Good and effective communications skills are essential in the work environment, especially if you want to be successful in your occupation. Whenever anyone ineffectively communicates with another person, whatever is or has been spoken and heard can quickly become a misunderstanding that can then turn into frustration, anger, or even complete disaster.

Communication is a process in which we all convey our inner thoughts, our intentions and our objectives. In this process each of us must take responsibility for what we say and in so doing must communicate as accurately and clearly as we possibly can. However, communication is not only about what we say to another. It’s also about what we hear another saying to us, also known as listening. Sometimes, in the work environment, listening can become more important than talking.

People who do not communicate effectively will find themselves struggling in their careers, as well as relationships outside the work environment. The good news is that communication skills are a learned behaviour, thus making them something that we can improve on through learning. But like most things in life it takes practice and some work to better ourselves. Listed below are four things each of us can do to improve our communication skills.

Know the “what” and “why”

Many people talk without knowing the purpose or intention of their message, much less knowing who they are talking to, and those hearing it often become annoyed with those that do it. Before speaking know what you would like to say and know why you want to say it. Also, know who you want to say it to. Most of us talk differently to our boss than we do our co-worker.

Know the “how”

In the current world of international business many workers can easily find themselves interacting with people from different cultural and situational backgrounds. These factors need to be considered before speaking, as saying something might not be offensive to one person, but saying that same thing to another can have the opposite effect.

A key point in the “how” of speaking is to make and keep eye contact with the person you are talking to. When we look the other person in the eye that helps inspire confidence and trust with the person we are talking to. Also, have a relaxed body posture, keeping your hands comfortable to your sides and speak in a non-adversarial tone without judgement. That means keep the “you” statements out of the conversation unless you are instructing or complimenting them.

Listen

There is nothing worse than having a conversation with someone who doesn’t listen. As you speak to someone look for the cues that signal that they have something to say, then pause and listen to them. One of the worst things we can do as communicators is to ramble on when someone would like to participate in the conversation. No one likes a one-sided conversation.