Using jargon or highly technical language can abstract your messages and make it more challenging for people to understand important information. Instead, try and avoid jargon and break down abbreviations. By taking the time to explain the term, you can ensure everyone comprehends your message. Doing so also helps people feel more included, confident and able to be present and productive.
Sometimes you may feel that the more details you provide, the clearer your message. However, providing too much information can complicate your message and make it harder for your audience to understand. Offer time for your audience to ask questions, whether it be at the end or during your discussion—this is a good time to share additional details that they are ready to consume.
Everyone has their own unique communication style. Some people are outwardly expressive while others maintain a more neutral tone. Some people use hand gestures when speaking in front of an audience while others avoid them.
Sometimes, these differences can become communication barriers. For example, someone who is highly detailed and specific in their messages may have trouble understanding a communicator who prefers to use generalities. Here are a few things you can do to help get your point across to people who have different communication styles:.
No matter your method of communication, always remain confident and self-assured. Be cognizant of learnings styles that might exist in your audience. The added management expertise puts it above business process outsourcing BPO vendors who focus more on automating processes rather than transforming and improving them. Given the amount of Messages we send and receive every day, it makes sense that humans try to find shortcuts—a way to communicate things in code.
In business, this code is known as jargon. Jargon is the language of specialized terms used by a group or profession. It is common shorthand among experts and if used sensibly can be a quick and efficient way of communicating. Most jargon consists of unfamiliar terms, abstract words, nonexistent words, acronyms, and abbreviations, with an occasional euphemism thrown in for good measure. Every profession, trade, and organization has its own specialized terms.
At first glance, jargon seems like a good thing—a quicker way to send an effective communication, the way text message abbreviations can send common messages in a shorter, yet understandable way. Jargon can be an obstacle to effective communication, causing listeners to tune out or fostering ill-feeling between partners in a conversation.
When jargon rules the day, the Message can get obscured. But that same conversation should be held in standard English, free of jargon, when communicating with staff members outside the IT group. Men and women work together every day. But their different styles of communication can sometimes work against them. Another difference that has been noticed is that men often speak in sports metaphors, while many women use their home as a starting place for analogies. Clearly, successful organizations of the future are going to have leaders and team members who understand, respect and apply the rules of gender culture appropriately.
Being aware of these gender differences can be the first step in learning to work with them, as opposed to around them. For example, keep in mind that men tend to focus more on competition, data, and orders in their communications, while women tend to focus more on cooperation, intuition, and requests. Both styles can be effective in the right situations, but understanding the differences is a first step in avoiding misunderstandings based on them.
Differences in meaning often exist between the Sender and Receiver. But in business, what do those words mean? Different words mean different things to different people. Age, education, and cultural background are all factors that influence how a person interprets words.
The less we consider our audience, the greater our chances of miscommunication will be. When communication occurs in the cross-cultural context, extra caution is needed given that different words will be interpreted differently across cultures and different cultures have different norms regarding nonverbal communication.
Eliminating jargon is one way of ensuring that our words will convey real-world concepts to others. Speaking to our audience, as opposed to about ourselves, is another. Nonverbal Messages can also have different meanings. Adapted from information in Axtell, R. New York: John Wiley. Biased language can offend or stereotype others on the basis of their personal or group affiliation.
The figure below provides a list of words that have the potential to be offensive in the left-hand column. The right-hand column provides more neutral words that you can use instead.
Effective communication is clear, factual, and goal-oriented. It is also respectful. Referring to a person by one adjective a brain , a diabetic , an invalid reduces that person to that one characteristic. Language that belittles or stereotypes a person poisons the communication process. Language that insults an individual or group based on age, ethnicity, sexual preference, or political beliefs violates public and private standards of decency, ranging from civil rights to corporate regulations.
Critics of political correctness see its vocabulary as stilted and needlessly cautious. Many companies offer new employees written guides on standards of speech and conduct. These guides, augmented by common sense and courtesy, are solid starting points for effective, respectful workplace communication. Tips for appropriate workplace speech include but are not limited to. After all, a good manager needs to listen at least as much as he needs to talk.
Listening takes practice, skill, and concentration. Poor listening is a factor in low employee morale and increased turnover because employees do not feel their managers listen to their needs, suggestions, or complaints.
Alan Gulick, a Starbucks spokesperson, puts better listening to work in pursuit of better profits. To teach its employees to listen, Starbucks created a code that helps employees taking orders hear the size, flavor, and use of milk or decaf coffee. The person making the drink echoes the order aloud. How can you improve your listening skills?
It is important to remember that we communicate with our bodies as well as with our voice. Barriers are threat to the success of effective communication. They make communication inaccessible, unintelligible thereby killing the prospect of its being effective. How often has your mind wandered when someone was telling you something? This usually happens when the topic is discussion does not interest you. Sometimes the conversation may be too long and tedious.
Sometimes the topic of discussion may be interesting but the speaker is unable to grab your attention, or you may be unable to comprehend because of lack of knowledge of the topic or the vocabulary or language of the speaker. There must be motivation and interest in a conversation to be able to listen effectively.
However, even if there is motivation and interest, there might be some barriers that affect our ability to listen well. This is one of the most common barriers to listening. Learners of a language normally face this kind of barrier. Words used by the speaker may not be familiar to you.
The speaker may use difficult words and jargons. As a result you cannot comprehend what the speaker says. The speaker is too fast. There are very few pauses and the rhythm that might not be familiar to you. You fail to recognize familiar words because of contractions, reductions, linking.
Sometimes the speaker implies something but does not overtly express it. You guess the meaning from the context though the speaker does not overtly express what he or she wants. You lose track if you concentrate on each and every word the speaker says, especially if you need to do it for a long period. As a result you may understand the meaning of almost all the words but do not get the gist.
You do not distinguish the important information from the unimportant. The subject may not be familiar to you because you are not familiar with a particular culture or are unaware of the lifestyle of a particular society. It is not a bad idea to know the purpose of your listening. But you may form opinions about the speaker even before he or she speaks. You may make assumptions about the subject to be spoken about and draw conclusions even before the speaker speaks.
This may block your mind and as a result you will not be able to listen. You may refuse to listen to something, which goes against your ideas and beliefs.
You hear only what you want to hear. Ineffective written communication may overturn everything fair intended in the content of message. Barriers in written communication entirely distort the content of the message sent and results in communication breakdown.
It is therefore essential to cope with the barrier in written communication in order to ensure that effective communication is established. People who are adept in spoken and written language should be given top priority at the time of recruitment in any organization. Proper training for enhancing effective communicating skills of the newcomers and also of the existing employees should be ensured regularly.
Simplicity, lucidity and correctness should be emphasized in all organizational written communication. Always edit and spellcheck the content before its finalization. Focus on what the message really intends to communicate; avoid dilly dallying with topic for correspondence.
0コメント