12 Things That Will Help You Improve Your Communication Skills

Communication skills are important whether you want to climb the ladder at work, land a position at a new company, or simply get your kids to listen to you. You may not consider yourself a ‘natural communicator’ – not many people do. However, just because you weren’t born with these skills, doesn’t mean you can’t learn them. Below, you’ll find 12 things that will help you to improve your communication skills and make a huge difference:

Know Your Audience

First of all, you need to know your audience. Communicating with a room full of people in your workplace and trying to keep a room full of children under control are going to require two completely different communication methods. You need to make sure you alter how you communicate depending on who you’re talking to, so make sure you keep this in mind. Aim to talk to a wide range of people so you can practice these skills, and notice how they respond to you. 

Practice Wherever You Can

Practice makes perfect, so practice whenever you can. You may not like striking up a conversation with a stranger, but it’s the perfect opportunity to practice your skills. Eventually, you’ll flow naturally and won’t be so anxious about sounding stupid or strange. 

Work With A Speech Therapist

If the thing that puts you off is an issue with your speech, then going to see a speech therapist will work wonders for you. They may be able to help you with a stutter, for example, or even not being able to enunciate properly. They will help you to work on anything you need, and you’ll feel so much more confident having a professional outsider’s perspective. 

Do A Course

There are plenty of courses aimed at improving communication. For example, if you’re hoping that your newfound skill will get you a promotion at work, you may want to work on your project management communication. Communication may only be described as a ‘soft skill’, but it is one of the most important skills a person can have in just about any profession. 

Pace Yourself

Finding the right pacing is important when you’re trying to communicate with somebody. You don’t want to speak too slowly, or you will bore people to sleep. You don’t want to speak too quickly, or people will struggle to follow you. Finding a pace that flows nicely is key, and that comes with assessing yourself and practicing. Ask people you trust for feedback and they should be able to give you some valuable insight. 

Breathe

Don’t forget to breathe! When you’re nervous, you may forget to breathe. Take a breath when you need one. Find where the breaths come naturally in a piece of text. Practice by reading paragraphs from books and magazines out loud and getting a feel for how it should be read. Breathing will also calm you down and help you to sound better. 

Try Not To Go Off On A Tangent

One of the worst things you can do when trying to communicate an idea, is go off on a tangent. This is easily done, and it can confuse the listener. Some people naturally want to tell 5 different stories at once. Occasional tangents are fine, and can even make for interesting communication – and they are often the backbone of any comedian’s act. However, when you’re just starting out you should do your best to stay focused on what you’re trying to say. 

Practice Active Listening

Listening is half of communicating. You can’t call yourself a good communicator if you’re not a good listener. When you listen to somebody, you give them micro clues that show them you are listening. If they can’t see that you’re truly listening to them, they will likely switch off and wont want to converse with you any longer. Another bad idea is to listen to somebody and think about what you’re going to say next the whole time. This is something many people do without realizing it. Rather than directly responding to what the other person is saying, taking an interest, or asking a question, they tend to bring the conversation back to themselves. Be mindful of when you do this, and do your best to avoid it. Stay in the moment with the person you are talking to and get out of your own head. 

Improve Your Body Language

Body language is also an important part of communication. If you’re trying to discipline your child with a smile on your face, they probably won’t listen because they won’t think you are being serious. If you want somebody to think you are friendly and open, then avoid folding your arms and always make eye contact. Body language will say a lot about you and how you’re feeling right from the start. 

Work To Understand People Better

Make sure you work to understand people as best you can. Look at their own body language, as well as non verbal communication such as tone and pitch of the voice, eye contact, posture, facial expression, and so on. This can tell you more about what they are saying or even what they are not saying. Sometimes it may be necessary to read between the lines to get to the crux of the matter, because people will beat around the bush or avoid saying what they really think. They might not even feel that they can articulate it properly. Just don’t put words in people’s mouths or speak for them. Really listen and get used to asking questions. 

Ask Questions

We’ve mentioned asking questions, but it’s so important that you do. This will help you to understand another person’s perspective all the more, and you can both be sure you’re on the same page. 

Record Yourself

If you really want to get better, record and watch yourself back. This can be scary, as most people don’t like to watch themselves on video or even like the sound of their own voice, but it can be a huge help when improving this skill.