It is important to recognise some misconceptions about communication.
- Communication does not always require complete understanding; sometimes we just need to acknowledge what is happening to the other person.
- No single person or event causes another’s reaction. Many factors play a role in how others will react to your communication in a single situation.
- Communication will not solve all problems.
- Meanings rest in people, not words. It’s a mistake to think that just because you use a word in one way, others will do so too.
- Communication is not simple. Most people assume that communication is an aptitude that people develop without the need for training – rather like breathing. To communicate professionally you need training and practice.
- More communication is not always better. Although it’s certainly true that not communicating enough is a mistake, there are also situations when too much communication is a mistake. Sometimes excessive communication simply is unproductive, as when we ‘talk a problem to death’, or ‘go over the same ground again and again without making any headway’. And there are times when communicating too much can actually aggravate a problem (Adler et al., 2014).
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