Steps of communication process and basic communication skills you need to know

Can you imagine a world without communication? Probably the majority of us would say that it might be a sad life without it! Communication is already a part of our day-to-day life activities and without communication, our lives could be so dull and quite boring! It’s one way to make an environment alive and colorful. Also, it’s an essential component of socializing with people, giving and gaining information that we needed each day.

Communication is important because it helps in building relationships with other people.

It allows an individual to share life experiences, thoughts, feelings, and opinions. Additionally, it’s a way to make better decisions, and increase efficiency and productivity whether at work or in our personal lives.

Below are the 6 steps in the communication process:

• Ideation – The first step begins when the sender decided to share a message with someone, be it with loved ones, relatives, friends, classmates, or workmates. The person senses that there is a need to communicate a piece of information or an idea and he/she wants to share it with somebody.
• Encoding – it involves putting the meaning of something into symbolic forms. This may be in the form of speaking, writing, or nonverbal behavior.
• Transmission of the message – this is how the message is transmitted. To have a clear transmission, the sender must overcome interference like garbled speech, long and complex sentences, distortion from recording devices, illegible handwriting, and noisy environment.
• Receiving – the receiver’s sense of hearing and sight are activated as the transmitted message is received.
• Decoding of the message by the receiver – this is the time wherein the receiver defines words and interprets his/her gestures during the transmission of speech.
• Response or feedback – the sender wants to know that his/her message has been received and interpreted by the receiver.

Basic communication skills that we should know

We should ensure an understanding of the topic by assuming its value, clarifying what has been said, and confirming our understanding.

• Assuming the value is the attitude wherein you project that the person is worth listening to. This opens the lines of communication because it helps you to understand what the sender feels and thinks at the moment. This increases the chance that the other person will also listen to you when it’s your turn to communicate.
• Clarification is being used when you aren’t sure what the other person is saying or communicating about.
• Confirmation is used when you think that there is already an understanding of what the other person said.

You should be able to enhance value. This is done by identifying the merits mentally, building ideas, balancing merits and concerns, and giving support.

• Identify the merits mentally and you should ask if the idea can be improved without mentioning any concerns. Merit is an important idea that was addressed that gives a good intention to the topic.
• Build ideas – if you believed that the other person doesn’t give a strong idea, you can build the communication by suggesting a few changes.
• Balance merits and concerns if the sender needs to know what should be changed. Again specify the merits and any concerns, ask for reactions, and be able to check back.
• Support by giving timely and specific feedback to promote cooperation. You can state positive aspects of the other person’s ideas and efforts to give value to his/her contribution. Remember that most people would love to hear any recognition for their accomplishments and efforts given.

In conclusion, effective communication is helpful in our day-to-day life be it at home, outside the house, or at work. Listening and offering appropriate feedback is essential to help people recognize that they are being heard and understood. It helps to resolve problems, clear viewpoints, and make a situation even better.

Topic reference: Nursing Management and Leadership Book.

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