Improve Your Communications in the Next 5 Minutes

One of the ways we can improve our individual communication skills, is by simply understanding better how communication works. By understanding the components of communication, we can better see how we are communicating, what is going well and what needs work. The following tool will not only help you understand your communications better, you can pull it out any time you have a communication or exchange that doesn’t go well and use it as an evaluation tool for what went wrong. 

Communication Models

If you do a google search you find roughly three thousand five hundred million results for communication models. But they all basically give you the same information – they just show the communication process in symbols. Here’s a simple one I use often for this purpose:

This is a basic, fairly simple communication model. Looking at models can get into some pretty boring stuff, so I’m going to gloss through this at a high level because the important message is on the backend. 

A basic communications model:

• For any communication you need someone with information trying to get the information to someone else.
• In this case, I have information about communications I would like to share with you. 
• I am going to encode the information into a message that I believe will be clear and easy for the receiver –you – to understand. This encoding is my message.
• Once I’ve decided on my message, I choose a channel with which to deliver it – in today’s case I am delivering the information via this article.
• And you are here reading this article, taking in the information coming across the channel, decoding it for understanding, and translating it based on your experiences and background.
• I will know if you have understood the information I have shared, if I have encoded that information into a message that was clear to you, and if I have chosen a channel that makes sense based on the feedback I receive from you. (This is not a shameless plug to get you to leave a comment below – but please feel free to give your feedback in the comments below)

As I said, models can get really boring, especially models you’ve never seen before. Don’t over think it. You actually use this basic model several hundred times a day whether you know it or not.

For example: If I ask you to raise your hand and you do it, then I tell you to put your hand down and you do it, we have just worked our way through the basic communications model a couple of times. 

In this example, the information I had was a request – I wanted you to raise your hand. I encoded my message as a request and delivered it via this article. If you raised your hand and then put your hand down again when I asked you to, your actions are the feedback that tells me my message was received and was clear. And of course, I am assuming you all raised your hands. 

How to use this information

Most people never think about the components of their communications. 

Knowing that these different components exist and how they work to create even the simplest of communications is the first step in understanding more about your own communication. Think about a communication you have had recently that didn’t go how you wanted. Run it through this model. It will help you to understand where your communications are effective and where they need work. 

Ask yourself these questions:

·       Do you find you have to explain yourself to people a lot? 

·       Do you get the outcomes you were expecting? 

·       Do people seem to blow off your requests?

If any of these are issues for you, you need to work on how you’re encoding information – or an easier way to think about it, you need to work on your messaging.

·       Do you find people do not respond to your emails?

·       Do you sometimes have trouble getting your message into an email?

·       Do you text people because it’s easier for you or because it makes sense for the communication?

Not every communication is appropriate for email. Not every conversation needs to be had on the phone. And not every remote conversation needs to be a Zoom meeting. Evaluate the message you want to send before deciding which channel you are going to use. Remember, email or text may be easier for you, but is it right for the receiver? 

Understanding communication components gives you a tool with which to evaluate communications and see where you can improve. But as I pointed out in the beginning of this article, it takes at least two people for a communication to happen (talking to yourself does count, but that is actually called intrapersonal communication and is an article for another time). So, to maximize the use of the knowledge you have just picked up, the best thing you can do is share this communication model with your co-workers and colleagues. When they understand the communication components, they will also be able to better communicate, and your team dynamics will be greatly impacted. 

Many of the teams I have worked with over the years have found understanding and using communication models improves productivity, ensures on-time and accurate product delivery and creates an overall working environment that is clear, efficient and somewhat drama free. 

If you’re truly interested in understanding communication models, there’s a pretty good blog by a Dr. Chris Drew that outlines the foundations of communication modeling going back to 300 BC – yes, we have been trying to figure out how to better communicate for quite some time. And of course, feel free to reach out to me directly or just leave a comment here and I will do my best to address any questions. Afterall, everyone is communicating something, we should all endeavor to communicate better.

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About the Author: No?l is a Communications Strategist in New York. She believes the world would be a better place if we engage our neighbors, learn to communicate effectively, and put family first – whatever shape your family takes.