Communication skills: can they be learnt or are they innate?
There is no denying that when it comes to communication, some people are simply better at getting their message across than others. Whether this is because they know exactly what it is they want to say and can present it in a way that everyone understands, or simply that they are more confident when speaking to others and therefore their message comes across better, it is hard to say. But as any organisational change management expert will tell you everyone has the potential to become a better communicator through learning. These are not skills that pe with but rather ones that they work hard to learn, and some people will learn them better than others.
Starting at an early age
We are never too young, or too old, to learn good communication skills. They are the cornerstone of everything that we do in our life and as we get older they can help us to achieve the type of job and position that we are hoping for. Even before they can talk, parents are teaching their babies all about communication, experts recommend that you should be actively communicating with small infants even when they cannot communicate back. They will be listening and taking in everything that they can. Effective and good communication from an early age will help a child as they grow older to have the confidence to communicate effectively, which is where people get the idea these skills are innate. These skills are further honed when a child begins school and goes on to any form of further education.
Just as children are continually learning these skills and improving them, so too can adults; in fact, it is never too late to learn how to be a better communicator. Of course, as an adult you might find that change management certification courses where they will look at communication skills is the best way to improve those all-important skills. If you are aiming to reach those heady levels of leadership, effective communication skills can be the difference between getting such a hard-won position and being passed over for promotion.
Practice makes perfect
Even those people who have good communication skills work on them. If you are making a presentation to a large group of people it is normal to write some notes and practice getting your message across. Whether this is because you want it to flow smoothly or you need to make sure that you don’t overrun, it is something that the majority of people do. It’s the same for those people attending a job interview. It is quite common to practice your answers to some of the more common questions that you are likely to be asked so that you can tailor your answers to the company and also in order to ensure that you have some good answers.
Part of being a good communicator is about being confident and if this requires a little practice, or even a training course that helps to give you the confidence that you are communicating effectively, then it is well worth the effort that is involved.
Author: Anna Preston
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