In this article, we will be playing our part in resolving one of the most fundamental human skills i.e communication skills by laying out 10 ways that will help you hurtle down the personality road.
It is an infallible fact that the history of human civilization starts from effective communication between the members of a closed Knit retro society. With the passage of time, we as well as the environment around us changed substantially, and fast forward to today. We still by the virtue of being humans latch on to this human disposition but seek to reach its higher echelon as we have done in any other field.
We are not intending to present to you an argumentative essay pertaining to communication skills but rather plunge into the pool of practicality and help you with the improvement of this skill that will help you communicate with your fellow humans in a prudent and effective way.
Top ways to Robust your Communication Skills
- Be a good listener
To be able to formulate effective ideas to revert back to the communicator, you need to pay heed to what he/she is saying and if there is something that you didn’t understand properly or might have misconstrued then do not hesitate to demand a clarification.
Another thing that you may want to take into consideration in this regard is that don’t indulge in simultaneous conversation because it rips you off paying attention to a specific person which can deteriorate the standard of communication.
- Exuding a good body language
The word good is subjective and a vague term. So, we would go by the best practices when it comes to body language. Now, we are talking specifically here of real-life face-to-face conversations where the persons involved expect each other to pay attention and this should manifest in your physical appearance. For instance, maintaining eye contact as well as not standing there petrified like a rock, make sure that you are also nodding if you find what the other person has to say plausible.
- Don’t apply the same way of communication across the board
Now, this is applicable to both physical and non-physical realms of communication. What this means is that you may want to talk differently with respect to different people. For instance, if there is a communication going on between two friends then for that communication to be effective you have to utter the words that are familiar to both of you, these words can also be informal in nature. However, if there is someone in the exalted position or is much senior to you then you may want to communicate in words that are potentially less obscure and can serve the general understanding of the individual.
- Proofreading your texts
Texts have become more relevant than ever in communications, especially in pandemic times. One way to ensure that they are efficacious is to ensure that you write in sentences that are less vague and ambiguous meaning that you should be more specific so as to minimize any misinterpretation especially if you are talking with someone who doesn’t understand your intended sarcasm.
- Think before you speak
Now, thinking by all standards is a skill in itself and it actually requires practice which in turn ensures spontaneity in your well-structured thoughts. However, when communicating make sure that you actually switch on your reflective switch so that your utterances don’t sound like you are prating or talking bogus.
- Avoid disparaging opinions of the other
If you don’t want to come out as a douche you have to have an open mind and treat the opinions of others with the utmost respect. However, this is not to say that you can’t disagree with them or refute their ideas, you absolutely can but within the spirit of intellectual inquiry and give arguments pertaining to why you disagree. Oftentimes you will find people making uninformed opinions as well, correct them, and if someone holds racist, sexist, or any malicious opinions then you have the full liberty to end the conversation if they are too rigid with their views.
- Use fillers as less as you can
Words like um Uh, you know when used in a repeated manner impede the flow of communication in direct communication. So, it would be prudent if you start to minimize them in your utterances which would again take practice.
- Talking to an imaginary person
This can be a really effective way to improve your communication skills. Imagine if you were talking to a certain person of a certain personality and tried imitating a real-life conversation. The topics don’t necessarily have to be whimsical but rather the ones in which there is a certain level of thinking involved. This should also allow us to formulate more robust opinions which are valued by like-minded people.
- Try covering a topic in a terse way if possible
Now, explicating a particular issue is important, however, oftentimes it gets annoying for the other person to get into the details of everything. For effective communication to occur, to and fro between the person is necessary, so try keeping your utterances a little brief.
- Create an ambiance of positivity
Now, this is not to emphasize that you have to fake being positive every time you talk to someone but the point is that a positive attitude is symbolic of you being interested in communicating with the other person and leads to efficacious communication.
Conclusion
Now, these are some of the basic points that you may have to take into consideration while making effective communication with people both via phone and face to face. Remember that these points are not the be-all of communication there is more to it that can only be learned through practice.