To communicate effectively means that the speaker has to get his intended message across to the listener, in its entirety. In order to achieve this goal, several barriers such as language, culture and perception have to be overcome.
Why is effective communication important in the first place? The answer to that is simple - we all want to be understood by our intended audience but without effective communication, our intended message might be misinterpreted or lost.
Due to the fact that people have varying degrees of knowledge, the speaker has to change his choice of words to suit the level of the listener. For example, for a doctor to communicate effectively with his patient, he cannot use too many technical terms as the patient would only be confused. Instead, the doctor must choose terms that a lay person who has not undergone medical training can understand. This might not come naturally to everyone and would require practice. Through trial and error, one learns how to switch between different registers when communicating to different people. With practice, the speaker could communicate effectively with the listener at ease after identifying the type of words, language and tone that he should use.
However, not only are speaking skills important in effective communication, listening skills are equally important. A good and active listener should show genuine interest and encourage the speaker to go on. Eye contact, attentive silence and verbal encouragers are some of skills an active listener should possess. For example, an employer who fidgets constantly with wandering eyes is going to make the boss annoyed and not want to continue with the conversation. Instead of communicating, the boss gets angry and the employer gets listed in the black books. To avoid being in that sticky situation, one should take the time to learn how to be an active listener.
Hence, effective communication skills are important to us in all aspects of life and we should practice and hone our speaking and listening skills in order for our conversations to be meaningful.
