C for communication:- Everybody knows the importance of communication. One who can communicate effectively gets a job easily. One who can communicate dramatically, gets a job in the industries like film, advertising, TV etc.   Politicians specialize in manipulative communications and stay in power. Sales professionals communicate and sell products and services. Call Centres thrive on communication. As Werner Erhardt said -life is nothing but communication.   The best insight we can get on communication is from the field of NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming). According to NLP, "the effectiveness of communication lies in the response it generates".   One may be very fluent or articulate, but if his communication is not generating the expected response, then that communication is ineffective. In other words, communication is not just presentation of facts and figures; it also has to produce the required results. This underscores the role of understanding and action expected from the listener.

Secret of effective communication:- Though all of us indulge in communication at every moment, a very few are truly successful in doing it effectively. Communication is a complex phenomenon involving words, tone, pitch, body language, context, and above all, emotions.   According to one of the studies, words have only 7 per cent role in the impact of communication - 93 per cent depends on the tone and body language. Even if the 7 per cent is debatable, the study highlights the major role of tone and body language in communication.   To understand this, you can do a small exercise. Say 'good morning' to a friend in five emotionally different ways and ask him or her how they felt every time you said 'good morning'. You can even replace 'good morning' with 'I love you'.   You will be surprised to know that sometimes although you said, "I love you", the other person is getting exactly the opposite feeling (I don't love you!).

The critical aspect here is to understand the emotional component of your communication. Let us take a recent example. The politician, L K Advani, quoted something about Jinnah in Pakistan in a particular context.  When you analyze the entire communication, you will find that the contents have no role in the building of a modern India or in generating employment for the future generation.  However, no one thinks that way.  People are influenced by the emotions first, rather than the logic. More than the contents, the emotions led to a nation wide debate and other consequences.

The lesson here is, take care of the emotional component of your communication. What you say, how you say, to whom you say and when you say - all of it is important. Above all, what is of paramount importance is, how your communication emotionally affects the listener.

When it comes to effective communication in our country, we have a unique problem; we do not have a common language. The language that connects the country is English / Hindi.   When speaking in a language other than mother tongue, vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation and accent (the way one pronounces) play a major role in the effectiveness of communication. In business context, these aspects are noticed and evaluated.    The concluding tip is, work on your communication, success is guaranteed.

Regards:-
Santosh Kumar Jha
www.isantosh.com