The Art of Effective Communication

Wk3 blog assignment

 

After reading/observing the message in an email, voicemail and face-to-face video for me there is a definite difference in how the message can be interpreted.

  In an email depending on the mood of the reader the tone could be thought of as frustrated or slightly rude.  The message seemed extremely urgent.

However, when I listened to the voicemail I wrote in my notes “less harsh than the email”.  I think this goes back to the tone that is in your head when you read an email.  Maybe it is the person sending it to you or just your own mood as you read it.  When you hear the person’s voice you can sense the urgency or lack thereof and the tone whether it be frustrated or friendly.

For me the face-to-face was the friendliest approach presented.  You could see the person’s facial expressions and body language. Both of these features help paint a picture of the situation. 

When asking for something that could be perceived as urgent it may be best to communicate face-to-face. 

I understand why email is such a popular way to communicate.  It is quick, convenient and then there is documentation of the “conversation”.  Also, some people like to avoid or are not as confident with face-to-face interactions.  Email allows them to communicate more comfortably.  If you have to use email when asking for something it is important that the tone of your email is considered before hitting send!

 

KWK

Post-mortem of Vital signs assessment lab

As part of the radiologic technology program my students need to learn how to assess patient vitals.  This includes; blood pressure, pulse and respirations.   A lab to correspond with the vital signs lecture was needed to be implemented.

What contributed to the project’s success or failure?

 I would not go so far as calling the vitals lab a failure because everyone learned how to assess patient vitals.  However, the lab definitely was not as smooth or efficient as I would have liked.  The biggest problem occurred because of the location I chose for the vitals (specifically the blood pressure) assessments to take place.  I was allowed to use a room in a nursing education center that is equipped with walls full of sphygmomanometers and blood pressure cuffs.  I was so happy to be allowed to use their great equipment that I did not think through the actual scenario with 20 students in the same room trying to listen carefully through a stethoscope for a blood pressure sound that they are not familiar with.  Needless to say it ended up being too noisy in the space.  I would have also recruited at least one other instructor to be able to circulate the lab with me to help answer questions.

Which parts of the PM process would have made the project more successful?

 Breaking down the steps needed to have a successful lab creating a WBS or Work Breakdown Structure would have saved headaches. According to Greer; you need to meet with all of your stakeholders and conduct a brainstorming session in order to document, in “high resolution,” everything you are going to be building (p.13).  I feel like if I would have thought this through more systematically as well as brought in stakeholders (other educators) this would have been a much more efficient lab.  Thinking ahead about how it would be difficult to hear with that many students in the room would have saved time and stress.  Another part would be bringing in stakeholders/students to get their input on how they feel the best way to learn vitals assessments.  Brainstorming and documenting a plan prior may have eliminated issues.

 

KWK

Reference:

Greer, M. (2010). The project management minimalist: Just enough PM to rock your projects! (Laureate custom ed.). Baltimore: Laureate Education, Inc.