Interpersonal Communications Basics - TCW Academy Course
Approximate time to complete course: 30 minutes
This course is ideal for:
- Professionals in all fields
- Communication professionals
- CEOs and Organizational Leaders
- Media Liaisons
Interpersonal communication is the process by which information, messaging, emotions, and meaning are exchanged between two people through verbal and non-verbal methods. It is face to face communication but it’s about much more than what is actually said – it’s about body language, facial expressions, hand gestures, tone of your voice, and other variables that influence the message that you are delivering.
Interpersonal communication is a large part of the foundation for everything else that you wish to accomplish. It’s not only professional communicators who must possess these skills but any person who interacts with others throughout the course of their day professionally or personally. By improving your interpersonal communication skills, you will be better able to engage in productive conversations, you will be more respected because you are an effective and attentive listener, and you will find that you will spend a lot less time correcting communication malfunctions that resulted in undesired outcomes.
It’s important to have foundational knowledge of the parts of interpersonal communication and ways we can leverage that knowledge so we may become more effective communicators in our personal and professional lives.
Parts of Interpersonal Communication
In this section, we will begin with a quick look at the communications cycle so we have an idea of how communication works and where it goes off-track and then we will dissect the various parts of the communication cycle so you may better understand the interpersonal communications process that is occurring each time you communicate with another person.
Types of Interpersonal Communication
Here, we will explore the three types of interpersonal communication: verbal communication, non-verbal communication, and visual communication. You will gain a full understanding of the skills to make sure you are an effective interpersonal communicator no matter your role in the organization.
Improve Interpersonal Communication
This final section will describe in detail eight ways to improve your interpersonal communication skills.
In this course, you will:
- Explore the factors and variables that make up interpersonal communication,
- Understand the primary types of interpersonal communications, and
- Learn ways to improve your interpersonal communication skills.
Additional Resources
Who Is On My Organization’s Crisis Communications Team?
Your organization’s crisis communications team is possibly the most important collection of people who will navigate every emergency and crisis your organization experiences. These folks are not only the conduit to your critical stakeholders, often they are the gatekeepers and evaluators of risk and decisions. They serve as the organization’s central core and coordinate the decisions and actions of other staff.
A very large organization likely has a sizable communications team to fulfill the responsibilities of a crisis communications team. However, your organization may have a communications team of one or just a handful of employees.
The question you must consider is how do you create an effective crisis communications team with people who are not professional communicators?
Don’t do THIS with Reporters – 4 Don’ts for Media Relations
Some days, media relations is exhilarating, and some days it is quite a chore. Any seasoned media relations professional or senior management staff in an organization dreads the phone call or email from a reporter asking for comment on a story you would prefer they not do.
But the fact of the matter is they are likely not going away. You’re going to have to talk to them.
Here, we will share the four don’ts.
A Complaint Management System to Turn a Critic Into an Advocate
Every organization has their critics and must have a complaint management plan to prevent a critic from becoming a crisis.
Sometimes, criticism is warranted. But if we’re being honest, organizations don’t always receive complaints that are warranted, or even sane.
But whether or not we believe a complaint (or the complainer) to be reasonable and rational, we must come to an internal agreement in our organization on a complaint management system. Use these 10 keys to develop and implement an effective complaint management system to turn a critic into an advocate.
Communication is NOT My Job
Many professionals believe that communication should be left to the communicators – those hired for that role or who naturally excel in communication. You may be reading this because you have come to a similar conclusion and the headline caught your attention.
Communication is most definitely your job. It does not matter if you are a CEO, customer service representative, bus driver, budget analyst, or public relations manager – you are a communicator.
Reporters are Looking for a Sensational Story – Are You Providing One?
As outrage continues to accelerate in today’s society, media are constantly seeking the next sensational story to attract viewers and sell ads.
Though positive media stories serve to benefit your organization, sensational stories are about them – not you. They are about stirring controversy; latching on to social media trends; selling ads.
The best way to avoid being the centerpiece of a sensational story by the news media is to evaluate your organization and the ways your leadership and employees are engaging publicly.
10 Ways to Influence People
Dale Carnegie literally wrote the book on influence with, How to Win Friends and Influence People, originally published in 1936.
Rather than summarize the contents of his book, we will provide insights from lessons learned by decades of our own experiences. Of course, a quick cross-reference with Carnegie’s book finds several overlaps because much of his book aligns to our experiences.
Take the tips detailed here and find ways to integrate them into your work. Whether you are the CEO or an entry-level employee, the ability to influence people will serve you very well.
