When planning any significant form of communication, whether it be written (such as a thorough email) or verbal & visual (such as a presentation), you may benefit by considering the content, what you want to say, and thinking about how you dispense the information to others.
Achieving clarity & intention in communication can be challenging, especially as people will interpret messages based on how they view you and the message itself. When communication is executed well with a focused intention it can yield many rewards. It may be worth you thinking about the following question:
- How much thought do you put into your approach to communication, whether it be spoken, non-verbal, written (typed), listening, or visual?
Breaking it down further by asking the following questions may be useful:
Verbal
- Do the words you choose help you achieve your desired outcome?
- Are you clearly understood by others?
- Do you expect people to understand you first time?
- Do you repeat messages for others if required?
- Are you prepared to reword messages to assist with clarity for others?
Non-Verbal
- Are you aware how your body language, facial expressions, eye contact and appearance influence your intended message?
- Do you choose to manage your NVC effectively?
- Do you understand how the interpretation of your NVC from others impacts on how they understand your message?
- Are you prepared to adapt your NVC to assist others?
Written (Typed) Communication
- Do you pay close attention to what you write / type?
- Do feel your words are clear or could they be easily misunderstood?
- Are you prepared to evolve your written (typed) communication to help others understand your message?
Listening
- Do you ever anticipate what someone is going to say, or do you listen with intent?
- Do you listen for the other person?
- Are you prepared to listen for the person many times?
Visual
- Do you specifical choose visual formats such as pictures, graphs, objects and other visual facets based on your audience?
- Are you prepared to change visual formats to suit the requirements of others?
Overall
Being deliberate in how you communicate can be very useful in helping you achieve desired outcomes and it may be worthwhile in thinking about the following:
- Do you feel you are consistently deliberate when you communicate?
- Are you prepared to practice being deliberate when you communicate?
Options
Make a choice to assess how you communicate and become more deliberate in ensuring you remain focused on providing clarity linked to your intended message.
Or
Change nothing if this is something you already do or not interested in.
