Communication skills are abilities you use when giving and receiving different kinds of information.

While these skills may be a regular part of your day-to-day work life, communicating in a clear,
effective and efficient way is an extremely critical and useful skill. Learning from great communicators
around you and actively practicing ways to improve your communications over time can certainly
support your efforts to achieve various personal and professional goals.
Communication skills involve listening, speaking, observing and empathizing. It's also helpful to
understand the differences in how to communicate through face-to-face interactions, phone
conversations and digital communications, like email and social media.
There are four main types of communication you might use on a daily basis, including:

1. Verbal: Communicating by way of a spoken language

2. Nonverbal: Communicating through body language, facial expressions and tone
3. Written: Communicating with written language, symbols and numbers
4. Visual: Communication by way of photography, art, drawings, sketches, charts and graphs

Top 10 communication skills

Active listening
Active listening, sometimes called appreciative listening or mindful listening, means paying close
attention to who you're communicating with by engaging with them, asking questions and rephrasing.
Practicing active listening can build respect with your colleagues and increase understanding in the
workplace. As you actively listen, focus on the speaker and avoid distractions like cell phones and
laptops.
Improve your active listening skills by paying attention to other people's facial expressions, body
language and tone of voice. Instead of preparing what you plan to say next, focus on what the other
person is saying and how they're speaking. If you want to clarify something, ask follow-up questions
or rephrase what they've said to confirm that you understood them correctly.
A: You know what, I really like to tell our supervisor that I really like to leave before the eid’l fitr
considering the fact our home is far from this city.
B: Oh my poor friend, why not have a guts to tell him. Surely, he’ll understand you.
: Oh yeah! I like Ice creams too! Let’s go let’s buy some!

Using the right communication method

Using the right way to communicate is an important skill. There are benefits and disadvantages to
communicating through emails, letters, phone calls, in-person meetings or instant messages.
Communicating is better when you consider your audience, what information you want to share and
the best way to share it.
For example, if you're communicating with a potential employer, it may be better to send a formal
email or call them on the phone. In the workplace, you may find it easier to communicate complex
information in person or via a video conference than by email. Building remote workplace friendships
is easier when you can communicate through instant messages.
*You’re going to confront your colleague about his overlapping lipstick, what method would you use?
:Excuse yourself and chat her through messenger about her lipstick.
:Give her wet wipes and tell her about it.

Friendliness
Friendly traits like honesty and kindness can help foster trust and understanding when
communicating at work. Try to communicate with a positive attitude, keep an open mind and ask
questions to help you understand where they're coming from. Small gestures such as asking
someone how they're doing, smiling as they speak or offering praise for work well done can help you
foster productive relationships with colleagues and managers.
You can practice friendliness by remembering small, thoughtful details about your colleagues or past
conversations. For example, if a colleague tells you their child's birthday is soon and you connect with
them again later, you might ask them how the birthday party went.
*It's your workmate’s birthday and you know it.
:Hello! Happy birthday! You really look good today. You are indeed blessed with a timeless beauty!
:Hello! Good morning! So what’s your plan with your birthday today? For sure you have money
intended for celebration. Just don’t forget the 500 pesos you borrowed last week.

Confidence
In the workplace, people are more likely to respond to ideas that are presented with confidence.
There are many ways to appear confident, including by making eye contact when you're addressing
someone, sitting up straight with your shoulders open and preparing ahead of time so your thoughts
are clear and you're able to answer any questions. Confident communication is useful not just on the
job but also during the job interview process. Additionally, to display confidence, avoid adding filler
words.
*You are asked by boss to present your accomplishment.
: Good morning, Sir. Um… today I will be showing you uhh… the accomplishment of our you know..
:Good morning, Sir. Today, I will be showing you the accomplishment of our project from January to
May 2024. Let’s start with the successful interventions that made our project improved a lot.

Sharing feedback
The key to effective feedback is sharing specific examples of the issue, and the consequences of the
issue and asking questions to formulate solutions to the issues. Strong communicators can accept
constructive feedback and provide constructive input to others. Feedback can answer questions,
provide solutions or help strengthen the project or topic at hand. Providing and accepting feedback is
an essential workplace skill, as it can help both you and the people around you make meaningful
improvements to their work and their professional development.
A great way to learn how to give feedback is to take notes from others on the feedback they offer you.
When you come across a well-explained piece of feedback, take some time to observe and analyze
why it was good, why it resonated with you and how you might apply those skills in the future.

Volume and tone

When you're speaking, be clear and audible. Adjusting your speaking voice so others can hear you in
a variety of settings is a skill, and it's critical to communicating effectively. Speaking too loudly may be
disrespectful or awkward in certain settings. If you're unsure, read the room to see how others are
communicating.
Another aspect of verbal communication is vocals and tonality. This involves how your tone moves up
and down, your pitch, which words you place emphasis and the pauses you place between phrases.
Such details can be effective in communicating emotions and offer your audience insights into how
others interpret your message.

Empathy
Having empathy means that you can not only understand but also share in the emotions of others.
This communication skill is important in both team and one-on-one settings. In both cases, you
attempt to effectively read and translate other people's emotions and select an appropriate response.
For example, if someone is expressing anger or frustration, empathy can help you acknowledge and
diffuse their emotion. At the same time, being able to understand when someone is feeling positive
and enthusiastic can help you get support for your ideas and projects.

Respect
A key aspect of respect is knowing when to initiate communication and respond. In a team or group
setting, allowing others to speak without interruption is seen as a necessary communication skill tied
to respectfulness. Respectfully communicating also means using your time with someone else wisely
—staying on topic, asking clear questions and responding fully to any questions they've asked you.

Nonverbal cues
Some amount of communication happens through nonverbal cues such as body language, facial
expressions and eye contact. When you're listening to someone, you may choose to attention to what
they're saying and their nonverbal language. It's essential to not judge others based on their body
language, as not all people display the same physical gestures due to cultural or ability differences.

Responsiveness
Whether you're returning a phone call or sending a reply to an email, employers often view fast
communicators as more effective than those who are slow to respond. One method is to consider
how long your response takes. Is this a request or question you can answer in the next five minutes?
If so, it may be a good idea to address it as soon as you see it. If it's a more complex request or
question, you can still acknowledge that you've received the message and let the other person know
you're going to respond in full later.