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What do you need to be the best communicator possible? By now you may have read my other postings and better understand the process of communication. I have discussed the complexities of the communication process that are due to the individual internal processes, expectations, and needs that we all have. The sender may start with a certain idea, thought, or have information they would like to convey; however, by the time that it arrives as a message, then processed and acted upon; it may turn out to be something very different. You as the sender may believe you are going to send a message with a very specific outcome, only to find that your message is lost or misinterpreted.

So what can you do to ensure that your message is heard in the way that you want for it to be heard, and to ensure that the outcome is what you are seeking? How do you go beyond breakthrough communication, getting past the self-awareness of your own personality characteristics, and breakout your communication so that it connects with your receiver or your intended audience? That is what I would like to talk about now.
The key to breakout communication I have already given away in the previous paragraph, with the word connection. You simply must find a way to connect with your receivers needs or their heart or their mind or at the very least, their interests. If you are approaching the receiver with a communication message, they may not start with a specific need, so you will have the immediate advantage. Their only inherent need may be a need for respect, a need to be treated with professionalism or courtesy, and so on. If you really want to connect with the receiver, to ensure that your communication message is heard and that the breakthrough and breakout moment will occur, you need to connect with that receiver. You can do this by engaging the receiver or listener. The easiest way to engage the receiver is to show how your message relates to them, relates to a potential need that they may have, or relates to an interest that they may have as well. If you want to breakthrough and breakout with your communication, you must find a way to connect; otherwise, your communication message is going to get lost in a variety of internal filters and processes. This ability to connect will help you to sustain interest and hold your communication message while you guide it through the intended outcome or goal. There again is another reason for taking time to plan your important communications prior to actually conducting them.

Other factors that can help you achieve the breakout status in your communication include your choice of words (excluding jargon), avoidance of talking up or down to the receiver, avoidance of exaggeration and generalization, and the follow up interaction you have with the receiver. We can start with your choice of words. Remember when you are in the workplace that there are three common forms of communication and they include employee-to-employee, employee to manager, and employee to customer. Your choice of words should be as important as the message you want to convey as your words can convey meaning and emotion, and those words will either gain a connection with your receiver or cause them to lose interest. This is especially true if you are communicating with a customer and you are using technical business jargon that the customer cannot understand. It is very easy to use jargon in the workplace everyday without stopping to think about those outside of the workplace not understanding you, which could explain the blank look you may get at times when explaining your job to friends who are not familiar with the industry that you work in.
When talking down to someone, I am referring to the point in the communication process when you allow a negative perception, opinion, prejudice, or bias to influence how you act or react. If you want to achieve the breakout communication status, it is important to remain neutral and not controlled by these many internal filters or processes. You can utilize the internal processes as self-checks, to help you clarify what you are thinking and feeling, and to help you determine what additional information you may need.

Talking up is a different barrier to breakout communication. When you are talking up to someone in the communication process, you are putting yourself down in an attempt to make the other person feel good or to win their respect. There are times that self-deprecating humor is appropriate; however, more often than not this style of communication appears to be an act of desperation and is quickly viewed this way by the receiver.
Exaggeration and generalization are additional barriers that you can avoid in order to achieve breakout communication. Exaggeration takes the form of being dishonest, using gossip, overstating the facts, and distorting the truth. While exaggeration may cause you to gain small steps in the communication process, the long-term effect can be damaging, especially when the receiver learns of the exaggeration. Generalization is often employed when the speaker wants to cover a deficit in knowledge or facts without acknowledging this to the receiver. The problem with generalization is that it may give the appearance of being vague, of avoiding commitment, or worse, giving the brush off.

Finally, the follow-up interaction that you have with the receiver is the key to achieving breakout communication. When you are the sender of a communication message, you know the intent, the meaning, and the desired outcome of your message. After you deliver or communicate your message, you may not immediately know the outcome. This is why follow-up interaction is necessary and it does not have to be a complicated process. You can start with a quick follow-up phone call or email message that asks a question. Always start your call or email with a reminder of the initial communication and express your sincerity for their time. There are two types of questions that you can ask, open-ended questions and direct questions. With open-ended questions, you allow the receiver to explain and expand upon their answers, whereas with direction questions you are asking questions that generally require only a yes or no response.

By conducting a follow-up interaction to your original communication, you will be able to determine if the outcome of the message was what you had planned. If it wasnt, you can plan the next step to take or additional communication necessary to correct or supplement your original message. This is all part of connecting with the receiver, which is the key to achieving breakout communication.