Communication is a learned skill. Most people are born with the physical ability to talk, but we must learn to speak well and communicate effectively. Speaking, listening, and our ability to understand verbal and nonverbal meanings are skills we develop in various ways. We learn basic communication skills by observing other people and modeling our behaviors based on what we see. We also are taught some communication skills directly through education, and by practicing those skills and having them evaluated. Communication as an academic discipline relates to all the ways we communicate, so it embraces a large body of study and knowledge.
The communication discipline includes both verbal and nonverbal messages. Barriers to Effective Communication Workplace communication is not easy. This is a place where you meet people from different walks of life and also from different cultural background. Language is one of the major barriers to effective communication. Communication is a process by which you convey your message to someone or a group of people. And if the message is conveyed clearly and unambiguously, then it is known as effective communication. In effective communication, the message you had send would reach the receiver with very little distortion.
However, a communication becomes successful only if the receiver understands what the sender is trying to convey. When your message is not clearly understood you should understand that you are facing a barrier to communication. Barriers to effective communication could cause roadblocks in your professional and personal life and it could be one of the major hurdles in achieving your professional goals. Barriers to Effective Communication An effective communication barrier is one of the problems faced by many organizations.
Many social psychologists opine that there is 50% to 70% loss of meaning while conveying the messages from a sender to a receiver. They estimate there are four basic places where communication could be interpreted wrongly. A few barriers of effective communication in an organization are given below. Physical Barriers – One of the major barriers of communication in a workplace is the physical barrier. Physical barriers in an organization includes large working areas that are physically separated from others. Other distractions that could cause a physical barrier in an organization are the environment, background noise
Language – Inability to converse in a language that is known by both the sender and receiver is the greatest barrier to effective communication. When a person uses inappropriate words while conversing or writing, it could lead to misunderstanding between the sender and a receiver. Emotions – Your emotions could be a barrier to communication if you are engrossed in your emotions for some reason. In such cases, you tend to have trouble listening to others or understanding the message conveyed to you. A few of the emotional interferences include hostility, anger, resentfulness and fear.
Lack of Subject Knowledge – If a person who sends a message lacks subject knowledge then he may not be able to convey his message clearly. The receiver could misunderstand his message, and this could lead to a barrier to effective communication. Stress – One of the major communication barriers faced by employees in most of the organization is stress. When a person is under immense stress, he may find it difficult to understand the message, leading to communication distortion. At the time of stress, our psychological frame of mind depends on our beliefs, experiences, goals and values.
Thus, we fail to realize the essence of communication. The above-mentioned barriers to effective communication are considered as filters of communications. You can overcome the barriers to communication through effective and active listening. Ways to Improve Communication Skills: Listen and observe. If you have really poor communication skills and can’t seem to get any word across, be it at your work place or even with regards to your personal relationships, you must always remember you need to observe those people who communicate effectively.
Look and observe those people around you who make easy and effective conversations. This should give you an insight and an understanding that should open up new ways for effective communication skills. Communication is not just about speaking effectively and in an impressive manner. If you are looking out for ways to improve your communication skills then remember you also need to be a good listener. This is one factor that is so often overlooked. Whenever you listen to the person opposite you, remember you need to take time to think before you pass any judgment on what is being said.
Always remember to take a few moments before you respond to anything. Think about your positive points when you are about to start off on a great conversation. This will help you overcome the initial hiccups especially if you are going to give a speech before a very large audience. Having a sense of humor helps to make any conservation light and fun to be in! Develop your sense of humor and use it as an effective way to improve your communication skills. Do note one important thing in such cases. Always remember you must not hurt the sentiments of others in any possible way.
If you wish for ways to improve communication skills, develop a love for reading; it could be books or even the newspapers. A well-read person can have loads of intelligent things to talk about. Avoid thinking that what you say is always right. This may create a certain barrier beforehand in any conversation. Listen to the other viewpoints before you judge anything. This will help you to assess the situation better. Rethink about the ways you are framing your sentences. Ways to improve communication skills would also need you to frame your sentence in a better manner to avoid offending the person.
Sometimes you may reply in such a way that it may seem to make the other person feel aggravated towards the way you speak. Remember, at work, even if you are displeased, sometimes an effective manner of speech can help you to get better results rather than yelling your head off about the same. Sporting the right kind of body language can also help you to improve your communication skills. Having a good conversation can turn to be more effective when you combine it with the right posture. Maintain eye contact when you speak.
Sit and stand in an erect position and have a firm handshake. All these factors are also very necessary for effective conversations. A polite manner of conversing can help you improve your communication skill and also earn the respect of others. The manner in which you convey any message across can help you to impress people more effectively if done in a polite way. Another way to improve communication skills would be to get other people interested in your conversation as well. This will help them to open up and you can have a great time talking about various topics.
Ask questions that would urge others to speak as well. Remember, that having good communication skills is not only about talking all the time, it is also about how you get others interested enough to participate in the conversation with you. Thus we can see how effective communication skills help one to connect with others in every walk of their lives. This would in turn help you to build successful relationships that would create a feeling of harmony and also increase productivity at work.
