Communication
An article by Di Ryall
 When people talk about communication they often
think of speaking in front of audience but yet
communication is occurring almost every instant of
the day. When we communicate we depend on
much more than our words, in fact the other
components of communication such as our visual
and tonal elements overshadow our words.
It is all about congruency – do your visual signals,
your tone and your words all tell the same story. If
not the people you are trying to communicate with
will be more likely to believe your visual signals and
ignore the message that you are trying to convey.
So often when we prepare to communicate with
someone else we concentrate on the words and yet
these are the smallest component of the
communication.
When you meet someone face to face it only takes
one or two seconds to make an opinion of who they
are, their status, whether you want to hear them
and whether they are pleased to see you. Often, a
person can be put off simply by the manner in
which you come through the door, your first facial
expression or how you are presented. You may
have had any number of problems before this
interaction but if you bring that frame of mind to the
interaction it is going to be difficult to build a
positive frame for the communication.
Even when you call on the phone you can quickly perceive if the person at the other end is prepared
and happy to speak to you or is another agenda
going on altogether. It is difficult to tell if it is
something else going on in their life, if it is the
annoyance of the interruption of the phone or is it
you personally. Often the simple courtesy of asking
if this is a good time to speak to them allows them
to share with you their personal agenda of the
moment.
So often today we communicate through email.
Often a short and direct email from someone who is
time poor and direct in nature will get a poor
response from someone who has a more personal
approach. Similarly if someone who likes direct
communication receives an email that provides the
full proposal and background they may find the
communication overwhelming.
In conclusion, when you are communicating and
you do it all the time take a few minutes to get
yourself emotionally and physically prepared.
Spend less time focussed on the words and more
on the first 10 seconds. Look for face-to-face
communication where possible for new interactions
and when on the phone or communicating by email
ensure that you consider the audience. It is better
to keep things shorter and then ask for questions or
comments rather than seeking to cover all angles in
the first interaction. Articles Of Interest
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