Published on Dec 12, 2022
In today’s fast-paced workplace where people are on constant information overload, easily distracted and primarily focused on their own personal devices, managers need to adopt a new skillset to ensure that they communicate clearly and actually get things done. Effective management communication and influencing skills have never been more important, to not only help maintain productivity, but also to enhance team dynamics and improve staff retention.
There are two styles of communication: Inductive and Deductive. Inductive communicators tend to be analytical and technical thinkers. They always like to provide a lot of context, data and narrative in their communication. If you ask your inductive communicator ‘what time is it?’ they may start by telling you how the watch is made! This communication style can be very frustrating to the listener and often leads to tuning the speaker out.
Deductive communication is the polar opposite and is the style used by the press and media. It gets straight to the point and hits the headline. This is the style that managers and leaders need to use - it requires brevity, clarity and impact.
Another key aspect of excellent communication is to understand the effect you have on others. This means you need to develop clear messages and ensure they are targeted at the right audience. It also requires a strong personal presence with awareness of tone of voice and body language.
A study carried out by a team of social scientists at UCLA under the guidance of Dr. Albert Mehrabian found that in terms of trust and credibility verbal messages accounted for 7%, vocal for 38% and visual (body language) for 55% of your communication. A sober thought indeed!
First impressions really do count as do last impressions – we call this your wake. t’s the slipstream you leave behind when you walk out of a meeting.
Finally, a word on your Internal Coach. Most of us have a negative tape recorder in our brains which is constantly critical of our actions. We must learn to turn down its volume and instead activate our internal coaches that is helping us course correct and is an encouraging voice.
Great sports people, athletes and musicians know exactly how to do this. When a tennis player makes a losing shot they will quickly mentally regroup and coach themselves to remember to course correct next time.
As managers and leaders we can learn to do the same to ensure that we communicate, delegate and manage others effectively.
If you want to learn more about how managers can more effectively communicate, Susan Croft is hosting a fascinating two-day course on Effective Communication. Reserve your place here.
Published on Dec 12, 2022 by Susan Croft