The average business professional’s day is spent in a meeting. Meetings are an organizational tool that allows us to develop and share ideas through verbal communication. Effective communication is key when trying to achieve a goal or run a meeting. A survey of 400 companies with 100,000 employees each cited an average per loss per company of $62.4 million per year because of inadequate communication between employees.
We are here to help you improve your meetings by improving your communication. Here are the seven most important guidelines that will aid you in having effective communication during your meetings.
1. Listen
Whether you are in a one on one meeting, interview, or team meeting, listening is key. Allowing yourself to see other people’s side of view Is imperative. You do not want your co-workers to feel like their input doesn’t matter.
Be sure not to talk over one another.
2. Preparations
Before calling a meeting, you should prepare what you’re going to say. This is best shared through a meeting agenda template. Having an agenda and a goal is the foundation of effective communication.
3. Emails
Use and check your email daily. If you’ve created a meeting agenda template before the meeting, you can send it out via email. This allowseverybody the opportunity to look over the agenda and compose questions and ideas prior to the meeting.
4. Images
Visual cues trigger the emotions of the viewer, meaning they are more than likely going to retain the information. It is often easier to put words with a picture. An example of this would be slide presentations Keep in mind that there is a “limit” for the number of images used.
5. Eye contact and body language
Be sure to make eye contact with the audience, along with good body language. Your body language will help you show that you are interested in new ideas. For those of you who are not fond of eye contact, avert from excessive eye contact if they appear to be uncomfortable.
6. Be Clear
Always give information backing up whatever you’re claiming. Be sure that everyone in the meeting understands what is being communicated. You do not want to leave anyone on the team in the dark. Short pauses are great in these types of situations. This gives people time to process and think of what is being said.
7. Be relaxed
Always try to balance the level of seriousness brought to work settings. Yes, the job is important, but in order for your workspace to flow smoothly, your co-workers need to feel comfortable around each other. A practice that’s helpful is including ice breakers. Questions like, “what did you think of the last meeting?” “how was your weekend?”
As you try these things out in your next meeting, take note of the improvement you see over time. If your results are satisfactory, tell a friend about these tips.
