People lacking in communication skills are likely to have difficulty in both social and professional interactions. Can it be developed or enhanced with time and practice?
When we are born the brain of each individual is wired in a unique way that distinguish one person from another- this is the gifted part- which differentiate our nature and behavior, differentiating one from other. There are other skills which we develop and or enhance as we grow. Communication is a skill we can learn, develop, and practice, for instance we must learn it from different people in our social and professional network and their communication preferences. Then we develop our skills to adapt and match others in order to influence and leave impact. Lastly, we practice the skill to own it and make it part of our day-to-day life. Following this learning cycle throughout our life will shape our style and craft our communication power, influence, and leadership.
There are many useful processes that can and are used to build an effective communications plan. These can certainly be taught and learned. With proper training and planning, a good communications plan will keep the team and other stakeholders up to speed on the progress of activities, processes and outcomes. It facilitates excellent decisions and promotes productivity.
There is of course, another side to this equation. When communicating on a more human level, we are often required to add trust, give a solid feeling of competency and build loyalty. This is not so easy to teach or to learn. It can be practiced quite effectively, but some of it rises from within and can only be labeled as a talent. Strong communication skills can be developed in some people with time and practice, and communications skills can be improved in all people with time and practice, including those blessed with good communications skills from the beginning.
There are some people who are terrified of communicating to a group. Similarly, there are some people who struggle to put together two coherent sentences. It is a responsibility of a project manager to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the project team members, and ensure not to put right people in right positions.
| A Real Scenario James was the project manager, he was quite skilled at written communications, and possessed strong verbal communication skills, but was hesitant when presenting in person to a group of people and outside vendors, resulting in stammer. On telephonic conversations, he was extremely polished, and his mastery of the product and related details was evident. Max, his reporting manager, knew that the meetings attended by him remotely were quite beneficial.His other reportee Anne was very talented, smart, extrovert, and technically very sound. But she had, some erroneous communications habits (a lot of “likes” plus little attention to spelling and grammar in emails). Clearly the potential was there, but without recognizing these as “flags” to senior executives, she would not know that these habits were hampering her career progression. Max worked with James and Anne on their weak parts. He asked James to practice for presentations in empty rooms or in front of a mirror. He worked on it by putting his best efforts.He explained Anne to understand why it is important to adapt a better communications style so as to enhance her career growth (at least in the current organization). She did not take it personally, and instead, took the challenge to improve in these areas. So communication skill is a skill which can be developed. A person can be gifted with a lot of potential but unless he/she develops the skill to utilize them it won’t produce much output. |
If you are aware of the challenges related to specific communications activities (e.g. presenting to executives, providing constructive feedback), then a combination of experiential and formal training options can be defined to help you improve. Do your homework and knowing your subject matter leads to confidence when you have to communicate with others. Practicing relaxation techniques is a good idea. Take a deep breaths if you are nervous, believe me it really works.
In addition, communication skills helps in career growth, & communication skills strength on resumes boosts your level of ace the interviews too. Moreover you can go through how to improve communication skill in online medium to upskill yourself to perform in the today’s competitive world scenarios.
While good communication comes more easily to some people it is definitely an acquired skill. As mentioned above, there are many different forms of communication and each requires some specialized skills. There is no doubt that anyone with a desire can become an effective communicator. It is just a matter of how much effort it will take. More for some less for others.
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