Are you trying to brush up your communication skills? Did you know that there are various types of communication? Good communication skills are the building blocks of a healthy relationship, whether in the workplace or in your personal life.
We may have various communication tools, but everyone implements different communication styles, which are mainly influenced by our upbringing, personality, culture, etc.
When people with different styles and types of communication communicate, there is a high probability of miscommunication or misunderstandings.
Since communication is a skill, there is always room for improvement. So, it may be helpful to familiarize yourself with the different types of communication. There are 5 main types of communication styles that you should definitely know:
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Verbal Communication
This is the most basic form of communication that we know and understand first. It involves using written or spoken words to convey a message.
Verbal communication is the foundation for writing emails, text messages, and other forms of written communication. Additionally, verbal communication has several aspects that focus not on what we say but on how we say it:
- Tone of voice
- Vocabulary used
- Pace of speech
- Dialect
Here are some quick tips to improve your communication skills: Try to pause before speaking, use the power of active listening, and devote your full attention to the other person.
Pausing in your interactions sets you up to give thoughtful responses and helps the other person feel heard.
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Non-Verbal Communication
Types of communication involve communicating without words. Many people tend to ignore this type of communication and fail to understand how important nonverbal communication can be.
Verbal and nonverbal communication should be in sync to be most effective. For example, if you mean to say no to something but nod up and down, this means that your nonverbal communication is not in sync.
Non-verbal communication includes the following:
- Body language
- Eye Contact
- Posture
- Gestures
- Facial Expressions
Nonverbal communication doesn’t come naturally to everyone. But it can be improved with practice and consistency.
Some quick tips: Dedicate your efforts to improving your eye contact, and then master your body language while keeping sociocultural norms and best practices in mind.
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Written Communication
Written communication occurs through professional emails, reports, social media, texts, blog posts, and other forms of writing. Compared to verbal and nonverbal types of communication, it may be a little difficult to communicate emotions through written words.
But when you aim to connect an idea, concept, or feeling, it is important to remember the following:
- It is best to write in the active voice as much as possible.
- Try to be clear and concise; excessive words will only make a sentence difficult to understand.
- Good written communication means clean writing, i.e., without spelling or grammatical errors.
Out of all the various types of communication, writing requires a lot of practice and basic theoretical knowledge of various concepts to improve. You may read books, magazines, or online articles, and I can guarantee that this will positively impact your writing.
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Visual Communication
This type of communication involves expressing ideas and emotions through the use of various images, visuals, or graphics. Films, images, and graphics shared through various social media are all examples of visual communication.
In a professional environment, the following forms of visual communication may be used:
- Expressing various statistics and figures using charts and graph visuals.
- Using photos of the team and coworkers for retreats and events.
- Posting ad graphic visuals on social media, etc.
Many people are visual learners and understand and absorb better visuals, so it is always best to express your ideas alongside visuals when using written or verbal types of communication.
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Listening
Yes, listening is also an important part of communication. Learning to talk less and listen more can help you encourage good conversations.
The key is to practice active listening by using techniques like eye contact and nodding to show the speaker they have your full attention. Here are a few types of listening skills that you could research and practice:
- Informational Listening
- Discriminative Listening
- Comprehensive Listening
- Therapeutic Listening
- Critical Listening
Improving listening skills is crucial for all types of communication, as doing this increases effective communication in relationships, whether personal or professional.
Great communication skills are very important and necessary to build solid relationships. Whether in your personal life or your workplace. You may be able to improve and master some types of communication independently, but it can be best to seek the guidance of a professional communication coach.