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I have a problem with the term ‘basic communication skills’; my problem is that this term implies that these skills are very simple and that you are somehow lacking and weak if you don’t have them. Certain communication skills are certainly ‘basic’ to the extent that they are very necessary and that a lot of the success of communication has to be built upon these foundations.
But it is by no means true to say that everyone should somehow naturally possess these skills, which is a slur on those who find communication difficult. Communication skills can be earned.
In every situation and every occupation in adult life, it helps to have certain communication skills.
Verbal Communication:
1. You should be able to speak clearly and concisely to either report factual information or convey an opinion. This is quite a straightforward skill to practice and you can even start by practising on your friends; they will be glad to hear your opinions.
2. Practice speaking to groups as well as individuals; that is quite a different skill to ensure that everyone is included and that everyone gets your message.
3. When you are thinking of improving your verbal communication skills, is it your choice of language, your style of delivery or the way you speak which needs to be worked on? You could ask the advice of a friend or trusted colleague on that as it is sometimes difficult to judge for yourself.
4. You might want to consider taking an acting class or a course on diction to help you to improve your communication skills; local colleges often offer a variety of these courses. You may also find courses in specific areas of communications skills such as customer services, hospitality and conflict management.
Written Communication:
1. Written communication is a different skill to verbal communication; getting your ideas of paper is something that a lot of people find difficult, whether they are an aspiring novelist or someone who finds it difficult to write a concise, understandable e-mail.
2. Learning how to use grammar properly is often the key to clearer written communication. Most jobs and most purposes of writing will require you to have an adequate grasp of grammar. Grammar is definitely something in which you should easily be able to find a course offered at your local college. You could improve your grammar through a business writing course or one aimed at creative writing, whichever you would prefer.
Alternatively, you can find self-help books and workbooks to learn the skills of grammar at your own pace, in your own home. You can also find online writing courses to help you a lot in this area.
Listening:
1. The ability to listen well is the key to understanding communication; in order to do that, you need to fully focus your attention on the speaker to begin with.
2. You can develop your knowledge along with your listening skills by checking out audio tapes and video tapes, perhaps ones loaned from the local library, and practicing fully attending to what is being said on them. You will soon realize that we very often only listen with part of our attention in normal life, but once you have practiced your listening skills you will be able to discern much more from what is being said to you.
Practising these speaking and listening skills will enable you to much more effectively share your opinions with others and defend what you think against their opposing ideas.
Practise your writing and you can express what you want to whomever you wish. When you have practised communicating for a while you will be able to communicate clearly and concisely and be assertive without appearing rude.
A really fun way to become good at such a skill it to listen to radio phone-ins or chat show; you can do this easily, listening to the radio on your drive into work, for instance. Listen out for how people articulate their views and how others receive the messages, depending on how they are expressed.
You will find it fun and quite easy to develop your basic communication skills once you begin to look for opportunities like this.
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Source by Peter Murphy
