Don’t use words too big for the subject. Don’t say infinitely when you mean very; otherwise, you’ll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. – C.S. Lewis
Most of my posts are prompted by conversations with my clients through coaching. The need to write about an issue is compelling when it begins to bother me for days. Lately, conversing with more analytical people expressed their desire to enhance their emotional intelligence and subsequently their soft skills. The truth is there is nothing ‘soft’ about soft skills.
These are skills that need to be learned and nourished throughout your lifetime.
In the midst of it all, my eye caught the quote above from C.S. Lewis. Being from the academic world, C.S. Lewis probably realized the importance of simple communication even in his time. A little bit of research on the genius revealed that he was a master when it came to communication. A very simple suggestion caught my attention; the responsibility of both the speaker and the listener! Who would have thought communication comes with responsibility! Lewis suggests that the speaker must convey the message with clarity and accuracy and the receiver must listen and interpret it accordingly. This exchange is crucial when it comes to communication.
A story that I came across while researching Lewis is that Lewis’ father was a poor communicator and once had gone through Lewis’ private notes without his permission, an action that could have easily been avoided if he had communicated with his son about the concerns he had. This act led to Lewis not trusting his father and meticulously clearing his pockets before he entered his home.
A great lesson that can be taken from Lewis’s story, is that many unwanted incidents that happen in organizations can be avoided with effective communication.
- Although many managerial roles are required to have a proper flow of communication if the meetings are not done effectively, it becomes a futile and uneconomical use of time.
- Most of us do not communicate for others to understand but for us to simply speak, we forget that the words we spoke must be useful in the sense that the addressee understands the message, even in an organizational setting.
- This means when we make presentations or have meetings the content must be easily understandable to the people it is intended for. The use of fancy language to impress the crowd must be avoided as let us be honest they will not be impressed if they do not understand.
What impact can effective communication have on the employees?
- Saves time and cost: Many organizations conduct meeting upon meetings but if the communication has not been effective, where there was responsibility by both parties to convey the message effectively and active listening by the listener, then the time used for this has been futile.
- Most organizations communicate to achieve their goal or action plan. Effective communication helps reach the goal faster through a better relationship between team members and monitoring misunderstanding of the message.
- Inclusiveness through effective communication also makes the employees feel engaged thus boosting morale and satisfaction.
Hamna Siddique is an Executive and leadership coach focusing on behavioral factors that influence success at work. Email: ha***********@go********.llc. |https://hamnasiddique.com| ©2021 Goldbridge Coaching LLC |All Rights Reserved|
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