Supervisor-Skills-Reference-Guide

Table of Contents
“to understand” or “to value” because these do not
describe an observable action and they are prone to a
wide range of interpretations. They refer to performance
that cannot be observed or measured. If you find yourself
wanting to use these types of verbs, ask yourself, “What
does ‘to know’ look like?” “What does it look like if ‘one
understands’?” “How would someone else recognize ‘to
value’ if I was demonstrating it?” Your answers to these
types of questions will lead you to select the kind of
action verb that can be directly observed and are useful
for writing task statements.
Lists 1 and 2 are common examples of action verbs used
in writing task statements and fuzzy verbs that should be
avoided.
List 1: Action verbs
to organize
to design
to conduct
to present
to implement
to write
to collect
to analyze
to review
to operate
to diagram
List 2: Fuzzy verbs
to know
to enjoy
to understand
to think
to be confident
to believe
to prepare
to develop
to experiment
to evaluate
to set up
to reproduce
to organize
to collaborate
to compose
to talk
to value
to grasp the true
meaning of
to role model
to symbolize
to focus
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