Business Series - The Power of a Positive Environment

Vocation Series - Values

People are the Heart of your business - learn why ...

Vocation Series - Do you know how you spend your time?

Vocation Series - Part 1

Business Series Part 1

Video Series Overview - Business and Vocation

The Ripple Effect of Communication

Have you ever thought about the ripple effect of communication – what type of ripple are you sending out when you communicate? What effect does your pebble have when you drop it in the pond?

One of the things I have learnt in my many years leading teams is that there are different styles of communication. People wanting to communicate a need to get something done communicate on a scale from very direct to very indirect. There is a range of styles and often when people are communicating in different styles they tend to misinterpret or talk past each other.

Take for example a couple at home and one is communicating to the other about the need to get some milk. A very informative or indirect person (who is seeking buy in) might say “we are out of milk” and a very direct person (who is all about issuing directives and timely-task accomplishment) would say “get some milk”. When you look at these two extremes you can see the possibility for problems. The indirect person may find the direct person incredibly bossy and impolite and the direct person might find the indirect person way to vague and manipulative (“why don’t they just say what they mean?”).

So when thinking about the communication going on in your workplace - could there be a mismatch in styles? If you are thinking about your workplace- what is your style of communication? Are you more direct or more informing? What are your colleagues or your team members’ styles?  Have you ever found out how your communication style is received/viewed by others? Most of us have heard the adage “message received is message perceived” – so what are people taking from your communication style?

We believe communication is the life blood of an organisation and we also believe it’s the lifeblood of a good healthy relationship – personal or professional. Many times when coaching people we have come across what is merely a mis-communication that has ended up ruining a relationship or creating huge stress in the business.

Of course communication is far more than the words we use, it’s the tone, the body language, the eye movement – in fact the current thinking suggests that up to 95% of what we communicate is not the words we use but in the delivery tone, body language and energy we are giving out.

If you do use a more direct form of communication you could be implying a relationship of “one-up” or in other words you do what I tell you to do because I am the boss, the parent etc. This may be appropriate but there may be opportunities even in those relationships to communicate in more of an informing way that implies a relationship of equality! Of course the informing style can also communicate to someone that you know more than I do or I have no power in this situation.

If you do spend time reflecting on your natural style of communication – don’t confuse the relationship-defining aspects of your role(s) with what comes naturally for you as a person.

To become really good at communicating a message the use of storytelling can be incredibly powerful. Our ancestors used verbal storytelling to pass down the stories, myths, and legends and to teach others the way of their tribes. Look for more on storytelling in one of our future newsletters.

Want to read more? Some good references you can read to gain a deeper understanding of communication are

Understanding yourself and others: An Introduction to Interaction Styles, Linda Berens

How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie

Vibrational Medicine

Did you know that the current practice of medicine is based upon the Newtonian model of reality. This model is primarily a viewpoint which sees the world as an intricate mechanism or a type of grand machine which is controlled by the brain and peripheral nervous system. More and more now however Vibrational Medicince is becoming more widely accepted which is in line with the Einsteinian paradigm and sees human beings as networks of complex energy fields that interface with physical/cellular systems. Vibrational Medicine uses specialised forms of energy to positively affect those energetic systems that may be out of balance due to disease states. (Extract taken from Vibrational Medicine - Richard Gerber, M.D, 2001, Vermont, Bear & Company)

Our Cells remember everything!

Did you know that every one of the trillions of cells that make up your body remembers and stores the memory of every event, feeling, or thought you' ve experienced? There is now a tonne of scientific research that shows this. How we interact with our environment every day and how we let it interact with us has a major impact on us. Remember you have a choice about how you want to see the world and we reccomend it be with lots of love and joy at what's possible!