Oh yes I am not leaving you in peace…I have come back again with a new Aroma, this time it is about Structures in Language.
Please don’t start chanting Grammar as soon as I say structure.
Yes I agree Grammar also provides structure, but grammar is not the be all and end all of everything to do with structure in language.
Let me add here very seriously that Grammar is important , but we already know many things about it.
In today’s Aroma let us talk about some points we may be knowing, but have always or mostly overlooked.
#1. Structure of Thought
# 2. Structure of Communication
#3. Structure of Delivery
The structure of thought or idea simply means that when we think of a topic it should be further divided into sub topics or points that we would want to write or speak about that topic.
Unless we have the clarity of thought as to what we want to talk about ,it cannot be translated in to Structure or Clarity in Communication. The Clarity in Communication means choosing the right word and the right sentences to convey our ideas. It is here that vocabulary and grammar play an important role.
Yet again I would like to caution you that unless your ideas or thoughts are clear in your mind you will not achieve the clarity of communication.
Once the 1st two are achieved we can move toward the Structure of Delivery which can be oral, written or both with a combination of body language and pronunciation thrown in for good measure. While delivering your thoughts the key point to be noted is your audience. Whom you are speaking to or addressing.Whom you are writing for.
If you analyse the great speakers and writers of the world you will realize that they keep their audience engaged. So whether you are preparing for an Interview, a Group Discussion, Essay writing or any other form of Communication you have to keep your listeners/ readers interested and you will have to keep on improving your speech and writing to suit the needs of your audience and your own goals.
Let us now divide the kind of topics you might have to Speak/ Write about :
1.GENERIC OR UNIVERSAL TOPICS.
SPECIFIC OR ISSUE RELATED TOPICS.
ABSTRACT TOPICS.
COMPARATIVE OR ARGUMENTATIVE TOPICS.
While approaching each of the above mentioned topics there is a need to gain expertise in two kinds of thinking processes :
Lateral thinking.
Structured thinking.
Which would further create the need to analyse the given topic both in depth and in diversity .
Lateral thinking involves thinking about all possible aspects of the topic. In other words it could also mean what possible things could be included in the topic. This kind of approach increases the diversity in the topic and analyses all possible sub- topics or nuances that could be framed into a broad general topic. Most of the abstract topics involve a lot of lateral thinking as the correct approach to write about such topics. Topics like ‘The Colour RED’ can be an example of a topic that would be classified as an abstract topic and that which involves lateral thinking.
Structured thinking involves thinking about the depths of a particular topic. By depths I imply going into minute detailed analysis of an issue. This would include breaking down the main topic into smaller parts step by step just like unraveling a puzzle. At any point if you lose track of the topic or the aspect you are delving into you might get lost in the maze and make a mess of the whole structure.
Thus this needs to be carefully broken down into steps following a clear structure which has to be pre- defined and then the whole topic is analysed subsequently.
Analytical topics and specific topics like ‘Euthanasia should be made legal’ generally fall under the domain of this kind of approach while writing.
Having shared the above mentioned ideas with you, I would like to remind you that do not try to memorise or learn by rote what you want to speak or write.
Make your points about the ideas you want to communicate and the structure has to be an impromptu construction at that moment.
One last thing or Guru Mantra that I will share with you is a well known thing that – ‘Practice Makes A Person Perfect’!!!!
Please practice what I have shared with you here and you will see that many of you have become great orators and skillfulwriters !!!!
So lets start STRUCTURING our Ideas , Sentences and Communication…what will emerge is an Amazing Communication Ability!!!!
All the Best !!
Happy Structuring …and Great Communicating !!!!
Always by your side,
Meenakshi