Improving Communication in the Workplace

What have I learned about improving communication over my 27 year career as a gerontologist? An incredible amount! One thing that is critical to remember about communication in health care is this – effective communication is absolutely the most important skill you can possess. Many professionals think that they are communicating well, but in fact, they are merely talking. It is easy to talk. It is more challenging to actually communicate with a group of people. Let’s examine why communication is so important and some essential elements to improve communication in your workplace.

What is Communication?

As I stated above, a lot of people talk and don’t communicate. That’s because communication is far more than just talking. It involves a two-way flow of thoughts and ideas that the other part is understanding clearly. One of the most important skill used during effective communication is “active listening”. This involves hearing not only the words coming from someone’s mouth, but being aware of the emotional content behind the words. Words are emoted – they mean something to the speaker. Have you ever felt what someone was telling you? Real communication involves a back and forth flow of ideas about doing something, improving systems and processes, and reaching a goal. It takes clear ideas, sharing, and listening. This alone can enhance the workplace in so many ways.

Essential Elements of Communication

I often use a phrase I learned long ago about talking and listening. It goes like this – God gave us two ears and only 1 mouth for a reason! What do you think this means? I believe it means that we should step back, listen more intently, be purposeful and find meaning in our communication.

It takes work to communicate effectively. First, be quiet and listen to the other party. Be genuine and never fake when responding. If you don’t understand something, say you don’t understand and ask for clarification. Try to be a clear and specific as you can. My wife has a saying about this part of communication – Say what you mean and mean what you say! What does this say about me!?

The other parts of communication include being receptive and open to whatever feedback you receive. You may not like what you always hear, but that’s a part of the communication process. It is also essential to show some interest in the discussion. If someone feels they are not being heard, communication cannot take place – you are half-communicating if that. I find that having something interesting to say helps a lot, while always being respectful and courteous.

Other Tips on Improving Communication

• Speak only for yourself
• Practice a “no whining or complaining” policy
• Be consistent in how you communicate to build trust
• Don’t take forever to make a point
• Don’t interrupt people when they are speaking
• Allow your values and principles to lead you
• Respect confidentiality
• Learn how to compromise and collaborate with others

Benefits of Effective Communication in the Workplace

You put in more hours at work than you do with your family, correct? Then, you should be able to communicate with people in the workplace to avoid problems and conflicts. Effective communication will yield all kinds of positive outcomes. Creating a culture of happiness is one of the most important in my opinion. Why not be happy at work considering all of those hours you put in? Another good outcome is success. You can be more successful as an effective communicator and the entire workplace can be more successful. I like success, don’t you? Relationships will also better with improved communication. Quality of care will improve as well as teamwork and attitudes.

Final Thoughts

Stop and think about this for a moment. What are the three most common problems in the workplace? I think they are communication, communication and communication. Everything stems from communication – problems, arguments, misunderstandings, hurt feelings, or on the other hand, success, better problem-solving, and a happy place to work. Choose to be an effective communicator. People will come to you because of your skill. Or, don’t be good at communication and they will run the other way!

More About Culture

• Reboot Your Culture!
• Fixing a Broken Culture at Work
• 5 Ingredients to a Culture of Happiness at Work

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