Effective Communication at Work - a Powerful Tool for Professional Success - Essay Example

Effective Communication At Work: A Powerful Tool For Professional Success Introduction Personality is a dynamic combination of many behavioral aspects like emotions, thoughts, experiences opinions and nature. Behavior of man can be defined as those actions which can be observed by others, have a reason behind it and which has a beginning and end ( Wilson & Dobson 2008). A person can create his identity by the uniqueness of his ideas, his thoughts, his achievements and his ability to be productive. At the same time, it is extremely essential for a person to let people know what he is thinking and how he is perceiving things around him. For a successful, harmonious and productive relationship, what is necessary is the ability to communicate the thoughts intelligently, transparency in interactions and a showing understanding towards feelings of others. If a person has these three qualities in his communication pattern then he will be able to gain trust of his colleagues and subordinates, achieve the professional goals easily and create an energetic and enthusiastic environment at work place. Trust, positive environment and openness in the communication are the most important qualities for a positive and productive development of both, the personal and the professional life. Principles of effective communication Communication is a process which utilizes the energy of a person. It requres both, the intellectual and the emotional involvement. Communication can be called ‘effective’ when the idea that is being shared is based on the facts and relevant information (Singla, 2009, p.88). Exchanging the ideas among various people of the organization to achieve a goal of the organization is the major aim of the communication at work. However, if the exchange of the ideas does not take place effectively, then the value and the aim of the exchange is not achieved. Hence, to achieve the aim of communication, it is necessary to understand the principles that make the communication effective. Following are the principles that help in making the interaction between the sender and the receiver in the communication process successful(Singla, 2009, p.88): 1. Principle of clarity in ideas: The clarity of thought and ideas is extremely important when communicating. If the person knows clearly in his mind as to what he wants to say (Singla, 2009, p.88), he will be able to communicate the idea effectively. The confusion regarding the content and the unclear idea can create misunderstanding in the mind of the receiver. To avoid problems arising out of confusion and unclear communication, one should be very clear about the aim of the communication. 2. Principle of Appropriate Language: Not everyone is proficient with high vocabulary. Keeping in mind the fact that very few people understand the real meaning of difficult words and that not everyone is comfortable with the language which is full of technical words (Singla, 2009, p.88), one should make use of simples language when explaining a particular idea. The message relating to technical topic, if explained in layman’s language, makes the communication effective, fast and productive. At the same time, words having various meanings should be avoided at the work as the different receiver can interpret it differently and hence, the purpose of the communication can be hampered (Singla, 2009, p.88). 3. Principle of Attention: It is extremely important for the sender to make sure that the people who are receiving his messages are understanding it correctly (Singla, 2009, p.88). If a manager is giving an update on the process functioning or an update on next week’s plan, he should ask his team if they got the dates, time, aim and other such aspects of the discussion topic clearly. Merely passing the information is not a sign of effective communication. 4.Principle of Consistency Every organization has certain rules and regulations regarding the communication pattern (Singla, 2009, p.88). According to the principle of consistency, it is extremely important for the employees of an organization to maintain consistency in following the objectives, procedures and processes of the communication (Singla, 2009, p.88). 5. Principle of Adequacy The communication to be effective, it is very important to give the complete information to the receiver (Singla, 2009, p.88). The sender should see to it that the receiver of the information has go the complete information of the topic being discussed and nothing is left out (Singla, 2009, p.88). In the world of business, less information or more information than necessary is harmful (Singla, 2009, p.88). Moreover, the one who is giving the information should know how much information has to be downloaded depending on the ability of a receiver (Singla, 2009, p.88). If there is an employee who gets nervous if he is downloaded with lot of information, then giving lot of information to that employee not only means waste of time but also means decreasing the productivity of that employee by making him nervous. Hence, the principle of adequacy says that for the communication to be effective, one has to understand not only ‘how’ much information is to be given but also to ‘who’ it is to be given(Singla, 2009, p.88). 6. Principle of proper time This is one of the most important aspect of the communication. Delays and procrastination are the major negative aspects of communication. The timing of the communication has to be appropriate and according to the need (Singla, 2009, p.88). The communication is completely useless if the message does not reach the intended audience on time (Singla, 2009, p.88). This principle of effective communication not only affects the quality of the work but also the relationship between the employees. For example, if a person in a team is not comfortable with some aspect of the way the team is working, then he should let his colleagues and his boss know about it. If he remains silent about it, then he not only start building a negative attitude towards the team but also loses a chance of getting an explanation about that particular aspect, which might clear his doubts about that aspect. Hence, communication becomes effective when it is done on time(Singla, 2009, p.88). 7. Principle of informality: Maintaining formality in the communication is very important at work place. However, what is more important is to adopt a communication style that helps in solving problems quickly, effectively and in harmony of the team. This becomes possible only when the seriousness and the formality in the communication style is removed and a light, open and friendly style is adopted (Singla, 2009, p.88). If the meetings and the communication patterns are to formal, then the employees inhibit from contributing their suggestions and ideas about the topic discussed. With the informal environment, everyone feels respected and valued as the feeling of ‘superiority’ and ‘inferiority’ is not there. Hence, they become open to accept and give suggestions. The above given principles are the important principles for the effective communication at work. Barriers in interpersonal communication Interpersonal communication can be defined as, “the process of message transaction between people to create and sustain shared meaning” (West & Turner, 2006, p.10). In today’s modern world, work environment consists of people coming from different ethnic background, speaking different languages and following different personal values. The coming together of people from different culture adds richness and variety of skill set to the organization. However, at the same time, it also increases the chances of misunderstandings created due to ineffective communication. For communication to be effective at work, it is extremely important to understand the communication aspects that can work as barrier. The barriers in the interpersonal communication can be of different nature like environmental, emotional, psychological, physical etc. The barriers are as follows: 1. Strong Emotions: Emotions play an important role in interpersonal communication. Negative emotions such as anger, frustration, anxiety, guilt and irritability blocks the creativity and openness in the communication and hence, can hamper the effectiveness of the communication process(Mental Illness Fellowship, 2005, p.1). 2. Indecision: Uncertainty and ambivalence about the idea and the thought that is to be communicated also works as a barrier in the effectiveness of the communication (Mental Illness Fellowship, 2005, p.1). It creates a negative impression on the listener as they perceive the speaker’s personality as weak and indecisive. 3. Environment: The environmental factors affect the effectiveness of the communication to great extent. Level of stress, strain in a relationship, rigid rules at work, strong level of pressure at work and aggressive behavior by people at superior level hampers the effectiveness of the communication (MIF,2005,P.1). All these environmental factors create a block in the mind of people involved in the interaction. The most important barrier is the vibes that people get at work. If the vibes from the management or the seniors are negative and aggressive, then the employees do not communicate openly. It restricts their expression and hence, also hampers the growth and the productivity. The strain created due to the feelings of jealousy and the power struggle among the employees also work as great barrier in interpersonal communication (Jenkins, 2007). In the work environment where gossip, jealousy, stereotyping and bias are allowed without any action, the employees who are victim of these things feel de-motivated and lose interest in their work. This makes them to keep their true feelings and thoughts to themselves. This in turn, hampers the communication level at the work place. 4. Misreading the aspects of communication People from different ethnic background have different ways of interpreting the tone and the body language. For example, in the western countries, people make eye contact intermittently to show that they are interested in the discussion, while in Japan, eye contact is interpreted as invasion of privacy and sign of rude behavior (Wang, n.d.). Hence, looking at the dramatic difference in the way a certain body language is interpreted in different culture, one can understand that there are many chances of miscommunication in the cross-cultural working environment (Jenkins, 2007). This can hamper the effectiveness of the communication. Strategies for active, critical and empathetic listening. An effective and productive communication is possible only when people are ready to listen to what others are saying. Empathetic listening means listening with empathy. Empathy is defined as “an ability to imagine another person’s point of view, to project yourself into another person’s situation in an effort to understand his or her thoughts and feelings” (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). Hence, listening with empathy involves a complete emotional and mental involvement from the listener. The following are the qualities of a good listener: 1. Empathetic listener concentrates not only on the intellectual idea and thoughts that another person is conveying but also concentrates on the emotions and the feelings that are behind the thoughts and ideas of the speaker (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). 2. In other forms of listening, people listen to what others are saying with the intention of making a decision or gaining some information from the speaker (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). Hence, the listener is important while the speaker acts as a means of information. However, in empathetic listening, the intention of listening is to understand the problems and concerns of the person who is speaking (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). The intention of listening in empathetic listening is to solve the problem that the person is facing by understand the feelings and emotions that lie behind the problem (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). The goal of the listener is to go beyond the intellectual aspect of the problem and reach the root cause of the problems, which usually lies in the emotional structure of the speaker (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). 3. The empathetic listener should not pass any judgment during the conversation (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). When a person who is depressed or angry is talking about his problem, the worst thing to do is to pass a judgment (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). If a listener passes a judgment then the speaker thinks that the listener simply does not care for him. This makes the speaker feel that he is not important to the listener. 4. Also, when person talks about his problem, he is not looking for a solution. What he is looking for is someone who can listen to him with patience and gives him assurance in a positive way (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). If the listener start giving an advice, then the speaker feels put off and may stop talking (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76).The job of the empathetic listener is to build confidence in a speaker so that he can create a solution himself (Kratz,D. & Kratz, A., 1995, p.76). In this way, empathetic listening is a device which can help the managers and the team members to solve each others problems and make the work place a harmonious and peaceful place to work. This not only builds rapport but also increases the productivity and quality of the work. The organizations, by developing the effective communication skills of their employees, can make work place environment fun, energetic, positive and productive. Effective communication not only improves the professional life but also makes the relationships in personal life easy and loving. Hence, effective communication is a very important aspect in people’s lives. References Jenkins, M. (2007). Barriers to Effective Communication at work. Retrieved from http://www.alliancetac.com/index.html?PAGE_ID=265 Kratz, D.M. & Kratz, A.R. (1995). Effective Listening Skills. New York: Tata McGraw Hill. Mental Illness Fellowship. (2005). Effective Communication. Retrieved from http://esvc000144.wic027u.server-eb.com/pdfs/Effective%20Communications.pdf Singla, R.K. (2009). Business Management: Semester-ii. New Delhi: V.K. Enterprises. Wang, S,. (n.d.). Body Language Across Cultures - Medhunters Medical Community. Retrieved from http://www.medhunters.com/articles/bodyLanguageAcrossCultures.html West, R. & Turner, L.H. (2006). Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage learning. Wilson, S & Dobson M 2008, Goal Setting: How to Create an Action Plan and Achieve Your Goals, AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn Read More