Communication

The process of communication is twofold: sending and receiving information. In particular, verbal communication involves talking and listening. When talking, care must be taken to:

° Be as clear and concise as possible.
° Refrain from being offensive.
° Consider the listener's position.
° Be aware of assumptions made in statements.
° Refrain from talking too much.

Active engagement in listening is called active listening for which three considerations are paramount: comprehension, acceptance and processing. In order to listen actively, you must:

° Pay attention to both verbal and nonverbal messages.
° Concentrate on what the other person is saying, not on what you want to say next.
° To the best of your ability, refrain from judgement.
° Try to empathize with both verbal and body language.
° Ask questions to show interest or for clarification.
° Paraphrase and/or summarize.