The A - Z of Effective Communication...

The A - Z of Effective Communication

A	Accuracy:  Make sure you check your facts.  The audience may not realise immediately if your facts are incorrect, but when they do – you lose credibility.  And, credibility, once lost, is very difficult to gain back.
B	Be Brief:  Don’t drone on and on! Simple rule to remember – the audience’s attention span and interest level for what you are saying is half of yours…
C	Clarity:  In spoken communication, make sure you enunciate each word clearly.  In written communication, make sure the words you pick convey exactly what you want to.  No more.  No less.
D	Defer a conversation or discussion if you find yourself getting angry or losing control.  Don’t lose your temper and say/write something you might later regret.
E	Evaluate yourself.  Critique each word and paragraph to come up with the best version.
F	Be Friendly.  A friendly personality will win over the audience far better than a stressed or over formal presenter.
G	“Good Communication is as stimulating as black coffee and just as hard to sleep after”  - Ann Morrow Lindbergh
H	Humour – everyone loves a good laugh.  Just make sure the jokes are relevant to your topic.
I	“It is better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool then to open it and resolve all doubt.”—Abraham Lincoln
J	Judging kills communication.  Never talk down to people - even if you know more than them.
K	Kindness always wins people over.  It comes across in all communication – verbal and written.
L	Listen.  There’s a reason we have two ears and one mouth – so we listen twice as much as we speak.
M	Motivate people.  Most people don’t want to be lectured to – but they do want to be inspired and motivated.  Do that and you’re a successful communicator!
N	Non-Verbal Communication.  Remember, the effectiveness of your communication depends 25% on the words you use, and 75% on your body language – portrayed confidence, eye contact, tone, clothes, grooming, approachability etc.
O	On paper, you are judged by your spelling, grammar, construct a coherent sentence.  So proofread obsessively, and if it is an important document (like a resume) – get someone else to proofread it as well.  The same goes for speeches and presentations.
P	Pronunciation is important!  An audience put off by wrong pronunciations – maybe less than attentive to your message.
Q	Minimize distracting quirks.  Record yourself to make sure you do not have nervous quirks like scratching your scalp, using too many filler words (like uh-um-like) especially while responding to questions.
R	Record and listen to yourself to make sure you sound exactly as you want to.
S	Smile.  A smile wins over your audience even before you say a word.  It can be heard over the phone.
T	Be Truthful.  Honesty is always the best policy.
U	Communicate first to be understood – then to impress.
V	Improve your vocabulary by reading or writing more.  Use a thesaurus to find better better words.  But remember, don’t use archaic, unpronounceable words - they just make you sound pompous and self involved.
W	“Wise men talk because they have something to say.  Fools talk because they have to say something.”  - Plato
X	Xenophobia – Racism or bigotry of any kind should not be a part of your personality.  It is very ugly and can rarely be hidden.
Y	Do not talk only about yourself.  Unless it is an interview or you’re writing your resume – assume that people do not want to hear you endlessly drone on about yourself.  Be knowledgeable about world events, current news, latest bestsellers, latest music, technology etc.  That will make every conversation you are a part of much more interesting.
Z	Zzzz…   If your audience is looking glassy eyed during your presentation – try not to feel rejected and see if you can adapt your speech to suit your audience – maybe something as simple as changing your tone or word choice in order to make a better connection with your audience.