Hello Goodbye

I'm not sure what, if any, meaning lies behind the Beatles song "Hello Goodbye," but its offbeat title and catchy lyrics could point to a significant problem facing many of us: We're just not communicating well. Not orally and certainly not in writing.

An article that appeared recently in the online version of the Akron [Ohio] Beacon Journal noted that "in many situations, people do not communicate (exchange intended meaning), but rather are merely taking turns talking." The author, Robert D. Smith, is spot-on with that observation. Have you ever been speaking to someone and noticed the person vacantly looking past you? Do you occasionally catch your "listener" woodenly uttering "uh-huh" at the appropriate moments? How many times have you been the guilty party? I know I have.

Smith notes that management consultant Peter Drucker has declared that "poor communication is responsible for more than 60 percent of all organization problems." Between 50 percent and 90 percent of a manager's time is spent in some form of communication and they often assume they're communicating effectively, but actually they're not, Smith says. Signs of faulty communication within an organization include missed deadlines, sagging productivity, low morale, high turnover and meetings that accomplish nothing. Sound familiar?

Smith recommends that we continually monitor our communications skills and ask for feedback from others. That's an idea that would work particularly well with written communications. Give your ego a time-out and invite a colleague to take a red pen and go over something you've authored.

Another sound suggestion for bettering communication is to become an attentive listener. "Look at the person speaking to you, ask questions, don't change the subject, don't interrupt, empathize, and respond verbally as well as non-verbally," Smith advises. Those rules for behavior are good in any oral exchange and they're especially helpful when the communication setting is an interview that's being conducted by a writer who's gathering information. Interview subjects tend to open up when they believe they're being closely listened to.

Humans have always had difficulty communicating effectively (otherwise, we'd have fewer wars) and we are likely to continue doing so. But we don't have to give up. Those who polish their communication skills – oral and written – are often highly prized in any business or organization. Make up your mind to focus on communicating effectively and you're already further ahead than most. "I say go, go, go."