Day 5 — Communication Skill

SureJob

What is Communication Skill?

Communication Skill is the ability to effectively give and receive information.

Different types of communication — Verbal (oral/ written)/ Non-verbal/ Visual, Formal/ Informal, One-to-one/ One-to many…

The purpose of communication — to inform, to express feelings, to imagine, to influence, and to meet social expectations

How to improve Communication Skill?

Set a goal to become a go-to person by mastering the art and science of Communication.

Follow the LAST model to build your personal brand as a Guru of Communication.

1. Learn — Invest time in learning different models/ techniques of Communication Skill
2. Apply — Create a template to document the flow of the process, Find opportunities to use the selected method/ template, Maintain record/ process flow of every important communication you did, Maintain notes of your thoughts/ insights/ failures/ challenges…. to be used for sharing/ training others
3. Share — Share the insights captured in step 2 above in a planned manner (social media posts, blogs, videos, study notes…)
4. Train — Generate opportunities to train your peers and team members so that, over time, your organization benefits from your effortsIdentify a model suitable to you

My learning for the day

Source — 5 Ways to Build Your Personal Brand Every Time You Speak

Author — Jacqueline Whitmore

The first thing people notice about us is our appearance, the next notable impression is how we sound. Effective communication is a must skill for our success.

The author recommends these five ways to tap the powerful conversational tactics that will help you add to your personal brand.

1. Speak from knowledge and power — If someone asks you a question and if you don’t know the answer, you have two options to respond — option A — “I don’t know” option B — “I know someone who can help you.”

Option B is a powerful option because you gave three personal brand inputs to the person — a. You are a helpful person, b. You have a great network of equally helpful people around you, c. You have a great ability for identifying and appreciating strengths of others.

2. Move the conversation forward — “What do you think?” is a great question. This question opens up people to give new ideas, to evaluate your ideas without hesitation, to give altogether a new insight to you. This strategy increases bonding because you show respect to others’ views.

3. Express empathy — Demonstrate your ability for empathising (to understand and appreciate others’ situation) by developing active listening skills. This will deepen your connection/ relationship with people.

4. Convey confidence in yourself and others — Whenever someone critiques you, learn to gracefully accept their comments by thanking them for honestly sharing their views. This practice shows you are mature/ not insecure.

Similarly, instead of criticizing people for their shortcomings, empower them with constructive compliments. Positive reinforcement encourages colleagues to reach for their full potential.

5. Give credit where it’s due — Develop a habit of acknowledging others’ achievements and demonstrating that you value everyone’s contributions. It conveys modesty, generosity, caring and other positive qualities that make people want to build relationship with you.

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Purpose of this document

I took a 66 day challenge to study Life Skills last year (10 April 2019). To my astonishment, I succeeded in studying for 66 days one skill a day.

My objectives of learning these skills were — To strengthen my mind to face life’s challenges with ease, To use these skills in my worklife for a better performance, To use these skills in my personal life for enriching my relationships, To open new possibilities to surprise myself.

This is my next 66 day challenge (from 10 April 2020) — To share my Life Skills learning with my social media friends.

I pray that my toil helps you in your success journey.

What are Life Skills?

UNICEF defines Life skills as — psychosocial abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life. They are loosely grouped into three broad categories of skills

- cognitive skills for analyzing and using information,
- personal skills for developing personal agency and managing oneself,
- inter-personal skills for communicating and interacting effectively with others.

Which LifeSkills are covered?

The World Health Organisation identified these basic areas of life skills that are relevant across cultures:

1. Decision-making
2. Problem-solving
3. Creative thinking
4. Critical thinking
5. Communication
6. Interpersonal skills
7. Self-awareness
8. Empathy
9. Coping with emotions
10. Coping with stress.

Some trivia

‘Life skills’ was never part of the school curriculum. WHO/ UNESCO mandated academia to teach these skills in all schools across the globe in 1993.

Different countries educate their children in these skills with different objectives

• Zimbabwe and Thailand — prevention of HIV/AIDS
• Mexico — prevention of adolescent pregnancy
• United Kingdom — child abuse prevention
• USA — prevention of substance abuse and violence
• South Africa and Colombia — positive socialization of children.

(First published on LinkedIn)