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The success of an organization depends on many factors, and among them includes connections, capital, human resources etc. However, effective communication among workers constitutes an important role in maintaining the dialogue, openness and casualness of the workplace. It is perhaps the most uniting yet simultaneously divisive element within a workplace. Even though contemporary technology has greatly facilitated dialogues between long distances, verbal and non-verbal communication cannot be overlooked since human impressions last longer than even the most eloquent words can convey.
Whenever people mention about being a good orator or leader, many think of the traditional politician standing on podiums giving a rousing speech with various arm gestures. Such images undoubtedly carry the same significance nowadays as they have been since time immemorial. In the workplace, increasingly, non-verbal communication has been gradually supplanting the traditional verbal communication. What defines “clear communication” has shifted dramatically in recent years due to the introduction of technology, yet its essence remains. As a leader in the workplace, clear communication not only achieves what e-mails cannot—through the accompaniment of gestures, facial expressions etc.—but it also increases the leader’s credibility. Through clearly articulating the goals, criticisms, and even praises, employees enjoy the benefit of job security and predictability without inducing complacency. A mutual initiative from both the leaders and the workers to clearly express their desires and expectations helps retain the balance of power within the workplace without upsetting the intrinsic hierarchy.
While verbal and non-verbal communications occupy an essential place in an organization, an emerging factor that can hamper clear communication is an individuals unintentional misinterpretation of a colleague’s desires. Often such phenomenon is blamed on causing emotional distresses and decreased work capacity in workers. In a study measuring the impact that non-verbal communication have on people, it is discovered that over 90% of a message is interpreted through facial gestures, hand signs and the tone of the speaker. Leaders who have mastered these techniques can increase their appeal to workers. Typically, good communication styles include direct eye-contact, sincerity in maintaining the dialogue, and taking an initiative to actively sustain the listener’s attention. Surprisingly, bad communication styles do not diverge much from good conversation styles; the difference lies in the eye of the beholder. Mishaps in word choice and interpretation through the most discerning eyes compound to the problem of violating a confidence. As Ellen Galinsky of the Families and Work Institute of New York says, “the art of being a [leader] is to be able to take [different] perspectives [and look for the common ground].” Even enthusiasm and over-impassion cannot be pretexts for violating a worker’s confidence.
On the personal level I have experienced an occasion when my feelings were seriously hurt after a workplace leader’s comments. My workplace leader once commented on my English accent, saying not only does my Chinese-English accent should be avoided completely; it should also be eradicated with the help of a speech pathologist. At first, being impartial with regard to the comment, the workplace leader had made my accent problem sound very reasonable and logical, thanks to his unswerving and pretentious manner in his articulation. It seemed as if the workplace leader had been trying to carry across a benign message of the need to improve my accent using a paternal and didactic tone. Yet judging by the contents of the comment it was no suspicion that a racist connotation had been implied surreptitiously. Considering the impact of such a comment, had the workplace leader equivocated, stuttered or disconnected his eye-contact with me, in all cases I would have been tremendously provoked.
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Writer Profile
Iman Ng
I was born in Hong Kong on June 13th, 1989. Having lived in this Asian metropolis for 13 years and witnessed its transfer of sovereignty from Britain to the PRC, I developed my critical thinking skills about governance and international relations from these life-changing events.
My educational experience is undoubtedly one of the more interesting aspects of my life. I was brought up in a Cantonese-speaking environment and began my formal English instruction in 1996. After 1997, however, my school ceased using English as the medium of instruction and instituted Mandarin as the former's replacement in situ. I did not learn English formally (though I did study English privately for 4 years) until 2001 when I started my 7th Grade education at a Catholic-Jesuit secondary school.
In April 2002 my family decided to immigrate to the United States, after my father had almost lost his job. It was the only choice my family had, given how woeful the economy had been at that time. With great reluctance we left Hong Kong in July 2002, and settled in Rockville, Maryland, USA, where I have been living ever since.
One of my greatest passions is International Politics. I would like to learn more about the human condition and the state of the world today; we are intrinsically born into this Westphalian state system and there's no way to escape it, given how rampant globalization is and how constantly it is affecting our lives on a daily basis.
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you've done great lynn libbrecht | Feb 10th, 2018
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