In our last blog post, we delved into verbal and non-verbal communication in the workplace. Communication – a sender conveying information to a receiver in a method that delivers the meaning the sender intended – is an essential element of business. This blog post will explore how written communication and listening skills come together to ensure competent communication.

Asynchronous Communication

The purpose of any communication is to convey ideas, concepts, facts, and opinions to a variety of stakeholders. Asynchronous communication is paramount in today’s remote or hybrid work environments. In asynchronous communication, the sender and receiver communicate at different times or places. This allows you to communicate and collaborate despite differences in schedules, geographic regions, or even time zones. However, it does require some additional considerations.

Asynchronous communication relies on visual and written communication formats, using text, symbols, models, and sketches to convey and share information. Understanding the audience helps the sender effectively employ this type of communication and ensures that they will receive the intended meaning of the message.

Effective written communication certainly requires solid vocabulary and grammar. However, the best “written” communication frequently includes visuals, thus requiring understanding of how and when to incorporate graphics and models to convey meaning. The tone, language and images selected are vital components of written communication. A key component of written communication is knowing your goals – what message are you trying to convey? What do you want your audience to do as a result?

The method of communication you use is just as important. Are you preparing a report for your audience to review and approve? Do you need a quick answer via email? If your message is time-sensitive, how will you ensure that your communication reaches your audience quickly? The best communicators will look closely at the tone of their message, the methods they use to convey information, and the mode of delivery.

Listening

Listening goes beyond simply hearing the message; listening involves understanding the meaning. Listening requires understanding and reacting to the message. Active listening takes this a step further and includes confirming your understanding. Active listening is vital in business, and understanding your audience’s listening styles helps enhance communications.

How do you know when you are a successful active listener? In an era of multitasking, stop and be mindful of the dialogue – give the speaker your undivided attention. Acknowledge the message by offering verbal or non-verbal feedback and confirm your understanding with the speaker. Paraphrasing their message or asking for clarification to ensure you understand and can respond appropriately. Understanding your listening style, and adjusting appropriately, is also critical. There are five major listening styles, each with its pros and cons.

Appreciative listener

Appreciative listeners like to have fun and be entertained. They want to relax and enjoy the listening experience. This type of listener loses interest easily and switches channels. They enjoy good stories or jokes. When they are engaged, appreciative listeners are highly invested in the speaker. However, they get bored easily and lose focus. To ensure engagement with appreciative listeners, ask yourself: How does my speech keep an appreciative listener interested? Is it fun?

Empathetic listener

Empathic listeners are listening to support the speaker. Their focus is a concern for the person talking. Empathic listening is generally used when counseling a friend, letting someone blow off steam, or bonding to create a relationship. You will know an empathetic listener when you see them nodding in agreement to show support. This style builds rapport and can see others’ points of view, but they may lose sight of facts based on emotional reactions. Building comprehension checkpoints helps ensure effective communication with your empathetic listener.

Comprehensive listener

Comprehensive listeners organize the information provided by the speaker. They want to make sense of the information to apply it in their world. Labels give them structure and make the information easier to organize. Comprehensive listeners need organization so they can apply what they learn. They don’t jump to conclusions but may lose focus if the presentation doesn’t seem logical. To engage a comprehensive listener, ask: How can a comprehensive listener follow my presentation? Is it organized? Is it easy to label?

Discerning listener

Discerning listeners look for the big picture or the most important point. They gather and sort through information to focus on that main point. In this listening mode, the listener asks a lot of questions. Because of this, they will get the main message most of the time but may not catch emotional or non-verbal communication signals. To engage the comprehensive listener, ask yourself: In what ways is my speech answering the questions of the discerning listener? Can they see the big picture with the clues that I provide?

Evaluative listener

The most common style of listening in business is the evaluative mode. These listeners

are listening to act or move on a decision. They are analytical but may play the devil’s advocate, forming opinions before the speaker is finished. This listener is skeptical, so you need to ask, “What information will help make a decision or fix a problem? Is my information credible?”

The name of the communication game is give and take. All the verbal, nonverbal, and written communication you can muster won’t be effective if your audience doesn’t hear or understand what you’re saying. Paying attention to different communication and listening styles and adapting your response is perhaps the most critical communication skill.

This post was adapted from a Momentum presentation. To learn more about developing communication competency, contact us.