Joseph Riggio is The Official SelfGrowth.com Guide to "Communication Skills and Training". You can find complete information on Joseph Riggio and his products by visiting www.josephriggio.com.
Effective communication skills are an asset to any person, regardless of your age or status. By learning ways to communicate effectively, you will be able to build trust and respect, and make people like you. That kind of skill is highly sought after in most industries.
There are different ... Views: 1029
If you are a good communicator in your own culture, does that automatically make you competent in another culture? The answer is no, if you only interpret through your own cultural glasses and don’t take cultural differences into account.
Since communication happens on both a verbal and on a ... Views: 1918
“I want to quit my job and go back to school.”
“I would like us to work with a relationship coach.”
“I think we need to make some decisions about our child.”
“I want to spend more intimate time with just you.”
It's not always easy to speak what you want or how you see a situation in your ... Views: 1222
“I know you think you understand what I said. But I don’t think you understand that what I said is not what I meant.”
Effective communication is key to getting our messages across to others both at work and in our personal relationships. It maximizes the impact of our message while minimizing ... Views: 3920
“Seek first to understand, then to be understood.”
Active listening is the ability to capture and understand the messages that others are communicating whether these messages are transmitted verbally or nonverbally, clearly or vaguely. It is not simply the ability to repeat the other person's ... Views: 3581
1. Begin to notice your self-talk and how it impacts your communication.
2. Follow the 6 steps to changing your negative self-talk described earlier in the book. They are:
• Increase awareness of your self-talk
• Ask yourself, “Whose voice is this?”
• Challenge or dispute these beliefs or ... Views: 877
Are you someone who is employed for a small business or owns one? Have you already considered starting or becoming employed for a corporation that is not too large? People who work for an organization, especially a small one that involves regular customer contact, must possess strong ... Views: 918
Last weekend I added another way to describe the importance of seeking another’s perspective when you find disagreement. Being a soccer parent in Montana has its challenges. When your children "travel," you don’t head across town as do my friends in Minneapolis or Washington, DC, instead you hit ... Views: 728
Everywhere you look these days the focus in Human Resources and Employee Communication is managing change within organizations. But most of these programs fail to achieve their objectives. During bad economic times the focus is usually on providing coaching on understanding the emotions people ... Views: 890
This started as an article to address women and feelings of isolation, but as I spent time with the topic, I kept coming back to the words “connect” and “connection.” Connecting, I thought, is the opposite of isolation, and if it’s the opposite, then surely it’s also the solution. One study I ... Views: 1191
It is difficult to listen to the chatter of our self-talk in our head and effectively listen to someone else at the same time. If we are concentrating on other things, re-playing past conversations, rehearsing what we are going to say next, getting defensive, judging what the other person is ... Views: 968
Recently Harvard Business Publishing reported “The 10 Most Common Leadership Shortcomings”. Below are 5 of the 10 shortcomings you can avoid instantly by improving your communication skills. Your leadership abilities (and your job) could depend on how effective you are at motivating and ... Views: 3694
"The hardest conversations are the most important ones." India Arie wrote those words in the liner notes of her album, Testimony: Volume 2 Love and Politics. India's words often connect with me at a perfect intersection of time/space.
I read those words a short time after having a very ... Views: 1043
Whether speaking or singing, many of us want to change our voice to sound richer, sweeter, more authoritative or more sensual. However, practices intended to alter vocal qualities from an external desire rather than from an internal transition are limited in their impact and sustainability. It ... Views: 1450
Unless you are Clint Eastwood or a Marilyn Monroe impersonator, a voice that’s too breathy can be one of the biggest credibility killers. On the positive side breathy speakers are stereotyped as compassionate, likeable and sexy. On the negative side they can come across as wishy-washy, weak, ... Views: 1237
A boring speaker isn't just tedious for the audience. It's embarrassing for the speaker. If you've ever suspected you might be putting people to sleep, fear not. You don't need an elaborate bag of gimmicks to liven up your talks. All you need is a little more liveliness in your voice.
While ... Views: 780
Warning! You may be infected with a virus that could be lethal to your sales, your public relations and even your social life. I call it a "Verbal Virus. "
Verbal viruses are meaningless fillers that speckle our speech, distract from our message, drain our impact and annoy listeners. I call ... Views: 767
Your "SQ" is your “Speaker's Quotient.” It's a measure of your ability to communicate your ideas in an effective and memorable manner.
ANSWER YES OR NO
When you give a presentation, do you:
1) Feel as if the audience is scrutinizing you and judging your performance?
2) Compare yourself to ... Views: 796
The United States has always been a nation of immigrants and with the global economy, many of us deal with more non-native speakers of English than ever before. These relationships are valuable and to make them work we need not only good communication skills but also mutual respect.
1. ... Views: 908
Breaking bad news to customers is not an easy task. However, when the time comes, it must be done with empathy and professionalism.
Here are five strategies for delivering the message with compassion:
1. Tell the truth. People tend to fear what they do not understand. Put the situation into ... Views: 1409
Question:
I'm curious about the spiritual concept of "evil tongue"(speaking evil of others) and its pervasiveness in our culture. Why do people become energized when they say or read something negative about someone else? What does it say about where that person is? What are the consequences ... Views: 1054
Relationships are like shoes. Sometimes they fit, and sometimes they cause annoying, painful blisters. For example, your partner doesn't call when running late; your colleague at work taps his pencil incessantly; and a neighbor trashes your yard. Sometimes you need to confront the offender and ... Views: 6316
Have you ever wondered how many words are in the dictionary? Do you know how many of them we use regularly? Have you ever noticed that some words are much better than others? (i.e. compare pretty too gorgeous) Recently I’ve been playing around with the idea that specific words can make a big ... Views: 1576
There is no doubt that we are more connected today than at any time in our history. It is possible today to be connected to hundreds and even thousands of people at a time and to constantly keep everyone in our network up to date on our activities. Today’s technology makes it possible to never ... Views: 1254
Many of my clients share that one of their biggest marketing challenges is actually connecting with enough prospects. They are doing all of this great work in their businesses, but not very many people know about their work; or at least not enough for the flow of business to be moving smoothly ... Views: 1055
Cooperation seems simple: working together toward a common goal for the benefit of all involved. But amazingly it can be quite challenging, even when we have so many successful examples all around us. Human society is based upon the concept of cooperation, but finding a balance to ensure the ... Views: 3944
While people may decide 10 things about you within 10 seconds of seeing you, it takes only 1-3 seconds to speak volumes through your handshake. Having a firm handshake is essential in the business world. It’s a key ingredient in creating a good first impression.
President and Michelle Obama ... Views: 3297
Effective communication is what gives you a voice in the world. Effective communicators can reach the highest office, as evidenced by our current sitting President of the United States. No matter what the political affiliation, most would agree he is a skilled communicator, who has the ability ... Views: 916
You cannot become an excellent motivational speaker as fast as you would like. Becoming an excellent reputed motivational speaker may take at least two to ten years or even more. The following tips enable you to become a motivational speaker:
Get a good tutor or guide - Get the guidance from a ... Views: 1487
Communication plays a major role in any kind of relationship. However, it is one of the most misunderstood words in the English dictionary. Most people would automatically think of “communication” as talking, when actually it is not just that. It is a two-way street, where talking and listening ... Views: 1810
I believe that anything is possible, that anything you set your heart and mind to achieve, you can. And I believe that we are all born with infinite wisdom.
If we don’t get too distracted, if we don’t forget what we know and intuitively feel to be true, we will instinctively understand what to ... Views: 1488
You’ve all heard that on the highway speed kills. When you drive too fast you put yourself at greater risks of both being in an accident and suffering grave results if that accident happens.
And yet, most people speed.
Our world seems to thrive on speed: from microwave meals to sound bites to ... Views: 913
When you want to solve some important relationship or logistics issue, you help assist help ensure your effectiveness by appropriately setting the stage for communication. Remember these guidelines while trying to solve a problem in your relationship.
1. Think about what you want to say ... Views: 879
Use the following ten steps to replace old, ineffective arguments with an effective fair fighting session:
1. Fight to resolve an issue or solve a problem.
2. Identify the problem to be solved.
3. Take turns stating your case, using I messages.
4. Practice active listening.
5. Generate ... Views: 3002
A fool can be defined as "someone who lacks good judgment."
I`m sure you would agree that being called a fool isn`t something most would consider a complement.
So why then am I suggesting that you consider being a fool?
Actually, I`m not encouraging you to "lack good judgment" - on the ... Views: 719
Nonverbal communication is as important as verbal communication. The process of communication does not complete without its nonverbal components. In order to truly express yourself and convey the message properly to your target audience, the expressions, gestures, tone and pauses in the speech ... Views: 2785
Have you ever had a patient that sits through a whole report of findings and looks at you with the deer in the headlights look? It's obvious that they don't really understand the treatment program that has been implemented and your communication is off target.
If your patients do not have have ... Views: 1435
I love to drive, and I always have. In fact, other than in a shuttle bus or a taxi, I am seldom a passenger. I probably got this from my Dad - he always loved to drive too. And, because driving is a skill that becomes subconscious for most of us, I typically drive on auto-pilot.
Recently, ... Views: 654
In the face of this severe, take-no-prisoners economic downturn, far too many organizations are responding in knee-jerk reaction to the thought of holding all but the smallest of meetings. Training budgets are slashed. Employees hunker behind their desk, hoping that no one from HR can find them ... Views: 1043
When you listen to Americans talking you might notice that they always stress some syllables more than others. That's because in English words one syllable is always pronounced with more emphasis than the other syllables in the word. The vowel in the stressed syllable is lengthened and has a ... Views: 4080
I regularly get told by women clients that they’re not being listened to and have little or no influence in their organisation. My first question of course is, “How do you do that?” Doesn’t make me the most popular coach on the block but, hey, if my clients wanted milk sop they’d go elsewhere. ... Views: 943
Communication is a two-way street. CLEAR communication is when another person receives the information you have just communicated in the exact same way you intended it to be received.
Yet how often do you experience misunderstanding and miscommunication as a part of your every day experience? ... Views: 4377
I’ve been thinking a lot about the economy lately. I guess everyone is, but I’m not nervous or worried. I see this as an opportunity. I believe that when the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of change is when people change. We’re at that point right now.
It’s time to ... Views: 845
Good communication is not rocket science. It’s also not ‘painting by numbers’ where people have to learn a set of techniques. It’s not enough to learn some skills. The key to good communication is not just having good communication skills, but also having self-awareness. Why do you react and ... Views: 14220
Have you ever dealt with communication anxiety? You know, that discomfort when you feel all tongue-tied because you don’t know what to say in a given situation. It shows up differently for each person. Some feel embarrassed, some feel hot under the collar, some say it feels like they are ... Views: 2774
The scene is familiar. Two or more amazing people who are dedicated to furthering the wonderful work our nonprofit conducts are actively in conflict. It starts with a perceived slight, follows with silent anger, gradually simmers into personal jabs and eventually escalates into outright ... Views: 1797
No public speaker should ever forget this important fact!
“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” You have most likely heard that quote before, and it is true. If you are a speaker who wants to be a dynamic and exceptional communicator, then you need to start ... Views: 2830
Although there is some controversy in using sign language for a child with severe verbal apraxia, I found it to be extremely useful. Some experts seem to think that non-verbal children with rely only on their signs and not be motivated to speak. In our experience that wasn't the case, using sign ... Views: 1684
Your project go-live date has changed – now what? Regardless of the reasons for the change (and let's face it, "the date has changed" usually is interpreted as "the date has slipped"), there are six steps you should take when communicating a change in your project's go-live date:
1. Consider ... Views: 3768
A class participant recently emailed me with a question: "What if you find yourself in a discussion with quite a few people at a social gathering and you have an important point to make, but feel intimated by those around you? I find I get all tongue twisted and the words do not come out the way ... Views: 2163