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Career
Tips
 What
professionals need to know about communication skills.
It’s
only words
What
professionals need to know about communication skills.
Yawn!
Boring speeches and it is time for you to catch up on some daydreaming.
Wishing that the speaker had better communication skills you gaze
unhappily out of the window, a far away look in your eyes! Or
it could be a colleague who is blissfully unaware of the grammar
faux pas he is committing and highlighting his ignorance.
 Either
ways, lack of communication skills impedes progress and tarnishes
the image of an individual. Studies reveal that persons possessing
powerful communication skills stand a better chance of being successful
and have an easier climb up the corporate ladder. (In simple words,
present yourself the ‘gift of the gab).
There’s
more to language skills than just good grammar and spelling. It
is using the right word at the right time in order to get the
right message across. To improve communication skills, try this.
Spot
a mentor
When
you know that you cannot express your thoughts adequately, you
need to make a conscious effort to improve. Look for a person
who is good at using the right word at the right time and communicate
to him (this would be your first step) that you need an honest
appraisal of your communication skills. Request the person to
help you improve your communication skills by correcting you when
you go wrong and give the right input when needed.
Better
your speech through proactive measures. Decide on some phrases
or styles that you might like to emulate depending on the situation.
Understand the usage. Write down sentences you would like to use.
Make a list of words you’ve picked up recently and go over
them once in a while and don’t forget to use them too! Use
the language in regular conversations with your wife and your
boss (i.e. if there is a difference)
Nitty-gritty
Read
magazines, newspapers and books (change your concept of a bible
for a while) all the time if you are genuinely keen on improving
your language. This would give you valuable exposure to words
and the way they are used. Keep a dictionary at hand to capture
the meaning of words that you discover and upload it into your
personal memory. Reading helps you increase your vocabulary and
refines your speech. It also improves your command over the language
in terms of usage and fluency.
Attune
Listening to someone else express is as important as expressing
what’s on your mind. Try to give the person at the other
end enough room to express his ideas before you take over the
conversation or jump to a conclusions (again, don’t put your
foot in your mouth). Putting yourself in the listener’s shoes
and treating him the way you would want to be treated.
Seen and heard
Effective
communication can be used to leverage the potential of your subordinates
and engage in persuasive conversations in order to motivate them..
It comes handy while negotiating deals and managing people. Being
assertive with a certain amount of authority and articulation
makes you a leader right away.
Give
the sentence some thought and formulate your ideas before you
put it into words. Especially in a business environment, other
than your qualification it is being articulate that will take
you miles into the good books of your boss. (Valuable tip: being
articulate and confident can even get you out of trouble when
at times, you put your foot into your own mouth).
Working
on improving your communication skills will yield rewards in due
time. Paying more attention to improving and sharpening your communication
skills can pay high dividends.
Anyways, you can always use this article as a perfect example
of articulate communication.
(I
have a question>> I heard of a new word today, ‘modesty’.
Any ideas on what it means??).
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