Overheard in the Cincinnati Airport Last Sunday…
In annoyance, a father takes an iPhone out of his son's hand and says "Let me talk to her." He then proceeds, in a loud phone voice to say, "This is totally unacceptable. You have texted and left a message. What we have here is a total breakdown in communication. Text him back and tell him to acknowledge that he received your last message." I did laugh a bit at the irony. Then I looked around and saw over half of the people in the boarding area on the phone.
This got me thinking about all of the ways that we now have to communicate with each other. You need two hands to count just the electronic ways. As I think back to my last two months of training, I realize that the sessions I have been asked to do the most have not been Thriving in Chaos. They have been, Effective Communication, Assertive Communication and Conflict and Confrontation. I find it very curious that even with the boom in technological communication devices, we as human beings are not really communicating that much more effectively with each other than before we had the latest and greatest new phone/pad/blackberry thing.
When you learn to communicate effectively, the method in which you communicate becomes immaterial. Hints to help you be a better communicator include:
- Think about what you want to say and to whom you are saying it.
- Listen carefully to others who communicate with you.
- Take some time before you respond to highly emotional communications.
- Use language appropriate to the receiver.
- Be respectful to the other person.
- State your needs clearly and do not generalize.
Sharpening your communication skills will reduce your chaos and increase your relationships with others.
Happy Communicating!
Tracy
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Tracy Knofla
High Impact Training
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