The importance of effective communication in the workplace — especially for those in leadership positions — cannot be overstated.
Good communication skills are key to healthy conflict resolution at work, growing and developing healthy teams, and developing healthy relationships with your team members.
Yet, many are at a loss in how to begin to grow their communication skills. While much could be said on this subject, we’ll dive into just five easy to implement skills you can begin working on this week.
Communication Elevation Tip 1: Be Clear and Specific
In order to effectively communicate in the workplace, it is important to be clear and specific in your messaging. This means avoiding vague or ambiguous language and instead using concrete terms that leave little room for misinterpretation.
Have you ever experienced the frustration of attempting to understand an unclear or ambiguous email?
“Did my boss want us to drop all of the other projects to work on this? Or does “prioritize” just mean get it done before the end of the month?” Save your reports from this kind of unhelpful, time-wasting speculation!
Think about how you can use your communication to save your staff from experiencing that same frustration.
For example, instead of saying “I’ll get back to you soon,” give a specific time and date.
Instead of saying “We need to improve our sales,” provide specific targets and metrics to measure success. In fact, you should really be using SMART goals to motivate and inspire your team.
Instead of saying “Let me know what you think,” you could say “I’d really like to hear your thoughts and would love it if you could reply to this email by Friday at 3pm.”
You also need to be very explicit with what you want your direct reports to do when it comes to feedback.
If you need to have a difficult conversation with a direct report, ensure that you’re clear and specific with their next steps in response to the correction.
Communication Elevation Tip 2: Listen Actively
Active listening is a crucial component of effective communication — both in life in general and in the workplace.
Active listening involves paying attention to what others are saying, asking clarifying questions, and providing feedback.
We have already provided an in-depth guide on how to grow in active listening, so we won’t repeat that all here.
The most basic skill you can focus on to increase your ability to listen actively is to repeat back what the person has said (in summary form) to confirm understanding, paraphrase the main points.
Then, once you have paraphrased their statement(s), you can ask open-ended questions to clarify or further draw out their thoughts.
Active listening is a key aspect of the coaching mindset that has become so popular among executives across industries.
Communication Elevation Tip 3: Manage Emotions
Emotions can run high in the workplace, and it is important to manage them effectively in order to communicate effectively. This means staying calm and composed, even in difficult situations, and avoiding knee-jerk reactions.
For example, if someone on your team has a different opinion than you on a particular issue, it is important to maintain your composure and focus on understanding rather than immediately dismissing their opinion.
The goal is to create an environment that is conducive to healthy debate and creative problem solving.
Indeed, this is key to getting the incredible results that come along with collaborative decision-making. Be sure to check out our guide to creating a more collaborative team for more practical help.
It is also important to be aware of your own body language and tone of voice — especially when emotions are running high.
Your body language and tone of voice — rather than the actual words you use — can often be the biggest contributor to feelings of disrespect or offense.
We have provided a great deal of practical advice on how to manage emotions well in our guide to difficult conversations, so be sure to check that out.
Some practical tools to help you calm down in the face of rising emotions include: taking a deep breath before responding to a difficult email, taking a break before approaching a sensitive topic, and using “I” statements to express your emotions.
For example, rather than saying “You made me so angry,” you could say “I felt really angry when you…”
Or, if you are feeling overwhelmed, you could say “I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed and could use a break.”
It’s much better to awkwardly put a meeting on pause for a walk and some deep breaths than to do all of the damage control that is needed after you blow up.
Communication Elevation Tip 4: Use Visual Aids
If you find yourself explaining complex ideas, new processes, or changes to your team and feeling like they never quite get it, you may need to incorporate some visual aids.
The reality is that most people aren’t great at understanding highly abstract, complex ideas on first listen.
Visual aids, such as charts, graphs, and images, can be a powerful tool for to make up for that shortcoming. They can help make complex ideas more accessible and make it easier for people to understand your message.
For example, if you’re rolling out a new product development process, you could use flowcharts in your presentation. This will help people practically visualize this new process.
You could also use visuals to illustrate an overarching theme, such as a graph showing the growth of your business over time or changes in your target market.
Visual aids will make it easier for people to understand — and remember — your message.
Even something as simple as images to break up text can help to keep people engaged and make your message easier to follow
Ultimately, effective communication in the workplace is a must — and visuals can be a powerful tool in that regard.
Communication Elevation Tip 5: Be Adaptable
Effective communication in the workplace requires the ability to adapt to different situations and audiences. In other words, you have to be aware of your audience and tailoring your message to their needs and preferences.
For example, if you’re talking to your team, they need to know exactly what is expected of them and what the deadlines are.
But if you’re presenting to the executive team, you may need to provide more context and provide more of the big-picture perspective.
Also, be sure to speak the language of your audience. If you’re talking to the executive team, they may be more familiar with complex financial terminology than the general team.
At the same time, the executive team might not be as familiar with some of the specific terms, processes, and systems your team is using.
Be sure to err on the side of over-explaining. Many people won’t want to put themselves in the awkward position of confessing that they don’t know what you’re talking about.
At the same time, you don’t want to “dumb down” presentations or end up rambling endlessly to explain something that everyone should know.
You can also sprinkle in humor or personal anecdotes when presenting to smaller teams. This can help to make you and your message more relatable.
Ultimately, being adaptable is key to effective communication in the workplace. Know your audience, tailor your message to their needs, and adjust your language accordingly.
By being clear and specific, listening actively, managing emotions, using visual aids, and being adaptable, you can improve your communication skills, which will go a long way in helping you excel as a leader.
If you’d like someone to walk with you as you grow in your communication abilities, helping you identify gaps and set practical goals, set up your free coaching consultation today!