OVER the years that I have been in business – first as an employee, then as a shareholder in a small business, then as a consultant to other businesses, individuals and institutions, and then again as an employee responsible for safeguarding shareholder interests – I have come to the conclusion that in business, as in life, effective communication is one of the most critical skills that are required for success.
Southern Sister by Thembe Khumalo
Think how simple your life could be if the people you interact with said what they meant and meant what they said, if everyone liked everyone else and nobody misinterpreted anyone else’s actions – wouldn’t that be wonderful?
But things aren’t that way and so life is not that simple – it’s complicated. Managing interpersonal relationships involves developing appropriate communication skills, choosing the right tools and timing for communication, and ensuring receipt and feedback.
What if I asked you to try and think of communication as a gift? It’s something that you decide to give to a specific person or group of people. You choose it carefully, make it up to suit the person you want to give to and then you make your presentation, and the recepient receives the gift and thanks you for it.
Before you send out a gift of communication, think about it. Decide what format the gift should take and what tools you will need to send it out. Prepare the gift. You wouldn’t give your loved one a gift in a TM plastic bag with the receipt inside, would you? You would take care over how it looks and how it will make him feel when he opens it. It’s the same with your communication – think about the message you want to convey and how it will make the recipient feel.
Many times we give our gift to the wrong person. Before you send out a piece of communication, check that the person you are sending it to is in fact, the right person for the gift.
Presenting your gift can be as simple as writing a proper telephone message or as complex as sending a package overseas by courier. Once you’ve sent the message, it’s too late to decide that it’s not clear enough or it won’t make the person feel good – that should have been taken care of in the preparatory stages.
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Once the gift is presented, your job is done, is that right? No – your gift cannot be considered given until it is received and acknowledged. Only then, can your part of the process be complete.
Communication is a process, not an event. You own 50% of every communication process you are engaged in. While the initiator is responsible for seeing it through to completion, you have to accept ownership of your half. If half of a communication process is not handled well, then the whole process is jeopardised.
That’s where the issue of tools comes in. You have to choose the right tool for the job you want done. Whether it’s a post-it note, e-mail or a proposal, the tools don’t think on your behalf.
The tools don’t make decisions and the tools don’t manage relationships. For your communication to be a good and pleasing gift, you will have to make some investment in getting it right.
Because communication is the key to managing relationships – in business, and in life. Have you found this to be the case? Write back and share your experiences with us.
