What Is Imperative for Proper Communication?

Positive body language, such as having an open stance, is a way to effectively communicate with others.

Effective communication is crucial to every relationship, business and organization. Bad communication can hinder your career and hold you back from making professional and personal advances, and good communication can enhance friendships and increase your rapport with clients in the workplace. There are various characteristics that effective communicators should possess.

Clear and Crisp

When verbally communicating, it's imperative to be clear and crisp, especially when marketing your business or selling a product. Effective communicators have the ability to clearly explain what their business does in less than 30 seconds. Having good communication means holding a listener's attention while delivering the pitch, and not boring the listener or making him uninterested.

Body Language

People communicate using body language just as much as they do speaking. From facial expressions to eye contact to stance, body language is something that everyone striving to be an effective communication should be aware of, according to a University of Maine Cooperative Extension bulletin. Examples of positive body language include looking a speaker in the eyes, having an open body stance and sitting on the edge of your seat. Casting sideways glances, looking bored and having your arms crossed are all examples of bad body language.

Active Listening

Proper communication means having the ability to be a good listener. Listening can sometimes be more important than speaking, especially when discussing challenging issues. Listening allows a person to better assess a situation, and it also helps a person to get more information and avoid repeating a conversation. When you actively listen, you're decreasing your chances of interrupting the speaker, which can lead to negative confrontation.

Constantly Informative

Keeping information flowing and keeping others in tune to news and business developments is crucial in terms of being a good communicator. Keeping others in the dark about particular things, even if it's bad news, can lower company morale. Bad news becomes a worse situation if people are left in isolation. Sending consistent emails, newsletters or memos is a way to keep communication flowing in the workplace. Being honest and sincere when delivering information is also pertinent in terms of communication.

References

• "USA Today"; Are You an Effective Communicator?; Carole Kanchier; November 2002
• University of Maine Cooperative Extension: Effective Communication
• "Entrepreneur"; Use the 3 C's of Communication; Gail Goodman; March 2009