Lesson 11 — Activity 1: Communicating with a Purpose
Completion requirements
Lesson 11 — Activity 1:
Communicating with a Purpose
Have you ever listened to a person talking, and when the person finished, you thought to yourself, "What was that all about"? Or maybe you have listened to a lecture or watched part of a TV program and come away with the same question. If that sounds familiar, you know what happens when the purpose of communication is not clear.
Courtesy of Getty
What does it mean to communicate with a purpose? Suppose you have been working on an art project — a sculpture that has taken you hours to complete — and your little brother or sister knocks it over. No doubt you would be unhappy, but you would
react differently to your sibling if you knew he or she ruined you artwork intentionally than if it was an accident. Communicating with a purpose is like being a little brother or sister with a plan to accomplish a goal: in the case of intentionally
ruining your sculpture, maybe the plan was to get revenge for all the times you teased him or her!
Communicating with a clear purpose in mind is very important. If you know why you are listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, or representing, you will be focused on accomplishing your goal of communicating that particular message. If you are not sure of your purpose, then quite likely your audience will have a difficulty understanding your message.
Communicating with a clear purpose in mind is very important. If you know why you are listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, or representing, you will be focused on accomplishing your goal of communicating that particular message. If you are not sure of your purpose, then quite likely your audience will have a difficulty understanding your message.
Look at the diagram below. These are some of the ways that we communicate for specific purposes.
Courtesy of ADLC
Click here to read more about some of the ways we communicate for specific purposes along with some strategies
to keep in mind to make sure you are getting your purpose across!
There are many other different purposes for communicating ideas every day. If you are aware of your purpose, you will be more successful in communicating your message clearly.