Communication and Persuasion in Economics Education

Have you ever sat through a meeting where everyone is speaking a language completely foreign and you were totally lost with what is going on? I'm sure lots of people can relate to this especially those who have visited foreign countries or have sought to learn a foreign language. I experienced this my first semester at BYU after my mission sitting in my Econ 381 class. The foreign language was not English but Economics. Though I had studied economics before my mission and had learned the “language” of Economics I could not understand a single word my professor was saying. Those who have learned a foreign language well know that if not practiced the fluency previously obtained will fade away very quickly.

Bad Joke, Sorry

Economics truly is a foreign language. Those who have taken or will take an introductory Economics class will soon come to find that their professor might be speaking English but they still can't understand what they are saying. There is a reason for this. Econ Professors spend their day communicating with those that speak their language. They perform research in their language, they study other professors research in their language and they teach upper level classes in their language too. But when the audience shifts to individuals who don't speak the language they forget (Or lack the ability) to translate things back  into English. As a result, ninety percent of Econ 110 students hate Economics.

This is a sad truth because Economics really is a cool thing to study. The things that are learned are so applicable and relevant to our day to day experience. Isaac talked about what Economics really is in his post and the hope would be that people would see that and understand what studying economics could do for their lives. If there were a way for Educators to translate Economics into something that people could understand, I guarantee less people would hate their Econ 110 class.

No worries I don't know what it means either

Eli talked about how Statistics is the bridge between the abstract and the concrete. Economics uses the bridge of statistics in an applied way called Econometrics. Econometrics is really where persuasion lies in Economics education.  Data is collected, Econometrics is used to analyze the data, and result are found and presented in a paper. Pretty cut in dry right? But unfortunately that persuasion only works if the audience speaks the language of Economics. Go and find a real Econ paper and you will find roughly 8-10 pages of background and introduction to the paper and then the following 45-70 pages will be filled with tables, charts, mathematical equations and statistical analysis intermingled with explanations that make absolutely no sense to the typical human being. Because this is the case, the attempt at persuading individuals on important topics is limited to those that can speak the language. If only we all spoke a little more Economics.

Communication and Persuasion in Economics

I have to compliment Ben in his post because he practically took the words out of my mouth. What he had to share about communicating effectively to those who are not a software programmer made a lot of sense for my field as well.

Many times when I tell people that I am studying economics, people are unsure what that means. All they ever hear about regarding that field is whether or not the economy is doing well... This is not really what I study, although it is a small part of it. That is one of the main reasons I chose to go into this field, because it is a completely new way of thinking, which can be hard to explain to others.

My studies have helped me learn how to allocate the scarce resources (physical or intangible) in order to bring the greatest amount of benefit to humans. Why is communication then important for this? You see, each one of us has a different view of what is the best way to maximize the satisfaction we require. That is why there are so many presidential debates about so many economic topics.

I just had to....

Persuasion is crucial to these kinds of discussions, because frankly some people have better ideas than others. While another individual may know nothing about GDP. These are important topics that we should be aware of, and in my field we study them, and try to make it easier to understand. 

If an economist doesn't know how to communicate his knowledge to others, it will make no difference what kind of research he has done, because he can't communicate to others. As I read in Alexis's post I thought of something that I feel is true. If we were all better able and willing to communicate in this world many of the problems faced in this world would be resolved. That is why I love economics.

Communication and Persuasion in Architecture

I have been fascinated by buildings and structures since my early youth. I would grab paper and a pencil and escape by creating new worlds full of buildings and houses, I've designed a new dream house for myself already at least a half dozen times. Time escapes me when I sit down and sketch a beautiful building. All architects are unique, but all share the same love and fascination with creating and shaping the world around them. 

I'm currently working on a sketch of St. Pauls Cathedral... it is super hard
Isn't it a beauty, though?

Communication is an integral part of the profession of architecture. Every day architects collaborate with other architects, structural engineers, building contractors, electrical engineers, surveyors, and every other profession that has to do with erecting any type of structure; but the most important communication that occurs in the profession is with the client. The client is who provides the resources you need to create something, his needs and desires must be met. Unfortunately, the majority of clients don't know all that much about architecture, and are usually more worried about cost than anything else. So they want the best product for the cheapest price, it's basic economics. If an architect is a skilled rhetorician, he can better provide the vision he sees in his own mind to the client. Without any communication skills, an architect would be useless. He would be unable to share any plans or any ideas. Architects communicate through many means; they speak on the phone, through e-mail, in meetings, they build models and draw sketches to communicate their ideas visually. 

What messages does the church communicate through its' architecture?

Perhaps the most powerful communication tool for an architect are his designs themselves. It takes a great deals of interpersonal skills to get a project going and to keep it going through the design process, but what the finished product ends up being is a strong message from the Architect. It is the architects message to the world and community around him or her. Sometimes it is hard to find the message they are sending, perhaps their communication skills weren't the best so they weren't able to get what they wanted in the design process, so their idea and vision may have been polluted by cost restrictions and client demands. But an architect who knows how to communicate and persuade will, in the end, send beautiful and powerful messages through their creations. 

Most of the knowledge that I've gained about architecture have come from practical experience, I've done an extended internship at an architecture firm in Salt Lake City, and was also an Architecture major at the University of Utah before I went on my mission and transferred to BYU. 

I'm sure most of you know where this is, if not, this is in Dubai; think for a moment;
what do the superstructures in Dubai communicate about that community, about that economy,
about the people living there?

Communication and Persuasion in Finance

My interest in Finance grew this past summer when my husband and I were in San Francisco doing internships.  I was working at a local, organic food start up and my husband was doing an investment banking internship.  Throughout the summer we shared our experiences, and I became fascinated with the cool projects that my husband was doing at his work.  I loved hearing about the life cycles of businesses, capital markets, the IPO process, and how companies are bought and sold. I have found most of my information from connecting with people I know who work in Finance, but I have also begun reading the Wall Street Journal as well as Bloomberg Businessweek.

Case Study: Pitching your firm's services to a company that is seeking an advisor for their purchase of another company.

Initially, there will be some communication between the management of the company and the director and vice presidents at the bank.  At this stage, the company lets the bank know that they are looking for a bank to advise them on this purchase.  This will most likely happen over the phone to avoid an electronic or paper trail of these conversations, so that the fact that the company is planning to buy another company remains confidential.

Next, the bank has the chance to prepare a pitch book, which is a written document compiled with graphics and charts about the bank's prior success and expertise.  It will include a plan for the company's purchase, financial information, and an explanation of potential target companies for purchase. The main purpose of this book is to provide the company with a summary of why the bank is going to be a great advisor, and recommendations for the company's purchase.  This is a very important opportunity for effective communication and PERSUASION!  The managers of the bank are trying to persuade the company to hire the bank for advisement!  The financial information cannot be altered, but the way that the bankers talk about the potential deal is very important.  They can exaggerate how positively they view the deal and their plans for success.

This whole process can happen very fast, so within the bank, between the higher level managing

directors and vice presidents and lower level associates and analysts, communication needs to happen very quickly, accurately, and succinctly.  Emails are short and to the point.  There is not a lot of time to chat or gossip in the office because everyone is very focused on their work as they communicate.  Within the bank, the communication is concise and respectful, so that everyone is able to keep working as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Communication and Persuasion in Material Engineering

Material engineers are experts on the materials which are used in the productions of goods. They know the specifics of raw materials and how they will perform when used in manufacturing. They use their knowledge of materials to either make the process of manufacturing cheaper or improve the quality of a product. They work with other engineers as well to see what requirements need to be filled and which material or process can be utilized. Material engineers work with other engineers in the manufacturing of goods, and have to communicate which material would be better suited to the requirements. They usually work closely in several areas of production and often find solutions to problems in the manufacturing process by focusing on the materials best suited for the application.

Material engineers may be asked which material should serve as a proposed upper receiver in a new Ar-15 prototype. Taking their knowledge of  materials the engineer will consider the stresses involved with that certain piece, and decide it should be milled from billet aluminum. However machining is slow and expensive, and billet aluminum is not the cheapest. The engineer would then have to communicate to the people spending the money on the machines and the material why those materials and processes are necessary.

billet aluminium 

The engineer will use figures and facts to convince the manufacturers of how they should proceed. In this case the form is very much deliberative because it is focused on setting future policy based on what is advantageous. The use of deliberative oratory is clear because the engineer is trying to persuade or dissuade the manufacturer.

While I don't have much experience in the field myself I have several friends who occupy themselves with this profession because I already have an interest in all of this. I have been thinking about entering the field myself (so this was an informative post for me as well) I interviewed them on about what they do, and I looked up some of the responsibilities material engineers have.

Communication and Persuasion in Mechanical Engineering

Rhetoric plays an interesting role in the mechanical engineering field.  Engineers often have the rap of being socially awkward, like every Dilbert comic strip ever printed.  Persuasion is an art that may seem to be lacking in the world of the socially inept.  However, despite any weakness that come from dryness of speech, engineers can gain authority and power by resorting to a Vulcan approach.  

Rhetoric most often takes the form of logic for communication in the engineering field.

In this context, persuasion can take place in a variety of situations.  For instance, Dr. Anton Bowden, one of my engineering professors, previously worked for a company in a judicial setting.  He would be the authority in a court case explaining engineering concepts to a non-engineering jury.  These facts had great power in clarification and could ultimately lead to a verdict. Another location one may find rhetoric at work would be the work-floor of a large manufacturing plant.  With workers running to and fro, clear and concise process sheets are expedient in ensuring throughput and safety.  Yet another situation would be the creative young engineer proposing an idea for a more environmentally friendly vehicle to a legislative body.

Communication comes in many forms.  It presents itself in oral presentations, memos, technical reports, process sheets, engineering drawings, proposals, emails, etc.  My personal experience in the mechanical engineering major has exposed me to all of these forms of communication, and others.  It is exhilarating to have a great idea, and then to be able to share it with others.  Nothing gets accomplished until it is financed or has the necessary approval to proceed.  Rhetoric in the engineering field is the difference between dreams and reality.  

Communication and Persuasion in Translation and Localization

The modern day has become such that the world is accessible by anyone and everyone. I can talk on the phone to my sister in L.A. while at the same time look at pictures online that my friend is posting from his trip in Thailand. So many people from so many cultures are coming together, linking in both the physical world and through technology around the globe. Because of this, people are aware of that whatever they do reaches an increasingly larger audience. This is often a good thing, as it allows companies to bring their services an products to new people, as well as discover new ideas from them. But there are factors regarding culture, society, history, language and other things that hinder global innovations from reaching people. In these regards, it becomes necessary to find someone with cultural knowledge of both sides and is able to use this information in order to have both sides engage and relate effectively. That role is known as Translator/Localizer.

One of the two languages I am currently majoring in with
accompanying stereotype

Rhetoric is all about communicating and expressing your ideas in the way that you want them to be. Translation is very much a direct application of that, as its primary function is to enable a concept to be properly expressed to a people of a different culture/language. They act as a mediator between the two and become the mouthpiece as well as the speaker for both audiences. You have to know how to convey yourself appropriately so that everyone can understand, which can be difficult as many implications and cultural references are lost in translation. Communication is extremely valuable and must be kept sharp like a sword as to be as efficient as possible.

A translator gains his clients based on his studies and experience with the language. More experience means more ethos, which allows a translator to get more jobs and continue to improve their skill. Jobs can range over a myriad of instances. We often think of a translator being present for the translation, perhaps at a restaurant or office. However, there are many other methods used as well. Programs and online apps are used for simple, quick translation, while translation companies will use the internet as the medium to speak with clients. Some translation that is often unmentioned is when books, movies and other media is translated to achieve an international audience. Foreign news and events are translated by broadcasting companies. All of these require communication, often on a more intimate level. Translators are also responsible for interaction among their peers and associates, creating a network of rhetoric that spreads across the globe.

My other major, depicted as a person

It wasn't until high school that I developed any real interest in languages. I avoided any language classes until high school where I was required to take two years of a language. I chose the most unique one my school offered (Arabic). That one small choice escalated into me studying three additional languages and serving a foreign mission where I learned a fifth language. Trying to decide what to do for a career, I went to the dean of the humanities college here on campus, Dave Waddell, who happens to also be my home ward bishop. He explained to me a lot of what I just explained to you. He helped me decide to use my love of languages to become a translator. And now I learn of rhetoric in order to use it properly and effectively in my future career.

Communication and Persuasion in Speech Pathology

At the end of this BYU road, I hope to be a speech pathologist, or one who studies communicative disorders. My entire field of study is rooted in how individuals communicate, discovering why their methods of communication may be ineffective, and designing and implementing therapies to improve their ability to communicate with others. If it isn't already obvious from my use of the word communicate four times in two sentences, my major deals pretty heavily with communication and persuasion, in fact that is the major!The attractive aspects of this major are that it is a blend of social science and the medical field, there are various settings for employment (hospitals, schools, nursing homes, and private practice to name a few), and we deal with a wide range of individuals. We work with babies, the elderly, and everything in between. Because we deal with such a large populous, this includes a variety of disorders such as: stroke recovery, physical malformations, swallowing problems, emotional problems, learning disabilities, etc. These are some of the things that really excite me about the Communication Disorders major.

Because this is the science of communicating effectively, all types of communication are utilized. It my understanding from the discussions I have had with professors that as a speech pathologist, I will be utilizing various methods to communicate with insurance companies/ doctors, clients, and their families. Professionally, I will utilize paperwork and documenting to reach persuasive ends with third parties. Recording observations and also improvements will allow me to use logos to properly advocate services for my clients and their families. It is part of my job to prove that action is necessary. With the clients, paperwork and documentation will not be persuasive in the slightest. With this audience, my goal is to establish independence, a sense of capability, and motivation within the individual. Since this job will include helping those on the autistic spectrum, those recovering from strokes, those with physical malformations, and so forth, no single intervention program will be exactly like the program used for another person (even for another person with a similar primary problem). Finally, to communicate persuasively with the family members of clients will also require a different approach. The goal in communicating with the family is to aid with the grieving process and convince them that intervention is necessary and can only be beneficial. The grieving process requires a very sensitive, understanding form of communication. It is extremely hard to learn that someone you love has a disorder, and a speech pathologist needs to be sympathetic to that and need to be able to evaluate when it will be appropriate to suggest an intervention program.       

Communication and Persuasion in English Teaching

     English has always been my knack, and teaching has recently solidified itself as my niche. As a result, I have chosen to enter the English teaching field. As I often say, "I am attending college so that I can spend the rest of my life in a high school."

     There is something appealing about the kairos connected to teaching in a high school. Maybe that's why I want to go back.
Time: Early morning to mid-afternoon (The opening hours of the day are the intellect's playground). Date: Every day throughout autumn, winter, and spring (The teacher can easily develop relationships with students when they are together on a daily basis; also, the teacher must maintain a consistent yet creative rhetorical style in order to gain students' trust and interest.)
Place: Every type of classroom, ranging from stuffy and dimly lit to open and bright. (The teacher's position, the desks' arrangement, and the art on the walls can affect persuasive appeal. My seventh grade English teacher sat at her desk the entire year, which disengaged the class, whereas my twelfth grade teacher walked around the circular desk formation, which kept us engaged and alert.)
Katie Johnson also wrote about further times and places for communication through the internet.

    I have not yet chosen whether I would prefer to teach in a middle-school or in a high-school. Each group possesses specific psychological profiles that affect the way a teacher might employ rhetorical skills. Middle-school students are childish, simple, and immature. They base their view of a teacher's ethos not upon his or her academic achievements but upon the teacher's charisma and compassion. They thrive on pathos-directed appeals. Often they misunderstand logical arguments, or at least need guidance in order to comprehend them. On the other hand, high-school students are in the process of maturing, making complex decisions, and preparing for the future. They perceive strong ethos in a teacher who is intelligent and professional, yet relatable. High schoolers want their teachers to be their friends and their guides. Further analysis of the attributes of each group of students would prove helpful in determining the most effective uses of rhetoric in the classroom.

     While the students are most often the audience, communication in this field is not limited to the teacher-to-student sphere. Teachers also interact with administration personnel, parents, and fellow staff members. Each of these groups holds at lease one value in common: literacy. The desire to teach young people how to read and write effectively drives teachers to do what they do. Teachers employ all three branches of oratory in order to teach good literacy. They make judicial speeches whether they are defending the importance of a great classic or the validity of a grade. They teach how to write epideictic essays to analyze literature. And they take advantage of deliberative oratory when they need to convince the class to read Crime and Punishment over fall break.

When I began college, I realized that I was not nearly as well-read as many of my peers. But I do share their view that literacy is important to society. I want to teach English not only because the atmosphere, the students, and the challenge excites me, but because I want to teach something inspiring, and English inspired me.

   

Communication and Persuasion in Corporate Sales

     "Corporate sales” is a field in which one must be able to express themselves and communicate their ideas in a very clear, convincing manner. Though it is similar to your everyday door to door consumer salesman, it differs in the fact that the corporate sales agent is working on a much larger scale because sales are made between two companies or large organizations. It is essential for corporate sales agents to be extremely persuasive as they are delivering sales pitches that can have influence over millions of dollars. Not to mention, they have to be capable of maintaining relations with all of the people that they possibly can in the business world to exploit networking. Those that are a part of the corporate sales world know that they must be extremely self-confident when communicating and persuading.

Due to the fact that sales are so high end and that the stakes are so high, the corporate sales setting is typically in front of many clients and colleagues in large conference rooms, offices, and even fancier restaurants.  Many people are usually involved in the decision making. Most corporate sales executives must be pristine when it comes to presenting products and displaying their potential. The people that are involved with the exchanges are usually pretty similar and have the same final goal- making their company allocate their finances in the best possible way and maximizing shareholder value in the long run. With this being said, the sales agent that is presenting a product must always be aware of the mindsets of the people sitting on the other side of the room in order to be much more persuasive. Clearly, all that corporates sales really is when it comes down to it is communication and persuasion. 

I realized that I love working very closely to people when I was serving my mission in Barcelona, Spain. In order to get old Spaniards that were born into the Catholic church to even look at you, you had to be very persuasive and at the very least grab their attention. I quickly found a true love for not only the Gospel but helping people see the light in what we shared. After arriving home, I realized that I think I would really enjoy sales. If I can get a good product that will help benefit others, I would love to go around and sell them the product so that they can see the positive benefits of it and how it will make their lives easier. 

I have found most of my information from talking to people that are involved in corporate sales. I have family and friends that are or have been involved with that kind of career and it still continues to intrigue me. When I signed up for English Rhetoric, I didn’t really think that the course would help me with my career. However, to my mistake, if I can master some of the rhetoric principles that we are taught, I will be able to be explosively persuasive. 

Communication and Persuasion in Medicine

Similar to James, I also plan on going into the medical field.  Much of what I have to say is similar, as our two fields coincide, but I will attempt to make my post as unique as I can, or at least give it a different flavor through my own voice. 

I am still ambivalent and oscillating as to what exact study I am going to devote my career to, but I have narrowed the choices down mainly to pharmacy and surgery (and also maybe neurology).  Though the realms are quite different in terms of prescribing and physically applying learned medical skills, the rhetoric employed is nearly identical. 

One must know what to put in the syringe,
and where best to put the syringe, while also
convincing the patient to accept the syringe.

As a physician or surgeon, communication first takes place in the office or in the operation room, depending on the patient's current circumstances being dire, or slightly less so.  Either way, be it an emergency or a routine checkup, the patient must be convinced via oral or written reasoning and information as to whether or not to go through with what the doctor professes is "best."  This can be an easy process at times, as the authoritative presence of someone who has spent a large portion of their life to study and practice bears much weight.  Conversely, a stubborn or skeptical patient might require substantial counseling before accepting or rejecting aid.  The outcome of this decision is in part determined by urgency and the gravity of the patient's condition, but much of the time is also heavily reliant on how effective the doctor is in persuasion. 

"To take this medicine or that medicine—or no medicine," or "to go under the knife and radiation, or risk it" are some of the dilemmas patients must acquire an opinion on.  "Is it worth it," and "what is 'it?'"  Before making a decision to heed or dismiss the advice of the doctor, the patient must better understand the nature of their own condition, a worrisome need readily assuaged by said physician or surgeon. 

Take the right one and you live, but take the wrong one and you die.
Better ask the doctor first.

In theory, the doctor is the more knowledgeable of the two with regards to the patient, no doubt due to numerous years of learning and practice before actual application even begins, but this is not always the case.  In general, yes, the patient feels a sense of inferiority to the doctor, or possibly just respect for the medical position, but this does often lead to excessive pride in the doctor.  This "God Complex," as James put it, is a force that must be monitored. 

In my own personal experience, I had a medical tragedy that kept me out of school for two years (and continues to inhibit my success in academics even now).  Fearing for my health and even my life, I consulted a doctor for their professional diagnosis.  Going into the meeting, I had a theory as to what had happened to me, but the doctor disregarded the thought and labeled it "impossible."  Putting me through all the motions for the tests that he thought I needed to go through, the results concluded that nothing was wrong with me—a self-fulfilling prophecy that deeply offended me.  My proposition was to look into a second, "impossibly" rare scenario, but I was merely stuck with a massive painkiller shot and sent home. 

Though the Tenth Doctor might be experienced,
I do not think that he has the appropriate
"experience" for solving most medical issues,
nor of harboring the corresponding ethos.

Months later, I was still unable to properly function, and after attempting to return to school, was forced to go back home and seek further medical assistance.  Something was wrong with me, and after meeting with another, more receptive doctor, we found that I indeed had suffered the exact condition that I had suspected and feared. 

To make a long story short, a doctor must make excellent use of logos in assessing issues in a patient and providing a train of thought leading said patient to accepting help.  This is not all, however, because though the doctor must exercise skillful epideictic oratory (and even judicial oratory to demonstrate prior experiences and results), they must do it in a way so as not to dissuade the patient from accepting the physician's or surgeon's ethos.  Additionally, in order to be the most effective doctor, one must be willing to listen to the plea of the patient, as neither of the two parties are operating or prescribing for themselves.  Without a proper connection of minds under mutual respect, a doctor's rhetoric can still fail him or her.  Looking back at my own interest in this field and my unfortunate, but eye-opening event, I wish to pursue the path of biology with a wiser gait.   

Communication and Persuasion in English Teaching

            English teachers, especially high school English teachers, use communication in more diverse ways than arguably any other career.  They not only teach communication and persuasion; they live communication and persuasion.  Their whole career basically revolves around communication and persuasion. 

Every school day, high school English teachers teach the finer points of communication to their students during class. They hold conferences with students to help them with their writing skills.  They might tutor after school as well.  All of these activities require effective communication to a specific audience of students.  All students differ in personality, motivation, engagement in class studies, and intellect.  How an English teacher communicates to his or her class is largely dependent on the students.  AP, IB, and Honors students are typically more engaged in English and learning in general than College Prep or regular classes.  While honors students might appreciate an entertaining lesson just as much as non-honors students, honors students are typically more able to engage even in classic lecture lessons without YouTube videos and PowerPoints than non-honors students.  English teachers must be aware of their students’ personality in order to communicate effectively the lesson given.  Teachers are inherently quite different from students.  They are older, more mature, and in a leadership position.  These differences sometimes make students pull away from the teacher.  The English teacher must be able to highlight the similarities between him or her and the students.  The similarities are that both students and English teachers want the student to learn about English.

In order to communicate effectively to their students’ demographic, English teachers also need to know popular communication techniques.  Social media, YouTube, and multi-media presentations are all extremely popular.  In order to communicate effectively in the classroom setting, the English teacher must know how to not only classically lecture and inform but also incorporate modern communication techniques.  Though most of the classroom communication is oral, more and more English teachers are using written social media and emails to interact quickly with their students.  They therefore use types of “e-communication” regularly.  Apps and websites like Edmodo give English teachers ways to quickly and easily communicate with students over a social media platform.

English teachers differ greatly of how they communicate knowledge to their students.  Some feel lecturing is best.  Others like back-and-forth communication, posing questions to their students and having them answer.  Written communication also occurs as English teachers give tests and quizzes and send emails.  Their communication techniques, however, all alter with where they are communicating or persuading.  They mostly communicate in their classroom, but they also must one-on-one communicate in their offices.  English teachers must be available to communicate with during class, after class and at home using email or social media.  Large amounts of informative communication usually occur when students email questions about large assignments to him or her. 

Therefore, although most people assume that the teacher is usually the speaker and the students are the audience, a lot of the time, students are speaking to the teacher and the teacher must be the audience.

 Despite the obvious fact that English teachers use communication regularly and even teach the art of communication, what is lesser known is the persuasion that English teachers must use.  For example at least a few times a year, they must use effective rhetoric to stave off angry parents or students upset about a bad grade on an essay or grammar test.  Persuasion through body language and enthusiasm is often common.  English teachers must make students “buy into” their lessons.  Furthermore, a few times a year, frustrated English teachers will usually give speeches to their students about how important English is and how they cannot relax their engagement and attentiveness in the class.  Oftentimes, English teachers will be in direct conflict between administrators, other departments, or even other English teachers about what is best for the school and students or how best to spend the budget.  Though all faculty wants what is best for the students, administrators are bound by government laws and have different views of the best way to effectively teach than English teachers might.  Thus, English teachers must also be persuasive as well as informative, though they usually persuade in dialectic oratory.  Clearly, both communication and persuasion are vital to the high-school English teacher.

I found my information chiefly from email correspondences with my high-school English teacher Christopher Rice.

Communication and Persuasion in Business and Accounting

Communication and persuasion have integrated themselves into the world of business. As my field of choice is accounting, I will address the roles of communication and persuasion in the world of business generally, and then apply it to the field of accounting specifically.

Like the ever-ticking hands of an ornate grandfather clock, the world of business clicks on at an undeviating and unrelenting pace. Only the most competent and most exact companies survive the grueling grind of the free market. This medium of exchange, for innumerable vendors and consumers, demands specific type of communication -- a communication that one only understands by understanding the nature of business itself. This nature has two underlying fundamental principles that drive everything in the world of industry – efficiency and accuracy. Companies must produce every product and every service on time and to proper specification. Therefore, essentially all material communication works to meet those ends.

Some industries require more communication than others. For example, tech companies thrive on innovative thinking and break-through ideas. This need lends for a more open and free exchange of information. On the other hand, accounting firms have a more focused and restricted environment of communication. Information is exchanged almost exclusively on need-based circumstances. Accountants will use any type of communication necessary to obtain the requisite information as efficiently and accurately as possible. They will make phone calls at almost any time of day, they will send emails as soon as problems arise, and if necessary, they will physically visit other employees or customers in search of a solution. Accounting firms provide services to clients and charge those clients based on the amount of time it takes them to render those services. Therefore, the only way a firm can lower the cost of services it provides to the client, and consequently make the client happier, is to reduce the amount of time spent on each project. To that end, accountants will preference communication, over any medium that resolves their concerns as quickly as possible.

Along with communication, the ideas of efficiency and accuracy greatly influence how businesses will implement persuasion in their own lines of service. For example, a manufacturing company will put forth a herculean effort to ensure they pay the lowest price on any raw materials utilized in their manufacturing processes. Back in the world of accounting, persuasion most often occurs internally when making management decisions as opposed to external with the customer because more often than not rates are fixed and comparable to the competition. The main differentiation between one firm and another is their ability to produce a more quality product sooner (and thus cheaper). When management decisions are being made, a team of executives will gather to discuss the issue. They do not mince words and do not particularly care about how they come across to their peers. They all have one goal in mind, discus the facts and reach the best conclusion for the company. A high-performing management team will set aside egos, pride, and pleasantries, to optimize the efficiency of their persuasion as well as its accuracy.

The way accountants will tend to try to persuade one another reflects accurately on their personality. Most accountants have a straightforward, brash personality. They will make comments that seem rude and callous, when in truth offensive is rarely intended. Their observations tend to be unfiltered and unflattering. However, this means that a compliment from an accountant is more sincere, albeit rare, than most.

I have always wanted to be successful in the world of business. My dream is to own my own company. However, I have never wanted to be an accountant and frankly do not particularly enjoy this field of study. Instead, I always wanted to work with computers and about a year and a half ago I was debating on whether I should pursue an IS degree or an Accounting degree. I had a very influential and "moving" conversation with my dad that went something like this:

Me: “Dad, what do you think? What should I do?”

Dad: “You want to go into business right and manage a company?”

Me: “Yep”

Dad: “Then you would be stupid to not receive a degree from the nations top accounting program”

Me: “Ok, I’ll major in accounting”

And this is how life decisions are made in the Noren Home.

Communication and Persuasion in Psychology Professoring

Sorry you guys, another post about an educator. Hopefully I'll be able to make this unique so it will be an asset to be able to compare the educationally-based posts instead of mine just sounding repetitive.

I have always been interested in going into education. As I have gotten older I have changed from wanting to be a fifth grade teacher, to a high school AP teacher, to finally wanting to be a college professor, either at a junior college or at a university. (Notice I never wanted to be a middle school teacher... for a reason. Those teachers definitely have my respect because I would not be able to put up with middle-schoolers every day.) I am still technically trying to choose which subject to teach, but for the purpose of this assignment I chose psychology. Most of the information in this post comes from my own observations, things my psychology teacher has mentioned, and information I gathered in a career explorations class last semester.

So a professor has a slightly different job than a teacher because they deal with adults instead of children or teenagers. This means they relate to their students on a different level. When teachers get respect from their students it is often because they are older and in the authoritative position. As the students get older they tend to respect their teachers less and less because they start to think of themselves as being intelligent. This perception is usually crushed freshman year of college when students realize they do not know as much as they thought they do. Professors are respected because they are knowledgeable in a field the students are usually interested in and because the students actually want to be in school. A professor just has to be fair and students will usually respect them. Professors also usually work with a different class size than a normal teacher; either much larger or much smaller. The size of the class will affect how a professor addresses his students and whether he/she will often work with students one-on-one.

Psychology adds a different twist because some of its concepts are theoretical. A psychology professor has a couple of options for what they could persuade their students; and the decision between them is often subconscious. The professor can either persuade the students that his/her option toward the theoretical side is accurate or he/she can try to be as impartial as possible and let the students decide for themselves. Most of the rhetoric a psychology professor does would fall under the epideictic and legislative forms of oratory since a professor is either exposing students to new information or defending why scientists have come to the conclusions they have about certain things. 

Professors are also unique in that they also have to communicate with the intellectual world through research, discussions, and publishing. Researching and publishing, since they are written down, add an aspect of persuasion that teachers do not have to experience. The audience also changes since a published work is addressed to people who are just as competent in the field as the professor is. In some ways that makes it easier, the professor doesn't have to rely on definitional rhetoric and can instead focus on interpretation. However, defending an interpretation in the intellectual world can be difficult in and of itself. Especially for a psychology professor who has slightly different views than other psychologist; such as a Mormon who believes in altruism. (Religion and self-sacrificing natures do not mix well with popular psychology.)

Feedback and research studies are important to psychology professors in both of the above sides to their jobs. As an educator, a professor should try to improve his/her teaching methods by listening to both what the students and the grades say. If many university students complain about a single professor then that professor is usually doing something to warrant such wide-spread dissatisfaction. If grades are too low or too high then either the professor's grading or the teaching style needs to improve. Among the intellectual community professors have to pay attention to how they are perceived by their peers to make sure they are still seen in a respected light because a discredited psychology professor will have a hard time keeping his/her job.

Communication and Persuasion in Elementary Education

Take a moment and remember the times when you would get a break from school to play on the playground, when you could sit on the carpet in a circle with your classmates, and when you could bring your animals in for show and tell.  This was the beginning of your educational process.  This is where you learned to read, write, and analyze – skills that you are using currently while reading this blogpost.  This is elementary education. 

An elementary teacher has the privilege to communicate on many levels.  One is given instructions and guidelines from political leaders and administrators, must communicate the needs of individual students, discuss the best ways to teach the necessary curriculum, help children to understand basic concepts and assist parents in the teaching of their children.  Believe it or not persuasion has everything to do with teaching.  Most communication is done face to face but emails can be passed on and phone calls to parents are common.

A teacher must be able to analyze his/her audience and adapt to effectively communicate.  When speaking in the community or with administrators the needs of the children should be the focus and how to improve on what is already being done in the classroom.  Colloquially language should be avoided.  When communicating with a child the teacher must take great care in teaching in a way that is comprehensible to every child in the classroom.  The children’s interests and backgrounds should be taken into consideration to provide better understanding.  When communicating with parents the teacher must show love for their child and his/her specific needs.  One must show sincere concern for each child and his/her home life. 

Most communication in the field of education is deliberative.  Usually there is a goal of changing something in education and promoting action.  This is seen in community forums with the politics of education, in teams of teachers for the best way to teach and even in parent-teacher conferences to encourage the progress of the student.  Teachers want to encourage children to progress, want to change how the community views education and want to inspire parents to help their children better learn. 

I found out most of this information by talking with those who are currently in the education field and teaching.  I first became interested in teaching when I was in Elementary School and saw the difference that an effective teacher had in my own life.  I want to have the same effect on my future students and help them to see their potential.

Communication and Persuasion in the Actuarial Field

For those who have never heard of an actuary before: actuaries calculate and minimize the financial consequences of risk, using mathematics, statistics, finance, economics, and other areas dealing with risk management. Most actuaries work for insurance companies or large consulting firms. My interest in the actuarial field resides mostly in the consulting side of the industry, in which communication and persuasion skills are not just valuable but absolutely necessary in becoming a successful consulting actuary.

Consulting actuaries’ most common circumstance for communication will be with clients. Many of these interactions will be through email, phone, or even video calls for the lower level associate actuaries. For the partners or fellowship actuaries, a lot of travel and actual face to face contact with clients is necessary. These face to face interactions is where the persuasion takes place. It is here that the client really needs to feel like they can trust the firm that is analyzing their risk. It is the actuary’s job to persuade them that their company needs their risk minimized by the actuary’s specific consulting firm and why they aren't better off going to another actuarial consulting firm. This interaction between the head actuaries and the clients is at the heart of the business of consulting actuarial work. It is also important that not only skills of persuasion can be applied in these situations, but that clear communication, with respect to the clients understanding of analytical terms, is achieved. Without strong communication and persuasion skills it is harder to accomplish the goals of these personal interactions.

The actuarial field is very unique, especially the consulting side. It requires advanced analytical and interpersonal skills. Communication is mostly deliberative, but judicial and epideictic also play a role in actuarial profession. Those who can master both the required analytical skills, and these genres of communication can become very successful actuaries.

I became interested in becoming an actuary during my first semester of college after my LDS mission. I learned about what they did during a basic accounting class and it seemed to fit what I was looking for at the time. During my mission I saw the power of communication and business. This gave me a desire to find a career where I could combine my mathematical skills, with my growing communication and interpersonal skills. The actuarial field was a perfect fit!

The information I have shared today came from interacting with professionals in the industry, and others in information sessions and internship interviews for actuarial positions. This information is clearly valuable, and only increases my desire to continue pursuing this career path.