If you want to be an effective leader, you need good communication skills. In fact, with emotional intelligence becoming more important in leadership positions these days, it can make or break your career success. According to a report by the Economist Intelligence Unit, poor communication can lead to project delays, low morale, meeting performance goals and even lost sales. But effective communication goes beyond revenue alone. For leaders, it is powerful communication that motivates teams, builds trust, and enables successful organizational change based on a shared vision. If you’re interested in improving your leadership skills, here are eight communication skills you need to effectively fill your role.

Ability to customize communication style

According to The Economist, different communication styles are cited as the most common cause of poor communication, which can lead to serious problems such as unclear priorities and increased stress due to role ambiguity. It is important to identify your leadership style to better understand who you interact with and how you are perceived by your employees. For example, if you are an authoritative leader rather than an authoritarian, you are more likely to have a clear vision of how to achieve success and adjust your team accordingly to help others achieve their goals. Allow them to act autonomously while empowering. role. Every employee has different motivations, so it’s important to know how to coordinate communications to influence others and achieve organizational goals

Active listening

Effective leaders know when to speak and, more importantly, when to listen. Show your concern by soliciting employee input, ideas, and feedback, and be an active participant in the conversation by asking questions and taking notes. It’s important to stay in the moment and avoid interruptions. Show respect for your colleagues by paying attention to them and what they say. To do that, you also need to eliminate all distractions, such as constantly checking your phone or email.

Ask open-ended questions

If you need better communication with your employees, ask them open-ended questions using “TED”, an acronym for “Tell me more about…”, “Explain what”. Try to better understand the motivations, mindsets, and goals of your members. …”, “Define this term or concept.” Using these phrases when talking to your team can elicit a more thoughtful and thorough answer and help you understand what your team wants from you. can clarify whether success.

Transparency and purpose

89% of employees expect their jobs to bring a significant sense of purpose to their lives (McKinsey 2021), but only 15% of front-line managers and employees feel they are getting this at work. Far fewer front-line employees (compared with managers) surveyed can see a connection between their daily work and their organisation’s purpose. Transparency in communication can go a long way to resolving this issue: by speaking openly about their company’s goals, opportunities, and challenges, leaders can build trust among their team and foster an environment where employees feel empowered to share their ideas and collaborate. Encouraging experimentation, and being open about mistakes and how they can lead to improvements, creates a safe space for active problem-solving.

Clarity

Use specific language when communicating with employees. Define the desired outcome of your project or strategic initiative and clarify what you want to achieve at the end of each milestone. Check their understanding if you think it is necessary. If the goal is not met, ask how you can further simplify or clarify your message or provide assistance. The more clarity you have, the less confusion there will be about priorities. Employees understand what they’re working towards and feel more involved in the process.

Empathy

There’s a reason empathy ranks as the most important leadership quality necessary for success. The more you can acknowledge and understand the feelings and experiences of your employees, the more likely they will feel that their opinions are respected and valued. Good work is built on an organizational system in which employees feel supported and valued. In an ideal world, employees should feel comfortable voicing ideas and issues at work and should be able to form strong and trusting relationships with their colleagues. But the reality is that compassionate leadership is still a long way off. According to his 2019 survey by Business Lover, 92% of CEOs said they work for empathetic employers, while 92% of them identify their company as empathetic. members were only 72% of him. If you want to improve communication and build a stronger and more productive culture, practice responding with empathy.

Open body language

Communication is not just what you say. It’s also about how you carry yourself. Much research has been done on the extent to which communication is non-verbal, and there is no doubt that it can have important positive and negative effects. Also, pay attention to body language. If you’re trying to provoke someone, speaking in an irritated or angry manner is clearly not sending the right message. Instead, make eye contact to show interest and build trust, and offer a genuine smile to convey warmth and trust.

Receive and implement feedback

Asking your team for feedback not only helps you grow as a leader, but it also helps build trust among your colleagues. However, it’s important to listen to feedback and act on it. If you don’t make changes, they lose confidence that they’ll listen to you. We may not be able to respond immediately, but please be transparent. By keeping them informed of your actions, you let them know that you value their feedback and are serious about improving.

Conclusion

Communication is central to effective leadership. If you want to influence and inspire your team, you need to understand how others perceive you through empathy, transparency, and verbal and non-verbal cues. Communication Skills To improve and become a better leader, assess your effectiveness today and identify areas for improvement. Then take ownership by setting some goals along the lines of the suggestions above and creating a development plan to guide and track your progress.

Prof. Roshal Vinu

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