The Simplicity and Complexity of Communication

"I haven't understood what you want to say, be clear.", a commonplace expression be it a routine day at any office or a teacher telling their student or a parent asking their child, especially when the latter has been mischievous or demands something. We all have been in such situations and wondered "Why so simple has been made so complex?".

Communication is a medium to convey and receive emotions from each other. It is a bundle containing expressions, tone, tenor, gestures, actions and/or words, for speech is no longer an advantage and lack of it, no longer a limitation.

Why, then do we find extremely difficult to make the other person understand us?

Some plausible reasons are as under:

1. Intent - the RCA of miscommunication between persons would reveal divergence of 'intent' as the main reason for miscommunication. I may communicate something, whereas mean an entirely different idea. In armed forces, we never face such issues as the underlying ethos dictate well-being of teams and the nation. Hence, the dichotomy which the corporate world faces, eludes the persons in uniform. Remedy - Keep growth and progress of individuals, teams and organizations as mainstay.
2. Verbosity & Speed - Very seldom we find individuals padding-up the communique' with floral words or overacting and even occasionally taking safe haven in speed. This may be the case either with the communicator or the communicated due to habit, lack of knowledge or personality deficit. Remedy - Follow ABC i.e. accuracy of the content, brevity of the bundle and clarity of thoughts and hence the communique'.
3. Corruption in Transmission - We are what our experiences have made us and hence biases are part of our personality. Even gods in their reincarnation on earth have occasionally been known to prefer few individuals viz others, no matter whatever the rationale. We see or hear something, wrap our biases around it, personal; technical; contagious or contrast and transmit a corrupted version. Remedy - learn to be as objective as possible, with sensitivity of situation in mind; clear understanding of the state(mental and physical) of receiver would be great and finally adapt minimalism while transmitting.
4. Over or under Self - assurance - complexity also develops when either or both are less aware of their self-assurance levels. The ones that are over self-assured, assume others to be less knowledgeable and take the mantle to drive home lessons and learnings in their communique'. On the other hand, the lesser self-assured ones allow the receiver to take the place of the sender and create unnecessary complexities by infusing subjectivity in understanding. Effective communication is much simpler than we turn it out to be. It is the cornerstone of successful relationships, both personally and professionally and by actively listening, being empathetic, and using clear language, we can bridge gaps, resolve conflicts, and foster understanding. Remember, communication is about the connection.