11 Proven Tips: How to Communicate Effectively at Work
At some point in their life, every person will be required to speak in front of a group. Regardless of the size of the group, most people feel nervous when speaking. They are never sure if they are conveying the right message and can communicate effectively.
Are you hoping to learn how to improve your communication skills, sound more confident, and make an excellent first impression?
Speaking with confidence is vital for effective workplace communication because it can make or break an audience's attention on what you have to say.
Achieving success in the workplace often hinges on your ability to communicate well. This can be especially difficult when working with a team of people who have different perspectives than yours. When conflict arises, everyone involved must be able to express their views and listen to others respectfully. Effective workplace communication allows for more productive discussions and helps build relationships among colleagues, ultimately leading to a positive work environment.
By following these eleven simple tips, you will understand the fundamentals of communication and learn how to communicate effectively at work. If you have any questions, book a free phone consultation with our lead communication coach.
1. Control Your Speaking Speed
A good rate of speech ranges between 140-160 words per minute. A rate faster than 160 words per minute or slower than 140 words per minute can make it harder for your listener to understand what you are trying to say.
If you speak too quickly, you could practice slowing down by adding pauses between phrases or sentences so that you are not packed together without spaces for listeners to follow along. This can be done without making the listener lose the meaning of what you are trying to say.
Adding pauses to your sentences gives listeners time to process the information you are presenting. Listeners can then reflect on what they just heard and ask any questions that need clarification.
Conversely, if you speak too slowly, you may need to increase your speech rate by adding a few words per sentence.
2. Improve Awareness of Speaking Behaviors
Awareness is critical for you to make any changes to your speech patterns and speech behaviors. There are many ways to listen and record yourself while talking, but one of the most basic forms is using a cell phone to record audio.
First, set up your recording space with a comfortable chair where you can sit directly in front of a desk or table. Next, set up your phone on the desk and start recording audio.
You can use a transcription app such as "Speechy" or another speech evaluation tool. When you transcribe your speech, you can look at every word you have spoken, which may help you identify problematic issues with your speech delivery.
Recording yourself can also help you understand how often you distract people with habits like throat clearing, coughing, or taking deep breaths to control nerves. It can also assist you in catching a mistake in grammar or articulation. Self-awareness is critical to the communication process and making your speech sound polished.
3. Adjust Your Volume
A loud voice is a sign of power and confidence, but volume does not always make you sound more persuasive or confident to your listeners. Being able to control your volume is an important communication skill.
To adjust the volume of your voice, you first need to note situations where others may feel uncomfortable with the loudness or softness of your speech. For example, assess how people react when volume increases while presenting to co-workers. Does everyone's expression change? Do they stop talking, walk away from you, smile, and continue paying attention? If people are moving away from you when your voice is raised, perhaps it is time for you to learn to speak with a softer voice.
If you have been told in the past that you are a soft talker or you are often asked to repeat yourself, then you may need to project your voice louder so you can be heard and easily understood. It is essential to learn how to increase your volume the right way to communicate effectively. A communication coach can teach you to use the proper tone of voice without creating tension or stress in the voice box.
4. Maintaining Eye Contact With the Other Person
When a co-worker asks you a question, do you look at them directly in the eyes or quickly glance away? Looking away too soon for comfort may make it hard to get your point across, undermining what you are saying.
With sustained, focused eye contact comes authority. If you cannot look people in the eye, they will think you are not confident about your message and won't make a point convincingly. Looking someone in the eye can communicate confidence and conviction.
Eye contact, which is nonverbal communication, is essential during a conversation because it allows you to connect with your team members and bond with your listener. Sustained eye contact and active listening are great ways to make a first impression in the workplace.
Making good face-to-face eye contact is also beneficial because it will help you relax during presentations. As you look at your audience, you can focus on them rather than the other distractions in the room.
You are more likely to engage your audience when you maintain eye contact. It would be best if you scanned the crowd as you spoke. Watch facial expressions. This is a great way to know if you are making your point. You may observe nodding, frowning, and even a smile.
One important tip is to sustain eye contact long enough to make a connection, then move on to avoid making the other person feel uncomfortable.
5. Be Aware of Your Body Language
Your body language can communicate more about yourself than what you say verbally. When people feel stressed or nervous, they clench their hands into fists and hunch forward when they sit down. You may think this makes you look more confident, but it can also show listeners that you feel uncomfortable or threatened in the conversation.
To correct this issue, try to keep your hands open and relaxed by not rubbing them together or holding them firmly on each other. You can also avoid moving or fidgeting too much in your seat, which can send discomfort signals to others.
You don't want to overuse hand gestures. This will make you look too excited, nervous, or uncomfortable with the topic. Try sitting still and calm in your seat while you speak instead of using waving motions when explaining a point.
If you overuse hand gestures, your listeners may not focus on what you say because they will be distracted by your gestures. This makes the conversation less effective and can cause the listener to lose interest more quickly.
6. Master Your Breathing
Our breath is centered in the diaphragm, the large muscle beneath your lungs that pulls down to expand your lungs and allow air to enter. The smaller muscles higher up in your chest, rib cage, and neck can also allow air to enter the lungs. We don't want to rely on them for breathing because they can lead to excessive tension in our voice box (larynx).
To support your voice for conversation, breathe with your diaphragm. This is also known as "belly breathing." Diaphragmatic breathing oxygenates your brain, keeps you in control, and allows you to speak with more power.
Breathing patterns are essential to having a good voice and can strengthen your presence. A voice well-supported by breath has the sound of authority and confidence.
Holding your breath as you speak will make your speech sound nasal and not as confident or clear. Our most essential words often come at the end of a sentence, and to deliver the message fully, we need the diaphragmatic breath.
7. Stay Hydrated to Maintain A Healthy Voice
Drink plenty of water. One of the most important things you can do to maintain a healthy voice is to stay hydrated. Proper hydration will also benefit your function, mood, and productivity.
To ensure that vocal folds remain healthy, drink enough water. Humans are composed of approximately 65% water. Dehydration or inadequate hydration affects every cell, organ, and system in the body, including the vocal folds.
Inadequate water intake directly affects the ability of the voice to function correctly. We have a thin layer of mucous on the surface of our vocal folds, a lubricant that protects the vocal folds from injury. When hydration is inadequate, the thin mucus layer can become thick and sticky, leading to unwanted vocal changes.
To maintain hydration to optimize communication, follow these tips:
Sip water continuously throughout the day. Don't wait till you are thirsty.
Reduce your intake of alcohol, caffeine, caffeinated teas, and sodas.
Use a humidifier if you are in an environment with low humidity.
Keep a bottle of water on hand when you are delivering a presentation.
Drink lots of water before giving a presentation.
8. Achieve Vocal Variety
The word pitch means how high or low a voice sounds. People have natural variations in their vocal pitch.
In general, our pitch goes up when we are discussing something exciting. Our pitch drops slightly when we emphasize a serious point in our voice. Lowering the pitch of your voice can also be a way to communicate transitions between topics and endings.
You want your voice to be low and strong to command your audience's attention. However, if you notice that your listeners are not paying attention, then raise it slightly.
9. Use Clear Articulation for Effective Communication
Focusing on the clarity of sounds and the words you produce is essential to understand and sound confident. When we articulate, we speak clearly. The speaker should strive to speak clearly.
You may say "gonna" instead of "going to", "wanna" instead of "want to," "lemme" instead of "let me," or "kinda" instead of "kind of." Some people say words this way because they are unaware that they are mispronouncing them or mumbling. In informal settings, this type of speaking may be acceptable, but it may be considered poor communication in the workplace.
An essential element of verbal communication is saying words correctly, including all vowels and consonants in a word. One of the most critical mistakes speakers can make is mispronouncing simple words.
The most common words people pronounce incorrectly are Wednesday, probably, and cupboard. Similarly, it is often pronounced as "samerly." Likewise, ask is often pronounced as "ax."
10. Be Succinct and Eliminate Filler Words
"Filler words" are meaningless words, but we use them to sound like we know what we're talking about. Filler words impede your communication skills and should permanently be eliminated.
Some of the most common filler words are "ummm," "like," "I mean," "y'know." They usually only serve as a hesitation or buy time for the speaker to think of what they want to say next. These filler words can lead to significant pauses in conversations.
You first need to recognize when you're using these filler words and whether or not it's necessary. For example, you may be used to interrupting yourself by saying "ummm" with each new thought, which can cause a speaker to lose the flow of their thoughts. If your speaking is too choppy, you may think about what you will say next instead of listening to the person talking with you now.
If filler words are a problem, try monitoring yourself throughout the day and write them down every time you use one. Then, work on eliminating it from your vocabulary.
At first, eliminating filler words can be a challenge because it's not something we generally think about or become aware of. However, the more you recognize when you use these words and where they occur in a sentence, the easier it will become to eliminate them from your speech pattern.
When we talk, filler words such as "uh," "ummm," and "like" often disrupt the flow of our speech. These filler words can lead to significant pauses in conversations, especially if you use them frequently.
One effective way to eliminate filler words is by monitoring yourself throughout the day. Write down every time you use a filler word and work on eliminating it from your vocabulary.
Another thing you can do to eliminate filler words is to think about how you feel when someone else uses these words frequently during their speech. You probably start feeling impatient and want the person to stop talking so that you can begin.
11. Practice Your Communication Skills
Ask a friend, colleague, or speech coach to listen to you speak or record a speech sample, play it back, and encourage negative and positive feedback. With practice, you may be able to control your rate of speech successfully.
It's easy for people to become anxious and overwhelmed when practicing, so don't try to do too much at once. Instead of focusing on everything you'd like to improve, start with something small, like eliminating filler words while speaking in very short intervals.
Watching videos of speakers that you admire can help. You can watch videos of commencement addresses, TED Talks, and interviews of favorite communicators as inspiration.
Listening to an actual speech or presentation helps set the foundation for being a robust and verbal communicator. Watch the person's posture, how they carry their voice, and watch their body language. This exercise aims to identify good speaking habits and learn how to adopt effective communication skills.
Professional Communication Coaching for Effective Workplace Communication
At Connected Speech Pathology, our communication coaches can teach you the communication tools to boost your confidence with public speaking. Our communication coaches can work with you to develop your communication skills and build effective one-on-one conversation skills.
We can work with you to create confident answers to interview questions, powerful sales pitches, or presentations that inspire action and increase effective workplace communication.
We can help you determine your target audience and improve how team members or co-workers view you.
Our team of communication coaches can help you prepare for a new job or work environment. We can assist you in creating effective communication for sales pitches, team meetings, and more!
Contact us today for a free phone consultation with our lead communication coach.
About the Author
Allison Geller is a speech-language pathologist (SLP) and the owner of Connected Speech Pathology. She obtained her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Florida in Speech-Language Pathology. Allison has practiced speech therapy in a number of settings including telepractice, acute care, outpatient rehabilitation, and private practice. She has worked extensively with individuals across the lifespan including toddlers, preschoolers, school-aged children, and adults. She specializes in the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of a variety of communication disorders including receptive/expressive language disorders, articulation disorders, voice disorders, fluency disorders, brain injury, and swallowing disorders.
Allison served as the clinical coordinator of research in aphasia in the Neurological Institute at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. She is on the Board of Directors for the Corporate Speech Pathology Network (CORSPAN), a Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) certified clinician, and a proud Family Empowerment Scholarship/Step-Up For Students provider. Allison is passionate about delivering high quality-effective treatment remotely because it’s convenient and easy to access. What sets us apart from other online speech therapy options is—Allison takes great care to hire the very best SLPs from all over the country.
