Introduction
Source: https://www.blackdiamondnet.com/blog/how-to-improve-professional-communication-skills/
“How to Improve Communication Skills”. The other day, I got a call from one of my friends. We hadn’t spoken to each other for many years after the completion of our degrees. I was quite happy to hear her speak and wanted to find out how things were with her.
She sounded glum, upset, and frustrated.
With a little bit of persuasion, she told me that she had been let go from the company, due to poor professional oral communication skills. I was surprised to hear that, because she was a bright student, a very good orator, and had a strong command of her verbal skills as well.
I promised to help her out and come out of this problem. I sat down to immediately research some topics on the internet. I was quite surprised to come across content that most of us tend to ignore when it comes to our professional lives.
I have prepared this post, for that very reason. In this article, we will delve into some important Tips on How to Improve the Communication Skills of professionals. You will learn some simple, yet actionable strategies to improve your professional communication skills.
Why Are Communication Skills Important At Your Workplace?
Having solid communication skills at your workplace is extremely crucial. Your seniors, juniors, and colleagues, take your words seriously when you can communicate with them flawlessly. It is a bridge between you and others.
Through this bridge, thoughts, information, and emotions are given to each other. It could perhaps be a meeting with your seniors, a presentation with clients, or just an informal talk with colleagues, having robust corporate communications professional skills is commendable.
- It is the foundation of your career: Merely excelling in your tasks, may not get you noticed in your workplace. Communicating to others, about the nature of your tasks, affects your performance.
- Remote work: When you are doing remote work, then you may not come personally face-to-face with your manager, client, or colleagues. This is when proper communication through technology is required.
- Develop your client relationships: When you are working directly for clients, then it becomes even more important to communicate properly with them. This helps you garner more clients & projects.
- You can become a future leader: You can become a leader in the future when you can communicate with others about your work, plans, and other skills. Having the right set of professional communication skills is crucial for climbing the corporate ladder fast.
- Good team bonding: When you can communicate well, then you can become popular in your team. Your team members will appreciate you because you have it in you to collaborate on solutions, build good relationships, and optimize the flow of work.
Read our new article on “6 Ways To Sound Confident While Speaking In Public“.
10 Tips on How to Improve Communication Skills of Professionals
Effective professional communication can get you far in life. However, not every one of us is born with that gift. But, there are some proven methods by which you can become a powerful communicator with your seniors, colleagues, and juniors at your workplace.
Here are 10 ways to develop your professional communication in the workplace:-
1) Learn to listen properly
You have to learn to listen properly. Your communication is tremendously affected, when you don’t listen to what the other person is telling you. You may want to listen to understand what is being said so that you can hear everything that is being said.
2) Always speak to the point
A sign of a person with professional communication skills is that they speak to the point. They don’t go on & on with their talk. They keep it brief and concise. When they are talking, they keep an eye on the audience.
If the audience is not listening or getting bored, they put in a joke or say something interesting to gain back their interest. It is for both oral & written communication. So, it is best that you practice your speech once so that it can help you get to the point.
3) Understand your listeners well
In communication professional development, the main trick is to know your audience. Supposing you are speaking to workers under 30 years of age, then you may want to keep it accordingly.
If you use lengthy words, long terms, and so on, they are most likely not going to understand what you are trying to tell them. Likewise, when you are talking to seniors who are above 50 years of age, then you have to use the right language, tone, and words.
4) Use active voice
This is for those of you who frequently use technology to communicate at your workplace. When you are using tools or apps, then the other person must understand what you are trying to convey to them.
For an email writing professional the best way would be through active voice.
5) Use the right kind of body language
One of the main signs of using the right communication and professional skills would be using the right body language. Here, you are not communicating with words, but expressing yourself. This comes in handy when you are having a video call or conference with your manager or client.
6) Make sure to proofread
Proofreading your written content is polite, professional, and responsible. It shows that you respect the person’s time. It could be your clients, managers, colleagues, or juniors. When you are sending messages to your workplace, then please make it a point to proofread your content at least once.
7) Taking down the notes
Professional development for communications professionals highlights the importance of taking notes. It is an effective method because, at times, we may forget what was told during the meeting or conference.
8) Keep an eye on your tone
The most important communication skill for healthcare professionals is to keep an eye on your tone. When you are dealing with patients, and those who have come to you in pain, you may want to be polite with them.
You may not want to talk to them loudly, harshly, or rudely.
9) Have the right frame of mind
An effective teacher communication pointer would be having the right frame of mind. When you are tired, frustrated, or angry, then you may want to avoid talking to your colleagues or seniors. It can immensely hamper what you want to communicate.
10) Talk to them directly
If possible, talk to the person you mean to. This is the best way to avoid miscommunication with anybody. When you are working in a large firm or company, where there are hundreds of workers, then it is best to address the person directly. You do not want to pass on your message to somebody else.
Read our new article on “6 Ways To Sound Confident While Speaking In Public“.
Conclusion
There you go, these were some simple, but effective Tips on How to Improve the Communication Skills of professionals. Whether you are a leader, manager, or an employee, your communication skills can either make or break your career.
That is why, you may want to make it a point to develop and improve your communication skills. You can set the tone on how you want to communicate at your workplace. How you communicate in your workplace, can open doors for better career prospects as well.
Though learning effective communication skills requires time, the effort pays off. Effective communication skills can impact not only your professional, but personal life as well. We hope that you take our professional communication tips seriously.
Remember most successful leaders, managers, politicians, and people, have exceptional communication skills.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are professional communication skills?
Professional communication skills help you to communicate effectively and professionally. They are written, verbal, and digital forms of communication with your colleagues, manager, or boss. It also consists of different methods of writing, talking, and responding inside your workplace.
Why is professional communication important?
Professional communication is important for everybody in a work environment. It helps get the message across to everybody. There is no confusion with what is being said by the upper management to the employees, and vice versa. It pays to improve professional communication skills as it helps bring a positive working environment to your office.
What is an example of professional communication?
A good example of professional business communication would be, sending an email, giving a presentation, and filing a report in your office. As you can see, it consists of both verbal communication and non-verbal communication methods.
How can good professional communication help employees?
Having good professional communication with everybody in your office can immensely benefit you. It ensures that you have a good rapport with your senior management. It also helps in team bonding and reduces misunderstandings that most often occur in workplaces.
What are the three main ways to improve your communication skills?
The best way to improve as a business communication professional would be, to always pay attention, when somebody is speaking to you. First, listen, then respond politely, even when you are not eye-to-eye with what that person just said. You can use your body language to communicate professionally, as it goes to show that you are serious about what is being discussed.