How to avoid miscommunication

The crucial ingredient to build trust and strengthen relationships & minimise the likelihood of any conflict, confusion and distrust.

Ask Questions: If you assume you havent understood something then ask right away. E.g. “Just to be clear, you need me to…?”. This is also a way to make sure you have been understood e.g. “So you understand that I need you to…?”.

Attention: When talking to someone make sure you actively listen and they do as well, because even while talking we tend to get easily distracted. Active listening makes you focus on what is being said and how it is said e.g. focus on facial expressions or the tone of their voice.

Think before you speak: Think about the impact you words could have. Take a breath before you respond. Ask yourself “what am I trying to accomplish here?” or “what is the best response to this situation?”. Furthermore, this can make you avoid emotional reactions.

Meet in person: Face to face communication helps you recognise hand gestures, facial expressions and body language. If it is not possible to meet, a phone call would be better than texting since you can still hear the tone of their voice.

Assumptions: Our minds hear what they want to hear. It often leads to making wrongfully assumptions. Think of the perspective of the person you are talking to. What is the other person thinking and feeling? If you have assumptions about that person, find out where they come from. Is it your gut feeling? Is it a past experience? Or is it something someone told you about the person?