How can you avoid miscommunication? Miscommunication hurts! It hurts both our personal and professional lives, hampering career advancement and profitable business possibilities. Have you ever had a face to face conversation with someone, or sent an electronic message only to discover that in the process of communicating, the other person just didn’t get it. How can that be? What was wrong with them that they didn’t understand?
A few years ago a friend of mine looked me in the eye and said, “It’s not them. It’s you. Don’t you know that the person who communicates or sends ‘the message’ is responsible for checking in with the other person to make sure ‘the message’ has been received and understood?” Too often, we expect the person at the receiving end to ask for clarification. Then, we get upset when the person doesn’t. Yet, which one of us hasn’t been at the receiving end of various types of communication, absolutely convinced that we understood what the other person meant; only, find out later that we didn’t understand clearly at all.
While it may be impossible for miscommunication to completely disappear, we can do a lot to minimize our troubles when it comes to communicating with each other by following these simple everyday communication practices on how to avoid miscommunication.
Time. Depending on the situation, all of us need time to express our thoughts, exchange information or share ideas we think are important. No one likes to be pressured, interrupted, rushed or cut off from saying what they want to say. Give people the appropriate time they need to communicate successfully. For example: This means not asking someone for detailed information if you have to leave for a meeting in 30 seconds.
Interest. Whether connecting through email or face to face, be friendly, professional and show that you are interested in what the other person has to say. To avoid miscommunication, keep an open attitude to understanding the other person’s point of view. In his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey’s 5th habit is “Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood.” This is an excellent habit to put into practice.
Message. Any message is best kept simple and expressed clearly. Shorter words are better than longer or unfamiliar ones. Avoid slang and idiomatic expressions that are limited in use and not readily understood by everyone. Unless you’re writing a novel, shorter sentences are easier to understand and the information is easier to remember from the receiver’s point of view.
Encourage. Regardless of the communication method you’re using, encourage constructive dialogue and engage the other person through questions that require more than a brief ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response. Encourage feedback and consider asking listeners to paraphrase what’s been said. This is a helpful step in avoiding any miscommunication pitfalls.
Will chances for miscommunication ever disappear? Probably not, but they can be brought to a minimum. By following these few straight-forward tips, we can all work toward building a lasting foundation for better understanding, and in the process increase our chances of communicating more successfully with each other.