The_Essential_Manager_s_Handbook

DEFINING COMMUNICATION / 239

REDUCE NOISE

The ultimate success of the

communication process

depends to a large degree

on overcoming noise, so

make an effort to keep your

messages clear, concise,

and to the point.

Tip

Understanding the principles

Communication involves a number of

principles, which apply across time

and cultures. The process is always:

• Dynamic It is constantly undergoing
  change.


• Continuous Even when you hang up
  the telephone, you’re communicating
  a message that you have nothing
  more to say.

If communication is the

transfer of meaning, then

for successful communication

to occur, you should understand

something just as I do

• Circular Communication is rarely
  entirely one-way. We each take
  in information from the outside
  world, determine what it means,
  and respond.
  -^ Unrepeatable Even if we say
  something again in precisely
  the same way, our listeners have
  heard it before, and so respond
  to it differently.
  -^ Irreversible We cannot “unsay”
  words: their effect remains even
  if we’re asked to disregard them.


• Complex We all assign slightly
  different meanings to words.
  This variation is a product of
  our backgrounds, education,
  and experience, and means
  that there is always the potential
  for misunderstanding.

that you will understand something

just as I do: we are in agreement about

what the sender intended and what the

receiver ultimately understood.

US_238-239_Defining_Communication.indd 239 30/05/16 3:04 pm