Communication Problems

Communication Problems There are a lot of training programs that purport to show you how to avoid communication problems, but I don’t believe there’s any such thing as a communication “problem.” Many managers blame all kinds of performance and productivity problems on a failure to communicate, but there is always a deeper cause.  Successful communication is based on two things: intent and understanding.

1. Think it through first. Sometimes, it requires some advance thinking and planning. When I needed eggs and didn’t know the local language, I started taking an empty egg carton to the market. It works every time. 2. Take charge. If you want to succeed, you have to remember that it’s up to you.

3. Don’t quit. If you fail to get what you want from others, it’s to your disadvantage, not theirs. It comes down to this: you quit, you lose. Some small experi-ences assisting people with severe learning disabilities sharpened my own communication skills considerably.

4. Be creative. If you want to communicate and be understood, you can make it happen. It might take a lot of pointing or other hand gestures and sometimes drawing pictures, but if you’re willing to persist, the other person will eventually get it.

5. Be vulnerable. Laugh at yourself and admit your ignorance or incompetence. Communication always re-quires patience, willingness to persist, and good hu-mor. Self-effacing honesty, expressed with laughter, can be quite endearing. It also breaks the tension. 

6. Try to make friends. The second time is always easier. People will remember you if you fumble through your request and then express appreciation for their help. Go into every encounter with the intention of making friends who will welcome you at the next meeting.  

You are the medium and the message. Think about what you want to communicate and what you want the people important to you to remember. Communication is a learned behavior. You can get as good at it as you want to be. The tips in this guide will help.  

Communicate Authority and Leadership Management always involves imposition of will: The man-ager wants a specific employee or group of employees to per-form specific tasks effectively, and expresses this desire in the form of verbal or written requests or orders.

Communicate Confidence A manager’s effectiveness is directly connected to his or her ability to instill confidence in others. The appreciative smile of someone who’s just been told by the boss “Nice job!” for the second or third time, and a positive and enthusiastic attitude. We communicate confidence by using our communication skills, providing feedback on performance, and engaging in relationship building. 

Communicate with Each Other As you can imagine, feedback interviews with employees and other kinds of information-gathering spark real communication and dialogue among workers who might really be discussing the work they do for the first time. Most of us go into situations in which work routines are already established, so we just do what we are told or are shown. What’s to think about? But when we are given permission to think about and actually change routines, something fundamental shifts in our relationship with the work and our co-workers.