I am going to give you some details.”
Detail people. Detail people, on the other hand, need to start with detail before they can become engaged with what you have to say about the wider idea. They can’t handle it if you start talking too conceptually. Say to them, “Here are the details.” Be specific and don’t use abstractions. If you need them to focus on the detail and keep an eye on the big picture, give them both in this way: “Here are the details…and here’s the big picture.”
Find out which members of your team and which of your clients like to communicate predominately in which way, and you will gain much more control over your communication.
Work out whether your team are big picture or detail communicators.
There is another key difference between people that’s worth paying attention to. It is what’s sometimes called the preferred language type. In everyday language, we often use words associated with the senses: seeing, hearing and feeling. This relates to how we process information. If you communicate according to the preferred choice of the listener, they will be more open to what you say.
People who use a lot of words associated with seeing understand better if you use similar words back to them, and it’s the same for other senses, such as hearing and feeling.
Visual. Here are some examples of the kinds of phrases you can use when communicating with a visually inclined person: “Appears to me”, “Get a perspective on”, “In view of”, “Eye to eye”, “Hazy idea”, “Dim view”, “In light of”, “Mental image”, “Paint a picture”, “Looks like”, “Short sighted”, “Pretty as a picture”.
Auditory. Other people use words associated with hearing and sound. Use these types of phrases to make them feel ‘in tune’: “Clearly expressed”, “Earful”, “Loud and clear”, “Tongue-tied”, “Power
“The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to understand people is to listen to them”
Ralph Nichols, business coach
of speech”, “Rings a bell”, “Clear as a bell”, “To tell the truth”, “Outspoken”, “Tuned in/out”, “Voiced an opinion”.
Kinaesthetic. Finally, some people prefer words associated with feeling, known as the kinaesthetic sense: “Come to grips with”, “Firm foundations”, “Cool, calm and collected”, “Get a handle on”, “Get the drift of”, “Get in touch with”, “Grapple with”, “Fight your corner”.
It may take you a while to get to grips with this concept, but if you tune in to the different ways in which different people speak, you will begin to notice that they use varying amounts of sense-specific words. Once you have become attuned to how other people speak, you can adapt your own language accordingly. This will build your ability to be a highly flexible communicator. You can also practise by reading. Notice how different writers are more visual, auditory or kinaesthetic in the way that they write.
The sense someone chooses corresponds to how they process thoughts so this is a very vital piece of communication to observe.
Pick your words carefully according to who you are communicating with.
In conversation people tend to pay attention only to the words they use. However, communication takes place on many levels, some conscious, others unconscious. By understanding your own body language, you will create a stronger business presence and make a favourable impression every time you meet a colleague or client. Reading other people’s body language will help you become aware of subtle dynamics and deeper levels of communication.
“Trust me”, says the salesperson you meet for the first time. But something about them looks shifty. How long will it take you to get over that first impression? Our first impressions are formed within as little as 10 seconds, and the first impression is hard to shift, so you need to make sure you’ve made a positive one.
It’s not only your words that make an impression when you meet someone but also your body language. Whether you are talking to someone over the phone, introducing yourself face to face or simply walking into a room and looking around without speaking, your body is saying even more than what’s coming out of your mouth.
one minute wonder Practise putting authority into what you say. Say something serious in a squeaky voice and you will notice not only how the words are undermined but also how you have to change your breathing to do this. Now deepen your breathing and notice how your voice gains power.
Psychology Professor Albert Mehrabian produced the now most used model of communication in the 1970s. He showed that:
55% of communication is down to the way you stand or sit, your gestures and facial expressions. Some of this body language is very obvious, while other signals will only be picked up unconsciously.
7-10% of communication comes from the actual words you use.
35-38% of communication is how you say things: how loudly you speak, your accent and how deep or high is your tone of voice.
Of course, if you are on a telephone, you have only your voice to work with, but still watch how you are standing or sitting and how you are breathing, as they will all affect how your voice sounds.
So, what was going on with that shifty, untrustworthy person you met for the first time? Well, he or she was probably saying the right things but thinking something different. That showed up in, or leaked into, their body language.
Pay attention to what you say but also make sure that you believe what you say. If you don’t, your audience will pick up immediately that something is not quite right. They won’t necessarily know what is not right, but instinctively they will know that they don’t feel comfortable with you, and that isn’t a positive in business.
Watch what you are saying with your body; it’s an even more important communicator than your words.
2.2 Be aware of personal space
Have you ever had to move away from a colleague or client because you felt as if they were intruding into your personal space? It is such an uncomfortable feeling, and, if the person continues to crowd us, we will feel very unfriendly towards them and will be unlikely to want to do business with them.
Our personal space is composed of several invisible zones around us. If someone intrudes into these, we begin to feel very uncomfortable. We will let a lover or a close family member come very close to us, but a stranger or a work colleague cannot come as close.
The closest invisible zone (from the skin to 18 inches/45 cm around us) is called the personal zone and is reserved for people we are happy to be touched by or to touch. If a stranger comes into this intimate space, it will feel as if a warning bell has immediately gone off. You will sense the intrusion and want to move away. Around 30% of people will move within one minute of someone invading their space.
The need for personal space varies from culture to culture, so it is