Impact is Everything

How do you know whether you’ve achieved e?ective communications??This is important to establish?because while planning, preparation and intent are important, it’s results that count. The result of e?ective communication is impact: something is di?erent.?Something has changed.?Perhaps you want to impact people’s understanding or way of thinking.?Maybe you are trying to influence?people’s decisions and choices; or impact an organization’s goals and aspirations; or change?behavior and culture.?Elegant, articulate speeches are fine, sophisticated or clever graphics are?fun, but in the?and, e?ective communications is all about the impact it has on others.

Achieving the intended results of e?ective communications requires a realistic understanding that?it is never once and done.?Psychologists will remind us we all need to hear something new or di?erent at least seven to ten times before we fully comprehend and internalize it.?This is a?vital reminder that while every communication counts, the consistency and pattern of communications over time also counts. We’ll return to this in a subsequent column, but for now, let’s focus on how we determine that?we’re making an impact in the immediate term.?I’m talking, is anyone listening?

An e?ective communicator is always carefully observing their audience during communication.?Don’t?stare endlessly at your graphics or notes.?Don’t stare o? into space.?Look at your audience. Whether it’s on Zoom or in?an auditorium or conference room, pay attention to what your audience is doing.?Are they making?eye contact??Are their heads nodding??Are they quiet??In other words, are they paying attention???Or, are they restless??Distracted??Doing something else??Whispering to their colleagues? Heads?down in their devices??Staring o? into their computer screens??As basic?has all this sounds, if?you’re audience isn’t with you, you’re just wasting everyone’s time, including your own.?Don’t just keep going.?Don’t just stick to your plan. Adjust and adapt in real time.?You need to get your audience back.?You need to reconnect.

One of the best ways to do this is to stop transmitting and start interacting.?Questions are an?e?ective communicators’ best friend. Always allow time for questions.?Always encourage questions.?And when you’ve lost the audience, ask them a question to get the ball rolling.?You can ask?something as basic as:?“What questions or observations do you have?”?Or, even more basic:?“So?what do you think of what you've heard so far?”

Silence may follow.?Don’t panic, even if it is a very long silence. Don’t be alarmed if no one raises their hand or responds for a while. That silence, that pause, is riveting people’s attention?on what will happen next.?That pause is giving people space to actually think about what they think.?And if you wait, instead of jumping in to fill the space by talking again, someone will?eventually step forward and say something.

Speakers are too often afraid of questions.?What if I get asked something I’m not prepared for???What if the question is embarrassing??Controversial??O?-topic??Shouldn’t I at least try and?control the questions to make sure I get the “right” ones??There is no doubt that questions are?unpredictable.?Questions can throw a speaker o? their game plan.?They also tell a communicator?a lot about results, impact and where to go next.?Do people care what I said or are they onto?something else altogether??Are people accepting what I said and applying it??Or are they?rejecting and challenging what was said?

And remember, e?ective communications is not about you looking perfect and demonstrating how brilliant you are.?E?ective communications is about impact on others.