Is this the most important aspect of English communication?

There is one area of communication in English which I believe is crucial, and should be mastered first before you start going deeper into the complexities of grammar etc.

What is it? My answer is below??

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It's not the grammar ??

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It's not the vocabulary ??

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It's not the pronunciation ??

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For me, it's the art of "managing the conversation".

Perhaps you are asking "but Chris, what are you talking about?" ??

Well, let me explain ??

As a non-native (or even native) speaker, there will always be moments in a conversation when you're unsure of the meaning or the message. There will always be unfamiliar words, expressions, accents, and so forth. Equally important, there will be times when others struggle to understand what you're trying to convey. This will persist, regardless of your English proficiency level.

If we acknowledge this reality, the best we can hope for is to navigate our conversations effectively. We can achieve this by saying the right things and asking the right questions to ensure everyone is on the same page.

This could be a simple "Sorry John, can you repeat that please?" or perhaps, "would you like me to explain that again John?"

Or it could be a much longer:

"Ok John, if I've understood correctly you would like the whole team to postpone other projects until we've completed this one. Is that correct?"

or

"In other words we need to reach out to the key decision makers at these companies and invite them to this event. Is everyone clear on that?"

or maybe

"I just want to make sure that everyone is on the same page, so I'll go over it again"

One of the HUGE benefits of learning the right words and expressions for managing your conversations, is that you can relax a bit about your English "level". Why? Because you know that if there is a breakdown in communication, you have the ?????????? at your fingertips to be able to handle the situation!

Next week: New format for my newsletter and some exciting news regarding my new program - UNLOCK your business English.