Effective communicators, sales people, leaders, negotiators, moderators, facilitators and managers use key competencies to fully develop the business, the corporation, customer relations or people with whom they work. Communication is essential in any type of business venture or social situation.
Over the past quarter of a century, we have worked with thousands of individuals to help develop their communication efficiency. In addition, we helped corporations build competency models to ensure optimal coaching and development of their people. We understand that values are at the core of every individual’s effort yet, we have learned that however we slice it, there are four core competencies that almost invariably lead to increased success when used in congruence with each other.
When we ask top performers what makes them successful they say that:
- they work diligently
- they learn every day to be better
- they value their role
- they are curious and open to possibilities
- they accept differences
- everything fits nicely in their core values system
We often ask participants and clients to find descriptive words they can associate to the people that have had a significant impact in their life, people that have been inspiring. Why not ask you to do the same at this point? Think about people that, in your opinion, have been highly successful in their job or in their profession. What can you say about their attitude, their outlook and their perspective on their daily activities?
Thinking about the question we just asked, you may realize that most of what you imagined can find a place in the following categories.
A first category is that of Values. Values influence everything we do. For example if you value honesty, you tend act accordingly, and you are sensitive to how others express honesty. You tend to also expect it from others. Honesty influences how you choose products, services or how you react to various approaches from either salespeople or organizations that provide you with a service. If you value hard work and dedication, you may frown upon certain people’s attitude to accomplish as little as possible or do the minimum of what is required of them. Our values come from a variety of sources and remain, always, at the center of all your actions, decisions and feelings.
A second category is Accountability. It represents your perspective on the role you have to play in your professional life. Roles evolve, they change with time and circumstances. As such, each person in a specific role must be accountable to not only accept the changes but also embrace such changes. Successful individuals accept their responsibility to evolve with circumstances and take upon themselves to grow with the changing environment. People must also be accountable for their own well being and therefore take the necessary actions to ensure that they manage expectations from all sides to ensure their sanity, good health, and overall productivity. In short, they take care of themselves.
The next category addresses the ability to adapt to the changing environment, circumstances and people. It implies that a person will seek to understand how a customer or any other stakeholder thinks or sees the world. Adaptability is the ability and willingness to look at any situation and figure out the optimal way to handle it. An adaptable person recognizes that stakeholders have different perspectives and are self-motivated in various manners. That recognition, because these people are also accountable, leads to changes or adjustments in the way they approach people in various situations to make the best out of each situation.
So far it has been established that values are at the center of our activities. They influence how we perceive our accountability to evolve with our role and adapt to changing situations. The third element we must take into account is knowledge. It represents the accumulation of factual data on products and services as well as the business environment, the realities of key stakeholders, and the corporate strategies among other aspects. Knowledge is accumulated to ensure that actions and reactions are founded on solid ground. Knowledge also ensures that a person will be able to realistically assess their products, services or situations and put them in a fair, balanced and productive perspective. As outlined with accountability, each person must also develop a knowledge of themselves to properly recognize their state of body and mind to then better manage their output.
The final element that influences our ability to be an excellent communicator is curiosity. It is the ability and attitude that help a person seek knowledge to better understand the situations in which they must accomplish their responsibilities. It is expressed by asking questions to build their knowledge base and allow them to adapt to their environment.
So, if you decided to complete the short exercise we proposed above: Think about people that, in your opinion, have been highly successful in their job or in their profession. What can you say about their attitude, their outlook and their perspective on their daily activities? How much of what you listed fits into Accountability, Adaptability, Knowledge and Curiosity?
Truly productive individuals are able to find an optimal balance between their values, and around those values, the competencies of being Accountable, Adaptable, building Knowledge and Curiosity. It is the congruence between those four competencies centered on Values that make people efficient or productive. It is important to understand that each of those four competencies must be in congruence with the others. For example it is not feasible to overcompensate with a steadfast conviction that one knows everything about a situation (knowledge) if they do not accept that the individuals they aim to convince may have different needs or perceptions (adaptability).
WHAT THIS MEANS AT ASERET
This Communication Mindset model is at the base of most of the programs we offer. Why? Because the majority of programs involve effective communication. Selling is communicating. Convincing is communicating. Negotiating is communicating. Presenting or facilitating is communicating. Leadership is highly dependent on effective communication. The mindset is the foundational concept around which we build specific tools to help participants develop their ability to convince, influence, coach and foster a productive environment.
Video that explains how the four (4) competencies include other competencies and why the four we have selected cover every aspect of effective communication.