Are misunderstandings costing you too much money?

Is interpersonal communication one of your challenges on the job?

If so - welcome to the club!

I often hear these statements from managers …

"I thought I communicated myself clearly - but later on I realized that I didn't because of the mistakes people made later on." "I am sick and tired of so many misunderstandings." "How do I know if I am really making myself understood or not?" Etc.

How much money - and time - has your organization wasted as a result of misunderstandings in the last 3, 6, or 12 months?

I will give you two simple - yet powerful and effective - tips that will help you considerably improve the quality of your performance communications - and radically reduce the number of your misunderstandings.

One -

Every time you hear somebody tell you something important - paraphrase.

To paraphrase means to simply restate back - with your own words - to your interlocutor (the person you are speaking with) what you just heard.

Paraphrasing allows your interlocutor to verify whether you understood correctly or not.

If your interlocutor doesn't consider you understood correctly - s/he can explain further. And if s/he considers you did understand correctly - then both of you can move forward with your conversation.

Two -

Every time you say something you consider important - ask your interlocutor to paraphrase back to you.

This will allow you to double-check whether your interlocutor understood you correctly or not.

If you consider that your interlocutor didn't understand you correctly - you can explain further. And if you consider s/he understood you correctly - then both of you can move forward with your conversation (you get the picture).

Conclusion …

Start paraphrasing in your performance conversations - and you will accomplish the following …

- you will tremendously improve the quality, clarity and effectiveness of your communication

- you will considerably reduce the number of your misunderstandings

- you will reduce thousands of dollars wasted as a result of misunderstandings

Questions? Feedback? Reply to this Newsletter and tell me what you would like future issues to be about.

Feel free to re-send this "Leader Newsletter" to your colleagues.

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