Proper communication is a skill that is appreciated in every aspect of life. Human communication depends on words spoken as well as on the body language and facial expressions. Communicating with people efficiently as well as effectively becomes quite a challenging task, particularly because it involves so many different aspects. To make your communications both effective and efficient some pre-learning and practice can be of best help.
Being able to communicate effectively and efficiently can give your personal as well as professional life the boost that you might be looking for. Better communication is not rocket science but you certainly need to be more careful to make your words more effective and efficient in communicating the exact sense to the listener. Here are some of the most vital ways and tips to make your communications more effective and efficient.
Pick or create the right environment
When it comes to communication, the environment certainly has an important role to play. The right environment can add to the receptivity of the person listening to you and hence in order to make sure that you are able to communicate effectively and efficiently it is important to take note of the environment first.
If you are about to inform someone about something serious, choosing a quiet place is certainly the first step. For delivering bad news or result or details about a project, making sure that the place is convenient is vital. If it is not feasible for you to pick the right place, you can create the right environment by making the person or group of people listening to you more comfortable. Discussing a serious matter over a cup of coffee can certainly make the person listening to you more receptive which will easily add to the effectiveness of your communication.
When discussing some personal matters or providing some personal information to someone it is best to choose a private place. Discussing a personal matter in public or while there are other people around is certainly not a good idea as it naturally reduces the receptivity of the person listening to you.
Remove all the forms of distractions
To make your communication effective and efficient it is important that you remove all the distractions. Loud noises around or people chatting too close by can be the most common distractions while communicating.
The electronic gadgets including the mobile, television, sound system are the other common distractions. So, in order to make sure that you are communicating effectively, remove all these distractions. If your listener gets distracted frequently by something else, it will naturally reduce his or her ability to grasp your words, making your communication efforts less effective. At the same time, these distractions will also hinder the natural flow of your speech, taking you off the track quite often.
Communicate in an organized way
One of the most vital things for better communication is to organize your thoughts or what you are about to say in a very neat manner. Always decide some pointers about the topic you are going to discuss or present. This will not only help you to express yourself more coherently and in a better understandable way but will also keep you from diverting from the original topic.
Setting pointers within the subject that you are going to discuss or present will make it easy for you to keep a track of the communication and will also help you to get back to the topic even if you happen to have wandered off slightly from it while explaining.
Use small sentences with easy understandable words
While communicating it is not really a good idea to impress the other person with your prowess on vocabulary. A good vocabulary can surely add to your communication skills by helping you to put your thoughts in better words, but including difficult or uncommon words in your communication is certainly not a good idea. Words that are used commonly should make the major part in each of your sentences.
Including uncommon words in your speech or dialogue is sure to affect the effectiveness of the speech in a negative way though it might improve the efficiency of your communication. Also try to make the sentence shorter and cohesive so that they are easy to understand and the person or the group of people listening to it can grasp each of the sentence and its meaning clearly without too much of a try.
Voice plays an important role in effective communication
When it comes to communication your voice plays a vital role. Making sure that your voice is perfectly audible to the person you are talking with or the people you are talking to is important. Apart from making yourself audible, you can also use your voice to make the communications more effective. Pitch modulation and pausing properly at particular times can help a lot in making your communications more effective and efficient.
Starting a pointer in your speech in a high tone can actually make it more understandable. Also make sure that the punctuations are well maintained and expressed through your voice and pitch. Giving a measured pause after completion of a highlighted pointer in your topic or giving a pause just before starting with the next pointer can be most helpful to make people more engaged and to make your speech more understandable.
Body language – The untold factor of communication
Communication is not only about what you speak. What is expressed through your body language also has a role in it. To make your communications effective it is important that you have the right body language. To have a confident gesture while talking is always vital to make sure that people listening to you are taking you seriously. Apart from that also make sure that your body gestures are open. If you are moving your hands while explaining things, make sure that the gesture looks meaningful and not as an obstruction to your words or speech.
Always maintain open body language while communicating. Having an open body language not only helps the other person to feel at ease while listening to you but also makes him or her better able to grasp your words. While communicating always try to make yourself polite and friendly so the person listening to you is in a mood of acceptance.
While communicating it is best to focus fully on your words and the expressions of the person listening to you. Touching your face or dwindling with jewelry while communicating will certainly convey the sense that you are not paying full attention to communicate effectively. Fiddling with your fingers or moving your hands or legs here and there frequently can also disengage the listener from paying full attention to your words.
While communicating it is important that you look stable and confident through your body language. If your body expressions are fiddle and you seem to be anxious, worried or in a hurry it is surely going to affect the efficiency as well as the effectiveness of your communications. So, try to get a stable and relaxed body language before you opt to talk with someone or talk to a group of people. It will not only make you look more confident but will add to the efficiency of your speech or discussion.
Facial expressions are also important
The facial expressions are certainly a part of your body language but as they play the most vital role, so highlighting them separately is only wise. While communicating, make sure that you have eye contact with the person you are talking with. If you are talking to a group of people, also opt for eye contact frequently and try to cover most of the people as feasible. This will help the listeners to connect better to you and to feel more engaged about whatever you are saying.
Make sure that your eyes are not without expression rather they should be supporting your each and every word. Keeping your eyebrows slightly raised while communicating is considered as a good sign as it indicates the willingness of the speaker to make things more understandable for the listener as well as his enthusiasm. However, make sure, that you do not look tensed or anxious by pulling your eyebrows too high or by creating the creases on your forehead while communicating.
Keep in mind the cultural differences
If you are talking to someone belonging from another culture or talking to a group from a different country, it is only wise to research about their culture in advance. When it comes to body language and facial expressions, there are certain noteworthy differences that can be observed amongst people from different countries and cultures.
For example, in some culture, eye contact or even slightly raised eyebrows while communicating can confer a negative impression. So, be more cautious about your body language and facial expressions during communication, if you are talking to people who belong from a different culture.
