Learning how to be an effective communicator and leader takes skill development and experience, but how many of us have had formal training and coaching in great communication skills? Very few leaders, managers, and C-Suite executives have received education to develop the one skill that creates the most connection, trust, and team effectiveness which is communication. In fact, there is a neuroscience to communication grounded in 35 years of research that is called C-IQ or Conversational Intelligence. Ironically, as an ICF professional coach and after coaching a large number of leaders and managers over the past year and half, the greatest challenges my clients have experienced have to do with communication conflict; as well as lack of knowledge in knowing how to approach and address difficult conversations with their team, upper management, and colleagues.
Communication Challenges at Work and the Impacts of Poor Communication Skills
As I took on contracts working with companies to improve the communication throughout the company and create a culture of trust over the past few years, I began to see trends and common areas of concern that required training and development. We often take communication for granted and after seeing and supporting many leaders through their professional challenges at work, I have witnessed first hand, the devastating impacts of poor communication. Do you know what impact your communication as a leader is having on others you work with? Perhaps you are experiencing the stress and negative impacts from a leader or company culture that does not communicate effectively? You are not alone. Here are a few of the outcomes that have resulted when people are unable to communicate well in the workplace.
- A breakdown of trust or the inability to communicate well with a leader, team member, or colleague
- Stress and avoidance in handling difficult conversations
- A challenge in facilitating meetings with opposing or multiple opinions
- Feeling inadequate as a leader or lack of confidence on how to communicate with your team
- Conflict in working relationships that affects performance, mental health, and loyalty to the company
- High turnover or the loss of great employees and leaders
- Medical leave due to the impacts of stress and on mental wellbeing
- Having the impacts of being triggered emotionally affect work productivity
- Inability of leaders to bring teams together as a united, collaborative, high functioning team
Where Leaders, Managers and Companies Can Improve Communication
As I was conducting a 360 degree review once interviewing a high level leader who oversaw the manager for which I was doing the feedback for, this experienced CEO’s advice for this emerging leader was…
“You can never communicate too much with your team. It is always better to over communicate than to have too little.”
What the leader meant by this was not about being a micro manager with over communication, but rather keeping the communication lines open, the support ever present, and the guidance or feedback from them a consistent part of their leadership practice. To this day, it is some of the best advice I have ever heard from a C-Suite executive to a leader advancing into leading teams.
There are a few key areas where communication needs to be improved across the board for many companies and leaders:
- Leaders ability to provide effective, timely feedback around performance management
- Managing conflict with others or facilitating it when it happens between others
- Creating a culture of trust, connection, and psychogical safety from the top down through communication
- Facilitating groups, teams, and meetings with a variety of personalities and opinions for progress
- Prevention of miscommunications and the ability to navigate conversations when people are triggered
- Development of communication practices that creates efficiency, inclusivity, co-creation, and teaming
- Repairing the breakdown of trust or communication and facilitating partnering going forward
This is just a small list of the main areas where companies and leaders can focus their energy and attention to increase communication and connection.
How To Develop Your Communication Skills or Bring Communication Training and Coaching to your Team and Company
If you are looking to develop your communication or leadership skills or want to improve the overall communication skills in your company, learning C-IQ will transform everyone’s ability to be a great communicator and connect well with others. Conversational Intelligence is a neuroscientific approach to understanding how our brains are wired for communication which explains what type of communication will create trust and partnering and what will produce protection and distrust. C-IQ provides training, techniques, and tools with step by step processes which empower people to become effective communicators.
This neuroscience behind how our brains respond to communication and how they have evolved to detect trust and distrust through communication provides insights that transform trust, relationship building, a positive work culture, and team collaboration.
As a certified C-IQ coach trained by the creator of C-IQ, Judith E Glaser, you can improve your own communication skills or bring training and coaching to your team and company through the various teaching options I have available:
- Great Communication with C-IQ Course
- Online group training or coaching for leaders, managers, and teams
- Private C-IQ Communication Coaching customized to the needs of the leader or company
- In person half and full day workshops (Provided locally in Vancouver, B.C., Canada)
The online course provides training with videos and downloadable PDF’s along with take action challenges that implement what you have learned to develop your communication skills. People have the option with this course to add coaching alongside it and it is available to companies who would like offer it to a larger group of leaders and managers.
Communication Training, Coaching, and Online Course
If you are looking to develop communication skills for yourself or your team and seeking training or coaching, reach out for a complimentary consultation and to learn more. You can also visit the curriculum in the online course I have available here.
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