Effective Communication Skills: Why is it Essential for a Startup Founder?

“The art of communication is the language of leadership”. -James Humes

Effective Communication plays a vital role for a startup founder. It helps you to make a good connection with your team & provides you with good results. However, it is quite difficult for a founder to invest time in developing their communication skills.

Are you a startup founder?

Are you finding ways to enhance your communication skills?

This article will make your job easy by providing you with all the information about effective communication.

Let’s get straight into the topic & first learn what are effective communication skills.

What are Effective Communication Skills?

The process of swapping thoughts, data, & opinions is known as effective communication. Effective communication is not only about swapping thoughts & providing information rather it helps you to understand the emotions behind the thoughts.

Effective communication satisfies both the sender & the receiver.

Do you know how communication, can be effective?

The 5 C’s of communication makes it effective. It helps to give a clear and correct message to your team members.

Neil Mody, the CEO, and Co-Founder of Headliner sold his first startup, “nRelate.” He fails to find a solution to this problem. After a few days, he realized “effective communication is the key to success”. To communicate better, faster, and more clearly with the stakeholders and consumers, he came up with the new technology “SpareMin” which turns audio into social video.

Why Effective Communication Skills are Crucial?

Effective communication is crucial because it helps you to improve your problem-solving skills & motivates you. It creates consistency in the workflow & enables you to develop your presentation skills.

For sharing information among the stakeholders, clients, team members & customers a founder needs to pay attention to their communication skills.

Effective communication skills help you to apprehend every piece of information more accurately. Whereas poor communication skills create frustration & misconceptions.

Suppose your vision is clear, and you have come up with the best solutions, but if you lack behind in communicating your thoughts to your team it can create misunderstandings.

Effective communication resolves disagreements & creates a positive work environment. A good founder will always detect when communications are going wrong. They will also find different steps to enhance their communication.

9 Easy Steps to Enrich Communication Skills

In today’s business environment, effective communication is the most essential skill that every startup founder should inherit. So, to enrich your communication skills these 9 easy steps will help you.

1. Master Your Body Language

Based on the research, it was found that 55% of the audience understands a presenter based on nonverbal communication. For example, the body language experts reveal that Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook CEO nailed it with his body language. His body language presents him as a great leader to others.

So what is non-verbal communication?

Non-verbal communication means transferring messages to one another through gestures & postures. To communicate confidently, it is necessary to master your body language.

Here, how to master your body language?

These eight tips will help you to master your body language. The tips are as follows:

• Sit straight with your head held high.
• Do not make small movements like moving your hands & feet.
• Maintain eye contact.
• Avoid micro-expressions
• Walk with confidence and energy.
• Imitate the gesture of the person you are speaking to. It shows agreement and admiration.
• Give a great handshake. It is the most powerful body language.
• Smile while communicating.

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2. Understand Your Audience:

To communicate effectively, you have to keep your audience in mind. If you can understand your audience perfectly, you can deliver your speech according to their interests and understanding. Now you are wondering how can you understand your audience perfectly.

Therefore, the 4 quick tips will help you to understand your audience.

• Make a list of your audience including your peers.
• Try to think from your audience’s perspective.
• Make sure to deliver the core messages.
• Try to tell a story that your audience might relate to. It will create an immense impact on your startup.

3. Listen Attentively:

Before being a good communicator, be an active listener. Do not distract yourself while listening to others. Listen carefully and then respond.

Engage yourself with the person. Ask questions so that the person to whom you are communicating will know that you are listening attentively. It helps you to build trust and resolve conflicts with whom you are communicating. Remember to respond instead of reacting.

4. Plan & Practice before Communicating

“Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect”. -Vince Lombardi

Every time it is not possible to get the opportunity to plan and practice. But whenever you will get the chance it is compulsory to practice. Identify the key points that you are going to present. While communicating, remember the key points to make your communication effective.

5. Avoid Filler Words:

What are filler words?

Filler words are short phrases like “um’s” & “uh’s”. Filler words create a lack of confidence. It develops anxiety while communicating. To avoid filler words, these powerful tips will help you.

• Speak slowly.
• Embrace pause while communicating.
• Practice your speech in front of your friends or peers.
• Enhance your vocabulary.

6. Focus on Tone:

The tone is one of the most vital factors in enhancing your communication skills. Tone adds passion and energy to the message which you want to say.

While writing, tone can be easier to control. But while communicating sometimes it is difficult to control. So, to control your tone keep yourself calm & communicate in a soft voice. It will also create goodwill and trust.

7. Use Appropriate Words:

Try to use appropriate words. If you are not aware of the meaning of a particular word, don’t use it. Try to learn new words with the help of a dictionary. While communicating, use those words.

Do you know why appropriate words are crucial? Because it defines your communication skills and attitude. Whereas using inappropriate words creates an unfriendly and non-credibility work environment.

8. Use Right Pitch:

While communicating, use the right pitch. Identify which volume is right for the setting. If a person is sitting very close to you speak softly. Whereas if you are in a meeting or delivering any presentation with a large group speak louder.

9. Try to Manage Emotions:

While communicating, keep your emotions in check. It is very difficult to manage emotions. But it can be solved in a few steps.

• Take a deep breath.
• Spend some time alone before communicating. It will help you to communicate confidently.
• Repeat a phrase that will help you to remain calm. Some examples like: “This is about the business” or “This will Pass”.
• Be conscious of your feelings. A 3–5 minute meditation will help you to be conscious.

Final Thoughts:

“Good Communication is the bridge between confusion and clarity”. -Nat Turner

As a startup founder, effective communication will make your job easier. It helps to build a strong and healthy relationship with your team members as well as customers.

These nine easy steps and a deep understanding of effective communication will help you to enhance your startup. Therefore, start applying these steps and enhance your communication.

-Moyuri Shaw

Content Writer NxtDecade

She is a detail-oriented & self-motivated person.