Interpersonal Skills: Self-Awareness, Presentation & Group Dynamics

This report delves into interpersonal skills, focusing on self-awareness, self-presentation, and group dynamics. It includes personal success stories, an evaluation of skills through team role analysis using Belbin's theory, and a personal goal program emphasizing positive image planning and enhanced communication abilities. The report also explores the benefits of networking in various situations, such as job applications and knowledge sharing, and discusses different types of groups in group working, comparing main theories of work. Furthermore, it evaluates group work skills and provides a comparison between different leadership styles, highlighting the importance of adapting leadership approaches to different situations. Desklib offers a wealth of similar solved assignments and study resources for students.

Running Head: Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal Skills-Individual & Groups
Understanding awareness of Self and Self Presentation

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Table of Contents
Task 1 (800 Words)........................................................................................................................................ 2
Personal Success Stories............................................................................................................................... 2
Success Story 1............................................................................................................................................. 2
Success Story 2............................................................................................................................................. 2
Success Story 3............................................................................................................................................. 3
Evaluation of skills through completion of team role analysis.....................................................3
Personal Goal Programme............................................................................................................................ 3
Task 2 – 750 Words........................................................................................................................................ 4
Part B.................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Targets and Goals............................................................................................................................................. 4
 Professional excellence.................................................................................................................... 4
 Work Life Harmony........................................................................................................................... 4
 Leadership and Development Programme-............................................................................. 5
Explain situations where networking is beneficial to self and others........................................5
Applying for a job........................................................................................................................................ 5
Knowledge and wisdom............................................................................................................................ 5
Develop a good workplace environment........................................................................................... 6
Fast decision making.................................................................................................................................. 6
Task 3- 800 Words.......................................................................................................................................... 6
Different kinds of Groups in Group working and benefits..............................................................6

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Formal Group................................................................................................................................................ 6
Command Group.......................................................................................................................................... 6
Committees.................................................................................................................................................... 6
Informal Groups........................................................................................................................................... 7
Benefits of Group activity......................................................................................................................... 7
Comparing main theories of Work....................................................................................................... 7
Evaluate the following using the group work skills........................................................................... 8
Task 4- 750 Words.......................................................................................................................................... 9
Comparison between leadership styles.................................................................................................. 9
Style of Leadership................................................................................................................................... 10

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Task 1 (800 Words)
Personal Success Stories
Success Story 1
This is one of my favourite stories, truly inspiring and hugely successful. One of my
friends Evans who was working with Amazon few years back in the US, was asked to
move to India, as company wanted to expand its base in India, and Evans has proved his
mettle. Evans on reaching India found the place really incredible due to the uniqueness
of the place and people from so many ethnicities working under the same roof However,
Evans realized that he was taken as a threat by the existing people who were working at
Amazon India office. Being a US citizen they perceived him as being arrogant and full of
himself. Any change he wanted to bring in the organization was met with severe
resistance from the employees. He was unable to decode, as to what he has been doing
wrong to deserve this kind of treatment. Disappointed as he was, he gave thought to the
entire chain of events, and decided to act towards making things right.
He arranged for a party if one of the 5 star hotels in India, he asked everyone to come in
smart casuals. There, standing on the stage, he first congratulated the entire team for
their great works; he even called out at least a dozen of names and gave them some
gifts. He gave a speech on the vision of Amazon for the employees and India. He gave
them the assurance that the company recognizes the efforts of its workforce and is
grateful for their contribution. He empowered them by promising them that they would
be empowered and given fair share of opportunity to grow and contribute in the
success of the organization. These words resonated with the workforce and they
accepted Evans as their leader, no more resistance was there, and the place was filled
with positive synergies. Thus, Evans transformed a non-co-operative team to a cohort
which believed in the concept of shared goals.

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Success Story 2
I am hugely inspired by the story of Steve jobs, his ability to create a company out of
nothing, then getting thrown out of his own company, and then being requested to come
back to Apple, is no less than a great Hollywood blockbuster. Steve jobs in my opinion is
one such leader who transformed the way people use technology in the present day. He
was one of the first people to think of computer as a machine sitting at People’s home
and offices doing tasks which no one could have ever imagined. His vision, his knack of
spotting things before anyone and his presentation ability makes him a true marvel.
Success Story 3
Being a business graduate I am hugely inspired by how e-commerce companies have
created a wave of disruption in the present times. One such example is the story of Jeff
Bezos, Amazon. The man who was born in Mexico, graduated from Princeton University,
gave to the world, the gift of online shopping. The man was definitely not the first one,
but, he surely was the first person to push the envelope of e-commerce to such heights
that every other company, even Walmart started looking up to the innovation of
Amazon. The man who started off the business at the back of garage with a borrowing of
just 1.5 million dollar now stands tall with individual wealth of more than 100 billion.
This is truly a success story for millions of business graduates and entrepreneurs.
Evaluation of skills through completion of team role analysis
Belbin theory was extremely helpful for me when it came to evaluating my strength and
weakness as a team member. I could clearly define the team roles on the basis of
observed behaviour and interpersonal styles of my team members. I can see myself as a
shaper, as I was able to challenge people and push them to improve their performances.
I am a dynamic person with extroverted skills and enjoy stimulating people and finding
best approach to solve a particular problem. In my opinion I played the role of a
facilitator, influencer, motivator and shaper of my group.
Personal Goal Programme
Goals Positive image planning

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Increase my competency in solving
conflicts between the teams
I will get this by increasing my learning
appetite on how to handle and solve
conflicts.
Increase my communication abilities. I have decided to do so, by communicating
face to face and in groups with my team
members.
Be a better listener This can be done by listening to
understand and not to respond.
Build trust with the team members I will be able to manage this by engaging
my members in plethora of team building
activities. I would listen to them deeply
and make conscious efforts in building
stronger relationships with them.
Task 2 – 750 Words
Part B
Self-concept is a general term which is used to refer how someone thinks about them
evaluates and perceives them. It is the ability to be aware of oneself to have a concept of
oneself. Based on the concepts of self- learning I have set some targets for myself which
will help me in achieving my goals and excel in my personal and professional life.
Targets and Goals
 Professional excellence- One of my life’s goals is to work at Amazon in the
capacity of Digital manager. I would like to manage their social listening team
and ensure the success of the organization. This is in resonance with my skill
sets, my excellent communication skills, my learning towards the concepts of
digital marketing and my understanding of social media ecosystem. I am certain
that I would achieve excellent in my professional career.
 Work Life Harmony- I resonate strongly when Jeff Bezos in one of his recent
interviews said that work life balance in a deliberating concept, the focus should
be on achieving work life harmony. I would like to see myself doing that, I want
to ensure that I carry my positive energy from home at my work, and spread my
energy to create positive synergies at my work environment. Reciprocating the
same would help to create a peaceful and lovely environment even at home.

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Thus, work life harmony would result in creating a sphere of positive synergies,
not only around me, but also in my surroundings. This is one of the crucial goals
of my life.
 Leadership and Development Programme- As mentioned earlier, I am
a person with high aspiration, couple of years later after I step into corporate
world, I would like to get into senior management roles and create strategies for
my organization. In order to do so, I have to enrol myself in the leadership and
development program to understand the roles and responsibilities of senior
management team. This will not only help me in becoming a better leader but
would also give an impetus to my present skill set. Thus aiding me in reaching an
inch closer to my target of being in a senior management role and contribute
towards the productivity of the organization.
Explain situations where networking is beneficial to self and others
Networking can be understood of as a socio economic business activity by which
business people tend to meet and form business relationships, with the objective to
recognize, create and act upon the business opportunities to share information and seek
potential partners for business ventures. In addition to this, Networking is also called as
the “Net Worth” of an individual, the stronger ones network is, the more one can
leverage for the benefit of self and others. Some of the practical situations where
networking can be of great use are:
Applying for a job-Networking plays a very crucial role in the corporate world, it
helps in knowing people working in big organization at a very strategic roles.
Networking comes handy when somebody is hunting for a job, his networks can help
him land a good and decent job by connecting the person with decision making, thus
being a big source of self -help. Thus, networking is of big help not only for self, but also
helping other in finding the job. It helps in easing out the process of job hunting by
getting in touch with people who have decision making power in the hands.

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Knowledge and wisdom-This according to me is one of the most crucial benefits of
networking. A strong and a diverse network help in bringing people from different
background and varied information together. When such networks meet over at some
dinner or some casual hang outs, they tend to impart their knowledge and wisdom to
others. This provides for great amalgamation and thoughts of people from different
backgrounds, which ultimately helps in contributing to their knowledge and wisdom.
Develop a good workplace environment-Strong network are a foster ground
for creating a great workplace environment. Like-minded people working together with
strong values of trust and relationship are ideal for creating positive synergies leading
to a great workplace environment.
Fast decision making-It is a very strong possibility that multiple people who are a
part of a strong network, tend to make decision faster. The reason behind is that they
already know the people and trust their views, opinion or stand on a particular issue,
which helps them in arriving on a decision faster than any other cohort.
Task 3- 800 Words
Different kinds of Groups in Group working and benefits
Formal Group
This group is defined by the organization structure and it is formed after careful
evaluation of planning activities. Members in the group work together to achieve
common goals & objectives of the organization.
Command Group
This type of group is created by bringing in the members from different formal groups;
this is done to create a new team to work on new tasks such as product launch, new
product and many more.

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Committees
These kinds of groups are formed in the organization with the objectives of getting
results; the members are drawn from various formal groups to ensure better
transparency in the system.
Informal Groups
These groups are not created by the organization and are developed on their own with
the objective of meeting their social and affiliation needs sharing their common
interests.
Benefits of Group activity
 Breaking complex tasks into easy parts
 Planning and managing time.
 Providing and receiving feedback
 Delegation of roles and responsibilities.
 Pool shared resources and knowledge
 Identify effective peers for further development process.
 Developing new approaches to solve a problem
Comparing main theories of Work
Theory Implication
Tuckman (1977) The model was developed way back in
1977 in the context of work groups and
staff team, instead of therapeutic groups.
The model finds strong relevance in
training and consultancy work. The stages
of Stockman model are as follows:
Forming- It is the stage when people come
together and a sense of group identity
comes in them.
Storming-Herein, employees compete for
power, attention and dominance.
Norming-The group clarifies its values
and beliefs
Performing-The group sets on the with
the task they have to actually do.
Adjourning-This stage represents the

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ending of the group.
Schutz (1966) In-Out-Here group members face issue
related to their inclusion and exclusion in
the group.
Up –Down-Here comes the issues of
hierarchy and dominance in the group
Near-Far-This is related to the issues of
intimacy and affection in the group
Evaluate the following using the group work skills
The giving of Information-In a group activity or working with the group it becomes
important to follow a systematic process of giving the information to the employees at
the workplace. The group leader has to ensure that it provides comprehensive
information to every other group member through mails or some documented format.
One has to ensure that the smooth flow of communication is established in giving
information to the team or the group members.
Encouraging discussion- Discussion is an extremely important part of group activity.
Constructive discussion can lead to better output from the entire group which leads to
enhanced productivity of the group. In order to encourage discussion a moderator has
to make sure that every group member participates in the activity and is focussed to
contribute towards the discussion. This will bring out the best in the group session and
group members will be better aligned towards the group outcomes.
Seeking clarification-It is extremely easy to develop resistance in the group due to
high diversity in the group, clashes becomes common. Thus, one has to come to the
rescue in making it easier for group members to not fall into the trap of resistance.
Group leader has to ensure that he uses conflict negotiation skills to better induce the
process of clarification in the group. It will help in brining positive synergies in the
group and a process of better communication will prevail with little or no resistance.
Agreeing Ground Rules- In a group, it becomes pertinent to set ground rules to which
everyone concurs with, these ground rules are set in the group so that everyone can
follow them and make it even for all the group members. It also eliminates the problem
of partiality in the group; it basically helps in creating the same ground for every group
member. The ground rules have to be communicated to every person on a document

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and acknowledgement has to be received on the same, without it the entire process gets
defeated.
Offering Progress Information- While working in a group it becomes majorly
important for all the team members to know the progress of work, as everybody is
working on their task, but in the end all the task have to be clubbed together to achieve
the final result. Hence, it has to be ensured that business tool such as Google Document
or some other platform is used to measure the progress of the task, and the same is
communicated to all the team members.
Participating constructively in Feedback sessions-Feedback is very important for
the development of the team members and also for the entire group. Constructive
feedback is the process by which the peers or the group leader gives the feedback to
other members. He observes monitors and evaluates the progress of each group
member and with a view of making them excel in their roles, feedback is provided to
them. Feedback helps in identifying the lacunae in one’s personality, which can then be
used to improve one’s performance. Thus, it becomes important for the group members
to actively participate in the feedback sessions for their own developmental goals.
Task 4- 750 Words
Leadership is both a research area and a skill encompassing the ability of person to lead
other individual, team or the organization to the path of sustained growth. Leaders have
the responsibility not only towards the organization but also towards the employees;
who have to be motivated to achieve the goals of the organization.
Comparison between leadership styles
Basis for
Comparison
Autocratic
Leadership
Democratic
Leadership
Laissez-Faire
Meaning of
Leadership style
Herein a clear line
of demarcation
prevails between
the leaders and the
followers, and all
the decisions are
taken solely by the
leader
As the name
suggests this style
of leadership shares
power and
responsibilities
with the employees
of the organization.
It is the
unwillingness of the
leader to get
involved or indulge
in other people’s
work or activities. It
can be seen as a
philosophy which

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focuses on the
ability of the
individual to follow
ones dream without
interfering into
others work.
Authority Here it is
centralized
Here it is
decentralized
Completely
decentralized
Orientation of the
Behaviour
The behaviour is
task oriented here
The behaviour is
relation oriented
The behaviour is
highly relation and
trust oriented
Evolved From Theory X Theory Y NA
Control Excessively high
level of control
Low level of control Excessively low
level of control or
remotely no
involvement
Autonomy Extremely high Low Extremely low
Applicability It is applicable
when the
employees are
highly unskilled, in
obedient and in
disciplined
Herein the team
members are
experienced,
qualified and highly
professional
Herein the team
members are highly
reliable and the
team members have
good relationship
and strong bonding
with the leader.
Facilitation in all the style of leadership varies effectively from one style to another:
 Autocratic – Leader is the facilitator of all the resources.
 Democratic- Leader and employees both are responsible for facilitating the
resources.
 Laissez-Faire- Resources are facilitated by the person whosoever needs the
resources, no dependency is the culture in this style of leadership
Style of Leadership
Studying the different styles of leadership, gave me insight to delve into my own style of
leadership in my communication with my group members and in the group
environment. I would say that my style of leadership is an amalgamation of democratic
and laissez –faire style of leadership, as I believe in giving autonomy to my team
members at the same time I do exercise some control over the progress of work.
I do not leave them to follow their own path; however I do not interfere in their work or
activity. I believe in empowering the team members so that they have a good