5 Ways You Can Drastically Improve Your Communication Skills

Whether you are preparing for your first job interview or just starting with a fresher job, your communication skills matter a lot in making a great first impression. Not just first impression, great communication skills can help you expand your network and connect with people easily. It can also make you more confident.

That is why today our focus is on the ways in which you can improve your communication skills drastically.

Listen to understand

The key to building on your communication skills is to work on your listening skills. Most of the time we listen to reply to things rather than to understand. In the process, the essence of what the other person is trying to say is lost.

So, pay attention to what the person is saying or trying to say, read the subtexts and then reply to it. And, listening to someone with great communication skills and impeccable English can only help you as you can take note of how they communicate and try to apply the same in your everyday communication.

Don’t interrupt people in between

No one likes being interrupted when they are speaking. Interrupting someone is highly disrespectful and should be avoided at all costs.

Even when you are having a group discussion, you should wait for your turn. Of course, in a group discussion, there will always be someone who will try to hog all the limelight. You can choose to politely raise your hand and make your point or wait for them to draw a breath before you jump in.

If you cut someone off mid-sentence then that will make your impression as someone who is too pompous and is not ready to listen to others’ opinion. Of course, this also goes in sync with working on your listening skills and is an important aspect of effective communication.

Also Read: 8 Inadvertent Communication Mistakes To Avoid During A Job Interview

Read as much as you can

Reading gives you the confidence to communicate better. It also improves your vocabulary and tells you how to best formulate your sentences.

So, ensure that you spend at least an hour every day on reading something nice and constructive.

You can read the newspaper, especially the editorial section, pick up any novel or just read articles by people who are known for their lexicon.

Reading will also expand your mind and open you up to new ideas and make you more accepting of things.

So, read as much as you, and whenever you can. If you think you are unable to manage it in your current schedule then make a timetable.

Ensure that you read for half an hour first thing in the morning and last thing before you hit the bed.

Watch movies with subtitles

Since the focus of this article is on improving your English communication skills, the best advice would be to watch English movies or TV series with subtitles. Subtitles can really help you in the initial phase.

Once you get the hang of the accent and how the actors in these movies and TV series communicate, you can switch to watching them without subtitles. This will help you a lot in learning how to pronounce the words and use them in your spoken vocabulary.

Even if you are not trying to improve your English vocabulary, but communication skills in general, movies and TV series can help. Just watch it in the language you are specifically focused on and try to emulate them.

 Must Read: Barriers of Communication: List and Tips to Overcome Them

Interact with people with great communication skills

There must be someone you know who you think has brilliant communication skills. That someone can be a teacher, a friend or a colleague. You can try and communicate with them more, ask them to correct you wherever you go wrong and pick up tips by interaction.

Also, you can try practising in front of the mirror. Give yourself any topic to speak on, and talk on it for one or two minutes. However, more than the sentence construction, focus on the fluency of your speech.

Make note of the things and the sentences you should improve, and work on it. And, keep it in mind that speaking fast is not a sign of knowing a lot and it doesn’t say that you have great communication skills. So, take your time, mull over what you need to say in your head, and then talk. Keep your tone even and don’t speak too fast but don’t be a sloth either. Maintain a fine balance.

You can follow these tips to improve your communication skills, and to gain the confidence to interact with more people.

And, if you want more tips on the same and want to speak your verbal and written English, then check out “10 easy tips to help improve your English without using a dictionary”

So, work hard, stay strong, know you will ultimately succeed, and wait for your communication skills to take a turn for the better.