“You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your brains won't get you anywhere. The ability to communicate is everything.” -- Lee Iacocca. --- I truly believe this.
Practically everyone communicates at work. We communicate to share ideas, persuade people, try to prove our point, etc. No matter which industry one is in, no matter the level of expertise one has over the job, without oral communication skills the person’s success is not guaranteed. Communication skills are very critical in every career, and not just for those ‘people-oriented’ careers. We communicate in some form or other every day, be it writing e-mail, telephone conversation, business presentation, or even tweeting. It’s actually interesting that a mere 140 letter communication tool has played some major roles in political uprisings and has also turned out to be a terrific marketing tool.
So why is it so valuable to have good communication skills?
A Job Outlook 2005 survey on the most desirable skill set which employers want rates communication skills on the top of the list. Additional research validates the importance of working in teams, leading, negotiating, resolving conflicts, and managing cultural diversity. This is why more than 90% of
Ronal Adler and Jeanne Elmhorst, in their book “Communicating at Work,” state that subscribers to the Harvard Business Review rated "the ability to communicate" the most important factor in making an executive "promotable," more important than ambition, education, and capacity for hard work. That’s surprising, but true. Research spanning several decades has consistently ranked communication skills as crucial for managers.
Now that we have substantiated the paramount importance of oral communication in successful coexistence with fellow Homo sapiens on earth, the following are generally accepted pointers to be successful:
1) Put forward your points in simple language and be very clear on the subject. Using jargon and being verbose just for the sake of it is not advisable.
2) Be sure that your facial and body language match the context of your talk. Exude confidence.
3) Be a good listener. Listen to understand what the other person has to say, and be empathetic to your audience. Listen to each other intelligently, understandingly, and skillfully.
4) Reinforce the speaker by nodding, having eye contact, and asking questions.
One 20-year study that followed the progress of Stanford University MBA students revealed that the most successful graduates (as measured by both career advancement and salary) shared personality traits that distinguish good communicators: a desire to persuade, an interest in talking and working with other people, and an outgoing, ascendant personality. As students, these achievers developed their communication skills by choosing courses such as business writing, persuasion, selling ideas, negotiation, and speaking.
The power of communication can be used either like Theodore Roosevelt to revolutionize a nation for good or by a demagogue for evil means. The key in both the cases is how convincingly the information is disseminated and persuaded.
Steve Jobs and Apple are a very good case study: Is there correlation between the success of Apple products and Steve Jobs speech/presentations during every major release of an Apple product? I feel that one of the most important factors for the success of Apple products is the amazing introduction to the products by Steve Jobs. It’s the charisma of Steve Jobs that has created a cult following for Apple products. The amazing introductions to the Mac, the iPod, and the iPhone actually set the momentum for Apple. Of course, Apple’s products are also equally good. Jobs’ presentations are always simple, engaging, intriguing, and marvelous to watch. He doesn’t just convey the message, he also inspires. Food for thought?
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