How do I feel about teams?

I have mixed feelings when it comes to teams. I love that fact that multiple ideas and perspectives come into play when you are put into teams. I also love the fact that you can divide up the work load and get things accomplished twice as fast. However, my past experiences with teams have led me to believe that working on an individual level is much less complicated and ultimately ends up with better results. My last team experience ended up with me being stuck with everyones portion of the project the night before it was due. Our team was all going to get the same grade no matter who put forth effort and who did not. Thankfully, I was able to get our entire team an "A", but needless to say I will be very skeptical with this team report that we are going to be doing.

a determining factor for successful communication

I believe a determining factor for successful communication involves crisp, clear wording. Words can have multiple meanings, and unless your careful, people can interpret your thoughts in a multitude of ways. If you are too wordy, such as the example for Frank Holtom's company, people will not be able to decipher the real message. If you are to short, people might not fully understand. To have successful communication you have to say exactly what you mean and not beat around the bush. As we have discussed in class, you can't simply imply something, you must spell it out for people or there will be a chance for misinterpretation.

important factors for successful communication

When it comes to successful communication, effective wording is key. Words can have multiple meanings. Some things come across differently to others than what you really meant. You have to be short and to the point because, face it, time is money in our world and no one wants to waste there time reading page after page of useless information that could be shortened to a few paragraphs. Be short and to the point, yet effective...this is what I believe is necessary for successful communication.

Bad piece of Writing

Before discussing bad communications pieces in BUS 3700, I was not well aware of what qualifications determined good and bad pieces of writing. I have become much more conscious of the "I" attitude that comes across when I am reading and writing any business pieces. Recently I saw and ad in the paper for a new business opening. It began "We are pleased to announce the grand opening of...". It continued on saying "We welcome your business", and concluded with "We look forward to meeting you". The whole time I read the small article I wasn't really reading the context, but was actually counting the amount of times I read the word "we".

Thoughts about writing

All through high school I slipped by writing mediocre papers for easy classes. I never understood the value of good writing skills. I never realized how words could come to life on paper. That is until I took several advanced writing classes during my first two years of college. My professors emphasized how today's younger generation are taking the english language for granted with all of our "abbrevies" (lol, nbd, hbu). Technology today has made it so easy for us to slide by without ever learning the proper way to write a paper. I was a teaching assistant two years ago for a lower level english class at KVCC. I was amazed at how many students were not able to format a paper properly, let alone use proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling. During that semester I realized how important proper writing skills are and began to look at my own compositions more critically. I will never be one of those people who could sit and write for hours or speak in metaphorical terms, but I am working on building my vocabulary and have become more conscious of bad writing habits that I have. I do like writing and think that you can get a lot further in your career if you have stronger writing skills than others.

What I hope/expect to gain from BUS 3700

I expect to gain stronger writing skills and a greater comprehension of business materials (memos, resumes, etc.). Through oral presentations, I hope to diminish my fears of public speaking. I also hope to learn the many aspects of business communications. I am expecting this class to help prepare me for the business world.