Active listening

&
Effective questioning techniques

Sessions 6-7
 Components of Communication
• Essential components of successful communication
• Active Listening
• Questioning Techniques

• They help you understand others better, gather information, and

foster meaningful conversations
 Listening
• What is Listening?

• Listening is a cognitive process in which a human

• Listening is a skill that could be in groups and individuals.

Active listening
Active Listening, Response, and feedback
 Active Listening
1. Maintain Eye Contact: Make consistent eye contact to show that you're engaged
and paying attention.

2. Give Verbal and Nonverbal Cues: Nodding, smiling, and using verbal cues like "I
see," "Go on," or "Tell me more" indicate your interest in what the speaker is
saying.

3. Avoid Interrupting: Allow speaker to express his/herself fully.

1. Paraphrase: Periodically repeat what you've heard in your own words to confirm
your understanding and show empathy. For example, "So, if I understand
correctly, you're saying..."

2. Ask Follow-Up Questions: Based on what the speaker has said, ask relevant
follow-up questions to delve deeper into the topic and demonstrate your
interest.

3. Eliminate Distractions: Minimize external distractions and focus on the speaker.

Put away your phone and other devices.
1. Show Empathy: Acknowledge the speaker's emotions and feelings. For
instance, "It sounds like you're really frustrated by this situation."

2. Avoid Judging: Suspend judgment and refrain from forming opinions

prematurely. Try to understand the speaker's perspective without
criticism.

3. Be Patient: Some people may need more time to express themselves

fully. Give them the space to do so.

4. Listen to Understand, Not Just Respond: Instead of formulating your

response while the speaker talks, listen to comprehend their message
fully before offering your input.
 Questioning Techniques
Open-Ended Questions: Use questions that require more than a simple "yes"
or "no" answer. They encourage the speaker to elaborate and provide valuable
information. For example, "Can you tell me more about that?"

Clarifying Questions: When something is unclear, ask for clarification. For

instance, "I'm not sure I understood. Could you please explain that again?"

Probing Questions: Use probing questions to explore a topic in depth. These

questions begin with phrases like "What led to..." or "Can you describe the
process of...“

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 Reflective Questions: Reflective questions help the speaker think more
deeply about their feelings or beliefs. For example, "How do you think this
situation aligns with your values?"

Closed-Ended Questions: While open-ended questions are valuable, closed-

ended questions can be useful for gathering specific information or confirming
facts. These questions typically require short, direct answers.

Hypothetical Questions: Encourage creative thinking and problem-solving

by posing hypothetical questions. For instance, "What would you do if you
were in charge?"

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 Leading Questions (Use with Caution): Use leading questions when you want to guide the conversation
in a particular direction. However, be mindful not to push your agenda or bias onto the speaker.

Summarizing Questions: After a lengthy discussion, use summarizing questions to review and
consolidate the main points. For example, "To recap, we've talked about..."

Empathetic Questions: Show empathy by asking questions that acknowledge the speaker's feelings and
emotions. For instance, "How did that make you feel?"

Silence: Sometimes, silence can be a powerful tool. Allow a moment of silence after a question to give the
speaker time to think and respond.

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 Introduction
• Communication Barriers are the results of several inadequacies that
tend to distort the communication and make communication less
effective.
 TYPES OF COMMUNICATION
BARRIERS
1. External barriers
2. Organizational barriers
3. Personal barriers
 EXTERNAL BARRIERS
• The external barriers are classified into two categories—Semantic
barriers and Psychological or Emotional barriers.
• Semantic barriers are caused in the process of receiving or
understanding of the message by coding and decoding ideas and
words.
Presentation title 16
https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/humpty-dumpty-sat-on-a-wall-lyrics-history/
Presentation title 19
 ORGANIZATIONAL BARRIERS
• These type of barriers are also known as structural barriers.
 PERSONAL BARRIERS
• As communication is basically an interpersonal process, there are also
some personal factors which are responsible for blocking
communication.
Presentation title 23
 Case Study 1 – Barry and Communication Barriers

Barry is a 27-year old who is a foodservice manager at a casual dining restaurant. Barry is responsible for supervising and managing all
employees in the back of the house. Employees working in the back of the house range in age from 16 years old to 55 years old. In addition, the
employees come from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds. For many, English is not their primary language.

Barry is ServSafe® certified and tries his best to keep up with food safety issues in the kitchen but he admits it’s not easy. Employees receive
“on the job training” about food safety basics (for example, appropriate hygiene and handwashing, time/temperature, and cleaning and
sanitizing). But with high turnover of employees, training is often rushed and some new employees are put right into the job without training if
it is a busy day. Eventually, most employees get some kind of food safety training. The owners of the restaurant are supportive of Barry in his
food safety efforts because they know if a food safety outbreak were ever linked to their restaurant; it would likely put them out of business.
Still, the owners note there are additional costs for training and making sure food is handled safely.

One day Barry comes to work and is rather upset even before he steps into the restaurant. Things haven’t been going well at home and he was
lucky to rummage through some of the dirty laundry and find a relatively clean outfit to wear for work. He admits he needs a haircut and a good
hand scrubbing, especially after working on his car last evening. When he walks into the kitchen he notices several trays of uncooked meat
sitting out in the kitchen area. It appears these have been sitting at room temperature for quite some time. Barry is frustrated and doesn’t know
what to do. He feels like he is beating his head against a brick wall when it comes to getting employees to practice food safety.

Barry has taken many efforts to get employees to be safe in how they handle food. He has huge signs posted all over the kitchen with these
words: KEEP HOT FOOD HOT AND COLD FOOD COLD and WASH YOUR HANDS ALWAYS AND OFTEN. All employees are given a
thermometer when they start so that they can temp food. Hand sinks, soap, and paper towels are available for employees so that they are
encouraged to wash their hands frequently.
Questions:

1. What are the communication challenges and barriers Barry faces?

2. What solutions might Barry consider in addressing each of these challenges and barriers?

3. What Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) would be helpful for Barry to implement and
enforce?

4. What are some ways Barry might use effective communication as a motivator for employees to
follow safe food handling practices?