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The term “experts industry” was coined by Brendon Burchard in his book, The Millionaire Messenger. Brendon is one of the towering figures in the experts industry. His Millionaire Messenger was #1 on Amazon’s best-seller list for 40 weeks and catapulted the author to the top of the pile in the industry.Brendon went on to launch the now defunct Experts Industry Association and the run-away successful “The Expert Academy” and the “High Performance Academy.”, becoming an instant sensation. Oprah describes him as “One of the most successful online trainers in history.”But how did the self-help industry get started? The terms experts industry, self-help, self help, personal development, personal improvement, personal growth, self-improvement, and information marketing are often used today interchangeably.The industry is increasingly referred to as the experts industry in recent times because, according to Brendon Burchard, “It’s where experts operate.”The term self-help (also used without hyphen) was the term first used to describe the industry and was coined by Samuel Smiles, a Scottish Doctor, in 1859. However, the term (self-help) is now viewed as derogatory because of the assortment of snake oil salesmen or charlatans that prowl about, online and offline, seeking who to unleash their fake wares and cures.Sacramentochiropractic.com, points out that the origins of self help date back to the book “The Constitution of Man,” written by a Victorian phrenologist, George Combe, in 1828. It was followed, according to them, by Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Compensation” in 1841.Quoting market research.com, Iulia-Cristina Uta shared the information that “the self-improvement market was worth $9.9 billion in 2016 and is estimated to grow to $13.2 billion by 2022, with 5.6% average yearly gains.” That’s a total growth rate of 33.33% meaning there is room for any determined soul to jump in.I her article in brandminds.ro and quoting Niels Eek, a psychologist, Iulia-Cristina Uta threw a sharp light on what the industry is all about. She asserted, “Self-improvement is about consciously identifying and developing one or more facets of your life. From the perspective of an entrepreneur, self-improvement will often entail some sort of mental training but can mean anything from practicing stress management to valuable goal-setting. Professionals are often keen to learn things like time-management techniques (for better prioritizing tasks) and increasing productivity without compromising mental wellbeing.”The self-improvement market is wide and encompasses a large variety of products and services, ranging from books, to e-books, online courses, coaching programs, webinars, “academies”, “universities”, “masterminds”, master-classes, conferences, and mobile apps according to brandminds.ro.Taking the digital angle, Hazel Davi, a guest blogger at virgin.com quoted various sources and research findings as pointing to the fact that compared to other age groups, millennials are the most driven to engage in self-development.Writing under the title, “What does self-improvement look like in the digital age?”, she asserted, “Millennials love self-improvement; whether it’s learning how to be an inspirational leader or change-maker, coding for beginners or leaning In – they seemingly can’t get enough of it.”Since its creation in 1859, the industry has become unstoppable with thousands of “gurus” peddling their wares to whoever cares to read, listen, view, try, and buy. When asked whether he was a “guru”, Peter Drucker had said, “The term charlatan was too difficult to pronounce so someone invented the word guru.”In that regard marketresearch.com has this to say, “Consumers are realizing that there are many so-called “experts” now peddling a variety of online “masterminds”, “academies”, “universities” and coaching services. Too many, in fact. As a result, gurus are trying to figure out how to cut through the clutter while consumers are trying to identify legitimate, competent experts.”The US is unique in that it’s the only country in the world I know of where a full month is set aside for self-help. According to sacramentochiropractic.com, September is National Self Improvement Month in the US. According to the blog, “It’s a time to reflect upon your life, set new goals and take strides to make personal changes in order to achieve the life you truly wish.” Any wonder the US is the global center of gravity for self-help?Any wonder the biggest names in the industry in the English speaking world are all Americans? The following 20 living and long gone legends readily come to mind, not in any particular order: Napoleon Hill, Jay Abraham, W. Clement Stone, Jack Canfield,
Dale Carnegie, Mark Victor Hanson, Jim Rohn, Tony Robbins, Charlie “Tremendous” Jones, Marcia Weider, Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, Joe Polish, Deepak Chopra, Gary Vaynerchuk, Zig Ziglar, Tim Ferriss, Les Brown, Peter Diamandis, Brian Tracy, Brendon Burchard.In the English speaking world, no two people have made bigger impact in the self-improvement industry than Sir Richard Branson and Oprah Winfrey. But they belong to a special class of their own, the billionaire’s class.Branson’s business empire spans the globe and he always finds time to motivate the new generation. His book, How I Lost My Virginity, is an evergreen classic on motivation.Oprah is not far left behind. Her OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) and The Oprah Winfrey Show attract millions worldwide. Get your book onto the Oprah Book Club and you’re made for life. Such is the magnate of the Oprah brand.According to webwire.com, the self-help industry was worth $11 billion in the US in 2019. Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry is growing even bigger in 2020 as the explosive growth for the services of online webinar companies such as ZOOM, Webinar Jam, and Microsoft Teams illustrate. The future of the industry has never been brighter.The dollar-worth of the various segments of the self-help industry in 2019, according to marketresearch.com, as quoted in brandminds.ro, was as follows:
• Self-help audio books – $769 million
• Self-improvement books – $800 million
• Self-improvement apps – $27 million
• Personal coaching services – $1 billion in the US
• Motivational speakers – $1 billion per year combinedTo make a killing in the self-help industry and join the long list of millionaires, you need to pick a niche and pitch your tent. If you know your onions and choose the right strategies, you can make a killing within a year or two.The internet has put self-help within the reach of anyone with something of value to over. Indeed with a laptop, internet connection, and a message or a product the market is hungry for, you can create impact with blistering speed and dance all the way to the bank.The key to success is identifying a lucrative niche that matches your expertise. Here are the top nine niches according to marketresearch.com:
1. Infomercials
2. Audio books
3. Self-improvement Books
4. Self-improvement apps
5. Personal Coaching
6. Motivational Speakers
7. Weight Loss Programs
8. Public Seminars
9. Holistic Institutes & Training CompaniesI first stumbled on the self help industry some 30 years back. Brian Tracy’s motivational tapes wetted my appetite. At about the same time, I stumbled on Jay Abraham’s “12 Pillars of Business Success”. That led me to “Success Magazine”, and later “Excellence Magazine”. It was not long before I stumbled on Tony Robbins’ best-selling books “Unlimited Power”, and “Awaken The Giant Within”. I’ve never looked back.While the industry as we know it today took off “officially” in 1859 with the publication of Samuel Smiles book, Self Help, which sold 250,000 copies, motivating people, with oratory, dates back to antiquity.As Adlai Stevenson once alluded, “When Cicero turned to the crowds in ancient Rome, people said, ‘great speech’. When Demosthenes spoke to the crowds in ancient Greece and people turned to each other, they said: ‘Let’s march.’”So self-help dates back at least 2400 years. However, it really took off with gusto with the advent of newspapers, radio, television, and now, the internet. There is no better time than now to jump into the experts industry and make a fortune for yourself. With a free 90-minute webinar, you could make $10,000 before the webinar is over. Is that not worth giving it a try?

Giving effective constructive feedback does not have to be difficult if you keep in mind the following ABCs:#1: Effective constructive feedback is appropriate in time and in place.It is important to choose an appropriate time and an appropriate location to give constructive feedback. Feedback should be given timely, and at an appropriate time. Timely constructive feedback occurs within a few days of the observed behavior. This way, the incident will still be fresh in your mind and in the mind of the person with whom you will be speaking. If you wait much longer than a few days, there is a good chance that the person will have forgotten about the behavior. Also, the further removed you are from the date of the incident, the more inclined you will be to lessen the effect of the incident, i.e. “What Bob did wasn’t really that bad. I was probably just overreacting to the situation.” The worst thing you can do as a supervisor is to not address the issue until the employee’s annual performance review. Not only is this unfair to the blindsided employee, it also casts you in a bad light as your supervisors will wonder why you neglected to address the issue when it first arose.Next, you’ll need to arrange an appropriate time to discuss the issue. Find time in your schedule to allow both you and the other person sufficient time to hold a productive conversation. Five minutes here or there or the fifteen minutes between meetings will not be enough time to sit down and talk. You don’t want the other person to feel rushed or to feel that there is no time for him or her to respond to what’s been said. We’ll discuss a bit later the importance of follow-up.Location, location, location. When giving constructive feedback, location is just as important a consideration as when purchasing real estate. Constructive feedback should be given in private.Use your office. If you work in an open cubicle setting, ask to use someone’s office or use an empty conference room or meeting space. The idea is to provide a private and confidential environment for your conversation. Additionally, as a general rule, it is not appropriate to give constructive feedback in front of others. Give your employees and co-workers the respect they deserve by discussing work performance issues in a one-on-one conversation. No one likes to be thrown under the proverbial bus in front of his or her colleagues. Not only is this unprofessional, it embarrasses the employee and makes those co-workers who are present uncomfortable.#2: Effective constructive feedback focuses on the behavior, not the person.We all have our own personality flaws, quirks, and idiosyncrasies. Keep in mind when giving your constructive feedback that no one is perfect, including you. Try to refrain from focusing on the person’s shortcomings. Remember we all have them. Instead, focus on the behavior in question. When you focus on the person’s behavior and how it is affecting the workplace as a whole, he or she is less likely to get defensive and will be more likely to be receptive to your message. For instance, suppose one of the members on your team consistently misses deadlines and, as a consequence, causes other members of the team to fall behind in their schedules and meeting their commitments. Your constructive feedback should focus not upon this person’s utter lack of effective time management skills. Rather, your feedback should focus upon how on x occasion, the person’s failure to complete his or her tasks by the prescribed deadline negatively impacted the rest of the team in a, b, and c ways.#3: Effective constructive feedback is contextual.Have you ever gotten into an argument with your significant other over what you thought was one issue only to have the argument disintegrate into a shouting match rehashing issues you thought were resolved months ago? Or, perhaps the person brought up something that happened over a year ago that you are now hearing for the first time. You thought to yourself, “Now why didn’t he tell me that my leaving the cap off the toothpaste bothered him a long time ago???” Let’s switch gears to see how this same dynamic plays out in the workplace. You are the supervisor of the customer service department. You’ve asked John to come and speak with you about complaints you’ve recently received about his customer service. Your constructive feedback should be contextual in that it addresses the specific issue before you, namely concerns about the quality of service John is giving to his customers. Now would not be an appropriate time to discuss how John was 45 minutes late to the last department meeting or how he doesn’t contribute to the weekly donut kitty yet helps himself to two glazed Krispy Kremes every Friday morning. Going back to the first quality of effective constructive feedback, that it be appropriate in time, alleviates any contextual problem. When you address and resolve issues in a timely manner (within a reasonable time after the behavior is observed), there is no need to dredge up past wrongdoings because, presumably, they have already been addressed and resolved.#4: Effective constructive feedback is descriptive.One of your goals in giving constructive feedback is to identify an area in your colleague or employee’s work performance that could use improvement. Therefore, general comments about working harder, being a better team player, or other euphemistic clichés are not particularly helpful. After all, how can I, as an employee, begin to address and correct an issue if I am not clear which behavior I am engaging in is unsatisfactory? When giving constructive feedback, endeavor to be very specific. Compare and contrast the following examples.Manager:Paul, I need you to start being a better team player.Paul:I am not sure what you mean. I contributed over 120 hours to the Manheim project this month and worked with Paula, Christine, and Scott to make sure those proposals went out to the client on time. I worked late every night last week and came in on the weekend to help Christine finish the reports for the Donaldson project. How am I not being a good team player?versusManager:Hello Paul. Thanks for your work on the Manheim project. I appreciate you sacrificing your weekends to get those proposals out to the client on time. I wanted to talk with you today, however, because I have some concerns about your tardiness. I noticed that you arrived late yesterday and again today. I am concerned because you missed some very valuable information during the first part of this morning’s department meeting. The rest of the team and I really value your input and would have welcomed your perspective on the Donaldson project.Paul:Yes, I’ve been meaning to speak with you about my schedule for this week. My wife is six months pregnant and I’ve had to take her to her prenatal checkups and sonogram appointments. I meant to tell you last week, but I got so preoccupied with the Manheim project that it completely slipped my mind.#5: Effective constructive feedback uses examples.Along with being descriptive in giving constructive feedback, it is also a good idea to give examples of the person’s behavior that is at issue. For instance, let’s suppose you have a co-worker who routinely monopolizes the discussion during staff meetings. In your discussion with your co-worker, you would want to point to a specific instance where he or she was monopolizing the discussion and then tie that in to how that negatively impacted the others in the group. For any piece of constructive feedback that you give, you need to be able to give concrete examples of the person’s behavior.#6: Effective constructive feedback invites follow-up from the recipient.After you have given constructive feedback, you need to allow the other person to speak and be willing to actively listen to his/her viewpoint. Good communication is always a two-way street. There should be a free exchange of ideas and a reciprocal give-and-take of information. Demonstrate by your verbal and nonverbal communication that you are open to listening to the other person’s response. If you hastily call someone into your office, spout off a laundry list of their “bad” behaviors, and hurriedly dismiss him or her without affording an opportunity to respond to what you have said, what exactly have you accomplished? You’ve learned nothing about why the person engaged in the behavior at issue.#7: Effective constructive feedback is goal-oriented.Constructive feedback not only identifies an area of concern, it also proposes solutions that can be implemented to address that area of concern. After all, it wouldn’t make any sense to identify an area for improvement and stop there. For instance, if the basis of your feedback was the other person’s tardiness to staff meetings, the two of you may want to set a goal of arriving ten minutes early to future meetings. This, of course, is a simplistic example, but you get the point. After your initial meeting, follow-up with the person at a mutually agreed upon time to discuss his or her progress toward meeting the goal.#8: Effective constructive feedback is helpful.The recipient of your constructive feedback needs to know how to improve his or her work performance. Be prepared to offer practical advice and suggestions as to how the recipient can do just that. You might recommend that your employee take part in an upcoming training session on customer service. Or, you may suggest that he or she take a technical writing class at the local community college and arrange for your company to reimburse the employee for the cost of the course. You get the idea. Whatever the area of concern may be, don’t simply stop at identifying it; offer practical and easy to implement solutions to address it.#9: Effective constructive feedback is given with integrity.Put yourself in the shoes of the person sitting on the other side of your desk. If the roles were reversed, how would you like to be treated? Observe the “golden rule” policy. While it is important to be honest in your constructive feedback, that doesn’t diminish the importance of showing tact and being respectful. For a quick litmus test to decide whether to say something, ask yourself if you’d either say it directly to your mother or in the presence of your grandmother.#10: Effective constructive feedback is just.Please be fair. Policies should be enforced equally across the board. Your expectations for excellence ought be the same for everyone, regardless of your personal feelings about them. Address individual issues on that basis. If you notice an issue common to many people in the department, address these globally during a staff meeting or in a memo.Being mindful of these attributes should assist you in giving constructive feedback more effectively. Remember… feedback on work performance should lead to solutions, not to the creation of more problems. Happy working!Copyright © 2010 MARIGOLD CONSULTING. All rights reserved.

Pathfinders for Independent Living, Inc., a nonprofit organization, was founded after the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.) Pathfinders provides information and assistance to elderly and disabled individuals and their caregivers on how to live as independently as possible. Its core value is to Promote Self-Reliance. The culture within Pathfinders is one of friendly support. Pathfinders’ IT leadership proposed a project to design and build a network infrastructure that would provide security for sensitive data, data storage, Internet access, email access, updated applications and hardware, and user training. Changing the environment would affect the organizational structure and culture of Pathfinders. This paper discusses the organizational changes that occurred due a change in technology.Technology TransferTechnology transfer describes activities that have the aim of establishing measurable process improvement through the adoption of new practices. Assistive technology reduces the gap experienced by disabled and elderly individuals in accomplishing daily activities. Some of these technologies are text telephones, Braille computer monitors, infrared pointing devices, artificial limbs, and assistive software. Introducing and encouraging the use of these technologies and many others to Pathfinders’ consumers, is a responsibility of the independent living specialists.The independent living specialists assist the consumers in identifying the assistive technologies needed, applying for funding to purchase the technologies, and educating the public on the various technologies available. However to provide its services to its consumers, Pathfinders had to adapt to current information technologies.A Strategy for Technology TransferRecognizing the relationship between technology transfer and process improvement is fundamental to Pathfinders’ approach to change. Technology cannot be changed without some impact on the process or personnel that use the technology, be it an increase in productivity, a reduction in cost, or a fundamental change in method. A number of key issues had to be addressed for the technology to be successfully transferred. These are divided into several categories; technology issues, process changes, and changes in culture.Technology IssuesPathfinders would join the Information Age by installing, new computers, file servers, network printers, a local area network (LAN), and Internet access. The installation process required preparing the PCs before delivering them to Pathfinders, then a visit to the office site to build the network and deploy the equipment. The PCs were standardized on Microsoft applications. Following the installation of the network, etc., training on the use of the software was provided. With the installation of the infrastructure complete, each independent living specialist and the executive director had a personal computer, email, and Internet access.Designing and building a training center provided the opportunity for anyone to come in and learn more about computers and office application software. Pathfinders provided some basic training courses. Additionally, computer books were available for use with the computers to learn how to use the programs. Access to the Internet was provided. Funding was allocated through federal funds to support the changes in technology.Process ChangesBefore the technology changes, there were only two stand-alone PCs available for use by the staff, these PCs were very old, running DOS applications. Employees were forced to share the PCs or use typewriters to complete correspondence. Data was maintained on floppy disks and hardcopy. Access to the Internet for research was accomplished by going to the local library, which consumed valuable resources of time and personnel. Deploying the new infrastructure significantly changed the way the employees worked. The changes in infrastructure gave real-time access to the Internet, consumer data, and improved data security.Changes in CulturePrior to the deployment of technology, the employees were equal in their knowledge of using the available tools at Pathfinders. With the delivery of their network, a fundamental change occurred within the employee dynamics. An atmosphere of resentment developed due to an imbalance of knowledge and workload. Some of the employees went out of their way to grasp the advancement in technology thereby, improving themselves and their work processes. They pursued the educational opportunities offered to them by Pathfinders and enhanced their knowledge of computer applications. Productivity for these individuals increased, causing an increase in satisfaction by Pathfinders’ consumers.Conversely, there was a minority of employees, who took a stance in not excepting these changes. These individuals spent much of their time complaining that they could not do the work using the tools provided, or repeatedly requested help from the employees that understood the technology. Defense mechanisms were employed to justify their reactions to the new technology. These employees viewed the technology change as a threat and wanted nothing to do with improving their computing skills or their work environment. However, as training and practice in using the improvements to the technology progressed, acceptance began to increase and resistance began to decrease. Change is difficult in all organizations but to stay in business Pathfinders was forced to change with the times.Pathfinders operations depend heavily on federal grant money. Each year Pathfinders must forecast how that money will be spent and report that the goals of the previous year have been met. The Federal reporting system began as a hardcopy report that evolved to an online reporting system. Without the changes in technology, Pathfinders would find it difficult to apply for Federal grant money or report its disbursement.ConclusionCareful consideration was employed to determine if a change in IT infrastructure was warranted within the Pathfinders organization. Potential obstacles were identified and anticipated. One of those obstacles was the affect that a change in technology would have on the organizational culture of Pathfinders verses the improvement in customer service. Pathfinders identified that resistance to change and fear played a role in the effectiveness of the change. Additionally, Pathfinders identified that as the staff moved along the learning curve, acceptance of the technology increased and fear of the technology decreased.

The process by which one person or a group of persons receive an increment of information which has some value for either sender or receiver either by way of knowledge addition or entertainment or acquisition of energy to act or persuasion to buy or act as required by the sender is the process of communication.The Process of CommunicationThe critical part of communication is the information, which is being transferred. Information may be in any form- ranging from hand signals to public speech, from email to detailed contract, from one word greeting to a lengthy letter, from a message on a notice board of a school to a full page advertisement on a daily, from a hint with raised eyebrows to five-minute hug, from a memo from a superior or subordinate to a HR manual and so on. For the transfer of the information or the message, certain vehicle or medium is employed, which loads itself with it and passes it on to the intended receivers. Paper, phone, one-to-one meeting, public meeting, conversation, hoarding, newspaper, words written or spoken, body gestures, smile, books etc are the vehicles or media. The way the vehicles take and transport the information in such a way that the receiver understands it as it should be is the communication process. The medium or the sender or the receiver characteristically distorts the information, which in one way or other contributes fully or partly to the failure of the communication in accomplishing the purpose intended.Two important stages of communication are a) encoding and b) decoding. The process involved in these two stages is a potential source of communication failure. Encoding is translation or conversion of the idea or intention or message into words or signals so that receiver would reconvert the same as intended by the sender. Decoding is what the receiver does to reconvert the received words or signals into the idea or intention or message as originally intended by the sender. The problems associated with encoding or decoding are due to the fact that words or signals have multiple meanings and thus there is a possibility of either use of wrong words or wrong signals or understanding them in a way different from what is originally intended.Understanding of the process of communication would facilitate transactions. Else, the there would be no action at all or delayed action if at all there is some action or wrong action or relationships turning bad and so on. For instance, a boss tells his secretary that a meeting with contractors is urgent. But he finds to his surprise that a meeting has been convened quickly the next day morning, but it clashed with another program, which the secretary is not aware. The boss, in this case, while being busy with office routine overlooked the process involved in passing messages and the attendant chances of communication going wrong in many of the stages. He failed to specify the time. But the secretary understood it as next day morning. This illustrates how the process involved in encoding and decoding goes wrong and thus it springs surprises.All the elements involved in communication which constitute the communication process are a) sender b) receiver c) message c) encoding d) decoding e) channel f) noise g) feedback.The following brief discussion explains the process of communication.Sender: The point from where the message originated, here the boss, is the sender. The action intended to happen out of this message is convening of a meeting urgently, but definitely not the next day morning.Message: Message is the essential content of communication or information intended to be passed. The request for convening of meeting is the message.Receiver: The person who has to take delivery of message is the receiver. Here the secretary is the receiver whose job is to understand exactly and act on it as intended by the sender.Encoding: The idea of convening a meeting, in this instance, has been converted into words, probably with facial expressions signaling the urgency of meeting. Such process of converting an idea is words or expressions is encoding.Channel: The encoded message needs a vehicle or a medium to be transported from sender to receiver. The vehicle may be a paper or a telephone or Internet or meeting or conversation. In the present example, oral communication made by the boss to secretary is the channel.Decoding: The process of understanding by receiver of the message given by the sender. In this example, the secretary while decoding understood the message given by the sender.Noise: Noise is the causative factor for the message being miscommunicated or misunderstood due to the problem either in the medium chosen or encoding or decoding or in some stages of the process. In this instance, the message was not properly constructed and hence the secretary did not understand it as intended by the sender. The noise in communication is analogous to the external noise generated by cable or transmission equipment of land line telecommunication while the subscribers talk on land line phones and hence they don’t listen or understand the words exchanged.Feedback: The sender would be communicating back to the sender his or her evaluation or how he or she understood about each part of the message or word before the sender goes further in acting on the message. Here in the present example the secretary did not give her feedback about what she understood and thus the intended message failed.While what was described in the preceding paragraphs is a general understanding of the concept of communication process, a brief study of various theories propounded till date would facilitate a fairly in-depth understanding of the communication process. The same has been attempted in the following paragraphs.Aristotle Theory of One Way Communication: Aristotle proposed that communication has three components- sender, receiver and message. It is a simple and basic model, which, nevertheless, laid base for the rest of the theories to come up. Aristotle, at such an early period of evolution of social science, posited that communication is a one way process. It connotes that sender is responsible for good persuasive communication to happen. Neither the concept of noise nor the necessity of feedback in communication crossed his mind.Lasswell Model of Communication: Lasswell extended the communication theory of Aristotle to include another element, channel. Three important elements or components in this theory are a) Sender b) Message c) Channel. His theory posits that it is the responsibility of the sender to see that receiver understands the message, by choosing a proper channel. It is also a one-way direction of communication as that of Aristotle.Shannon-Weaver Model: CE Shannon and W Weaver, the engineers’ duo, proposed this theory in 1949. This theory was based on a mechanistic view of communication. This is the first theory, which recognizes that the message received is not the same as the message sent. This distortion is due to the noise present in the system.They introduced feedback as a corrective measure for noise. But, they did not integrate the feedback into the model. They proposed that feedback would start another cycle of communication process. The theory essentially posits that real communication takes place only when the message received and message sent are one and the same without any difference, which may be true for an engineering model. But the communication that takes place between individuals, which mostly happens without any machines, cannot be as perfect as assumed in the theory, since the filters in the individuals operate while both listening and sending. Filters are the attitudes, perceptions, experiences and evaluations that operate much before the actual communication starts. The action that takes place as intended is the proof of success of communication.The elements in this model are a) Information source b) Encoding c) Channel d) Decoding e) Destination f) Noise g) Feedback.Schramm Model of Communication: Wilburn Schramm proposed this model in 1955, which was considered to be the best of all the theories since it is evolved and comprehensive. It was proposed in three stages with some improvement in each successive stage over the previous one. These stages are also referred to as three distinct models.In the first stage, it emphasized on encoding process and source like that of Aristotle without any recognition for noise. It too was a one-way direction of communication flow.In the second stage, the emphasis shifted to the shared domain of experience of sender and receiver. The sender has to take into consideration, according to this theory, the needs and abilities of the receiver, which he must be aware of due to shared experience, and thus the selects the right channel and at the same time encodes the message in the way that can be understood by the receiver. Here the communication process is understood to be a two-way flow.In the third stage, the feedback was thought to be an essential element of communication system. In this stage of Schramm’s theory, the communication process encompasses sender, receiver, good channel, proper encoding, proper decoding, and feedback. The flow which ends with feedback starts immediately again to make a circular process.The Inferential Model of Communication: Prof.Mathukutty Monippally proposes a new theory called ‘Inferential Model of Communication’ emphasizing on symbols displayed and the construction of meaning inadequately from such symbols. The model assumes that there is no adequate and proper way to send a message, and nevertheless we send message through some chosen symbols, which again are not properly understood.Prof. Mathukutty (2001) explains, ” The inferential model assumes that we cannot communicate, that we cannot communicate, that we cannot share our message with anyone, that we cannot it in the minds of and hearts of others. And yet we want to communicate. There is no code that can capture our message faithfully and then be cracked clean by others. So we resort to displaying symbols….This procedure is generally satisfactory. Of course, we can go wrong; and occasionally we go terribly wrong. But this is the only means available.” ( Mathukutty M Monippally, Business Communication Strategies,2001, New Delhi, Tata Mcgrawhill Publishing Company Limited, pp 6-9)An Overview of Some More Models of CommunicationAnother model of Katz -Lazarfeld is the one related to mass communication, which states that the sender has to encode the message and transmit the same through mass media to an opinion leader. The opinion leader in turn transmits the same to the target audience, the public. This is also constructed as a one-way direction of information flow.Another model, which has taken a different path, is that of Westley – Maclean. It emphasizes on interpersonal communication. In this, the carefully encoded message is sent to the receiver who in turn sends it to either the sender or other individual with some changes. The model lays stress on sender, receiver and feedback, which make this model a circular one.One more one- way model is that of Berlo, which recognizes perception as an important element of communication. According to this model, any discrepancy in the reception of message due to influence of perceptions of intermediaries would lead to miscommunication. The important building blocks of this model are the source, the receiver, the meaning intended and the process of sending and receiving the message.Watlaw- Beavin-Jackobson, proposed a model of two-way communication with emphasis on the behavior of participants and the relationships existing among them to achieve communication success.Rogers-Kincaid proposed that for the communication to be successful, the individuals should be connected through social networks and sharing of information.ConclusionUnderstanding communication process is very critical to the managers of the organization. They should understand that communication is rarely understood as it should be. The distortion of the message can happen at any of the stages in communication process-sender, receiver, encoding, decoding, channel, message and feedback.

One investment criterion important to many people, and perhaps to you, is: How easy are my investments to supervise? For example, does the investment require constant care, supervision, or expense, such as the complete or partial ownership of real estate property with its rental, repair, maintenance, taxation, and other management problems?Or does the investment require none of your time, such as your contributions to a pension fund? Some people feel confident and enjoy the time and effort that may go into managing their investments. Others have neither the skill, time, nor patience to bother with their investments. There are investments that satisfy both groups, depending on personal objectives.The best method to manage all investments is the Investment Portfolio Evaluation Grid. It is a great chart to help organize your present portfolio, even if your investments right now are some money in a savings account, or an IRA or pension plan.Start by creating 7 columns and input the following: Date, Cost, Present Market Value, % Total Portfolio Market, Annual Return, Yield, and % Return on Market.Next, input all your investments on the left in rows: Savings Accounts, U.S. Savings Bonds, Treasury Securities, Certificate of Deposit, Bonds-Tax-Free, Common Shares-Dividends, Preferred Shares, Blue-Chip Shares, Real Estate, Second Mortgages & Trust Deeds, IRA & Keogh Accounts, Pension Plans, Insurance Annuities, Growth Stocks, Undeveloped Real Estate, Precious Metals, Stock Options, Commodity Contracts, Commercial Paper, Other, and Total Portfolio.Determine the percentage of the market value of your portfolio as a whole. Divide the present market value of the individual investment by the total present market value of your portfolio. Determine the percentage of what it costs you to make an investment. This is easy to figure with interest bearing investments. A $1,000 10% bond you paid $1,000 for has a 10% yield. On stocks or real estate, estimate yield by dividing the amount of increase in value and/or dividend by the amount you paid. For example, if you paid $100 for a stock and received a $5 cash dividend, the yield would be 5%. Determine the percentage of the return on your portfolio as a whole. Divide the annual dollar return on all investments by the total present market value of your portfolio.For each investment you now have, fill in all the information you can in the columns to the right. The last three columns (Annual Return, Yield, and % Return on Market), tell how your investments have performed for you, as well as their relative value within your portfolio. If you do not have exact numbers for everything, do not worry. At this point you are just seeking an overview of what you have. A big picture will start to form that indicates how your money is allocated. You can also see what types of investment vehicles serve your objectives.If you are like many people who are just starting to invest, your grid is heavily weighted toward protection of principle. You may not even be aware of some of the listed investments. Before you get into the characteristics of different investments, you will benefit greatly from having a reference point with which to evaluate the various investment opportunities. Consider all the personal factors in your financial picture, including the other people affected by the decisions you will make.Forecast as much as possible, where your current and potential income sources will take you 5-20 years from now. What standard of living is important to you now and in the future? Will you need to provide for children? Do you wish to retire early? Where do you want to allocate investment and other disposable income? To a house in the hills? In world travel? To building a business?These and dozens of other personal questions should get some serious thought at this point. Do not be rigid. Expect your priorities and goals to change. But better a mutable plan for the future than none at all. Allow yourself to dream and get excited about the possibilities. Though it is difficult, even dangerous, to generalize about what investment objectives are most important to different groups, the following information will give you broad guidelines to consider, if you are:a) Single, with low to average working income, with a savings-oriented temperament, seek investments that produce income but that also provides some long-term capital growth.b) Single, with an average to high working income, and/or an aggressive temperament, seek investments with strong total return (the sum of the current yield and the capital-gain yield), concentrating on long-term, and high-growth vehicles.c) Married, with no dependents earning an average to high income growth-oriented but aggressive, look at safe income-producing investments, such as bonds and money-market mutual funds.d) Married, with dependents, a low to average income and a conservative temperament, seek secure investments with long-term growth in both capital and income, perhaps blue-chip stocks.e) An older person, with income from Social Security and some savings, and a goal of more income while preserving current capital, seek a conservative income fund that pays dividends and has appreciation value, or a money-market fund with a satisfactory yield.Take a look at your new chart and you will see Percentage of Portfolio typically allocated to investments goals. You can use this as a guideline when considering how to allocate your investment money. However, at a younger age, safety and capital gain has greater weight. In later years the need for income and safety of principle tends to increase.