The next thing to consider is your caller’s expectations.

People typically want respect far more than an answer to a question.

Respect is in our tone of voice and our word choice.

Instructions: Click the image below to try out an exercise on how emphasis and tone can impact your meaning.

As demonstrated in the activity above, often how you say something is just as or even more important than what you say.

Word Choice TIP: Avoid using meteorological jargon or National Weather Service acronyms!  Another way to frustrate a caller is to speak over their heads, use confusing terms, or “coded” language. Think about how you talk to your friends or family members who do not work in this field, and adjust your word choices to the needs of your caller.

Ultimately, you may be able to

• provide a brief explanation (You will learn more about a variety of specific customer concerns and explanations in the next lesson.),
• direct your caller to additional materials on the web,
• or redirect your caller to the Space Weather Prediction Center.

Regardless, however, of your course of action, take the time to acknowledge your caller’s concerns and carefully monitor your tone of voice and word choices.

Next, let’s take a quick look at some tools developed to help the general public understand space weather…

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