Effective Ways Leaders Communicate

Nearly everyone agrees that leaders need to effectively communicate with others, if they wish to share their message and approach in a meaningful and significant manner. This means utilizing all methods available, and avoiding over - relying on one methodology at the expense of others. Since nearly every significant and sustainable organization contains members of various ages and backgrounds, there is a need to understand the different ways that different individuals communicate and disseminate information. To simplify and generalize these various needs, we often categorize individuals by age group, into the categories of Baby Boomers, Gen - X, and Millenials. Baby Boomers are those born between 1940 and 1960; Gen - Xers are from the generation born between 1960 and 1980; and Millenials are born between 1980 and 2000. In general Baby Boomers prefer face - to - face or oral communication; Gen - Xers lean to email, texts, and web - based methodologies; and Millenials appear to prefer texts and certain social media. While this is a generalization, it should tell anyone desirous of leading and relating to constituents that there is a need for multi-faceted communications. 1. The first thing for someone to address and consider is body language. Body language includes posture, facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, etc. Most often, we get our first impressions from observing body language. 2. You can never lead if you de-emphasize oral/ verbal communications. Far too often, we observe individuals in positions of leadership who avoid oral communications because they are not comfortable, rather than understanding they should and must expand their comfort zones. Without a willingness to use face - to -face, telephone, and oral communication, someone risks losing a meaningful connection with a significant portion of his potential membership. 3. Most studies have indicated that text messages are viewed and read by the largest percentage of individuals, perhaps because of their timely and immediate nature, or perhaps because of their basic and simple nature. However, while texts may be great to communicate a simple message, they generally give scarce details, are often either impersonal or misconstrued, and should never be the sole methodology used. 4. While emails have the ability to be more detailed than texts, they also are often impersonal and like any written communication, risk being misinterpreted or misunderstood. While they may be somewhat easy, they do not get the same timely response in many cases that a simple telephone call gets. 5. Email blasts are often good for announcements or bulk distribution, but rarely, on their own, motivation others to action. 6. Social media has certain advantages, but also has limitations. Only a percentage of these messages are either looked at or read, or sometimes even seen, and while a good adjunct, rarely are impactful by themselves. Great leaders understand that there is a need to employ a combination of all of these methods. True communication occurs when multiple modalities, continuous and repeated attempts, and a prioritization of motivating others, are the prevailing forces! Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8006436