Your voice is the most important strategic tool you have. When communication is good, we make meaningful connections with our employees and clients to accomplish great things! When communication is bad, relationships break down and careers stall.
A strong leadership presence relies heavily on possessing effective communication skills. But before you can develop those skills, you must first understand what communication skills to avoid like the proverbial plague:
1. Not Listening
Greek Sage and Stoic philosopher Epictetus is famous for saying, “We were born with two ears and one mouth for a reason, so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” That is sage advice we should definitely listen to!
Effective communication isn’t a one-way street but a two-way dialogue. Unfortunately, listening is not a skill that is often taught.
To be a good listener, you must first understand that listening is not a passive activity. Hearing is passive and almost accidental. You can’t help but hear the sounds around you; sounds like lawnmowers, cellphones, traffic, etc. But most of us have trained our ears to ignore all these sounds. Unfortunately, we often hear other people but don’t genuinely listen to what they are saying.
Corporate communication skills require you to actively listen to what others are saying. So, try to give your full attention to the person speaking to you. If you notice you become distracted, bring your mind back to what the person is saying. By practicing good listening, it will become natural to you.
2. Being Vague or Unclear
Without clarity, communication is anything but effective. Just as a TV without a screen is fairly useless (except maybe as a giant paperweight), your words without thought can’t possibly get the job done.
One of the most effective communication skills is clarity. So, when talking with others, whether on stage or off, think before you begin to speak. Make sure you know exactly what you are trying to convey and choose your words wisely.
When communicating via written word, read over your text before publishing that blog post or sending that email to ensure you’ve gotten the right message across. And don’t forget to proofread!
3. Not Knowing Your Audience
How can you be sure you are sharing the right message if you don’t know your audience? And it doesn’t matter whether it’s an audience of one or an audience of 300. If you don’t understand who you are speaking to and what their needs and problems are, you simply can’t be an effective communicator.
To understand your audience, ask yourself a few questions:
- Why is my topic important to them?
- What problems do they have?
- What solutions have they already tried?
- What motivates them?
- What scares them?
Once you know the answers to these, you can begin to craft relevant messaging that will educate, engage and inspire. Knowing your audience is one of the most important corporate communication skills you can possess.
4. Relying on Facts Only
As a leader, people look to you to share information that will help them transform their lives and/or business. And it is likely you’ll want to offer your audience some hard facts and data as a kind of proof. But understand that facts and data should be used only to support your main points; they should never make up your entire presentation.
And there’s a very good reason for this.
Imagine it’s summer, there is a raging thunderstorm outside and the power has gone out, so no watching TV or using any of digital technology. All you can do is read for the afternoon. Would you rather read a thrilling fiction novel or the encyclopedia? Most people would choose to spend their time reading a great story instead of a bunch of facts.
Always have two goals: share relevant and pertinent information that helps your audience in some way, and make sure you share it in a way that is engaging. In other words, make your presentation 75% thrilling novel and 25% encyclopedia. Remember, being a leader is about inspiring and motivating others to action, not boring them to death.
5. Using Unnecessary Jargon
Jargon has its place, but effective communication typically relies on clear and concise speech. Why litter the conversation or your presentation with a bunch of clichéd, inelegant and meaningless verbiage that makes understanding you next to impossible? While you may assume jargon makes you look intelligent, it actually makes it look like you are hiding behind a wall of nonsense. Just speak clearly and directly and with your audience in mind.
6. Using Body Language That Contradicts Your Words
There are two ways you communicate to others: through your words and though your body language. Many leaders spend time thinking about what it is they want to say to their team members and how they should say it, but very little time focused on their body language.
The problem is, if you aren’t aware of your body language, you may send conflicting signals to your team. You may, in fact, come across as standoffish. For instance, you may ask your team for honest feedback, and then stand there with chest puffed out and arms folded, sending the signal that you are NOT open to what others have to say.
Having a strong leadership presence does not mean acting like a bully. Remember, it’s important that you are always mindful of what your body is saying so that it doesn’t undermine the message you are trying to share.
7. Being Fake
When speaking to others, it’s natural to want to make a good impression, and you might be tempted to act in a manner you normally wouldn’t. Maybe you try telling a few jokes, even though you’re more of an introvert. Or maybe you try and come off like a smarty pants.
The thing is, human beings can smell fake from a thousand miles away. We’re like animals in that way. We might not understand what it is exactly about the other person that is putting us off, we just know we don’t like or trust them.
So, don’t be that person. Just be authentic and relatable. In fact, of all these tips, I would say being authentic is the most important one. When you have a true desire to help people with your knowledge and are genuine, you simply cannot lose.
These 7 tips will greatly increase the effectiveness of your leadership communication. Try 1 or all of them in the coming weeks to see which work best for you. You will be shocked, and pleasantly so, at how becoming a better communicator can positively impact your relationships with your employees and clients and eventually the bottom line!
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