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The Communication Secrets That Top Leaders Swear By

Communication skills are fundamental to the success of any individual/team.

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Communication skills
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As someone knee-deep in the trenches of running a business or managing teams, you know there’s a critical component that often goes unnoticed until it’s missing: clear, effective communication. This is why I offer communications skills training. A 2019 study has shown how essential this skill is: people are predominately hired for their competencies but likely to be fired due to a lack of people skills, skills such as being able to motivate, build trust and develop rapport with others.

Communication skills are fundamental to the success of any individual/team. When teams communicate well, projects seem to run as if on greased wheels; when they don’t, even simple tasks can become a Herculean challenge.

Getting the Foundations Right

The initial step in refining our communication prowess is recognising that clarity rules but tone come in a very close second. The way we stitch our sentences or craft our conversations must hinge on delivering our message without the frills that muddle it. Yet, we need to be able to create flexible communication styles to get the best out of diverse teams and individuals, as everyone has unique needs!

This means striking the balance between what you need to say and how you say it.

This simplicity starts with understanding our audience. Just as a skilled chef considers dietary preferences before curating a menu, effective communicators are often leaders who tailor their approach based on who is on the receiving end. Do they share your professional jargon, or will industry terms leave them baffled? Adjusting your linguistic palette to suit your listener’s taste is not pandering – it’s practical.

Compare the techniques of influence and communication to the volley of a tennis match: the serve, the return, the back-and-forth of the rally. The game requires adaptability, anticipation, and strategic play. Similarly, conversation requires active listening, not just to respond but to understand – to engage with the underlying sentiments and values that shape the discourse.

Crafting the Message with Care

The heart of communication lies in the careful construction of your message. The words you choose are the bricks with which you build understanding, and their arrangement is the mortar that holds meaning in place. But how does one select the right words? For many people in the business world, there’s a lack of knowledge as to what language will land.

Presentations lack a central message that hits at the heart of your audiences’ needs. This is especially challenging with mixed audiences, for example, when there are technical and business-focused listeners.. You need to think about what you want to get out of a presentation from both your perspective and that of your audience!

When we compose an email or prepare to speak, it’s useful to imagine ourselves on the receiving end. Empathy – the capacity to place oneself in another’s position – is a guiding star in the cosmos of communication. A simple shift in perspective can transform our approach, helping us avoid potential pitfalls and fostering a more profound connection with our audience, that will make both you and your message memorable – for the right reasons.

“To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” – Tony Robbins

Engaging with Emotion and Logic

Humans are emotional creatures dressed in the veneer of logic. Our conversations often weave through both domains, requiring us to balance rational thought with emotional intelligence. It’s a ballet where each participant must be attuned not only to their own steps but also to their partner’s emotional cues.

An effective communicator recognises when to appeal to reason and when to connect with feeling. If you want to be an effective communicator, you’ll need to increase your presence. This awareness is pivotal in situations laden with tension or when persuading an audience. By tapping into shared values or concerns, we create a resonant frequency that binds the speaker and listener in a shared experience.

Your Action:

  1. Identify your core message and consider what you want your audience to remember.
  2. Consider how you want to bring ideas to life through effective communication.
  3. Engage through empathy and put yourself in your audience’s shoes. How would you react to that message?
  4. Seek feedback afterwards to find out if communication has improved.

Frankie Kemp is a leading specialist in delivering exceptional communication skills training, presentation skills training and much more to help you and your employees be the very best they can be. As a performer and award-winning storyteller, Frankie helps teams and individuals be less vanilla and more thriller! Visit www.frankiekemp.com to find out more.

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Success Advice

Why You Shouldn’t Discount A Brick And Mortar Store In 2025

We’re constantly told about how stores are closing down and how shoppers prefer online options, but is it worth questioning this theory?

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How to grow a brick and mortar store
Image Credit: Midjourney

In 2024, you’d be forgiven for thinking that physical shopping is a thing of the past. We’re constantly told about how stores are closing down and how shoppers prefer online options. But is it worth questioning this theory? (more…)

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Success Advice

How to Alter Your Business Approach With Technological Advancements

Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner.

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altering business approach
Image Credit: Midjourney

Technology’s evolution has impacted everything, and business is no exception. Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner. Entrepreneurs unable to do so are being wiped out of the market.

There is no doubt that AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning) have taken over the business world. These technological advancements are impacting decision-making, success percentages, and other entrepreneurial aspects.

Adapting to these developments is integral to business success. Let’s explore how you can accomplish these milestones.

Embed the strength of AI and ML.

AI has modified business operations in major ways. For instance, companies have employed bots for customer support. These bots go through an effective learning process via Machine Learning before being able to answer like humans.  

Bots can also perform detailed data analytics and make business moves with high success percentages.

ML is used more for the analysis of data chunks and generating successful predictions. This simply means that business owners do not have to worry about large-scale financial losses. 

In terms of deployment and usage, a reputed company like Netflix employs machine learning for decision-making.

Blockchain is increasing the count of business opportunities

Tampering of financial transactions is quite common and causes severe monetary damage to customers. With the rise of digital payments, this risk has increased. 

Blockchain is used to elevate your experience for monetary transfers. It combats penetrating events to extract confidential customer information. 

Most business sectors are using block chain but finance and supply chain management sections have a higher count. These two corporate sections have several monetary deposits and withdrawals taking place. 

In terms of percentage, approximately 72% and 5% of finance and supply chain firms have implemented block chain successfully.

Dedicate Yourself to Continuous Learning and Individual Development

You invest in learning some of the very important skills, including digital marketing, financial management, and how to gain customers as an entrepreneur.

You need to set up your knowledge base about doing business on Coursera and Udemy with the basics that are necessary for the business, building further by networking with experts through webinars.

Besides, Agile methodology will introduce elasticity to your company: this review and feedback system with further correction regularly will allow for enhancing efficiency and promptly reacting to the market.

Developing key skills to achieve goals

Running a business successfully is not only about having niche/domain knowledge. Business owners need to have communication / soft skills as well in addition to niche information.

Here are some key technical/domain-related areas that business owners should have a strong grip on.

Data Storage on Cloud: These days, companies do not store their data on physical servers. Therefore business owners should know how data is stored/edited/removed/updated via AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and other platforms.

Data Analysis/Interpretation Qualities: These days, data is as precious as gold. Business owners with data analysis abilities make correct predictions. As a result, their ventures grow in volume.

Development/Coding Knowledge

Programming knowledge gives business owners an edge whether the application is developed in-house or outsourced. It assists in getting updates deployed and handling application underperformance without getting professional support every time.

Hacking proof framework

There is no benefit of having an advanced automated system if can be penetrated. Successful business owners have above-average knowledge of cyber security and hacking attempts. They are able to choose top-notch anti-hacking software without much of an ambiguity.

Communication Abilities/Soft Skills

Here are some key communication qualities that business owners should have:

Communication/Conversation: Business owners should use to-the-point sentences in both written and oral communication.

Issue Resolution Abilities: Business owners should be able to drill down to problems and solve them. This is done successfully only if an entrepreneur has in-depth business domain knowledge.

Agile Implementations

It is mandatory for business owners to have knowledge of iterative/agile models. With such a competitive environment, it is impossible for business owners to succeed without adopting an agile framework.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

A productive business venture starts with a clear vision. The first factor making a business successful is the idea behind it. It helps with endless growth and combating competition successfully. Katherine Philips once mentioned that business goals are inevitable if goals are set concretely.

  • Goals should be based on smart achievements instead of complexity. Focus on the value that each one of them adds. 
  • Business objectives should not be vague. Key indicators should be constructed to measure the success/failure of each milestone.
  • Be realistic when setting goals. Do not aim at impossible milestones since they can be demotivating.
  • Milestones/goals need to be time-bound. Set a completion deadline for each one of them. 
  • Business goals should not be alien. Owners can think out of the box but not be obsolete / unrelated.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

Business owners cannot succeed without having a network. Some tips help in this case. Attend conferences and professional gatherings to connect with other entrepreneurs.
Here are some other related points business owners should pay attention to.

  • Attend meetings and conferences to stay updated with trends and meet business owners who already have well-set ventures. This helps in enhancing the learning curve of new / growing entrepreneurs.
  • Being a part of business communities/groups is very productive. When one shares opinions and discusses decision-making tactics, it helps in preventing errors and enhancing success rate.
  • Even the most experienced business owners have mentors as learning never stops. Take part in mentorship programs so there is an assurance that you are following the correct roadmap.

Conclusion

There is absolutely no doubt that business dimensions have evolved with technological advancements. Successful entrepreneurs have grabbed these changes in due course of time and continue to evolve. On the other hand, people following old paths and conventional steps fade out of competition. In a nutshell, keep an eye on the processes and practices you follow as these factors decide success rate.

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Success Advice

Understanding the Power of Yes and No: How to Create Boundaries For Success

These words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds

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Creating legal boundaries
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The two smallest yet most powerful words in life, “Yes” and “No,” have a big impact on our growth on both personal and professional levels. In addition to affecting the choices we make every day, these words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds. (more…)

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Motivation

From Couch Potato to Go-Getter: A Step-by-Step Motivation Plan for Everyone

By understanding what motivates you, you can turn your dreams into reality

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How to be motivated
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Are you tired of feeling like a couch potato? Do you want to transform your life and become a go-getter? You’re not alone! Many people struggle with motivation, but the good news is that change is possible. (more…)

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