Improving Communication Skills through Targeted Practice

Abstract

Performance Would Like to Improve Performance: I would like to improve my communication skill to enhance effective communication in any conversation. I plan to measure my interpersonal skills that allow communicators to communicate effectively through practicing traits like active listening and empathy, maintaining eye contact, and being considerate of body language in any conversation. I wish to practice and measure communication/interpersonal skills using a conversation with five different people in two weeks. I will draft my performance indicator that will best address my performance ability through a simple scale questionnaire and record my performance after every conversation. Rating performance: Five-point Scale ranging from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree Questionnaire: 1. Did I maintain eye contact during my last five communications? 2. Did I listen during the conversation? 3. Did I exercise empathy? 4. Did I consider body language? 5. Did I communicate my message as intended? Plan: I wish to formulate a simple topic to address with the five different people at my workplace. I will complete my questionnaire through sincere ratings after every conversation. Such outcomes will enable me to understand my communication and interpersonal skills clearly. I believe in my inabilities to enhance an effective conversation; thus, with the five communication experiences, I will incorporate goal setting and positive attitude as the primary mental skills/tools that will improve my area of consideration. I wish to practice positive self-talk, attitude, and goal setting for two weeks while engaging in communication with my selected five characters, then reassess my communication/interpersonal skill performances/ability. According to Patel (2019), there are many ways to improve one's communication skills, with listening and understanding/using body language among the basics. To this effect, the need to focus on my ability to engage and maintain a conversation by exercising active listening, having a topic to...