Putting Communication First
30/05/2006

Communication break-down, getting your wires crossed, talking at cross-purposes - all common experiences to most of us and all to do with problems in communication. Given that employees typically spend over 75% of their time in interpersonal situations, it is hardly surprising that the root cause of many an organisational problem is poor communications.

Successful communication is an integral part of any group - whether this be a school class or a corporation, and whether at the interpersonal, inter-group, intra-group, organisational, or external level - and yet it is so easy to get wrong.

Learning about communication from an early age however, can make things easier later on, says Jeff Burns of Fifth Dimension. "Teaching good communication to youngsters gives them a chance to become good communicators in later life, and face fewer problems in both their leisure and professional pursuits as a result," he says. "Communication skills developed at a young age are also far more likely to be retained than those picked up later on."

Jeff has a wealth of experience in promoting the importance of communication in a work environment, to both children and adults. He outlines some of the factors he considers to be most important to effective communication:

Listening
When people think of communication, often the first thing they will think of is talking. "I always like to remember that we have two ears but only one mouth, so should listen more than talk when communicating! Listening is key to so many work situations such as interviewing candidates, and solving employee problems, so it pays to remember that communication is much more a dialogue than a transmission, a two way process - not an opportunity for employees to unleash incoherent diatribes on unsuspecting colleagues!"

By making listening a priority during communication, both parties benefit equally from the exchange of information. A good listener stops talking, makes eye contact with the speaker, listens openly, asks for opinions and more detail where appropriate, checks they have understood correctly and responds in an interested way.

Attending to non-verbal communication
According to Jeff it is estimated that at least 80% of all communication is non verbal. "This means that the verbal part of the message we receive in fact means less than the non-verbal part. From an early age, we all learn that a person can say one thing and communicate something entirely different through their tone of voice, gestures, facial expressions and use of body language, and it is these non-verbal aspects that the receiver generally picks up on." If people communicate calmly and with gestures that correspond to the message, they can avoid sending mixed signals, which can create tension and distrust.

Sending clear messages
"Being clear is key to successful communication, both in terms of passing on and receiving information. A good way to ensure clarity is for both parties to repeat messages back to each other, either verbally or perhaps by email in a work environment. This allows misunderstandings to be acknowledged and addressed at an early stage before any work is undertaken and potential problems arise. Another way in which to promote clear exchange of information is to encourage open communication amongst pupils or employees. An open approach to talking, listening and emailing will help to clear up any misunderstandings."

Respect
"Respecting the value of communication is of course important, but respecting others is perhaps the most important part of communication; appreciating the value of colleagues and classmates is essential to earning respect for yourself, and an environment in which people are mutually respectful is conducive to fluent communication."

Jeff goes on to outline the importance of developing communication skills at an early age.

"We place a great deal of emphasis on communication in our work with schools," continues Jeff. "We try to convey to the pupils that each and every one of us relies on effective communication in every aspect of our lives, to make ourselves clearly understood, and that understanding this concept now in the school environment will be key to their success in later life, not only in terms of job interviews and career aspirations but also in the relationships they will hold."

Jeff concludes: "Our training sessions for pupils offer a range of skills and values that are being encouraged by the government and stand them in good stead for future exam preparations, university applications, interviews with prospective employers and throughout their working life. Fundamental to their futures as a whole however, is the ability to communicate effectively, without which they stand little chance of leading the full and satisfying lives that each of them deserves."


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