Conversation Skills
An employee with expert technical skills, expertise and experience is considered valuable, whereas an employee with additional talents in conversation skills is an invaluable asset to the company. It is simply not enough in today’s job market to be good at what you do, you must also be able to communicate well with subordinates and authority and possess necessary skills in order to move towards next level within your career track. Your career growth is highly dependent on conversation skills. In fact, a person with less experience and fewer technical skills but who is adept at the art of conversation has a better chance of getting a promotion. Communication is the key to any personal relationship and your professional relationships are no exception to this rule. There is a great deal of value in working with a person who listens well, processes information and expresses clearly. Since conversation and language are the base means by which we all communicate, having excellent conversation skills is a must for any serious professional, no matter what your field of interest is. The art of conversation is only limited by your imagination.
Tips For Having Interesting And Meaningful Conversations
These days, we can communicate in many different ways. We are no longer confined to just the spoken word. Because of the conception of mail, the manner in which human beings communicate has grown by leaps and bounds. Today, the most common form of communication is done via the Internet. Email, blogging, chatting are only some of the many popular forms of communication. How then in this new technological world can a person still have interesting, meaningful, face-to-face conversations? Below are 4 easy tips to help any person have great and substantial conversations.
1. Be interesting
For your conversation to be interesting, you have to be interesting yourself. What does this mean? Being interesting is such a subjective thing. Well, actually, this is a simple thing to achieve. Being up-to-date is one way to be interesting. Everyone loves someone who has something substantial to say because he or she is aware of what is happening around the world. Watch TV, read the newspapers, keep abreast of current events. There are so many things going on around the world that are worth paying attention to. Another way to keep things interesting is to be involved. Join chat groups, or even face-to-face organizations. Stand up for something, even if it is just one or two things that you really feel passionate about. There is bound to be even a couple of items that you love. Or, if you know you are going to socialize, then be prepared. Make a mental list of the meaty things that can be discussed. Bottom line is, no one likes a hot air balloon. If you are going to talk to people, make sure you know what you are talking about.
2. Be confident
So look, you have done all this research. Perhaps you have even gone out of your way to know other things out of the ordinary. Take shelter or refuge in that. Since you know your stuff, chances are you will not go wrong. Opinions are neither wrong nor right anyway. You just have to confident that what you are discussing with the person or people is something that makes sense and is not just a spur of the moment insight without much research support.
3. Keep that smile on your face and on your voice
No one wants to converse at any length, much less have a meaningful conversation with someone who looks grumpy, irritated, or arrogant. Always keep positivism in mind. Remember that even if you aren’t thinking bad thoughts your resting face might not be very approachable or pleasant. One component of interesting and meaningful communication is enjoyment after all. And no one will enjoy the conversation if the person being conversed with is just not great to be around.If this is something difficult for you, then try practicing at home. Talk to yourself in the mirror with a smile on your face. You will be surprised how well this method works in making you a generally more pleasant person to approach and talk to.
4. Be interested
It comes full circle now. Just as you want to be interesting for people, they would like you to be interested as well. The surest way to make the conversation chemistry die is to look, act, and be uninterested in what the other person is saying. This may, at times, be difficult considering not everything a person wants to talk about is necessarily something you would enjoy listening to. But think of it this way, it goes both ways, but the other person was good enough to be attentive to you. A tip for how to make this an easier task is to focus on those things you know well in the conversation and relate to things you know. It is highly improbable that you will find absolutely nothing to comment on during the whole exchange.
So, just by looking at these four tips it is easy to see how anyone can have meaningful conversations. And the best part is, you don’t have to spend anything or exert too much effort to have great talks.
