Communication Skills Leaders 1

Communicating and Leading at Work 11

In the workplace, you communicate—make sense and

share sense with others—to achieve specific work objec-:

tives. You achieve those objectives through three sets of

communication skills:

Relating to others Communication in the interpersonal

context helps develop and manage workplace

relationships.

Collaborating with others Communication in the team

context allows people to collaborate, or work coopera-

tively, with others.

Presenting messages to others Communication in the

public context takes place through effective business

and professional presentations, such as presenting a

progress report to a higher management team.

Although each context is different, the communication principles remain the same. As you see in Figure 1.2, you

Figure 1.2: Communication Principles for a Lifetime

use the same five principles to develop and manage rela- tionships as you do to make effective sales presentations to potential customers. What's different is how the com- munication principles are applied. You will see how the five communication principles are woven throughout the three contexts (interpersonal, team, and public) and how the context determines how the principles are applied to achieve communication goals as you assume leadership roles.

Communication Principles for Leadership

Principle One: Be aware of Be mindful of your your communication with communication and conscious of yourself and others. what motivates you and others to

communicate.

Principle Two: Effectively use Select appropriate symbols to and interpret verbal clearly communicate messages messages. to others, and decode others'

messages carefully,

Principle Three: Effectively use Use unspoken symbols to and interpret nonverbal communicate the emotional and messages. relational aspects of your

message.

Principle Four: Listen and Actively listen to others, using respond thoughtfully to others, responses to ensure and

demonstrate that you have understood the message correctly.

Principle Five: Appropriately Customize messages to adapt messages to others. enhance message clarity;

consider the personal, social, and cultural characteristics of listeners.

Summary: Communicating and Leading at Work 1.1: Review how communication skills determine

leadership qualities.

Communication principles and skills are beneficial to any professional or career but especially to any career that

involves leading others. To be effective in the workplace, you need to be able to communicate effectively and appro- priately to influence others in positive and ethical ways.

1.2: Recognize that communication occurs only when it reaches the desired audience.

Human communication is the process of making sense out of the world and sharing that sense with others by creat- ing meaning through the use of verbal and nonverbal messages. People who communicate effectively do well on the job.