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Ways to Improve My Communication Skills

Communication is often seen as a key ingredient to healthy alliances between spouses, family members, friends and co-workers, notes Communication Skills for Confidence. Though other personal qualities are also necessary, without effective communication, bonds among people tend to deteriorate and eventually break down altogether. Several options are available to both develop and improve essential communication skills.

  1. Be Honest and Self-Aware

    • According to the life coaches at Mind Tools, before you achieve effective communication with others, you must first be completely honest with how you prefer to communicate in the first place. It sounds rather obvious, but a surprising number of people can't articulate the way in which they speak and listen themselves. Are you a loud talker? Do you tend to interrupt people? Could either of these characteristics possibly be interpreted as rude? If you understand your own methods of discussion, you'll be able to fine tune them according to each person you encounter. You'll also be better prepared to express yourself when you need something specific out of a relationship.

    Put Yourself in Uncomfortable Situations

    • The social gurus at Communication Skills For Confidence believe that deliberately placing yourself in uncomfortable situations allows you to explore your communication skills in fresh ways. People can get into routines that eventually stifle what they really want out of their relationships. By going to a store and asking for something impossible, we train our minds to listen to our desires. For example, if you visit a coffee shop and ask to buy a suit, you'll more than likely be met with a funny look. Of course, the goal is not to actually obtain the clothing, but to make yourself ask for something really difficult. You can then apply this to your personal relationships and demand the things that you are not receiving.

    Actively Listen

    • For many people, it is terribly easy to drift off into another world when someone else is talking. It's usually not because the speaker is boring, but rather due to the wandering nature of our minds. For this reason, using a technique called active listening is an effective tool to improve your communication. According to Licia Ginne, a licensed marriage and family therapist, active listening forces your mind to stay on task. If someone tells you that they're disappointed in your work performance, you can respond with, "This is what I hear you telling me ..." This gives the messenger the opportunity to say back, "Yes, you heard me right" or "No, let me phrase that in another way." The point of the exercise is to be as specific as possible so that your mind is engaged in the conversation.

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