“What We Got Here is a Failure to Communicate”

Monday Message from Jerry Houston, President and CEO of HPISolutions

“What We Got Here is a Failure to Communicate”

This famous line from the movie, “Cool Hand Luke” (starring Paul Newman) became a catchphrase for millions of people.  Why?

I talked last week about the idea of communications being a significant challenge for leaders and others and how we can properly close the communication loop.

This week, I want to focus on other factors at play that impact communications.

First, the basic reason for communicating is to prompt some form of behavioral response or action.  Problem is, sometimes we don’t get the reaction we expected.  From your vantage point as the sender of the communication there are two emotional factors that affect a conversation:

1. How you feel about the other person’s ideas.
2. What you believe the other person feels about your ideas.

These behavioral factors exist in every single conversation, and if not clear, can create challenges in the proper understanding of the communication.  It is very important to put yourself in the shoes of the other person and work to understand how they will be affected by the message you are delivering, and that you care about their perspective in the situation.  The key to understanding the position of others starts with understanding yourself.

We communicate every day with different types of people in different types of situations.

1. The human mind functions in a very orderly fashion. It can only concentrate on one thought at a time.  Resist trying to communicate a number of ideas quickly, or in a random order.
2. The human mind transposes words into pictures. Because words mean different things to different people, the responses they produce may not be the same as you intended.
3. Too many words clutter the communications. When we fail to be clear, brief and concise, the possibility of misunderstanding and an inappropriate response will likely be the result.

Communicating is far more about listening than speaking.  Remember the old adage, “if we were to talk more than listen, we would have two mouths and one ear!”  In our sales development process, we emphasize talking 20% of the time and listening 80% of the time.  This is a good rule to follow in all communications.

Remember the tips that I have shared today and you will experience improved communications in your career and personal life.

Have a great week!