Effective Communication

‘I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.’
Robert McLoskey, American writer

Most of us like to think that we are good communicators. But if that’s the case why is there still so much conflict and misunderstanding in the world?

It’s an interesting fact that many of the skills we use to try to resolve disputes are the same as those we need to communicate properly, for example: listening attentively and asking good questions. Good questioning can help us to understand the situation and how the other person sees it, and shows that we are interested in the other person’s opinions, ideas and thoughts on the issues. Good questioning encourages the speaker, clears up areas of confusion, and can gently challenge the speaker to think about other possibilities/perspectives.

More about effective communication and principles of effective interpersonal communication can be found at Communication and Conflict website.

Common Ground Mediation offers training and/or coaching in effective communication for individuals and groups. Contact us for more information.