Communication Improvement Plans

Communication Improvement Plans

Verbal Communication

I personally have struggles with verbal communication. I like to talk to people; however, I am also a bit shy. I often get flustered during communication and struggle not only to get my point across, but also to fully understand what is being said to me and to respond appropriately. My goal is to engage more comfortably and fluently in verbal communication. I can do this by further studying verbal communication and the ways in which it can be improved; I can then practice my new communication skills by talking with people. I will know that I have reached my verbal communication improvement goal when I can fluently converse with others without becoming flustered by my lack of communication skills. I spend most of my time with my co-workers as I work often. There is a specific co-worker who I have explained my communication struggles with, and we often laugh about it together. She is who will be holding me accountable to improve my communication skills.

In order to improve my communication skills I will need to fully understand the three meanings of verbal messages and how to get them across to my audience. The first is the semantic meaning- the meaning of a verbal message derived from the language itself. The second is the linguistic meaning- using language that respects others while avoiding language that offends. Finally, the third is the pragmatic meaning- meaning of a verbal message that arises from understanding the practical consequences of an utterance.

To improve my getting the semantic meaning of what I am saying across I can: use specific, concrete and precise language to improve message clarity, date information to specify when an utterance was true, index to qualify generalizations, adapt my language to my listeners, and demonstrate linguistic sensitivity. To improve getting the pragmatic meaning across I can: tell the complete truth, provide the right amount of information, relate what I am...