Communication is essential to your business.

by David Brown – Potentiality Coaching 

Communication is about conveying ideas simply so that people can easily understand and make informed decisions, yet it never ceases to amaze me that when we talk about our businesses to fellow business people as well as possible clients, we use jargon and industry specific phrases that often mean nothing to the person we are talking to.

One of the keys skills in communicating is listening.

There are three different levels of listening:

Level 1 is your own internal dialogue.
Level 2 is listening to the other person, fully, deeply and clearly, so that your full attention is on the other person, not just their words, but also the flavor and meaning beneath the words, movements, gestures, posture and energy.
Level 3 listening is taking all of that in as well as the feel of the room, the ambience, the noises and all that is happening in the environment around you.

Start by listening to your own internal dialogue, processes and feelings, then move on to the other levels.
Think about what your prospective clients are hearing when you speak.

Are they truly hearing what you are hoping to communicate?

Do your words mean to them what they mean to you?
Do they understand what you are about?
Will they walk away from the conversation aware of what your services offer and what it would mean to them if they took advantage of your hard- won wisdom, continual professional development, passion for your industry and willingness to use it to change people’s lives for the better?[pullquote]Let’s not settle for the glazed look we all sometimes get when we speak about our businesses[/pullquote]

Listen to what they are saying to you (level 2).

They are speaking the language of your next great client .
Learn to put yourself in their shoes and see their eyes light up when they understand what you do and how it can help them.
Let’s not settle for the glazed look we all sometimes get when we speak about our businesses. I believe this is the look of not understanding, followed by boredom. You want to see the lights go on in their eyes and have them be excited about what you do.

So please promote your business from this level 2 and 3 listening rather than through the lens of your own perspective (level 1).

I believe it will make a huge difference to the way people relate to you and your business and make you stand out in your industry as someone who relates to their clients and really serves their clients’ needs.

And that can’t be a bad thing for business, can it?