Intraskope’s Guest Student Editor Challenge is an opportunity for students passionate about communications to showcase their creative spark and get noticed. The theme for this series is: Making our World a Better Place Through Effective Communications.
In the 2nd edition, Mamta Jangid articulates how our individuality can shape our emotions. Therefore, paying more attention to how we react to situations and others can result in resolving confusion and improving communications.
Mamta Jangid is pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Management in Marketing and International Business from ISBR, Bangalore. An active member of the Media Club of her institution, Mamta is well versed in the art of writing. She is also concerned with the initiative of educating the underprivileged.
She has tagged Anushka Yadav who will write the next blog. Read further..
Effective Communication: To Understand and Be Understood
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said”
~ Peter Drucker
On speaking with someone, have you ever wondered how your current state of mind influenced the conversation with them? Or have you ever been left perplexed at why someone sounded furious when you had done absolutely nothing to ignite such a response?
There is more than meets the eyes. And ears, of course.
From the moment we wake up to the moment we drift back to sleep, we experience a plethora of emotions. And these emotions have a profound impact on how we deliver our thoughts, and also how we receive the messages of others.
If we go through this, then definitely others do, too. Therefore, it is crucial to observe and understand not just the words, but the emotions behind those words, as well.
Feelings play a vital role in communication. Understanding the “why” behind “what” is said to makes us a better communicator. And all of this begins when we start listen carefully and observe “how” everything is said.
The world will be a better place only if we understand and be understood. For others to understand us, there has to be clarity in what we say to them, and that comes when there is clarity in our mind. The message that is then produced is concise.
To understand others, we first need to listen to them carefully. We must be emotionally aware and available. If we don’t process what is being said to us and focus simply on dishing out a reply, we are not of any help.
As Roy T. Bennett said, “Listen with curiosity. Speak with honesty. Act with integrity. The greatest problem with communication is we don’t listen to understand. We listen to reply. When we listen with curiosity, we don’t listen with the intent to reply. We listen for what’s behind the words.”
A majority of us are guilty of it. We often reply because we don’t want the person to feel that we didn’t listen to them, and we genuinely wish to help them. Our hearts may be in the right place, but what we need to realize is that not everything has to be answered with a string of words, that may be of little help. Empathetic listening is more fruitful at such times. Our gestures are enough. There is a significant amount of trust that our presence alone can build. A presence that makes the other feel understood.
We are all varied, and rarely think the same. Consequently, we may even feel the same things differently. How wonderful it would be if we appreciate those differences because it’s only our individuality that makes us who we are. It’s time we start listening closely and speak clearly. To embrace perspectives beyond ours is what effective communication is.
What’s your take? Please share your views, experiences and stories here.
Keen to participate in the Intraskope’s Guest Student Editor Challenge? Reach out to the student tagged and ask to get tagged! Or, reach out to [email protected] with your request.
Keen to participate in the ongoing series on Personal Branding, Internal Communications or CSR Communications? Drop me a note at [email protected]
Interested in building your personal brand as a student? Look up my course (Personal Branding 101- Unlock Your Potential and Get Ahead) on Udemy.
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