6 Simple Tips To Better Your Communication in 2023

According to the World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report , 50% of all employees will need re-skilling by 2025 to catch up with the new technology.

The report further says that more and more HR managers are looking for communication as a key skill while hiring.

In this post, I want to talk about 6 simple things I get my paid coaching clients to do.

So, this is basically giving out my paid content for free!!

Read till the end where I am going to share the ONE thing that'll help you apply these tips right away.

Also, by the end, you should be able to create a daily plan to get you started.

1.READ MORE

Why?

Reading helps build vocabulary in the short term and adds to your knowledge in the long term.

How?

3 simple steps:

1. Pick a slot based on your daily schedule

2. Choose a book based on your area of interest.

3. Stick to the slot

You must do all 3 things before you begin.

Think of the kind of books/material you'd like to read.

If you don’t like philosophical books, you are bound to find it boring. If you enjoy thrillers, you will stick to it longer. Choose what suits you the most.

Trying to find reading material when it's time to read is not going to work.

Try and knock off 30-50 pages a day. You should be able to finish a book a week.

It's okay if you take 2 weeks at the beginning.

Most importantly stick to a daily schedule.

If you choose 10pm daily, set an alarm for yourself. Pick up a book and start reading. Make it a habit to read daily.

2. PRACTICE EVERYDAY

Why?

Skills are built one day at a time. So showing up every day is important.

Cooking, driving, or working out. Each one needs consistency.

So practice your content.

How?

Pick impromptu topics from Google.

Talk about what you read or watched.

Imagine you are in a work social/situation. How would you talk about these topics?

Hint: The structure of your thoughts is key.

Alternatively you can join clubs like toastmasters and have a community to practice with.

Whether you want to be a public speaker. Or if you want to kill at impromptu situations - you will need to practice a lot.

Speaking confidence is not a co-incidence.

3. JOURNAL YOUR PRACTICE

Why?

This helps you focus on the process - which is immediate and not the end goal - which is farther in the future.

When I took a 14-day workout challenge, I only focussed on getting the workout for the day done and put a tick in my habit tracker.

(I couldn't complete it due to ill-health but that's a story for another day!)

How?

It is as simple as writing down what you read or watched on a particular day in a calendar.

Open an excel or write in a notebook. Put the day, date and what you did.

Journalling helps you track your work too - objective numbers to show how many days you missed.

4. WATCH A TED TALK EVERYDAY

Why?

We learn by watching the greats!

Watching great speeches online - commencement speeches, TED Talks, industry discussions - is a great way to watch and learn the nuances of public speaking.

Focus on the modulation, body language, story telling, humour and the other elements of a talk.

How?

Pick a time.

Could be during the lunch break. Or your commute. Maybe before going to bed.

You can also go ahead and plug in advance what you'll watch, in your planner.

Don't hesitate to watch the same talk many times - esp the longer ones.

There is a treasure trove of information is some great talks!

BONUS TIP: I highly recommend that you include reading AND watching. Both serve different purposes.

5. RECORD YOURSELF AND REPLAY

Why?

This is a fantastic way to self assess without feeling embarrassed.

At leat not in front of others!

I get that watching oneself on camera is also cringe-worthy!

But no pain, no gain! Simple!

How?

Think of a topic on which you can talk for 3-5 minutes (preferably not your introduction)

I'd say set your phone on a surface and record the video.

You could record just your audio at first - but why not go the whole hog for your own benefit!

Once you've recorded it:

• Watch the whole thing from start to finish (for overall assessment)
• Turn the phone down and just listen to the audio (for how you sound)
• Mute the video and just watch yourself (for non verbal performance)

Make extensive notes on your language, structure, fillers, pauses, rate of speech, gestures, movement, eye contact etc.

(Get in touch for a template with the extensive list)

Watching yourself like others do can be an eye-opening experience. Lemme know if you need my help with this exercise.

6. GET A COACH

Why?

The top 3 reasons I can think of are:

1. While books and videos can give you theory, it's a coach who can work with you to reach your goals.

2. Coaches are experts of how to get things done. And that's what gets results in building skills. So it expedites the process of improvement.

Every one of the clients I work with only need help with "how" since they've already been through the "what" and "why"

3. A coach can give you valuable and personalised feedback which becomes important at advanced levels of skills development.

All seniors leaders I coach are looking for feedback to get better in their unique positions at work. Online courses cannot give them that.

How?

Look up on Linkedin or other industry platforms.

Consider talking to a few of them.

Check out credentials - certificates and their past clients.

Their online presence should be a good indicator of their experience.

Just remember, if you want the best, don't cut corners.

It's not the expense of. getting a coach, it's the investment in your growing career.

In conclusion, I guarantee that following these tips consistently will work wonders!

But before I end, here are the 3 things that you'll need to put this in motion:

1. Pick a time slot (at least 30 minutes)

2. Create a calendar

3. Stick to it! ?

With layoffs not showing any signs of relenting, your only choice is to build your skills.

?Which tip would you like to pick up today and start working on?

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I am a soft skills and communication trainer who helps professionals become confident communicators and effective presenters.

You can follow me on Linkedin for daily tips.

You can choose to chat up with me about your skills needs by choosing a slot of your choice?here ?

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I highly recommend that you subscribe to my?YouTube channel ?where I'll be sharing long-form tutorials on building your soft skills in 2023.?

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