Communicate well to express yourself and to know the expectations of others

In the words of Theo Gold, “Communication is the ticket to success if one pays attention and learn to do it effectively.” Friendships and romantic relationships make the lives of an individual go merry-go-round. Without them, their lives would be dull and lonely. Communication means understanding that people will not know what they think unless one tells them. It is one of the most important things that one needs to establish in all relationships. When one talks about communication, it means one is talking about telling the people around them, their wants, their needs, their likes and dislikes. The importance of communication can never be ignored. One needs to understand that communicating effectively depends on more variables and how we manage them. Quite often an individual misses out on communication because of little time to spare and thinks that chat mode is a much quicker way of communicating even on the go but some situations need to be more personal.

Communicating effectively depends on many more variables and how one manages it can have vastly different outcomes. Effective communication boosts productivity but poor communication can be disastrous. Remember, lack of communication leaves room for imagination because instead of knowing how the other person is feeling, an individual just ends up assuming. The worst part is that the individual already plays the other party’s role in the conversation that never took place and creates emotional responses to it. Also, it breeds assumptions about what the other person is thinking or feeling resulting in room for doubt. Lack of communication arises when someone experiences challenges with effectively communicating their needs and expectations.

Healthy communication in any relationship – be it marriage, friendship or workplace helps create space for people to share their thoughts and feelings, express their needs, set healthy boundaries, learn to deal with relationship conflicts together and resolve issues as and when they arise so that they don’t become problematic. If there is a problem, one should learn to speak up and tell. 

Improving communication skills is an ongoing process and just like most learned skills, the more time and practice an individual puts into it the more improvements can one see. Remember, people who communicate well can clearly express themselves and their needs and understand the expectations that others have set for them. But this isn’t a skill that always comes naturally rather it can take time and practice to truly master. Poor communication doesn’t have to signal the end of a relationship instead it can be used as an opportunity to practice and improve.

(The writer is an educator)