Many a times I meet women who are constantly doing so much but seldom for themselves. They are either excelling at their workplace or round the clock managing their families. And because they are so occupied with ticking out tasks from their daily task lists, their life is on autopilot mode. This refrains them from exploring and living up to their own potential. This gives rise to search for identity, confidence and fulfilment in life. If you are one of them, who is discovering your meaning and purpose or finding smarter ways to navigate through life, then this blog will give you an idea on how to become a smarter version of yourself and the vital role of communication as you go about your daily life.
Communication is key!
Communication is vital in every relationship, and especially in the relationship you have with yourself. Communication comes in various forms and is recently listed as one of the seven important lamps of living. Read here.
In your personal and professional life, communication is very important and helps to build healthy relations and long-lasting friendships. Communication doesn’t only mean by words, sometimes it has to do with talking through our ideas, thoughts and emotions. The basic idea about communication is to send out a message. How you do it in a clear, concise way is very crucial. And it absolutely necessary for the receiving end to get the messaging correctly to avoid miscommunication and conflict.
One example I can think from our daily life is while communicating over email. Often, we are too busy to run a second look through our work. Later it is brought to our notice that there was a typo in our email, which has caused miscommunication with the other party. This oversight could lead in coming across as sloppy and unprofessional. Another classic example is the use of short forms in text. What we need to highlight here is that not everyone is well versed with the SMS / Text lingo and can derive at a completely different understanding. Hence it is advisable to keep communication over text very clear and always follow it up with a call, to understand if the message is conveyed and understood correctly.
Another very important form of communication is intrapersonal communication. It can be defined as communication with one’s self, and that may include self-talk, acts of imagination and visualization, and even recall and memory. In my earlier blog I had touched upon goal setting, how about starting it with yourself? You need to communicate all your goals and visions to yourself and align your daily activities around it.
Some of the practices that will help you with clear communications is:
Reading is your window to the world!
One of the age old tried and tested self-help techniques is that of reading. Reading is not age defined and if you have not yet explored this technique, it is never too late to rely on them to be your window to the world. Reading helps build your vocabulary and boosts your confidence as it improves your overall communication skills.
Practice Active Listening
Listening is an art and that is one of the most important traits of a good communicator. You have to show people that you are interested in what they have to say and then expect to be heard out well in return.
Empathy
Empathy in today’s unprecedented times is a great emotion in order to communicate with anyone from your personal and professional circle. A critical leadership skill is to have empathy first, business second in every conversation. Most workplaces have employees from various diversities and cultures. Stereotyping communities and cultures are a big no. Best way to work this out is to keep an open mind while communicating and to set aside time to listen.
On most occasions it is of utmost importance to be able to communicate effectively in order to avoid miscommunications.
Stop saying ‘Yes’
If you think working on yourself requires a lot of work, you should know it requires a lot of undoing things as well. Firstly, you have to excel the art of saying ‘no’ and stop saying ‘yes’ to everything. If something causes you discomfort or is against your wish, you have to politely decline. And you have to know that it is completely natural and okay for you to do this. This frees up more room for you physically and mentally. Read my blog on the skill of saying an assertive ‘no’ to know more.
Stop pleasing everyone
Once you have mastered the art of saying ‘no’, the next thing to do is to understand that it is not your job to please everyone. You are free to chose a life that you want to own on your terms. It is not necessary to get an approval from everyone. Practically, since every individual is different it is seldom that you are able to align your doings with everyone. Hence take control of your life and stop seeking an approval from everyone. Begin to deal with change, one ‘no’ at a time and you will already feel it is liberating.
Here is an interesting article on the 8 bad communication habits you need to break immediately. Building your communication skills is a step forward in having a successful and happy life. This is a work-in-progress skill that you will need to continuously develop throughout your professional and personal life. Devote the best hours of your day for yourself to learn the skill of communicating well. It is also very important to constantly ask questions and seek clarifications in order to seek more clarity. If you have been on track with the above activities and still need clarity on how to become a smarter 2.0 version of yourself, you can get in touch with me on my website or contact me to know more on how self-discipline plays an important role in personal development.