackers, etc. They also cover the same sports, as well as they can give you up to date scores and stories about what is going on in the sports world. Personally, I am a fan of ESPN, partly because this network has ESPN2, ESPNU, and ESPN3, giving me more than enough sports to choose from during the day. With ESPN3, i am able to have free access to view many sporting events happening right at that second. With CBS Sportsline, this option if very limited if even available at all. On the other hand, when in comes to March Madness, CBS is on top of it all. They cover all these games on television, as well as give them to you for free online to watch. Another difference between these two is that different writers work for each station, so you will have access to many different stories that happen every day. This creates a special variety of topics you would otherwise not even hear about if there was only one site giving their information to the world. Having two networks such as ESPN and CBS keeps the competitive edge up every day, just how it is with sports. Without this competitive edge, these stories would be pointless, and sports in general would become boring. The dramatic acts Chad Ochocinco pulls on the off the field would be forever lost. Terrell Owens would never have pulled out a sharpie to autograph a football after a touchdown. Joe Horn would not have called his mother after he scored. The fun of the game would be lost without these networks and the media making the game (any game) what it is today. Every second there is a reporter out there getting more and more information to publish a story about a sports athlete, good or bad, it doesn't matter, because the people just need to know what is going on. Yes, some stories are false, and because of that we make false judgements. But if it were not for the media, sports would be nothing like they are today, and we have most specifically ESPN and CBS Sportsline to thank.

Module 4 & 5

In Module 4, most of the text describes how to go about planning, writing, and revising written items. The book explains how to save time when writing a paper, such as only using one-third of your time to actually "write" your paper, and use the rest of your time for planning and revising. When planning for your paper, you can use techniques such as brainstorming, freewriting, clustering, and talking to your audiences. Now, when it comes to revising, there are three steps: Revising, editing, and proofreading. And when writing an especially difficult paper, it is best to plan to revise the draft at least three times. There are two different revisions, one thorough, and one light, each depending on the amount of time available to revise each piece. It is also best to always check for grammar and spelling errors. You may want to swap papers with another because it's easier to proofread something that you haven't written. The process of drafting, getting feedback, revising, and getting more feedback is called cycling. To improve upon the feedback you get, tell people which aspects of your writing you'd like to focus on. I found it interesting how the author told us how to overcome writer's block. Ideas include participate actively in the community, talk positively to yourself, talk about writing to other people, etc. The more you talk to people and interact with people, the more you will learn from your audiences and how to better communicate to them through your writing.

Now in Module 5, the author goes in depth about designing documents, slides, and screens. It is important to use white space in order to emphasize material that you are trying to deliver to your audience. Other simple rules include to use headings, limit the use of words set in all capital letters, use no more than two fonts in a single document, and to decide whether to justify margins based on the situation and the audience. When designing presentation slides it is essential to use large fonts, bullet point phrases, and keep everything short and to the point. Good web pages have both good content and an interesting design. The opening page is the most important. Just like someone opening a book, if there is no hook to draw the reader in, they will not continue to read. With the web, if the opening page has no "hook," there will be no interest in going further on into the web site. The only way to know if your design works is to test it with your audience. If they like it or if they don't like it, they will let you know.