Today, going by the technologies, means of communications is at its peak but it’s a woe that most of us are unable to keep the pace with the interpersonal communication skills. Great communication skills separate the extraordinary from the good and the good from the ordinary. It is essential for career growth, a better understanding and self-expression. This can be practiced via talking, listening, writing, reading, body language or even interpersonal chemistry for some.
Communication is an art as well as science involving creativity and skills. Good verbal and written skills can improve your professional as well as personal life. Contrary to this, poor communications skills can impact your life negatively- it may cause misunderstanding, frustrations and mayhem in some cases.
Let’s First Understand Communication-
According to Merriam-Webster, it is defined as the way of exchanging information between individuals through symbols, signs and behavior i.e. By writing, reading or others.
Modes of Communication
There are numerous ways through which we communicate with each other but here I have segregated it in the two most common modes-
– Verbal Communication
It is a type of communication in which words are used to communicate with each other. Verbal communication can either be oral or written and is delivered or received via face-to-face, phone, radio, lectures, speeches, letters and other media.
– Non-Verbal Communication
In this, words are not used for communications, instead, body language, gestures, eye contact, tone, stressing any particular word, time and other similar activities are used.
Before we jump into the Importance of Communication, let’s first know the importance of listening.
Listening is another aspect of communication which is equally important than any other modes of communication. Most of us are always interested in speaking and expressing what we feel but we often ignore what other people have to say. Most of the times, poor listening leads to misunderstanding, ineffective decisions, hurting someone’s feelings and many other problems.
Knowing when to pause while talking allows another person to express their opinions. It shows respect towards the others and helps you to understand their point of views. Active listening in workplaces contributes to a positive work environment and good results whereas, at a personal level it helps you to avoid any conflicts.
When it comes to “listening”, William Shakespeare said “Listen to many, speak to a few”; whereas Mark Twain quoted “Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would rather have talked”.
Importance of Communication Skills in Professional Life
Acing an Interview
Do you get nervous at the interview? Does your interviewer ask to repeat what you said? Are you speaking too fast? Well, these are all the signs of bad communications. To ace an interview, you have to be well versed with all your filler words, you should look prepared and confident, must have a good body language and most importantly you should be professional. These are some important communications skills which help the recruiters know that how good you are with your communicating abilities. The ability to speak clearly, listen carefully and understanding others are few things which every organization seeks in its employees.
Makes you an Efficient Manager
The main job of any manager is to convey the targets, instructions, roles and expected outcomes clearly to their subordinates. All of these involves communications thereby making it an essential skill for any manager. Manager with good communication skills often shows effective performance within their team as well as the whole organization.
Career Growth
Good communication skills help you in speaking confidently with your superiors or your client without getting nervous. It helps you to build a good rapport. It is also useful for discussing problems, giving clear instructions, better interaction with others and maintaining good relations at work. These all help you in succeeding in your career.
Other Benefits
- Helps you to build good customer relationship
- Makes you a better speaker
- Starts thinking critically
- Expresses your idea in a more clear, concise and meaningful ways
- Develop better decision-making abilities
- Instead of cribbing about your problems, you start looking for the solutions
- Increases your productivity
- and much more!
Are you facing difficulties in communicating with others? Don’t worry Read this blog on 7 Effective Ways to improve your Business Communication Skills.
Importance of Communication Skills in Personal Life
To Build Strong Relationships
A good understanding is key to a successful relationship and communication plays an important role in it. The ability to clearly expressing yourself about your needs, thoughts, and intentions, helps others to better understand you. Usually, most of the conflicts, arguments or disagreement is the root of miscommunication. Preventing it improves and strengthens your relationship between you and others. You start to discover other’s likes and dislikes which helps you to build a stronger foundation.
Helps in Relieving Stress
It’s always great to discuss your problems with your friends or family whenever you feel the burden with thoughts. It gives you new perspectives to look at the particular situation or any problem.
Boosts your Confidence
When you realize that others are listening to you then it automatically increases your self-esteem showing you more confident among others.
You are Happy
With stronger relationships, no stress and high confidence, suddenly you become happier and start taking all your problems as a challenge rather than an agony.
Here is another article showing the Benefits of Good Communication Skills.
Barriers to Communication
There are several barriers that prevent individuals from effective communications or can create a misunderstanding among others. These may include physical, perceptual, emotional, cultural, language, gender, interpersonal and several other barriers. Therefore, identifying and taking the necessary steps to overcome these barriers becomes essential for every individual facing communication problems. Here we’ll discuss the top 4 barriers which affect our communication skills:
Language Barrier
Talking with others is one of the most essential modes of communication. In several countries, many people face the issue of native languages acting as a barrier between them and locals. Additionally, apart from just the language, another major issue which people faces are the way people speaks from different countries and regions.
Although, various translation services are available but still, learning and understanding the basics of any foreign language is of great help.
Emotional Barrier
Sometimes, despite having the clarity of thoughts or an in-depth understanding of the information, our emotions take over our communicating skills. Emotions such as anger, pride or anxiety can affect and prevent good communications. However, if you want to come across others as a leader then emotional intelligence becomes an important skill to master which helps you to keep your emotions in check.
Cultural Barrier
Currently, businesses are run in a global community having employees from different cultural backgrounds. This leads to the creation of the cultural barrier among the organizations. Understanding cultural sensitivities, respecting other’s values and appreciating the beliefs helps in removing the cultural barrier.
Gender Barriers
It’s true that women are equally important as men, and workplace relations between both have significantly improved too but yet, sometimes communications between men and women become difficult. Furthermore, communication styles between both the genders are also different. These can cause communication problems between them. To avoid this, being respectful to each other, listening to the ideas and opinions becomes very important to tackle this issue.
Conclusion
With time, it’s true that the way we communicate has significantly changed, but it’s also true that somewhere, we have lost the art of interpersonal communication. To keep up the pace with this tech era, we may have become modern but we have also made our lives more complicated whether be it office or personal lives. Today, everyone knows how to use social media but most of us don’t even bother to give a proper handshake while meeting someone. However, because of so many growing differences and several setbacks in professional life, the lost art of communication is making its comeback.
