Effective Communication

Effective Communication

Jennifer Johnson

CJA 304

July 20, 2014

Jim Backus

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

There are many ways to be effective in communicating with people within your career. The process of communication can be very easy to do or very complicated depending on the factors involved. There is a sizable difference between listening to what a person says and truly hearing what they are saying. The different barriers in communication can also cause issues with how well things are communicated between professionals.

The differences between verbal and nonverbal can sometimes make communicating much harder. With verbal communication, there is the tone in someone’s voice, the body language if you are face to face with them, and the context are all huge factors. Often times, the tone alone can be misconstrued in nonverbal communication. Something that is meant to be sarcastic might not be taken as such. Also, someone might get offended at the way something is written, but if it were spoken, both parties involved would better understand it. No matter what form is used the process is always the same. First, the sender transmits the idea. They formulate what they want to say and how they want to say it. They also decide if it will be said verbally or nonverbally. Then it is sent through a medium. The medium is the method used to send the message, and can be spoken, written or by action. The next step is the receipt of the message. This is a critical step in the process, because no matter what you need to say, if the parties involved do not receive it, it will be a useless piece of communication. Understanding is the next step in the process and has to be done by the parties receiving the message. The sender should make sure before sending their message that the receiver is going to fully understand the idea of the message being sent. Feedback is the final part of the communication process. After receiving the message, the receiver can then provide feedback for the message that was just received. This is a good way for the sender to know whether or not the message was fully understood and received in the way that they meant for it to be received. For example, if a person is being punished, sometimes a verbal reprimand is enough, but sometimes a boss will put the reprimand in writing so that they have documentation that the violation occurred. However, if the written reprimand is not fully explained, the receiver may not understand why they are being punished. Often times, verbal communication can be used to make sure the receiver fully understands the depth of written communication.

Listening and hearing are two different