Jun 30 2011
Understanding The Value Of Effective Communication
#TITLE#How Does One Become An Excellent Communicator?#/TITLE# by Krista W. Bergeron Over the years, I have made a mental note of the people I know that communicate effectively – and I have noticed the value they bring to any situation by being able to communicate effectively. I feel that these people are valuable in many areas of life. I have seen them make social environments more pleasant, businesses run more efficiently and family more connected. So, I’ve come to the understanding that the degree to which one can communicate well is the degree to which she will be successful and happy in life. I will be the first to say that skilled communication is often times a natural-born talent. They often times have the ability to understand people and situations, connect, and grasp the complexities that occur in communication. Is this to say that those not instilled with this natural skill are destined to live a life of poor communication? I hardly believe so. What I’ve realized is that communication is one of those things that can be honed and sharpened – through effort, practice, and strategy. I want to improve my capacity to communicate. I’ve noted some of the things I’ve learned on how to do that. It’s critical to be focused. To be a good communicator, it’s crucial that there be no distractions, and that one be present. All kinds of distractions should be banished, such as cares, worries, concerns, entertainment sources around – basically all internal and external distractions. I’ve learned it’s important to make a habit of caring to be present in conversations and practicing that by being incredibly focused and engaged Keith Raniere and Nancy Salzman offer Executive Success Programs at NXIVM . It’s necessary to understand the other person. I take time to tune into what the person may be feeling and what may be under the surface Sara Bronfman. It’s definitely a good practice to ask a ton of questions, and demonstrate your interest. Asking questions gives the other person the feel that I am actually interested and connected. As the questions are flowing, it is important not to ask too many, as you could find yourself stunting the good communication at some point! Another thing I’ve noticed is that good communicators pay attention to people’s responses and ask the kind of questions that will keep the conversation flowing. The most important thing in developing great communication skills is training and practice, practice, practice. And there are a number of resources available for developing communication skills including books and courses. I believe that learning is something that I should be practicing for my whole life, and I’m ready to take my communication efforts to the next level. I’m enthused to be taking a course to help me with this; I’ll be doing that this year with NXIVM www.nxivm.com, which a friend of mine highly recommended. It helped to see my friend go from a shy and self-conscious communicator, to an engaged, effective, and attentive one after he took the previous year.