Business Communication Skills That Hold Up When the Meeting Gets Hard (Five Behaviors Under Pressure)

Business communication skills work fine in practice. They fall apart when the meeting gets hard — when the CEO pushes back, when the numbers look off, when the team openly disagrees. Five specific behaviors decide whether communication skills hold up under pressure or collapse back into defensiveness, filler words, and rising intonation that turns statements into questions.

The five behaviors: (1) pause before answering — especially when the pushback was direct. Two seconds of silence signals you heard it, not that you are stalling. (2) Name what you just heard, not what you planned to say next. (3) Answer the question the pushback implies, not the question that was literally asked. (4) If you do not know, say “I do not know yet, I will find out by Friday” — never guess. (5) End with one specific follow-up commitment that does not require another meeting. All five feel simple. All five break under real pressure unless practiced against real pressure.

Below is the mechanics of each behavior, the failure mode that kills it in a high-stakes meeting, and why the Learn2 participant-driven communication format (Communicate Naturally) installs them by rehearsing against simulated high-pressure conversation rather than through video-review feedback.

Great communication skills are one of the keys to having a successful business. There are a number of things that you can do to improve and develop effective business communication skills. Below are five tips that will help you improve the communication in on your team and promote active collaboration and synergies.

LISTEN MORE THAN YOU TALK

Many people jokingly say that the reason we have two ears and one mouth is because we are supposed to listen more than we talk. That saying has a-lot of truth to it. In order to communicate effectively, you will have to take the time to listen to other people. You should make sure that you do not interrupt the other person when he or she is speaking. You also want to ask questions if you do not understand something. However, you should wait until the other person is finished talking before you start asking questions.

TAKE NOTES WHILE THE OTHER PERSON IS SPEAKING

It is impossible to remember everything that is said during a presentation or conversation. You should consider taking notes. Taking notes will not only make it easier for you to recall what was said, but you will also be able recall how you felt about the information that you received.

WRITE AND SPEAK CONCISELY

When you are making your presentations, you should keep in mind that many people have short attention spans. Your presentation should be very informative, but it should also be short and to the point. You should also ask your audience questions in order to ensure that they understood the presentation. Likewise, when you are writing emails, you should avoid putting unnecessary information in them.

COMMUNICATE IN PERSON WHENEVER POSSIBLE

The technology advances that have occurred over the past few years have made it a-lot easier to communicate. It is so easy to communicate via cell phone, email or social media websites. However, you should try to communicate in person whenever possible. That will help eliminate confusion. Everyone will also have a chance to ask your questions if you communicate in person.

EFFECTIVE BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SKILLS COURSE

You should also consider taking a communication skills training course. A communication skills training course will not only teach you how to communicate more effectively with others, but it will also teach you how to become a better listener and presenter, building on foundation communication skills that are needed in an effective team. Again, listening is an important part of improving your communication skills.

HOW WE CAN HELP

If you are interested in developing your team’s communication skills, our experts at Learn2 recommend investing in a business communication skills training course. At Learn2, we have a team of highly-qualified professionals who take pride in educating our clients through various team building activities, and will work to help you improve team processes through building effective communication skills. After you complete our communication skills course, you can rest assured that you will have the tools required to communicate effectively.