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Improving Communication Skills

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Improving Communication Skills
Communication is an elusive subject. Many people think they understand what communication is, and how to properly engage in the act; but do they? Maybe as well as they understand the theory of gravity; which is to say they understand the basic idea of it, but they do not understand the many layers and facets involved. Everyone in a communication circle will be a receiver or sender at some point, and should understand the essentials of communicating effectively.
Communication is conveying an idea, compliment, or directive to another person so that they receive the information the way it was intended. That information must pass through barriers created by the situation or individual, which may garble the transmissions intent. That is why talking and nonverbal communicators are important for the sender to understand, and listening is an integral part of the receiver’s role. There is not a “right” way to achieve effective communication, but this paper will discuss a few facets and theories to aid in understanding the process.
“Communication is the act of exchanging information.” (Rue & Byars, 2010, p. 41) One part of this exchange is talking, which many people believe to be the whole act of communication. Talking by itself is “one-way” communication, and rarely leads to effective interactions. Even when an individual is talking, they must also listen and read nonverbal cues to ensure their message is being received. There are a few things a sender can do to make their message more acceptable to others, the first being “make the message as concise as possible”. (Brounstein, 2001) Refrain from using more words than are necessary; the use of too many words will often confuse the receiver to the point of the message.
Using words that are understandable to the audience keeps them from feeling like the speaker is talking above

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