The
person that I chose who demonstrates competent communication is one of the former
Prime Ministers (Head of State) of Jamaica.
The Most. Hon.
P.J. Patterson, who was the 6th Prime Minister of Jamaica
demonstrated competent communication in the field of politics and international
diplomacy. He has been noted as a
political leader who has settled differences through a reconciling process
rather than through confrontation. He
has had wide experience as a negotiator at a national, regional and
international level. He was very effective
in public debates while still reflecting a deliberative, calm, reasonable and
thoughtful personality. When the Hon.
P.J. Patterson speaks, he does so slowly and in measured tones but it can be
seen that he is very prudent in what he says and he never misses any issues.
When this former Head of State speaks, he demonstrates many functions of
communication (O’Hair, D. & Weimann,
M., 2012), namely:
·
Ability
to influence others – he maintains eye contact and never shouts or berates
others, but speaks calmly.
· Achieving
an outcome – competent communication is process-oriented. The former Prime Minister, through the years, measured the success of his communication by assessing whether his desired
outcome was accomplished. The Hon. P.J.
Patterson was always aware of the need to optimize the goals of both
parties. That is why he became Jamaica’s
first “three-term” Prime Minister and one of our most successful politicians.
·
Appropriate
and effective – when listening to the former Prime Minister, there was never
any cause for undue embarrassment as a result of inappropriate outbursts. Further, he effectively communicated his
points whether or not you may have been in agreement with same.
I would want to model some of these communication behaviours
demonstrated as they are effective in achieving the desired purpose – relating to
people and bringing across one’s point of view.
Reference:
O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real Communication: An Introduction.
New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.
Sheryl- Thank you for sharing this communicator with me. From what you have shared, I believe that the Prime Minister does sound like an effective communicator. I also believe that more individuals should look towards leaders such as the Prime Minister to see how to appropriately communicate effectively. Thank you for sharing, I look forward to reading more of your blog over the next weeks.
ReplyDeleteSheryl,
ReplyDeleteI never realized the Prime Minister of Jamaica was such an effective communicator. Thank you for sharing this knowledge with us. Perhaps, because I tend to shy away from politics unless it involves children. I do appreciate your range of knowledge and look forward to hearing more about it.
Deb