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Happy Wednesday! The last time I did a Work Wednesday post was when I was talking about prioritizing your time. This is one of those posts that never get old because I think it is one of the one things that a lot of people don’t ever fully understand. While the 4th quarter is sneaking up on us, this type of post will become more valuable than ever. Another thing when people are under stress as the year is about to end is understanding communication styles in the work place. A lot of times people never really understand this concept and end up being more stressed out or are not as productive with their time or messaging. If you are able to use these tips not only will you be able to communicate better, you will also be able to form great relationships as well.

Tips for Understanding Communication Styles

• Observe How They Interact with Others: This is the easiest way to determine how people like to communicate if you observe how they interact with others. If you always see your co-worker get up and walk over to give a status or someone else IM, you get a quick feel for how they prefer to communicate. This is for sure one of those events that can let you know real quick if you just start observing what they would prefer in the work place.
• Don’t Rely on Texts: As a millennial people think we are always on our phone, or at least have it with us 24/7. This might be true, but don’t rely on texts as your primary form of communication in the work place. It is one of those means of communication that can serve as a quick update or a question, but that is it. I would say in the work place texts should be short, concise and rely on another communication for anything else.
• Ask What They Prefer: Instead of assuming what they prefer, go ahead and ask how they would like to be communicated with. You might assume they like one way, but depending on your relationship to this person, they might prefer a more formal communication method. This also shows that you care about their preferences and want to make sure you both get the best information in the most effective way.
• Start to Incorporate Their Communication Style While Communicating with Them: If you know how someone likes to be communicated with, start incorporating this into your overall communication. It might seem foreign to you to get up and walk to their desk to give a status if they prefer face to face. Having more face time in general is so great for communication anyway. If you start to incorporate their form of communication, start to see how the overall communication starts to get even better.
• A Simple Follow Up on Email: It never hurts to send a follow up or re-cap via email. This is indeed the official communication of business. I like to do this especially for decisions or action items as well. Having a face-to-face conversation is one thing, but having something documented for one of these decisions is also key.
• Always Keep Your Boss Informed: I think this is one of those tips that can really make or break your career. I feel like it is one of those simple courtesy etiquette rules, but some people view it differently. If there is ever an issue, an important update, or just an overall status that is important, you always want to inform your boss. Having the conversation with them first before anyone else gives an update is key to keeping them informed and having an overall great communication.
• Know What and How to Say Things: There should be a filter on what all you say and of course how you say them. Emails can be very misinterpreting and conference calls as well. How you word items in an email can completely contradict what you are really trying to state. Understanding how this individual prefers to communicate and actually getting to know a little bit about what they are looking for helps this. Some individuals love to know every detail, while others are just looking for certain key topics in every type of discussion.

Understanding and using some of my communication tricks will further enhance not only your overall communication, but in the work place as well. This is one of those areas that we can all use some guidance and continue to get better at each and every day. It is not what you say but how you say it and in what manner that will further help the overall relationships in the work place.